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JULY 2015 C YCLEWORLD.COM
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Ducati Testastretta DVT Engine | Ducati Skyhook EVO Suspension |
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Whether navigating the urban jungle, connecting corners along
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Standard Equipment for the Multistrada 1200 S:
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CYCLEWORLD.COM 5
SINCE 1962
JULY 2015 VOL. 54 NO. 7
TESTS
42. 2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1
Yamaha puts Japan back in contention against its Euro rivals.By
Blake Conner
74. LONG-TERM WRAP-UP
We say goodbye to our Yamaha FZ-09, which leaves as a better
bike than when it arrived.By Mark Hoyer
FEATURES
56. MOTOCROSS MEMORIES
Ten of our favorite bikes from Tom Whites Early Years of
Motocross private museum.By Andrew Bornhop
66. ARCH KRGT-1
Keanu Reeves latest project has nothing to do with film, but
billet aluminum is in abundance.By Brian Catterson
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6 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
84HRC DOMINANCE
14. FIRST RIDE:
APRILIA RSV4 RF
V-4 Superbike gets more potent.
By Thomas Montano
20. FIRST RIDE:
APRILIA TUONO V4
1100
Big-bore Tuono. By Thomas Montano
22. VICTORY MAGNUM X-1
Sound machine. By Peter Jones
24. BENELLI BN302
Italian/Chinese sporty-bike.
By Bruno dePrato
IGNITION
EVALUATION
DEPARTMENTS
RACE WATCHCOLUMNS
32. SENA 20S
Trick Bluetooth communications system.
By Mark Hoyer
84. POWERED BY HRC
How Hondas racing division dominates.
By Kevin Cameron
12. INTAKE
80. SERVICE
92. SHOWCASE
98. SLIPSTREAM
FOLLOW US ON TWITTER ornm10 facebook.com/cycleworldLIKE US ON
FACEBOOK ornm10follow us @CycleWorldMag
10. UP FRONT:
EBR RIP? HOPE NOT
By Mark Hoyer
36. WANDERING EYE:
THE RECENTLY
UNDEAD
By Paul DOrleans
38. TDC:
SOLUTIONS
By Kevin Cameron
Harley-Davidson has a new boss. See our interview with
President & CEO Matt Levatich on cycleworld.com.
ON THE COVER
The potent 2015 Yamaha YZF-R1. Photo by Jeff Allen.
28. YAMAHA 03GEN
CONCEPTS
Wild-looking three-wheel people movers.
By Bruno dePrato
30. GEAR
Five items meant to be appreciated in the dirt.
By Blake Conner
34. RIDE SMART
Train your passenger to go with the flow and youll both enjoy
the ride more.
By John L. Stein O N L I N E T H I S M O N T H
PHOTO BY ANDREW WHEELER
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Lis
ted c
ove
rages
are
pro
vided b
ase
d o
n w
heth
er
Com
pre
hensi
ve a
nd C
ollis
ion C
ove
rages
are
purc
hase
d. D
eta
ils
of co
vera
ges
or
lim
its
may
vary
by
state
. All c
ove
rages
are
subje
ct to the term
s, p
rovi
sions,
exc
lusi
ons
and c
onditio
ns
in the p
olicy
and a
ny
endors
em
ents
.Sta
te F
arm
Mutu
al Auto
mobile Insu
rance
Com
pany
S
tate
Farm
Indem
nity
Com
pany
B
loom
ingto
n, IL
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EDITORIAL
EDITORINCHIEF MARK HOYER
EXECUTIVE EDITOR, DIGITAL ANDREW BORNHOP
TECHNICAL EDITOR KEVIN CAMERON
SENIOR EDITOR BLAKE CONNER
ROAD TEST EDITOR DON CANET
ASSOCIATE EDITOR MARK CERNICKY
EDITOR-AT-LARGE PETER EGAN
CUSTOM & STYLE EDITOR PAUL DORLEANS
CONTRIBUTING EDITORS MATTHEW MILES, PAUL DEAN, RYAN DUDEK, ALLAN
GIRDLER,
NICK IENATSCH, GARY INMAN, PETER JONES, JOHN L. STEIN, STEVEN L.
THOMPSON
EUROPEAN EDITOR BRUNO DEPRATO
WEB PRODUCER ALAN TAKUSHI
MANAGING EDITOR TERRY MASAOKA
COPY EDITOR JESSICA MATTESON
ART
ART DIRECTOR LAURA MILTON
PHOTO AND VIDEO SERVICES
PHOTOGRAPHER JEFF ALLEN
VIDEO PRODUCER SPENSER ROBERT
ASSOCIATE VIDEO PRODUCER STEPHEN POTTER
CONTRIBUTORS
PHOTOGRAPHY BARRY HATHAWAY, DREW RUIZ,
GUY SPANGENBERG, MARK WERNHAM, ANDREW WHEELER
ILLUSTRATION HECTOR CADEMARTORI, JIM HATCH, RYAN INZANA, MORGAN
SCHWEITZER
ADVERTISING
VICE PRESIDENT, GROUP PUBLISHER ANDREW LEISNER
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER, ADVERTISING DIRECTOR LIBBY VEVERS
ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER, MARKETING GARRETT KAI
FINANCIAL DIRECTOR TARA BISCIELLO
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ANDERSON
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GENERAL COUNSEL JEREMY THOMPSON
CYCLEWORLD.COM
CYCLE WORLD (ISSN 0011-4286, USPS 571-310), JULY 2015, Volume
#54, Issue #7 is published monthly by Bonnier Corporation, 2 Park
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10 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
T H I S
M O N T H S
STAT S
Unfathomably, Erik Buell had to gather his 120-plus workers this
past April and tell them to go home. It was
the second time I was at an all-company meeting that ended in
tears, a former employee said.
And so closed the doors at Erik Buell Racings East Troy,
Wisconsin, factory.
The reborn American sportbike manufacturer had clawed back after
Harley-Davidsons 2009 closure of Buell Motorcycles in the same
facility EBR occupies today. Initial funding for the founding of
EBR was procured domestically, alongside Erik Buells own
investment, but the biggest boost came when Indias Hero MotoCorp
bought 49.2 percent of the company for $25 million in July
2013.
With Heros funding, EBR made exceptional progress on the 1190RX
superbike with limited time, resources, and personnel, speeding the
bike into production for the 2014 model year. It was followed by
the 1190SX naked bike. Forthcoming machines included the AX
adventure bike and much more, Erik Buell said by phone after the
shutdown. Weve been working on the mainstream stuff, he said. I
cant talk about what was coming, but I will say some of it is much
different than anybody would have expected. Stuff that is 18 months
away from full-volume production that people would go, Holy st! EBR
did that?! It was all much higher volume and lower price.
The RX superbike entered a low-volume, highly competitive
market. Sales numbers are not known, but the RX was subject to
factory incentives of at least $2,000, indicating volume fell short
of expectations. An insider said the SX was doing much better.
Nonetheless, the initial investment in manufacturing and parts was
unable to be recouped by sales.
Buell said he had less than 24 hours notice from his legal team
that EBR had to cease operation. He said all were shocked that a
second funding deal from Hero did not come through.
EBR entered Chapter 128 protection, a Wisconsin form of
bankruptcy protection similar to federal bankruptcy protection. It
is described by the Wisconsin Bar Association as being for clients
who have more debt than they can handle, wish to repay, and need
the help of a structured plan to get back on their feet.
Indicating, as ever, Buell the man is pushing ahead.
The people we had here, what we were doing, it was stunning,
Buell said. Im really proud of the engineers and technicians. We
were producing incredible stuff in an incredibly short time, with
nothing. All the projects we did for Hero, it was just really cool.
And at the same time, we designed the RX, the SX, and all the
prototypes. Plus producing the bikes, plus running the World
Superbike team. Our entire company is much smaller than just
Ducatis racing department.
As we discovered in our 1190RX vs. Panigale comparison test last
year (July 2014), while the RX wasnt as refined as the Ducati, the
base package was fast and great handling, the EBR turning similar
lap times at the track and making competitive horsepower.
Where does EBR go from here? Buell said there was quite a bit of
interest, and those people were in touch with the law firm in
charge of the sale. Unlike the straight liquidation when
Harley-Davidson shut down Buell Motorcycles, the Chapter 128 work
focused on selling EBR as a functional unit.
Where the business is at this time is infinitely better than
where it was with the closing of Buell, he said. Then, I really had
nothing except a dream to go forward. Now I have a production line,
several models, more in the hopper, prototype models, and a lot of
stuff preparing for the next five years. We could start production
again in a day.
Its hard to lay odds against Erik Buell.
RIP, EBR?
U P F R O N T E D I T O R S L E T T E R
MARK HOYEREDITOR-IN-CHIEF
ERIK BUELL RACING SHUTS DOWN BUT LOOKS AHEAD
HORSEPOWER/TORQUE PRODUCED
BY THE 2014 EBR 1190RX
167/ 7 7
16 1/87
CAREER PODIUM FINISHES BY VALENTINO ROSSI (AS OF MAY 3,
2015)
HORSEPOWER/TORQUE PRODUCED
BY THE ALL-NEW YAMAHA YZF-R1
200
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It took unprecedented rider input and thousands of test rides.
But now, the feeling
that comes from being in the saddle is so strong that, if it
wasnt for the Reflex
Linked Brakes with ABS, you might not ever be able to stop.
Project RUSHMORE and the
next Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Built by all of us. For all of
us. H-D.com/RUSHMORE.
The Road King
2015 H-D. Harley-Davidson, Twin Cam 103, and the Bar and Shield
logo are among the trademarks of H-D U.S.A., LLC.
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12 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
IT WAS REAL ornm10 MOVING DESIGNS ornm10 SIDECARISTS UNITE
KICKSTART THE CONVERSATION
Comments? Suggestions? Criticisms?
Write us at [email protected].
MR. EKUANIts impossible to cover the lifes work of someone like
Kenji Ekuan in a brief article, but Kevin Cameron did a fine job in
the space available (May). Mr. Ekuan happened to be in New York
during the Guggenheims The Art of the Motorcycle, and his staff
asked me to give him a tour. He had no idea what was in the
exhibition, so when we reached his Yamaha RD350 he was thrilled to
see we had selected it as being one of the most significant designs
ever produced. When we later reached his V-Max and he saw we had
selected a second of his designs as well, tears came to his eyes. A
decade later I gave a talk at GK Design in
I enjoyed the Visions of Freedom test of the Scramblers in the
May issue. It states that the images used are evocative of times
and feelings that may or may not have actually existed. They most
assuredly did exist. See photothats me, circa 1969, airborne on my
1965 Norton Atlas Scrambler. I spent many enjoyable and memorable
days on that bike riding along the power lines or in the woods in
New Jersey. Picking between the two bikes in the article raises an
interesting dilemma. The Triumph looks so much like the bikes of
the good old days, but the 393-pound dry weight of the Ducati
sounds sweet!
BILL OSMOLSKI
CYCLEWORLD.COM
Tokyo and the by-then-retired designer spent an hour over tea at
his apartment showing me countless examples of his work in many
areas of industrial design. The world of motorcycle design has lost
a remarkable figure.
CHARLES FALCO
CYCLEWORLD.COM
Falco was co-curator of the 1998 The Art of the Motorcycle
exhibition.
I chose a Ducati Multistrada over the KTM Adventure; while I was
more comfortable on the latter, the former appealed to my soul. The
KTM is utilitarian ugly; the Ducati is sexy
sporty. Both are great machines, so Im not left wanting.
Thats why it was such a pleasure to read something contextually
educational in Kevin Camerons homage to Kenji-san. I was grateful
to learn that the 61 Kikkoman bottle was designed by the same mind
that birthed the 85 V-Maxindustrial design is not well understood
by Americans (obviously), and the concise article does much to
advance the awareness of its importance in all manufactured objects
we interact with every day. This article not only increases the
cultural value of your publication, it sends out real, though
currently immeasurable ripples, that will impact minds and in a
real wayadvancing the understanding of how form (aesthetics) can
follow function and thereby fosters a slightly more beautiful
world.
RADAMES PERA
SAN DIEGO, CA
You are ready to leave the monastery, Grasshopper!
TALES OF THE ODDIt is one of my joys in life to have my wife, a
longtime and enthusiastic pillion rider, and son beside me as we
motor around at 45 mph in complete bliss with our family Ural. Its
an amazing feeling to share my lifelong passion and love of
motorcycling with my most beloved. As the saying goes, if one has
to explain, understanding is not possible; the sidecar brings them
into my motorcycling world. They get it, and now they get me a
little better as well. And its fun as hell too!
ERICH LIERMANN
SCOTTSDALE, AZ
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WHEN YOU DONT KNOW WHAT TO SAY,
STAND UP.When someone you love is diagnosed with cancer, you
have the power to help. There are many ways
you can stand up and show that you care.THEY TALK, YOU LISTEN.
One of the most
helpful and important things you can do is
listenwithout judgment and resisting the urge
to give advice.
DONT ASK, DO TELL. Instead of waiting to
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about what you can do and when, such as:
prepare a meal, babysit, pick up groceries,
help with pets, or provide rides to and
from appointments.
LIVE AND LEARN. Educate yourself about your
loved ones diagnosis and treatment. When
you understand what a cancer patient is going
through, youre better able to help keep
information clear, track questions, and know
how you can be most useful.
STAY CONNECTED. After the initial diagnosis,
people tend to drift away. Be someone to count
on for the long haul. Check in, send a quick
note, or drop off a book. Small gestures go
a long way.
Visit ShowThatYouCare.org to learn more about how you can stand
up for someone you love.
Cancer Treatment Centers of America is a proud supporter of
Stand Up To Cancer,
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Stand Up To Cancer is a program of the Entertainment Industry
Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization.
Christina ApplegateSU2C Ambassador
Pamela CromwellCancer Survivor
Dr. Maurie Markman, MDMedical Oncologist
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IgnitionTHE RIDE STARTS HERE
APRILIA TUONO V4 1100 RR ornm10 VICTORY MAGNUM X-1 ornm10
BENELLI BN302 ornm10 TIPS FOR RIDING WITH A PASSENGER
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CYCLEWORLD.COM 15PHOTOGRAPHY BY Roberto Graziani
brakes, and sticky Pirelli Supercorsa SP
race-compound tires.
The chassis of the RSV4 has always
been its strongest asset, but I had
forgotten about the very smooth nature
of the V-4, which has also made this
Aprilia one of the easiest superbikes
to ride fast. Eventually though, the
euphoria was over and I was giving
it enough throttle to get the back end
to start squatting on corner exits.
The Aprilia mechanics added some
compression and took some rebound out
of the hlins shock.
With the chassis to my liking, it was
time to investigate Aprilias latest version
of its race-developed APRC (Aprilia
Performance Ride Control) system. APRC
integrates the full ride-by-wire, multi-
map, electronic-engine management
2016 APRILIA RSV4 RFThe little brand with a huge rsum builds its
next contender By Thomas Montano
C W F I R S T R I D E
MANUFACTURER
TITLES:
Won in the
World Superbike
Championship
since the RSV4s
debut in 2009.4BY THE NU
MB
ER
S
Since Aprilia introduced
its RSV4 in 2009, the
little company from
Noale, Italy, has won
four manufacturer and
three rider titles in World
Superbike competition.
The RSV4 has been a great
platform, and the 2016 RF top-of-the-line
version represents another crucial step
in ongoing development.
For 2016, the RSV4 comes in two
designationsthe RR and the limited-
edition RF that we rode, of which only
500 will be made. The new V-4-powered
superbike is not that dissimilar to the
previous model, but it does have some
very important changes, which were
made to comply (and exploit) this years
World Superbike rules.
near Rimini, Italy, which has
a nice combination of
slow, medium, and fast
corners, plus there are a
few difficult direction
changes combined with
heavy trail braking. Early
in the day, I ran it in way
too deep exploring the
braking zones. But every
time I was able to reel it
back in, thanks to the
RSV4s excellent front-
end feel, great Brembo
WORLD TITLES: Earned by Aprilia, with 20
in 125cc Grand Prix, 18 in 250 Grand Prix,
seven in Superbike, seven in supermoto,
and two in trials. Add to that 294 wins in
Grand Prix competition.
f i f t y - fo u r
ornm11
INSPIRATION:
World Superbike success
informs Aprilia RSV4
developmentpower
up, weight down, better
electronics.
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Proof you dont have to break the bank toget uncompromising
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+ Waterproof and breathable barrier totake on a wide range of
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+ Cortechs Z.O.Q. (Zip-Out Quilted)insulated liner to lock out
the chill
+ Removable, articulated, triple-densityback protector and
CE-approvedarmor in shoulders and elbows foradded protection
+ VRX Air mesh jacket also available forwarm-weather
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APPAREL
Scan QR code to view Cortechs Jacket Feature Video. Cortech is a
registered trademark of Helmet House. Helmet House, Inc. 2015.
Always maintain, inspect and wearprotective motorcycle riding gear.
No gear can offer complete protection from all situations. Obey all
speed and safety laws. Riding and alcohol or other drugs dont
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VRX AIR
VRX
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V4-MP
system, which has three new engine
map settings: S (Sport), T (Track), and
R (Race). The corresponding engine-
braking maps are new, as well, with
engine-braking reduced at 6,000 rpm
and beyond.
The engine itself has been
substantially updated with a new
crankshaft, new Pankl connecting
rods, and a new cylinder head that
now features forged camshafts with
titanium exhaust valves joining
the Ti intake valves. A new airbox,
variable-length-intake funnels, and
revised exhaust help the engine
breathe.
According to Aprilia, the new
engine-mapping system has been
revised for smoother, less aggressive
power delivery. The motor puts
out a claimed 201 hp (16 more than
the previous model), and, yes, the
throttle response is quite good, with
power delivery linear throughout
the rev range. Never once did I feel
a hesitation or lack of grunt. There
isnt a big hit of power anywhere; it
just keeps pulling until the end of
the rev range.
F I R S T R I D E I G N I T I O N
I headed out for my third session
with the traction control set on
3, wheelie control on 1, and in the
R map (the most aggressive). The
revised slipper clutch and updated
engine-braking mapping worked
well together. I found that the RSV4
likes to wag its tail ever so slightly
but stays in line just enough to let
you get into the corner as late as
possible. Even with the front end
buried on the brakes, you can still get
the bike turned and finish the corner.
For the final session, my
technician decided to lower the
front end by 5mm, to combat the
squatting, which turned out to
be the fix I was looking for. The
bike felt more composed on the
exits without losing any of its
front-end feel. With this new bike,
Aprilias engineers were looking
for improved stability, while not
sacrificing any of the agility for
which the RSV4 chassis is known. I
believe they met their goal.
Aprilia has done its homework
and upped its game. The chassis
as a whole felt excellent and the
drivability of the new engine is
smooth, precise, and powerful. The
RSV4 remains a serious contender for
top honors on the street, and, as this
seasons World Superbike Series has
shown, is still quite effective on the
racetrack too.
One cool
accessory
that deserves
mention is the
V4-Multimedia
Platform
(V4-MP), which
allows you
to link your
smartphone to
the RSV4. It can
display real-
time telemetry
and allows you
to change the
settings of the
APRC controls
from your
phone, making
V4-MP a great
way to enhance
your riding expe-
rience. On track,
your phones
GPS can tell the
bike exactly
where you are,
which allows you
to see what the
bike is doing in
every corner and
even make
ATC/AWC
suggestions to
improve your lap
times. You can
even fine-tune
the ATC and AWC
corner by corner
by selecting
from a growing
list of prepro-
grammed race
circuits around
the world.
ENGINE T YPE
DOHC V-4DISPL ACEMENT
999.6ccFUEL C APACIT Y
4.9 gal.SE AT HEIGHT
33.0 in.CL AIMED DRY WEIGHT
397 lb.PRICE
$21,999
2016 APRILIA RSV4 RF
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20 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
I G N I T I O N F I R S T R I D E
I found myself wondering why I felt the need to pass several
cars at once while enjoying a nice motorcycle outing in the
countryside. I should have been perfectly happy sitting back and
taking in the sights, but, no,
I was stricken with the need to explore the massive amounts of
power available at the twist of the right grip. I just couldnt
resist.
I was in Italy, flogging the new 2016 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR
on some great back roads. The bike shares the same high-performance
chassis as the RSV4 superbike and has been equipped with the latest
version of Aprilias Performance Ride Control (APRC) suite. The key
difference between the $14,599 RR and the $16,299 Factory is the
use of hlins suspension on the latter.
As soon as I hit the road I knew I was in for a good time. The
new 1,077cc engine
has excellent low-end torque that blends into an awesome
top-end. Aprilia claims that maximum power has increased from 170
to 175 hp, with as much as 20 extra ponies found in the midrange.
In Sport mode, the engine was smooth and controllable, and the bike
behaved nicely at slower street speeds too. As I got higher in the
mountains, the pace increased. I was impressed with how well the
Sachs damper units front and rear worked to keep the Tuono in line.
Suspension compliance on the bumpy, uneven, and slippery roads was
quite good. The new front fairing is more aerodynamic and, when
combined with the lower seat, provided good wind protection.
The 2016 Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR is an impressive bike that
manages to combine the capabilities of a modern superbike in a
package thats comfortable and practical in everyday riding and
commuting.
2016 APRILIA TUONO V4 1100 RRMore V-4 is a good thing By Thomas
Montano
C W F I R S T R I D E
2016 APRILIA TUONO V4 1100 RR
PRICE: $14,599
ENGINE: DOHC V-4
DISPLACEMENT:
1077cc
SEAT HEIGHT:
32.5 in.
FUEL CAPACITY:
4.9 gal.
CLAIMED DRY
WEIGHT: 406 lb.
SPECS
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Race across 15 different tracks, in 4 competitive gamemodes.
Ride on 12 different bikes & ATVs and choose from 16 diverse
characters.
/DIRTRIDERTHEGAME
The Dirt Rider Game is affiliated with Dirt Rider Magazine.
Visit dirtrider.com
Scan the QR code with yoursmartphone or tabletto instantly be
taken
to the Facebook page!
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L
22 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
oud what saves lives? What? I cant hear you. Ive got 10 speakers
blasting 200 watts of sound at me from each end of the Victory
Magnum X-1 sound machine. Im the meat center in a music sandwich.
Huh?
We tested the magnum X-1 during Daytona Bike Week,
I G N I T I O N F I R S T R I D E
which isnt a quiet place to begin with. We made it less
quiet.
What? Yes, it is Spirit in the Sky but as performed by The
Upsidedown.
The Magnum X-1 is a showroom-available
modified Magnum, beefed up with custom black billet
wheels, featuring a 21-incher up front, black bodywork with
detailed red pinstriping, an LED headlight claimed to be 74 percent
brighter than the one on the Cross Country, and a music-maker boom
box of serious note. The speakers also look great, matched in style
and color to the bike, three in each side location up front and two
atop each bag.
The 21-inch front wheel doesnt much hinder steering, and the
front suspension provided a surprisingly nice ride, with the rear
as good as usual for Victory, which is pretty good for a bike with
this profile. Parking-lot crawls required a bit more steering
management than typical, but thats likely due to inner-ear issues
of the rider.
After plugging in your personal music source inside the
right-hand bag, operation of the Magnum X-1s music system is pretty
straightforward, with the controls hanging off the left handlebar.
Selecting modes, then tunes, is nearly intuitive, if you arrive
with some motorcycle-music history, but when starting at the
beginning of your playlist you can only scroll alphabetically from
A, which might not impress Zappa fans.
That aside, finding and
Big bagger sound from Victorys rolling jukebox By Peter
Jones
C W F I R S T R I D E
2016 VICTORY MAGNUM X-1
selecting a playlist, and then a particular song, is easy. Plus,
the up-and-down volume buttons are nicely responsive, without lag.
Of course, the system also features an auto-volume thats
synchronized to the speed of the bike. Were not sure if its presets
can be altered or not, which would be a good feature because it
increases in volume a bit too much too quickly or it ends up being
too soft at a stop. We couldnt find a desired compromise.
These days, booming-bagger competition is a new sport,
particularly at bike rallies. The traffic-light cacophony at times
at Daytona was intense, between ratcheted-up rock and roll and
opened-up exhaust systems. Cranking on 200 watts is a good way to
win the battle, but a solution without permanent hearing damage is
a lonesome highway.
Possibly the best thing about the Magnum X-1s serious stereo
system is the ability to use it with the bike parked, sans the
sounds of wind, pipes, road noise, and so forth. When parked, the
sound of this boom box on wheels is clear, with high fidelity for
P-Funkadelic, psychedelic, or whatever -delic you select to
serenade your beach-blanket bingo party. Just please dont play the
same song by Steppenwolf all day long. Rock on.
2016 VICTORY MAGNUM X-1
ENGINE T YPE
SOHC V-twin, 4 va lves/cy l .DISPL ACEMENT
1731ccFUEL C APACIT Y
5.8 gal .SE AT HEIGHT
25.7 in .CL AIMED DRY WEIGHT
761 lb .PRICE
$24,499
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Always there to help you save. Now thats
Progressive.1-800-PROGRESSIVE | PROGRESSIVE.COM
Progressive Casualty Ins. Co. & af liates. Do not
attempt.
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24 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
In Italy, the new Benelli BN302 costs less than a Vespa Sprint
125 3V. Thats because Benelli is part of QianJiang, a huge Chinese
motorcycle group that wants this new bike to sell well in the Far
East, where low price and excellent
durability are hugely important.The Pesaro, Italy-based
technical
team led by Chief Project Engineer Stefano Michelotti came up
with the BN302 formula, which is based around a 300cc parallel twin
derived from the BN600s four-cylinder powerplant. It has the same
65.0 x 45.2mm bore and stroke, and it breathes through 37mm
throttle bodies. This new 360-degree twin
delivers a claimed 38 hp at 10,000 rpm, and 20.2 pound-feet of
peak torque at 9,000 rpm. The Kawasaki Ninja 300, for comparison,
puts out a claimed 39 hp at 11,000 rpm and 20.6 pound-feet of
torque at 10,000 rpm.
Because this Benelli is meant for the rough roads and tough-duty
cycles of the Asian markets, the 408-pound BN302 is fitted with a
strong trellis frame made from thick mild-steel tubing. A tubular
over-under swingarm looks similarly stout.
On the road, the BN302 feels compact and surprisingly light.
Good ergonomics and excellent weight distribution help, as does
friendly a seat height of only 31.3 inches. The
engine is remarkably smooth, and a huge silencer produces an
exhaust note not unlike that of a four-cylinder. Delphi engine
management delivers strong and stumble-free response from below
3,000 rpm, and it supports the engine all the way past 11,000
rpm.
I rode the sturdy little Benelli on the twisty back roads of San
Marino, where the BN302s acceleration and pick-up performance
exceeded my expectations. The rear suspension, however, was too
harsh. My suggestion: Replace the current rear shock with one from
Sachs. Lastly, look for Benelli to reappear in the US market by the
end of 2015, possibly with the new BN302.
I G N I T I O N F I R S T R I D E
New Chinese-built twin is heavy but remarkably refined By Bruno
dePrato
C W F I R S T R I D E
BENELLI BN302
BENELLI BN302
ENGINE T YPE
Liquid-cooled DOHC para l le l twinDISPL ACEMENT
300ccFUEL C APACIT Y
4.2 gal .SE AT HEIGHT
31 .3 in .CL AIMED DRY WEIGHT
408 lb .EST. PRICE
$ 4300
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2015 BMW Motorrad USA, a division of BMW of North America, LLC.
The BMW name and logo are registered trademarks.
The entire world awaits, and youre done sitting still. The K
1600 GTL. Luxury, power, technology nothing has been compromised.
Life is a feast. Savor every bite.
Find out more at bmwmotorcycles.com.
DESSERT
PARKED OUTSIDE? MAKE LIFE A RIDE.
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The UltimateRiding Machine
BMW MotorradUSA
bmwmotorcycles.com
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28 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
I G N I T I O N N E W S
ornm10 Yamaha continues to probe the unique possibilities that
the
Leaning Multi Wheel front suspension of the Tricity scooter
might offer. Under the code name GEN, Yamaha has created
a generation of concept vehicles that explore new solutions
for individual mobility, all created in a way that reects
the
companys Rened Dynamism design philosophy.
Bruno dePrato
Personal people movers
ornm26 Proof that standard bikes
never go out of style but do
get renamed (nakeds, any-
one?), our main story touted
at cover center featured a list
of 10 great fairingless bikes.
A couple of high points (in
price and cool factor) were
the $4,298 Honda CB-1 399cc
inline-four and $4,198 Hawk
650 GT V-twin. Price kept
the bikes from ever being big
sellers, as they headed up
against the $4,599 Suzuki
VX800 and $3,699 Yamaha
Radian. The conclusion after
riding all 10 bikes? Every rider
picked a different machine,
so we said to read the story
and pick your own.
ornm26 Very red, very expensive
and very, very good, read the
subhead for the 1990 Honda
VFR750F test. A check for
$6,998 got you a bike with
fantastic, broad power (with
100-hp peak), and a stellar-
handling chassis that deliv-
ered some of the style and
music of the RC30 superbike
for the everyday rider.
ornm26 Wayne All the Way told
the story of Wayne Raineys
USGP win that year, as four
riders left the circuit with in-
juries. Its early in the year,
Rainey said, and everyone
thinks they are going to be
the world champion. Kevin
Schwantz was ready for
racing, even if his motorcycle
may not have been. Said
Schwantz: Suzuki didnt do
too much to the bike: They
thought it (last years bike)
was good enough. But it was
good enough only because
I rode it so hard. Vintage
Schwantz, who set a track
record in the race before
crashing in turn 11.
Mark Hoyer
JULY 1990
ornm10 The 03GEN-x is a burlier multi-terrain
version, fitted with
wire-spoke wheels,
knobby tires, and
petal-style rotors on
the front disc brakes.
ornm09 Yamahas 03GEN-f is the future racing
concept featuring a
streamlined body,
17-inch sport wheels,
and radial tires.
YAMAHAS THREE-WHEELED CONCEPTS
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Phot
o Cr
edit:
Kev
in L
ynch
Stan
d Up
To
Canc
er is
a p
rogr
am o
f the
Ent
erta
inm
ent I
ndus
try F
ound
atio
n (E
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cha
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izat
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Tony GoldwynStand Up To Cancer Ambassador
Twenty years ago, my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer. She
had very few places to turn, and lost a dif cult struggle.
Today, we are on the brink of real breakthroughs in lung cancer
research and there are signi cantly improved treatment options.
And yet, more than 30% of all lung cancer patients still
dont
know about the therapies, specialists, and clinical trials
available to them.
Lung cancer is a formidable foe, but we are nding new
ways to ght it. Please visit SU2C.org/LungCancer for
questions to ask your health care professional and to learn
about options that
may be right for you.
MY MOM DIDNT HAVE MANY OPTIONS. TODAYS LUNG CANCER PATIENTS
DO.
SU2C.org/LungCancer
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30 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
1 2 3 4 5
DONT SINK IT
Do you ever get that
sinking feeling when
you park your motor-
cycle on a soft surface
such as sand, dirt, or
grass? End it for good
with the Cycle Saver
Pad ($15), a at plastic
puck to tuck under your
kickstand when you park
on any soft surface.
Stow it in your pack or
in your back pocket; the
standard safety lanyard
is designed to attach to
your belt.
ornm26 cyclesaverpad.com
LIGHT HEADED
Looking for an ultra-
lightweight helmet for
off-road riding? The
brand-new Kali Shiva
($500) ts the bill. The
company, better known
in bicycle circles, has de-
veloped a DOT-approved,
1,050-gram (2.3-pound)
helmet that uses a car-
bon-ber shell into which
the EPS liner is injected.
Kali says the Shiva is 30
percent smaller than a
typical MX lid.
ornm26 (888) 776-5254
kaliprotectives.com
IS THE AC ON?
If you ride off-road or
motocross in summer,
you know that anything
to help keep you cool is
essential. Malcolm Smith
Racings new Max Air
pants ($119.95) do their
part by having vented
poly-mesh panels, and
the accompanying jersey
($34.95) which has
microcuffs and a stretch
Lycra collaris made of
a micromesh with excel-
lent airow.
ornm26 (951) 340-3301
msracing.com
I G N I T I O N G E A R
ELECTRIC SHOCK
Many bikes can benet
from better suspension,
even the 2013 and newer
BMW F800GS with ESA.
Touratech has created
the Plug & Travel ESA
Upgrade ($1,695) GS
shock. Touratech says
this high-performance
damper integrates with
the stock computer.
Besides superior damp-
ing, it is completely
serviceable and fully
compatible with ESA.
ornm26 (800) 491-2926
touratech-usa.com
RAMP IT UP
If youve ever had your
ramp slip off the tailgate
while loading a bike, you
know how damaging it
can be to you and your
vehicles. Shark Kages
24 x 92-inch ramp
($299) attaches to your
tailgate via a mounted
plate, creating a stable
loading platform. The
aluminum ramp, with a
750-pound capacity, can
also function as a bed
extender or workbench.
ornm26 (702) 982-1400
sharkkage.com
OFF-ROAD AIDSN E W I D E A S
CW APPROVED
1
Five items to improve your dirt experience By Blake Conner
2
3
45
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From
lea
nin
g
into
the
tig
hte
st c
urve
s t
o r
idin
g
up
the
h
ighe
st
pea
ks,
the
Pla
n a
th
rill f
ea
tu
re
on
the
all-
ne
w T
om
Tom
Rid
er
lets y
ou
c
rea
te
yo
ur pe
rfe
ct a
dve
ntu
re
.
ww
w.t
om
tom
.com
/rid
er
. ..WH
EN
YO
UCA
NL
EA
NA
NDSOAR?
WHY SIT AND STEER.. .
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32 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015 PHOTO BY JEFF ALLEN
I G N I T I O N E V A L U A T I O N
SENA 20S
sena.com
PRICE: $299
UPS
+ Good sound quality/volume+ Headphone jack output, aux. input+
Still like the big knob
DOWNS
Voice commands work only okay More features, more study required
to master Shaking your unit with other riders is weird
Theres a lot going on with the Sena 20S Bluetooth headset, but
somehow The Knob, which I got to know well on the previous-flagship
SMH10, makes it
all easier to interact with.Still, this Bluetooth 4.0,
eight-
way-intercom-capable, two-device-connecting communicator takes a
fair bit of use to master.
or GPS instruction. Sound quality and sheer volume without
distortion are true highlights of this unit. Even the FM radio,
which has 10 presets, sounded great, though signal reception wasnt
stellar.
Ambient Mode is activated by a dedicated button on the bottom of
the mount. A double click stops other audio and brings in the
sounds around you. Great for when somebody asks you a question at a
stop.
Hello, Sena voice commands worked okay, but mostly we defaulted
to accessing Siri on an iPhone 5 and using buttons to control the
20S itself.
There is eight-way intercom capability and range (up to 1.2
miles) is improved by the flip-up antenna. Shake-to-pair with two
20S units worked great. Pairing with more users takes more work,
and sound quality seemed to diminish.
We tried manipulating the many, many settings available using
the jog-wheel and buttons but gave up and went back to the
excellent smartphone app to alter settings. Firmware can be updated
online, a big plus for running improvements. There is also an
in-app user guide to complement the thorough printed manual. We
referred to them often.
Sticking with the basic features like two-person intercom, phone
calls, music, and navigation, the 20S works well and has great
audio quality.
We said the 20S takes a fair bit to master. Lets amend that to
say we think it does because we havent mastered it yet. But keeping
it simple and talking or rocking, we dig the Sena 20S.
The unit pairs with two devices so its possible to run two
phones or a phone and GPS. Pairing was simple and connecting after
that nearly instant. But we found it impossible to get music to
play from two connected phones, the 20S accepting music only from
the primary. Settings allow for music to drop in volumeinstead of
shutting off completelyfor incoming calls
SENA 20SC W E VA LUAT I O N
Cracking the code on Senas new flagship By Mark Hoyer
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34 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015 ILLUSTRATION BY Morgan Schweitzer
DONT ROCK THE BOATHow to help your BFF be a better passenger By
John L. Stein
T WO - U P T R A I N I N G
I G N I T I O N R I D E S M A R T
Anyone whos ever ridden with an untrained passenger knows that
their weaving and bobbing on the back of your bike isnt just
annoyingit
can be dangerous. Thats because the 100- to 200-pound hunk o
burning love youve got riding pillion is what engineers call a live
loadmass that can move about at random, upsetting the balance of
your bike while trying to peer around you or, worse, naively
leaning outward during a turn. It doesnt help that the load is up
high and way at the backexactly the opposite of the coveted mass
centralization that bike builders have been so zealously pursuing
for years.
Car drivers arent subject to these challenges for three reasons:
(1) The passengers mass is essentially in
or simply using the backrest, do it consistently.
2) Lean on me. Riding nice and close helps centralize rider and
passenger mass. The goal is to ride as one, with the passenger
neither frantically clinging nor lazily slouching on the rear seat.
Ride like the BFFs you are.
3) Follow my lead. Nobody ever won Dancing with the Stars out of
sync with their partner. Instruct your passenger to mimic your
moves on the bike in real time. Encourage them to read the road
ahead.
4) Dont do nothin sudden. As the ships captain, the rider should
make nice, smooth control inputs and alert your passenger to
upcoming maneuvers with a brief word, a nod of the head, or a nudge
of the arm or leg.
the center of the vehicle; (2) belted in place and with a door
beside them, passengers cant weave around much; and (3) in a
4,500-pound car, a 150-pound passenger only adds 3 percent to the
total weight, whereas on a 450-pound bike, that same passenger is
30 percent additional weight. This means that when moving from a
car to a bike, the same passenger becomes the equivalent of the
tail wagging the dog. And the larger the tail, the more it wags the
dog.
Here are four strategies for keeping ride night with your
sweetie right side up.
1) How to hold on. Passengers should find a way to hold on
securely, without limiting the riders ability to control the bike.
Whether thats grasping the riders waist or grab bars
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36 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
I G N I T I O N W A N D E R I N G E Y E
ZOMBIE CYCLESTHEYRE FOR REAL BY PAUL DORLEANS
BY T H E N U M B E R S
THE RECENTLY UNDEAD
MOTORCYCLE BRANDS REVIVED
SINCE 2010
CURRENT MOTORCYCLE
MANUFACTURERS WORLDWIDE
180
Shakespeare asked, Whats in a name? But in business, an
established brand with emotional resonance is pure gold. It
takes
time to build a good reputation, so instead, would-be
manufacturers have gone name-shopping in the graveyard. Theyre
busting up the crypts of old motorcycle companies, ones we buried
decades ago with cries of lamentation and tales of better days. The
new grave robbers are suit-wearing copyright lawyers with shovels
in hand, but they dont want bonestheyre negotiating fees to legally
chisel business names from the family crypt. Once in hand, theyre
pasted onto a brand-new machine, which bears no family resemblance
for the simple reason they arent family at all. Theyre zombies and
clones.
Dead motorcycle brands sleep under our soilthousands of them
since the late 1890s, from every corner of the world. Most are gone
and forgotten, but a few potent namesIndian, Vincent, Cyclonehave
seen miserable, limping attempts at resurrection. Cyclone was the
most technically advanced American motorcycle of the early 20th
century, an OHC V-twin 70 years before the V-Rod. After Cyclone
died in 1916, a series of new owners gave it CPR (Cash Promoting
Resuscitation), but it never made it off the slab. Im sure well see
another Cyclone soon Zombies arent easy to kill. Its the same with
power-packed names like Crocker and Vincent, but the corpse of
Indian has been fluffed and powdered more than any other.
Its important to distinguish Zombies from Clones. A Clone is a
reproduction of a specific model, long after the factory closed.
The practice began in the 1980s, when demand for new Norton Manx
and Matchless G50 parts reached the point of whole-motorcycle
production. Most racing clones are distinctively marked and present
no real issue to collectors
or historians. It sucks when theyre passed off as genuine. Most
commonly cloned are American boardtrack racers like Harley-Davidson
and Indian eight-valves, and nowadays these replicas are seen in
greater numbers than ever appeared on racetracks.
Dont assume clone equals cheap though; repro Guzzi V-8s, early
four-cylinder Italian GP racers, and Brough Superior SS100s will
set you back six figures. Theyre replicated by passionate
enthusiasts who long for the past, though their devotion reminds me
of Joyce McKinney, the Mormon in chains rapist who cloned her dog
in Korea. But theyve revived some really cool bikes with a rabid
post-mortem demand. These (nec)romantic flame-bearers just want to
keep the old names alive, sometimes by cloning and more recently by
zombification.
A Zombie is a dead motorcycle brand thats been revived by an
unrelated business, with a tombstone rubbing glued on the gas tank.
Zombies carry no DNA from the original brand and typically feature
a hypothetical update of the original machines lines, inspired by
ghostly whispers. Sometimes it workswitness BMWs spirit-capture of
the Austin Mini. Most zombies dont survive long in the real world.
The majority remain boutique or bespoke machinesthe undead in fancy
fineryor prototypes that elicit genuine horror. Lately, zombies
have starred in transparently cynical attempts to cash in on a fine
old name, by hiding terrifically ugly bikes under junkie-chic
supermodels. The goal is selling gear, not gears: Apparel is the
real business. Even so, name-robbing cant harm old reputations, and
the zombies and clones roaming our streets are just another facet
of the bizarro world of contemporary motorcycling. Ask any
teenager; the Undead can be fun and sexy, even if theyre
Frankenbikes.
12+
RIP2,000+
DEFUNCT MOTORCYCLE
BRANDS SINCE 1895
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ITS IN THE DETAILS.
You know every inch of your bike. Not just the
engine size, or the color code of the paint. Its the
special details that only you know about. Like the
way the exhaust opens up just right at 3,200rpm.
Or that scuff on the footpeg you picked up while
riding through Deals Gap.
Its the details that make your bike unique, and
no one knows this more than GEICO. With
GEICO Motorcycle insurance, youll get coverage
VSHFLFWR\RXUELNHDQGDWHDPRISHRSOHZKRORYH
motorcycles as much as you do.
When it comes to insurance, its the little things
that make a big difference. Trust the details to
GEICO Motorcycle.
Some discounts, coverages, payment plans and features are not
available in all states or all GEICO companies. Motorcycle coverage
is underwritten by GEICO Indemnity Company. GEICO is a registered
service mark of Government Employees
Insurance Company, Washington, D.C. 20076; a Berkshire Hathaway
Inc. subsidiary. 2015 GEICO.
MotorcycleJHLFRFRP__/RFDO2IFH
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38 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
I G N I T I O N T D C
SOMETIMES ITS BETTER TO BE PRACTICAL THAN PERFECTBY KEVIN
CAMERON
SOLUTIONS
Its fascinating to see the common
technologies that run through all
machines. Yet quite often, specific
solutions have more to do with how
much time or money can be spent on
them. Harley, in the original Evolution
engine, chose to retain the heads and
barrels with long studs rather than to
provide the cylinder with a base flange,
bolt that to the crankcase, and then bolt the
head to the top of the barrel. Velocette, in
developing its 350cc KTT racing single, had
cylinder base flange breakages as a result
of the very high compression ratios some
customers were using with alcohol fuel.
Instead of switching to long, slender studs
as Harley would in the future, Velocette
just made its cylinders base flange thicker.
A thicker flange doesnt always work. Ive
seen more than one such thick flange, still
bolted to the crankcase of a souped-up
Norton Commando but with the cylinders
and head somehow missing.
When in the 1930s the aircraft radial piston engine became an
element in national military planning, such modest solutions werent
even considered. Instead, cylinders were made from seamless steel
tubing, heated red-hot in furnaces, and then placed in a special
forge called an upsetter that squeezed the material into forming a
bolting flange. Forged bolting flanges could be both light and
reliably strong.
These three solutions to the same basic problem are not good,
better, best. Each one was appropriate to the resources available
to its manufacturer. Velocette, always a small company, just made
the base flange thicker because that could be done without
expensively changing the basic design. Harley-Davidson, able to
afford to retool its entire top end, could choose its long-stud
solution. The special quality of long studs is their lengthwise
stretchiness, which can maintain the clamp load required to make
the head gaskets seal, even though both head and barrel are
aluminum, and
so expand considerably at operating temperature. Only a major
industry, backed by government clout, could afford to forge
cylinders with integral bolting flanges.
Crankshafts for certain large marine engines were shrink-fitted
together out of separate elements, just as Honda assembled the
cranks for its 18,000-rpm six-cylinder 250 racer of 1967. In the
first case, the motivation might have been that the factory was not
tooled to produce and machine such huge one-piece crankshafts. We
can imagine building houses in a giant 3-D printer, but since my
builder has no such machine, I have a house fabricated from
individual studs, joists, and rafters.
Hondas problem was different. In 1960s motorcycle design,
rolling bearings were still believed to offer lower friction than
the plain bearings that autos had by then almost universally
adopted. To avoid the problems of trying to make and run
split-and-bolted roller con-rods (chain saw companies were doing it
successfully with fracture-split rods but at much lower horsepower
per cubic inch), Honda chose one-piece rods and a crank
press-fitted together from separate elements. Because press-fits
have limited grip, Honda took power from the center of the sixs
crank and then made crankpins three and four large enough that
their press-fits could transmit the power from cylinders one and
two, and five and six, without slippage, and then it made crankpins
two and five slightly smaller and finally crankpins one and six
smaller yet.
The same problem was tackled in aviation. Was it nobler in the
mind to have a one-piece crankshaft and two-piece, bolted-together
master connecting rods? Or to somehow fasten together a multi-piece
crank to have the luxury of super-strong one-piece rods? So engines
were built both ways. The 14-cylinder radials that powered WWII
-341
1 2 , 57 1
TEMPERATURE, IN FAHRENHEIT, OF THE
LIQUID NITROGEN USED TO IMMERSE THE YAMAHA R1S CONNECTING RODS
BEFORE
THE FRACTURE-SPLIT PROCESS BEGINS
FROM 1940 TO 1953, CHANCE-VOUGHT BUILT
THIS MANY F4U CORSAIRS. (THE HONDURAN
AIR FORCE USED THE PLANE UNTIL 1979!)
BY T H E N U M B E R S
THE YEAR HARLEYS AIR-COOLED 45-DEGREE
EVO ENGINE MADE ITS DEBUT
1984
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I G N I T I O N T D C
YAMAHAS METAL-
LURGISTS FOUND
WAYS TO FRACTURE-SPLIT THE TITANIUM ROD CAP FROM A
ONE-PIECE ROD
FORGING. THE
RESULTING COMPLEX MATING
SURFACES ALIGNED THE CAP
TO THE ROD PERFECTLY.
B-24 bombers had split-and-bolted rods and one-piece cranks, but
the 18-cylinder engines in P-47s, F4Us, and postwar DC-6 airliners
had multi-piece cranks and one-piece rods.
Ultimately it can come down to engineering over design. If you
tool to build your engine one way, then have problems, it could
take too long to back out, redesign, and retool to do it the other
way. Several aircraft engine designs, in fact, were canceled
because they were taking too long to reach reliability. So you look
for ways to make your design choice work. The biggest problem was
keeping the separate, bolted-in-place cap of a two-piece rod from
moving around relative to the rod itself. Such movement pinched the
big master rod bearing, compromising its function.
Yet recently we saw that Yamaha, in the titanium rods of its new
YZF-R1 sportbike, had to
tackle this very same problemhow to keep a separate rod cap from
moving relative to the rod. Such solutions as dowel pins,
serrations, and machined steps have been used but they add cost in
extra setups, tooling, and machining steps. This stuff has to sell
at a competitive price, and that means we cant slow the whole
production line while elderly master machinists perform miracles of
craftsmanship. So Yamahas metallurgists found ways to
fracture-split the titanium rod cap from a one-piece rod forging.
The resulting complex mating surfaces, as irregular as they are,
aligned the cap to the rod perfectlyno chance of the cap sliding
into misalignment. Those surfaces are produced by fracture, in a
tiny fraction of a second.
Earlier, I referred to the springiness of long studs being
useful in maintaining clamp load as parts expand and contract
in heating and cooling. The reverse is also truethe shorter you
make a bolt or stud, the less springy stretch range it has, so the
more difficult it is to keep tight. With a short stud, it doesnt
take too much vibration or stress to unload what tension it has,
making the nut vulnerable to unscrewing. The wonderfully strong
steel base flanges of aircraft radials were fastened to the
crankcase with short studs, and the unloading problem required that
each be secured with a springy patent locknut called a Palnut.
We cant make everything in a mechanism perfect. To hit the
market before it moves on to somebody elses product, you have
limited time to plan and tool. Theres no time for risky
experiments, no time to do it over, so you call upon detail
engineering to make your choices work. You hope.
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[email protected] | www.rizoma.com
Open your world to new emotions.
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www.KLIM
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K
LIM
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42 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAMAHA YZF- R1
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1
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CYCLEWORLD.COM 43
W E P U T Y A M A H A S
L A T E S T L I T E R - C L A S S M I S S I L E
T H R O U G H T H E T E S T I N G W R I N G E R
B y B l a k e C o n n e r P h o t o g r a p h y b y Je ff A l l
e n
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44 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAM AHA YZF- R1
Yamaha is back. After riding the latest R1 at Sydney Motorsports
Park in Australia last February (CW May), we walked away amazed,
but we also left with a huge list of unanswered
questions. Racetrack press introductions allow a motorcycle to
be tested near its limits, exploring aspects of performance that
are virtually impossible to sample on public roads. But therein
lies the problem: Racetracks dont do a good job of indicating how
motorcycles work in the real world of traffic, commuting, imperfect
pavement, and speed limits.
So before we even stepped off the plane on our return from that
track sortie Down Under, wed already requested a standard YZF-R1
from Yamahas press fleet. Like many readers, whose comments weve
read in social media and on cycleworld.com, we also had a host of
questions to answer, such as: Are the former bikes fueling issues
solved? How does it stack up to the BMW S1000RR? Are the
electronics really revolutionary?
Re c a p
Before we put answers to these queries, lets back up and recap
the major changes. For starters, the 998cc crossplane-concept
inline-four is essentially all new and weighs 8.8 pounds less than
the engine it replaces. Titanium fracture-split connecting rods are
60 percent lighter than their steel counterparts; the cylinder head
now has finger-follower valve actuation (permitting increased
lift), larger-diameter intake and exhaust valves, and revised cam
timing; cylinder bore
has increased to 79.0mm (up from 78.0), while stroke now
measures 50.9 (was 52.2); compression has been bumped to 13.0:1
(from 12.7). Thanks to the new valve gear, lighter rods, and
shorter stroke, redline has been raised from 13,750 rpm on the
previous model to 14,500 on the 2015.
Allowing the rider to control the increased power output is
Yamahas proprietary six-axis inertial-measurement unit (IMU), which
measures pitch, roll, yaw, and acceleration fore and aft, up and
down,
YRC MULTIFUNCTION
METER: The R1s
full-color TFT dash is
amazing and intuitive,
but a little practice on
the simulator found at
yamahamotorsports.com
is helpful. The dash can be
displayed in either Street-
or Track-oriented modes.
Track features a lot less
info, with the lap timer,
gear indicator, engine
temp, and tachometer
prominently displayed.
BUSY HANDS: Your left hand has more to do than just activate
turn indica-
tors, honk at people, and flash your high beam at slower
traffic. The Mode
button lets you scroll across the bottom of the dash between
PWR, TCS, and
SCS on the fly, but you can only change PWR settings on closed
throttle. Our
biggest gripe is that you cant switch among the four
customizable Modes
(which include settings within for PWR, TCS, SCS, LCS, QSS, LIF)
on the fly.
(See sidebar on page 52 for full explanation of rider aids.)
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CYCLEWORLD.COM 45
and side to side. It then feeds all of this data to the Yamaha
Ride Control processor that meters Power Delivery, Traction
Control, Slide Control, Lift Control, Launch Control, and the Quick
Shifter. Settings are controlled via an all-new and excellent TFT
display interface (see page 52 for detailed descriptions).
The chassis was completely updated, as well. An all-new aluminum
Deltabox frame with magnesium subframe contributed to lowering the
R1s weight dramatically (we measured a 34-pound reduction for the
bike, sans fuel).
Wheelbase has been reduced by 0.39 inch, all-new suspension
(manually adjustable KYB on the standard model tested here) is
included, it has new brakes with ABS and the Unified Braking System
(UBS, with linked functionality), and it has 10-spoke
cast-magnesium wheels.
O n T h e D y n o
The very first thing we did with our fresh new R1 was roll it up
onto the Cycle World Dynojet dyno to find out if it was in the same
league with class-leaders BMW and Ducati. Our best pull with the
stone-stock bike was a competitive 167.4 rear-wheel horsepower at
12,270 rpm, with 77.0 pound-feet of peak torque at 8,810 rpm.
We also ran it on the dyno with the accessory Circuit ECU, which
not only unlocks restrictions put in place for US sound emissions
but also eliminates the top-speed limiter and applies a far more
aggressive track algorithm for the ABS brake system, including
unlinking the UBS feature. Thus unhindered, our R1 registered a
172.8 hp/76.6 pound-feet run, which puts it squarely in the hunt
against BMW (see comparison sidebar, page 51), with a virtually
identical power-to-weight ratio. Oh, and P.S.: The Circuit ECU
shuts down the headlight/taillight to discourage running it on the
street.
O n T h e R o a d
For some, these numbers mean a lot for post-ride bragging
rights, but the reality is that exercising every last horsepower at
the peak end of the scale has little to do with the overall riding
experience on the street. Controllability is the new frontier, and
electronic management is the means to mastering that frontier.
Over the course of a month, we had the chance to hit the road
and answer the questions that we set out to address (look for the
R1M in an upcoming comparison test).
MENU: All of the bikes electronics settings are accessed via
the
Menu thumbwheel on the right control pod. Learn the long-push
or
short-push button-pressing code to avoid frustration. When on
the
home screen, the wheel also scrolls bike info: Odo, Trip-1,
Trip-2, Fuel
Consumed, Fuel AVG, CRNT Fuel (average), engine temp, and air
temp.
CLICKERS: Besides the fact that
the new KYB fork on the standard
R1 works wonderfully, we love the
convenience of all of the adjusters
residing atop the caps. Compression
damping has 28 clicks of adjustment,
while rebound has 25, and preload
allows 15 turns for 15mm of range.
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46 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAM AHA YZF- R1
Track emphasis for this motorcycle is clear in almost every
aspect of its design. A by-product of this is the racier seating
position with 5mm lower clip-ons, but 10mm more room between the
seat and pegs and a longer reach to the bars to help get the rider
tucked in behind the taller windscreen and over the lower tank. The
seat itself is much wider, flatter, and 0.75-inch taller than on
the previous model. This allows the rider to easily move around on
the bike when riding at a fast pace. Some bikes you just hop on and
click right into position, Editor-in-Chief Mark Hoyer said. The
R1 is that sportbike for me. Bars, seat, footpegs, control feel
all felt completely natural for me and beautifully placed.
Once in motion, the engine really stands out. This may be the
smoothest liter-class motor on the market today, Road Test Editor
Don Canet said. Its liquid quality is equally pleasant in town or
ridden at a steady 75 miles per hour freeway pace and beyond.
More importantly, its also exciting. The step in power feels
like the engine is being unleashed, Hoyer added. Its usually fun,
and it makes you feel like youre riding some weird time-travel
update of a TZ750 two-stroke. As Canet pointed out after dynoing
the bike, the engine picks up 50 horsepower in 2,000 revs through
the midrange, which alternately makes me smile or catches me by
surprise. The R1 absolutely discourages passiveness.
That said, the quality of fueling in everyday riding was
excellent. Clean fuel mapping, abundant low-range torque, and
superb clutch feel made for easy
THE STEP IN POWER
FEELS LIKE THE ENGINE
IS BEING UNLEASHED
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victorymotorcycles.com$12,999 * MS
RP
2015 VICTORY GUNNER
STARTING AT
Victory and Victory Motorcycles are registered trademarks of
Polaris Industries Inc. Always wear a helmet, eye protection, and
protective clothing and obey the speed limit. Never ride under the
influence of drugs or alcohol. 2014 Polaris Industries Inc. *MSRP
is the Manufacturers Suggested Retail
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48 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAM AHA YZF- R1
departures from a stop despite the very tall low-gear ratio,
Canet said. And by far the easiest way to achieve this level of
fueling refinement is to select Power 2 (of four) from the menu,
which reduces peak power by around 7 hp and peak torque by 5
pound-feet, while mellowing out overall delivery. The instant-on
eagerness of Power 1 is a useful tool in aggressive riding, but
day-to-day grinds are better in
the softer modes.Another sign that the big YZF likes to
be ridden aggressively: The quickshift seems to have a bit too
much delay to produce seamless upshifts under moderate
acceleration; I found a slight dip of clutch on part-throttle
shifts produced excellent results, Canet offered. And this is
despite two available settings. Under harder acceleration, the
delay was better timed and upshifts were quick and clean.
If we sound impressed with the engine, we are. But the
inline-fours ace in the hole is Yamahas electronics package. Of all
the systems weve sampled from BMW, Ducati, Aprilia, Kawasaki, and
even KTM on its 1290 Super Adventure and Super Duke R, the R1s
suite is the most transparent
ITS WHAT'S INSIDE: Controlling the 15mm shorter swingarm is a
fully adjustable KYB shock with provisions for high-
and low-speed compression and rebound damping and a 5 percent
increase in spring rate. Residing behind the clutch
cover is a new slipper clutch with an assist feature; it uses 10
friction plates (up from nine) and only three springs for
lighter feel at the lever. A new exhaust has titanium headpipes,
a stainless-steel mid-ship muffler, and Ti canister.
Updated front brake calipers are four-pot, radial-mount units
from Advics, with larger 320mm rotors.
THE INLINE-FOURS ACE IN
THE HOLE IS YAMAHAS
ELECTRONICS PACKAGE.
SUPERBIKE REGULATIONS worldwide have adopted stock piston rules,
and the new US
series, MotoAmerica, has such a rule. Its purpose is to
eliminate the advantage top teams
had in being able to custom-machine pistons to optimize engine
combustion chambers.
The goal of such work is to achieve torque-boosting high
compression while creating
squish areas, providing working clearance between pistons and
valves, and moving air-fuel
mixture closer to the single central spark plug. The overall
result is faster combustion, leav-
ing less time for its intense heat to flow into surrounding
chamber surfaces. The heat saved
becomes added pressure to drive the piston, rather than a loss
to the cooling system.
Stock engines have not been built this way because of the danger
of tolerance stack-
up. If statistics give a certain cylinder a con-rod thats a bit
long, a cylinder a tiny bit short,
and a wristpin a smidge lower than normal in the piston, the
piston could hit the head or
valves at high revs. We think Yamaha did a study that showed
that the expense of control-
ling these dimensions on the production line was an affordable
performance boost.
Whatever is different about the 2015 R1 is working in both
Superbike and the close-
to-production Superstock classes, which now run together in
MotoAmerica events.
Superstock Yamahas are finishing high up among the Superbikes.
Before the first race,
US Superbike champion Josh Hayes said the 2015 stocker was as
fast as last years race
engines. That requires something special. Kevin Cameron
HOLD THAT SPEC The new YZF-R1 wears a beautiful crown
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50 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAM AHA YZF- R1
in operation. Using excellent coding and multiple means to
control power output, including fuel, throttle-butterfly angle, and
ignition retard, Yamaha has made interventions incredibly hard to
detect and therefore amazingly smooth and nonintrusive. As a matter
of fact, for intervention to become noticeable on a grippy mountain
road, we had to toggle TC to a very conservative setting, while the
SCS (slide control) was all but impossible to feel at a street
pace. Wheelie control provides the same sensation, until you shut
it off completely, at which point you realize how much it is doing
to tame wheelies.
Given the breadth and excellence of rider-aid function on the
R1, the omission of electronic engine-braking control is
surprising. The combination of the high compression ratio and light
flywheel delivers a lot of compression braking off throttle, and a
slightly stiff throttle-return spring accentuates
this feeling. EBC would be a welcome complement to the slipper
clutch.
Toggling to PWR, TCS, or SCS displayed on the lower dash
highlights the selected parameter with a white background
indicating adjustment is allowed or black background if not.
Altering PWR requires closed throttle, while changes to TCS or SCS
require near zero cornering lean. This can result in the status
flashing between white/black while riding. I found this an
unnecessary distraction. Canet said. What really baffles me,
however, is not having the allowance to switch between Mode presets
on the fly, yet the system allows on-the-fly changes to TCS, PWR,
and SCS individually within a chosen mode.
Minor complaints with what is otherwise the best rider-aid
package. And while the electronics do a great job of providing the
rider with the confidence to ride aggressively, the chassis backs
this
up with supreme composure. I found steering very solid and true
with an unflappable sense of midcorner stability, Canet said.
Side-to-side transitions at medium-to-high speed do require
asserted input into the low clip-on bars.
Our standard model, equipped with the manually adjustable KYB
suspension, was pretty stiff as delivered, which was just fine on
one 400-plus-mile day of twisty mountain roads. The bike was rock
solid, never even dreamed about wallowing, provided excellent feel,
and communicated grip exceptionally well. Hitting frost heaves
perpendicular to the direction of travel, however, felt like
running over a 2x4 lying on the road. That said, one of the nice
features of the new fork is that all the adjusters (including
spring preload) sit atop the caps, allowing easy access. For street
duty, we eventually took a significant amount of rebound out of the
fork for improved ride quality, but the
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CYCLEWORLD.COM 51
Being the first
new-for-2015
liter-class sport
bike to undergo Cycle World performance
testing, we were
curious to learn
how the latest
YZF-R1 stacks up
against not only
its peers but the
previous-gener-
ation R1 as well.
It will be another
month before we
can assemble all
class-of-15 con-
tenders together
for a heads-up
comparison.
However, the
following chart
depicts the most
recent test data
available from
our test archive.
Stay tuned for
the outcome
of our upcom-
ing superbike
shootout, as
class hierarchy is
likely to shuffle
as a result of
back-to-back
testing under
common climatic
conditions.
Don Canet
YZF-R1BY THE NUMBERS
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 129 ft.
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 125 ft.
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 123 ft.
2013 BMW S1000RR 125 ft.
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 117 ft.
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 121 ft.
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 123 ft.
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 124 ft.
115 120 125 130
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC
2013 BMW S1000RR
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 2.6 sec.
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 3.0 sec.
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 2.7 sec.
2013 BMW S1000RR 2.6 sec.
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 2.6 sec.
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 2.6 sec.
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 2.9 sec.
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 2.8 sec.
2.0 2.5 3.0
0
60
MP
H
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 9.83 sec. @ 149.91 mph
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 10.21 sec. @ 140.73 mph
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 10.06 sec. @ 143.30 mph
2013 BMW S1000RR 9.80 sec. @ 148.89 mph
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 9.84 sec. @ 145.68 mph
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 9.83 sec. @ 143.75 mph
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 10.50 sec. @ 145.67 mph
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 9.92 sec. @ 145.88 mph
9 10 11
1/
4 M
ILE
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 167.4 hp @ 12,270 rpm
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 148.4 hp @ 11,590 rpm
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 155.5 hp @ 12,040 rpm
2013 BMW S1000RR 179.0 hp @ 13,100 rpm
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 167.1 hp @ 10,900 rpm
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 152.4 hp @ 10,435 rpm
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 160.0 hp @ 11,650 rpm
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 159.8 hp @ 11,500 rpm
140 150 180160 170
HO
RS
EP
OW
ER
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 77.0 lb.-ft. @ 8810 rpm
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 75.0 lb.-ft. @ 10,215 rpm
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 79.9 lb.-ft. @ 9940 rpm
2013 BMW S1000RR 77.2 lb.-ft. @ 10,600 rpm
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 85.0 lb.-ft. @ 8490 rpm
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 78.4 lb.-ft. @ 9870 rpm
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 73.4 lb.-ft. @ 11,060 rpm
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 77.3 lb.-ft. @ 9890 rpm
70 80 90
TO
RQ
UE
2015 YAMAHA YZF-R1 182 mph
2012 YAMAHA YZF-R1 171 mph
2013 APRILIA RSV4 R APRC 176 mph
2013 BMW S1000RR 185 mph
2014 DUCATI PANIGALE 173 mph
2013 HONDA CBR1000RR SP 175 mph
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R 177 mph
2012 SUZUKI GSX-R1000 178 mph
180 185 190175170
TO
P S
PE
ED
B
RA
KIN
G,
60
0
DRY WEIGHT
2012 YAMAHA
YZF-R1
448 lb.
2013
APRILIA
RSV4 R
APRC
446 lb.
2013 BMW
S1000RR
435 lb.
2012
SUZUKI
GSX-R1000
423 lb.
2013
HONDA
CBR1000RR
SP
422 lb.
2012
KAWASAKI
ZX-10R
417 lb.
2015
YAMAHA
YZF-R1
414 lb.
2014
DUCATI
PANIGALE
405 lb.
2012 KAWASAKI ZX-10R
WorldMags.netWorldMags.net
WorldMags.net
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52 CYCLE WORLD JULY 2015
CW TEST 2015 YAM AHA YZF- R1
R1s suspension is definitely valved and sprung stiffly.
If we never looked at the hard data, we might be inclined to say
that the R1s new brakes are right on par with the competition, but
they dont have that aggressive bite like the Ducati Panigales huge
Brembos (which stops 12 feet shorter from 600 mph). As a matter of
fact, of the bikes compared on page 51, the 2015 Yamaha has the
longest stopping distance from 60 mph. To be fair, this is more
likely due to the R1s ABS software and not the braking hardware. We
expect a pronounced improvement when we brake test the bike with
the Circuit ECU installed, since it has a more aggressive ABS
tune.
For most of us mortals, ABS on the street is a welcome safety
net, but in testing under controlled circumstances, Canets best
braking distances are typically achieved with ABS off. And his best
acceleration runs on the R1 were achieved with rider aids turned
off completely.
As a package, the R1 is class leading. The composure level is
astronomically high with this motorcycle, Hoyer concludes. The R1
is perfectly happy dawdling along being short-shifted at 4,000 rpm.
But when you let the engine scream and use real intent with control
and bar movements, you feel this Matrix-type sensation of moving
faster than time, like being able to pull bullets out of
the air with your hand.What Yamaha has done better than
any other manufacturer thus far is to keep the electronic
intervention in the background and let the rider just focus on
staying between the lines. The user interface is intuitive, the
chassis predictable and stable, and the build quality is of the
highest order. Add to this what Hoyer called the, rip-and-tear
soulful shred of that crossplane engines newfound power, and you
have the bike to beat in 2015.
A Japanese company has finally allowed its MotoGP racing program
to formulate the DNA for its flagship streetbike. At $16,490, the
new R1 is a hell of a buy.
Sometimes it pays to sit on the sidelines, watch the
competition, learn from their methods and mistakes,
and then pounce with a better mousetrap. Just ask
Mark Zuckerberg. That is exactly what Yamaha has
done with its electronic aids. Yes, it was late to the
electronic revolution, but it is Yamaha that appears to
be currently at the top. Here is a quick look at the R1s
electronic rider aids and what specifically they do.
ornm42 MODE: Four settings that incorporate all of the other
rider aids, all of which can be customized in each.
ornm42 PWR: Four available power settings. On the Cycle
World
Dynojet dyno, PWR 1 delivered a 167.4-hp run, while PWR
2 made around 7 hp less, PWR 3 anoth