Innholdsfortegnelse for 176 i Australian Road Rider

It's around this time of year I start wondering if I should buy a new bike. The announcements are coming thick and fast, “next year's” bikes look awesome, prices haven't (usually) been announced and My Life Would Be a Whole Lot Better with a new bike in the garage. This year, BMW is trying to get under my skin and inside my wallet with the M 1000 XR, but really, I know I'd buy the R 1300 GS first… but OMG a ride I had on an older S 1000 XR a few years ago doing stupid speeds down a bumpy winding road was simply so much fun… and the M version will be even faster, will have fancier suspension and might be lighter too. Then there's the Ducati Multistrada…

UPFRONT NEW BIKES FOR 2024 The bikes with a sporty engine, road wheels and tyres yet with an upright, almost adventure bike riding position are being classed as sports crossover bikes, and Suzuki has announced one, the GSX-S1000GX. Comfortable, fast and versatile, these are (in many ways) the new generation of sports-tourers. The upright riding position is comfortable, even in traffic, the performance is blistering from the modern engines, there's often more suspension travel than sportsbikes, and you can usually get panniers to go touring. The new GSX-S1000GX ticks all of those boxes and also features Suzuki Advanced Electronic Suspension (SAES), the first Suzuki to do so. Indeed, the $25,890 (ride away) price gets you lots of tech, including a bunch of things we've not seen before: Suzuki Floating Ride…

ROAD RIDER TEST BMW R 1250 R Holy Moley… the R 1250 R bolted forward in a brutal way; fast enough to reach newspaper front-page speeds within seconds if busted. I wasn't expecting that. Fortunately, getting busted didn't happen while the slow and wandering menace I'd been behind instantly disappeared… there was no need to persist with high-warp speed. Phenomenal roll-on acceleration is just one aspect of the R 1250 R that wasn't following the expected script, and here were other surprises as well. BMW's boxer-based roadster is a bit of a sleeper, and the runt of the boxer litter behind the more attention-grabbing RS, GS and RT variants. All great machines, but the 1250 R undercuts them weight-wise by 4, 10 and 40kg respectively. The R's 1250 engine is…

SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE Liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, DOHC, 4-valve, 4-cylinder Power: 55kW (75 PS) @ 14,500rpm (77PS with Ram Air) Torque: 37.6Nm @ 12,000rpm Capacity: 399cc Bore x stroke: 57 x 39mm Compression ratio: 12.3:1 Fuel system: Fuel injection, 34mm x 4 throttle bodies Ignition: Digital TRANSMISSION Type: 6 speed Final drive: Chain Clutch: Wet multiplate, assist and slipper function CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR Chassis: Steel trellis Swingarm: Steel gull wing Front suspension: Showa SFF-BP upsidedown fork (spring preload adjustment on RR) Rear suspension: Linkage shock. Preload adjustment on R; compression, rebound, preload on RR Front brakes: Radial-mount monobloc 4-piston callipers, semi-floating 290mm dual discs, ABS Rear brake: Single-piston calliper, 220mm single disc, ABS Tyres: Front: 120/70ZR17 (58W); Rear: 160/60ZR17M/C (69W) ELECTRONIC RIDER AIDS Brake control (ABS): Yes Riding modes: 4 modes, 1…

SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE Type: Liquid-cooled, parallel-twin, double overhead cam, 4 valves per cylinder Capacity: 353cc (500cc) Compression ratio: 11.9:1 Engine management: Digital, EFI PERFORMANCE Claimed maximum power: 36hp at 9500rpm (46.9hp at 8500rpm) Claimed maximum torque: 31Nm at 7000rpm (45Nm at 6000rpm) Fuel consumption: N/A TRANSMISSION Type: 6 speed Final drive: Chain Clutch: Wet multi-plate, slip & assist CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR Chassis: Mild steel trellis Front suspension: 41mm upside-down rebound adjustable (50mm USD, adjustable for rebound damping) Rear suspension: Single spring/damper unit, adjustable for preload and rebound damping Front brakes: Radially mounted four-piston calipers, twin discs, ABS Rear brake: Single disc, single piston caliper, ABS Tyres, F: 120/70ZR17 R: 160/60ZR17 DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES Rake: 24.8° (24.5°) Trail: 140mm (100mm) Claimed shipped weight: 180kg (199kg) Seat height: 777mm (820mm) Wheelbase: 1410mm…

HONDA CL500 ROAD RIDER TEST SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE Type: Liquid-cooled 4-stroke. 10-degree parallel twin Capacity: 471cc Compression ratio: 10.7:1 Engine management: EFI, digital ignition PERFORMANCE Claimed maximum power: 46hp (34.3kW) @ 8500rpm Claimed maximum torque: 43.4Nm @ 6250 Fuel consumption: 4.7L/100km TRANSMISSION Type: 6-speed constant mesh Final drive: Chain Clutch: Assist & Slipper wet clutch CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR Chassis: Steel frame with engine as stressed member. Tubular steel swingarm Front suspension: 41mm conventional forks, non-adjustable, 134mm travel Rear suspension: Twin shocks, adjustable for preload, 145mm of travel Front brakes: Single 310mm disc, ABS Rear brake: Single 240mm disc, ABS Tyres: F: 110/80-19, R: 150/70-17 DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES Rake: 27° Trail: 108mm Claimed wet weight: 192kg Seat height: 790mm Wheelbase: 145mm Fuel capacity: 12L Electronics, rider aids & convenience features Digital instruments,…

ARR TRAVEL MUSEUM REVIEW, MATHOURA “MANY WILL REMEMBER THEM BLOWING UP…” The Beach Boys' iconic song, “Good Vibrations”, was released to the world in 1966 and arguably influenced a generation. Three years later, Honda released the super-smooth 750/4 that had a big impact on a generation of motorcyclists. Big single thumpers, and teeth-rattling twins production lines in the old dart slowed to a trickle. Growing up around motorcycles in his father's Echuca motorcycle shop was a young Tom Weyrich. He had a front-row seat to the demise of the British big-bore twins and the rise of the Japanese multis. Tom and his brothers saw the success his dad had flogging super reliable Japanese bikes, firstly ag bikes to farmers and, as the business expanded, selling Suzukis and Kawasakis beside British…

Of all the names the Indian Motorcycle Company used for its motorcycles, the Scout was the most famous. Back before WWII it was a lighter, less expensive and more versatile machine than the other popular model, the Chief… but that's a story for another day. This article is about the Scout, which has been with us for a decade, launching in late 2014 as a 2015 model. Just like 90-odd years earlier, the Scout was a lighter, more compact bike with a smaller engine than the other bikes in the Indian range. It featured the second engine built by the now Polaris-owned factory, an 1133cc (69.1 cu in) liquid-cooled V-twin. Priced at $17,995 ride away at launch, it represented pretty good value — a well-built American motorcycle with an excellent…

UPFRONT NEW BIKES FOR 2024 APRILIA The parallel twin 660c introduced a few years back has revitalised Aprilia, and now the company is going smaller, announcing the RS457, a small-bore sportsbike. A liquid-cooled parallel twin motor, rideby-wire throttle, 41mm forks, dual-mode ABS and a full fairing are all there. A trick version might be available as a non-LAMS model to take on the Kawasaki ZX-4R, tested in this issue. BMW Lots of new bikes are coming from BMW, including the F 900 GS, F 800 GS, M 1000 XR and R 1300 GS. Kicking off the 2024 fever would have to be the Roctane, which the editor rode at the Australian launch of the bike in September and which features on the cover of the previous issue. It's a massive…

ACROSS AUSTRALIA 50 YEARS APART Thoughts of a previous journey were front of mind, for this was the area where the emu had been hit, 50 years and most of a lifetime previously — out on the Nullarbor Plain. When that had happened so long ago, the damage had been minor, the bike taking the impact in its stride, but even so a repeat wouldn't be welcomed, especially by the human body astride the bike with 71 years on the clock. In those days the road was unsealed, a seemingly never-ending straight of dusty, pot-holed, slippery dirt. Not really a place for a 175cc commuter bike, but that was what he had. And 50 years later, Vince Cicciari was back there again, on the same bike. ITALY-AUSTRALIA-ENGLAND Cicciari immigrated to…

SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE Liquid-cooled, 4-stroke, DOHC, 4-valve, 2-cylinder Power: 100kW (136hp) @ 7750rpm Torque: 143Nm @ 6250rpm Capacity: 1254cc Bore x stroke: 102.5 x 76mm Compression ratio: 12.5:1 Fuel system: Fuel injection with throttle-by-wire Ignition: Digital TRANSMISSION Type: 6 speeds with helical-cut gears Final drive: Shaft Clutch: Wet multiplate, anti-hopping function CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR Chassis: Steel tube with separate sub-frame Swingarm: Aluminium, single sided Front suspension: Upside-down fork with Dynamic ESA of compression & rebound Rear suspension: Linkage shock with Dynamic ESA of compression, rebound & preload Front brakes: Twin radial-mount monobloc 4-piston callipers, semi-floating 320mm discs Rear brake: Twin-piston calliper, 276mm single disc, ABS Tyres: Front: 120/70ZR17, Rear: 180/55ZR17M/C ELECTRONIC RIDER AIDS Brake control (ABS): Yes, Cornering ABS Riding modes: 4 modes, 1 customisable (Rider) Engine power modes: 2…

TOURING NSW WATERFALL WAY View or download the map links.roadrider.com.au/Map-WaterfallWay-175 If Bellingen isn't the prettiest and most welcoming town on the NSW North Coast, I'm not sure what is. These days it seems the coastal towns from Port Macquarie to Coffs Harbour are all too busy and crowded, while the popular and better-known places like Byron Bay and Nimbin have suffered from too much publicity. But don't worry gentle reader, while promoting Bellingen in Australian Road Rider might result in an influx of motorcycle-mounted tourers, it won't manifestly change the place. From the shops which seem to have been lifted from a different century to cafes selling country-made eclectic foods to the alfresco dining and quiet streets, Bellingen is the sort of place I visit and wonder if I could…

ROAD RIDER TEST HONDA CL500 Slipping through the peak-period traffic snarls gives me a little personal satisfaction. Being able to legally filter to the front is one of the true advantages of being a motorcyclist in the city these days, and the new CL500 was perfect for the job. Its upright riding position, narrow girth and easy manoeuvrability make getting around the tin-tops a simple job… and then I realised many of the potential buyers of this bike aren't allowed to filter anyway. Filtering isn't legal until you have a full licence. Even so, the CL500 would be a great choice for many a learner — some will be put off by the high seat, but Honda has the CMX500 for those with duck's disease, the cruiser powered by the…

ROAD RIDER TEST DUCATI DIAVEL V4 Quick, name me a successful fourcylinder cruiser? If you said Vmax, go to the top of the class… but don't feel bad if you'd forgotten the big Yamaha, because there aren't many others… and Yamaha didn't bother to develop the Vmax after the injected 2009 version. So the only obvious competitor to the new Ducati Diavel V4 is the Triumph Rocket 3. Ducati would love to take some sales from Harley-Davidson and Indian, of course, but I'm not convinced lovers of big, heavy, slowrevving V-twins will be drawn to a high-revving four-cylinder machine. It's a different style, for a start, from the massive intake ducts to the gorgeous rear wheel on the single-sided swingarm and super-wide rear tyre. The Diavel is not for the…

ARR TRAVEL BRISBANE TO MT ISA AND BACK “…IN 2023, THE TOWN ITSELF WAS CELEBRATING ITS 100TH BIRTHDAY…” Any long-distance motorcycle ride encompasses myriad emotions. The optimist in us envisions the joy, the excitement and perhaps elation, but the more experienced or battle-weary are fully aware there will be uncertainty, anxiety, even fear. And after riding our adventure bikes from Brisbane to Mt Isa and back, I can assure you my mate Danny and I were in touch with all of those emotions and more. The first moment of pure clarity and elation for me came as I saw the sign advising we were crossing over the Great Dividing Range right in the heart of the Carnarvon National Park, some 460m above sea level, along the wide and undulating road…

WHATZ NEW FALCO ARRAKIS AND ROYALE LADY BOOTS & ACEBIKES BUCKLE-UP TIE-DOWNS Falco has introduced two new boots which are visually very different yet share numerous features you should demand in a motorcycle boot. The Arrakis is a short men's boot with a chunky sole, modern style and QuickReel closure system. It's waterproof thanks to the High-Tex membrane yet comfortable in every season thanks to the Air-Tech ventilated inserts. The D3O ankle cups provide additional protection in the event of a crash, while the Micro-Synth upper is abrasionresistant and comfortable. The chunky sole is high grip and dual compound. The Arrakis is available in European sizes 43-47 and has an RRP of $399.95. The Royale Lady is obviously aimed at women and also features the MicroSynth upper, High-Tex waterproof membrane…

WHATZ NEW AGV K3 (NEW) & ANDY STRAPZ MERINO ALL-ROUNDER AGV's K3 has evolved over the years and is now one of the most affordable quality helmets around. Available in a huge range of colours and graphics, the new K3 meets the highest safety standards while being a versatile full-face lid. The shell is made of highresistance thermoplastic material, the multi-density EPS, and details such as the collarbone-protection profile and the protective visor allow K3 to obtain the strict ECE22.06 homologation. Beyond its protection if something goes wrong, the K3 has heaps of features usually only found in more expensive helmets, like a Pinlock Max Vision antifog system combining with the Ultravision visor (named for its 190° horizontal field of vision), and the padding is designed for use with spectacles…

Three weeks before setting off to Phillip Island for the 2023 MotoGP, I was well advanced in preparing my bike for the 2500km round trip. The biggest job had been putting a long-overdue carby kit through the Mikunis, which my mate Steve and I accomplished in his garage. Alas, in the process we snapped the brittle clip-onmounted choke lever — not the easiest part to find for a 32-year-old Ducati — which we planned to plastic-weld. The busted tacho and speedo cables were replaced, as was a section of wire to the right rear blinker. I also needed an inspection report to renew the rego, and it was during this that Pete the wonder mechanic gave me the bad news. He had valiantly shimmed my bike's well-worn rear-wheel hub prior…

UPFRONT NEW BIKES FOR 2024 New Ninja sportsbikes and a LAMS cruiser have already been announced, with the ZX-4R, ZX-4RR and Eliminator coming to a dealership near you, plus updates to the ZX-6R. The ZX-4R and its stablemate, the higher-spec-version ZX-4RR, are already here, with Australian Road Rider riding the new machine – the launch report is published on pages 56-65 so check out Phil James' report. Essentially a mini ZX-10R, the ZX-4R has a high-revving inline fourcylinder engine, race fairing and some reasonably trick components — although not as trick as the ZX-6R and Ninja ZX-10R, because then it would also be priced like those bikes. For someone looking to learn some track skills at a reasonable price without the threat of highsides and crazy speeds of a Supersport…

ROAD RIDER FEATURE SURPRISING SAFETY SOLUTIONS “Motorcycling is dangerous.” That line is on the ticket you purchase to go see a bike race, and it's a lot more likely a rider will be injured than a spectator, but it's still possible. For those of us who ride, the danger is there. Crashes hurt. Those with the least skills are most likely to be hurt, although where you ride, how hard you ride and how much trust you put in others around you also influences the likelihood of injury. The highly experienced and well-trained riders who are also out there in the saddle often are probably the least likely to get hurt, because we ride within our limits, we know how our bike will react in a given circumstance, and are…

ROAD RIDER ARTICLE KAWASAK ININJA ZX-4R AND ZX-4RR TRACK LAUNCH REPORT The shriek from the intake, engine and exhaust is pure Superbike as I run through the gears. 14k… 15k… snick… 14k… 15k… repeat. On a 1000cc machine, doing this quickly gets the bike up over 250km/h, and there are few places this can be done safely, but on a 400? Not anywhere, but in a lot more places, places where your speed might be 150 rather than 250… We haven't had sporty small-bore fours for decades. Even when they were popular in Japan a couple of decades ago, the numbers sold in Australia were quite small, but the popularity of racetrack ride days and the availability of a new, affordable and fast 400 has inspired Kawasaki to give the…

ROAD RIDER INTRO HARLEY-DAVIDSON X350 & X500 The new X350 and X500 HarleyDavidson machines are going to quickly become the best-selling motorcycles from The Motor Company in Australia. They are priced competitively, look good, go well and are LAMS approved — a formula which will sell thousands. They replace — after a couple of years' hiatus — the Street 500 and 750. The Street 500 was the best-selling Harley-Davidson in Australia largely because it was the only LAMS-approved Harley-Davidson, but wasn't successful in very many markets. The 750 was a sales flop everywhere. With exclusive bodywork designed at Harley HQ in Milwaukee, USA, while having the bikes made in China, the company hopes it can emulate the likes of Apple and sell lots of machines even when they're not made…

BENELLI LEONCINO 500 TRAIL — $10,390 RIDE AWAY Similar weight, power and torque, the Leoncino Trail has wire spoked wheels and tyres better suited to off-road than the CL500, but is no cheaper and isn't a Honda. HUSQVARNA SVARTPILEN 401 — $8410 RIDE AWAY A single cylinder that won't be as smooth or powerful as the Honda, but the Svartpilen has heaps of character and just as much off-road capability — maybe more. TRIUMPH SCRAMBLER 400X — $9990 RIDE AWAY Another single, but in a lightweight build that should offer decent performance and simplicity in maintenance. New for 2024 and aimed at growing Triumph's customer base.…

DUCATI DIAVEL V4 ROAD RIDER TEST SPECIFICATIONS ENGINE Type: 90-degree liquid-cooled V-four Granturismo. 4 valves per cylinder (not Desmo) Capacity: 1158cc Compression ratio: 14:1 Engine management: EFI, 46mm elliptical throttle bodies, ride by wire PERFORMANCE Claimed maximum power: 168hp (124kW) @ 10,750rpm Claimed maximum torque: 126Nm @ 7500rpm Fuel Consumption: 16.5km/L TRANSMISSION Type: 6 speed Final drive: Chain Clutch: Wet, slipper CHASSIS AND RUNNING GEAR Chassis: Aluminium monocoque with the engine as a stressed member Front suspension: 50mm USD forks, fully adjustable Rear suspension: Single rear shock, fully adjustable Front brakes: 330mm discs and Brembo Stylema calipers Rear brake: Single disc Tyres, F: 120/70-17, R: 240/45-17 Diablo Rosso III DIMENSIONS AND CAPACITIES Rake: 26° Trail: 112mm Claimed wet weight: 236kg Seat height: 790mm Wheelbase: 1593mm Fuel capacity: 20L ELECTRONICS, RIDER AIDS…

WHATZ NEW GIANT LOOP CACTUS CANTEEN & EUROGRIP ROADHOUND TYRES Road riding often doesn't require a hydration pack on your back… they can interfere with airflow on hot days and if you're stopping regularly, it's usually not required to drink while you're moving. However, carrying water is highly recommended because you don't want to go thirsty if there's an unexpected stop, and being able to take a drink at scenic stops is good, too. Giant Loop, best known for its adventure luggage, has a fantastic product for carrying water, which is just the go for road riders wanting to carry water without hassles — the Cactus Canteen. It's an ultra-rugged, expedition-ready, collapsible water container that can be strapped anywhere. Featuring two-layer construction of an inner bladder and outer cover, both…

Lying in the tent, it's a typical crisp early spring morning as the sun causes the cockatoos to start up their raucous call. Bleary rally goers stir into life. Why am I here when I have a nice warm bed at home? Best I greet the day. Zipping open the tent, I just have to stop for a moment and stare at the machine waiting quietly to be fired up and join its brethren. She's finally together. I lusted after this bike when it first hit the market. Now, after five decades and eight years of painstaking research and building, I have one. A Daytona Orange BMW R90s. I bought her off the original owner who had used and abused her, riding the length and breadth of Australia. A ground-up…