Also, the use of the Fireblade outline in the drawings could simply be artist expediency as several other patent application drawings have included Fireblade outlines.
Sadly Paulo later died and the eighth stage was cancelled in his honour, leaving less opportunity for Toby to make up time. The 10th stage was also cut short when too many riders crashed.
In the wake of these setbacks, Toby’s podium finish is a truly champion effort.
Toby celebrates with victory donuts!
Toby wasn’t the only Aussie who did us proud in the Dakar as both a tough competitor and aa Good Samaritan.
Mr Consistency, Rodney Faggotter (Yamaha, Queensland) finished most stages in the top 20 and recorded career best 13th outright and a sixth in one stage.
Rodney Faggotter
Like Toby, on the 10th stage Rodney stopped to help a crashed rider and was given the time back by the officials.
“I had a solid 2 weeks and rode the most ‘in control’ but also at the best I have ever done,” Rodney says.
“The riders in front of me are the best rally riders in the world and most of them full time athletes. I’m pumped to be near and amongst these guys!”
Matt finished in last place at 100th and placed last in 96th!
However, even to finish a gruelling Dakar is a massive feat and to have all four Aussie entrants complete the event is a tribute to their heroics.
About a third of the 158 field did not finish due to crashes or mechanical failures.
Five women made it to the finish of the Dakar led by Laia Sanz in 17th place overall, with Dutchwoman Mirjam Pol, South Africans Kirsten Landman and Taye Perry, and Spaniard Sara García also in the general classification.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
Current highest bid is still $13,001.
Auction closes on tomorrow (18 January 2020) at 5pm (AEST).
If you can’t bid, please donate on this link. Sp far he has raised more than $5000.
Toby Price has staged a last-ditch attack on American Ricky Brabec’s lead in the penultimate stage of the Dakar Rally but failed to make up enough time.
The Australian two-time Dakar winner attacked early and clawed back almost six minutes on the Honda rider who seemed to take it easy.
Toby’s attack placed him fifth on the 379km special stage that included about 80km of sand dunes. It was the second part of a two-day marathon stage with no outside help for the riders.
Top 5 finishers on stage 11
POS.
N°
EXP.
DRIVE-TEAM
MARK-MODEL
TIME
VARIATION
PENALITY
1
5
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING
04H 09′ 22”
2
2
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
04H 09′ 31”
+ 00H 00′ 09”
3
16
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
04H 12′ 10”
+ 00H 02′ 48”
4
17
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
04H 12′ 15”
+ 00H 02′ 53”
5
1
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
04H 15′ 11”
+ 00H 05′ 49”
The leading KTM rider is now third overall with only the largely ceremonial final stage to come tomorrow.
That would mean Ricky becomes the first American to win the Dakar and also end KTM’s record winning streak of 18.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
Current highest bid is still $13,001.
Auction closes on Saturday (18 January 2020) at 5pm (AEST).
If you can’t bid, please donate on this link. Sp far he has raised abouot $5000.
Airbags seem to be the flavour of the times for the safety “experts”.
A host of airbag leather race suits is now available, airbags are mandatory in most motorcycle racing and some companies such as Dainese, Alpinestars and Furygan, are now releasing aftermarket airbag vests that go over or under a normal jacket.
As for motorcycles airbags, we can see they may be a safety device in crashes where the rider hits something head-on or is hit from behind, but not glancing blows or being hit from the side.
The Goldwing airbag in the “tank” area is bulky and would only fit big tourers.
However, Honda’s new patent is for a much smaller airbag.
It would be suitable on smaller motorcycles as shown in this patent drawing of a scooter published by Visor Down.
We imagine this will also be a cheaper airbag than the one in the Goldwing.
It’s not the first time Honda has considered adding airbags to smaller bikes.
In 2017, the company exhibited an airbag designed for scooters at the Honda Meeting in Tokyo. (See image at the top of this page.)
The danger of this type of cheaper technology is that safety experts will one day deem it as a mandatory fitment on all bikes just as they have with ABS!
Honda patent blitz
Honda has been having something of a blitz on patents in the past couple of years.
While this idea seems quite reasonable and may make it into some future motorcycles, a lot of the others are less likely.
Aussie Toby Price (pictured above) and others stopped to help fallen riderPaulo Goncalves yesterday (12 January 2020) in the Dakar Rally.
They came across the Portuguese rider at the 276km mark of the epic 546 stage.
Paulo was unconscious and Toby and some other riders stayed with him until the helicopters arrived. Sadly, Paulo passed away in hospital.
He had raced in every rally since his debut in 2006 with four top 10 finishes and a second place in 2015.
Stage eight of the rally today has been cancelled in Paulo’s honour.
Toby still in contention
Toby finished 51st on the longest stage of the Saudi Arabian event, but the time he spent helping Paulo was deducted and his overall position adjusted.
On the adjusted timings, Toby is fourth overall and only 28 minutes behind the leaders.
The seventh stage was won by Spaniard Joan Barreda Bort, ahead of Toby’s KTM teammates Matthias Walkner (Austria) and Luciano Benavides (Argentina) with Bort’s Honda teammate, Ricky Brabec, in fourth (USA).
Barreda Bort
Ricky now leads outright and looks the most consistent rider with two stage wins.
If victorious, he would be the first American to win the Dakar and it would halt the impressive 18 consecutive wins for KTM.
Top 5 rankings
POS.
N°
EXP.
DRIVE-TEAM
MARK-MODEL
TIME
VARIATION
PENALTY
1
9
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
28H 25′ 01”
2
5
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING
28H 49′ 49”
+ 00H 24′ 48”
3
17
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
28H 52′ 02”
+ 00H 27′ 01”
00H 01′ 00”
4
1
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
28H 53′ 45”
+ 00H 28′ 44”
00H 02′ 00”
5
12
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
28H 54′ 30”
+ 00H 29′ 29”
Other Aussies
Queensland veteran competitor Rodney Faggotter (Yamaha) has now moved to be right with Toby.
He finished the epic stage in 17th, moving up two outright spots to be 12th.
Fellow Aussie Ben Young (KTM) finished strongly in 54th place in his second Dakar, moving up nine positions to 57th overall.
Matthew Tisdall (KTM) had his best finish yet with 99th place and is now 102nd outright.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
Aussie Toby Price lost 16 valuable minutes when his rear tyre came off in the sand dunes on stage six of the first Dakar Rally to be held in Saudi Arabia.
The stage was won by American and Honda factory team rider Ricky Brabec who moves further ahead in outright first as the competitors reach a valuable half-way rest day in the gruelling event.
Toby, who is the title holder chasing his third Dakar victory and KTM’s record 19th consecutive win, finished 11th.
He had been just nine minutes off the leader in second outright, but now slips one spot to third, some 25 minutes off the pace.
Top 5 rankings
POS.
N°
EXP.
DRIVE-TEAM
MARK-MODEL
TIME
VARIATION
PENALITY
1
9
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
23H 43′ 47”
2
5
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING
24H 04′ 43”
+ 00H 20′ 56”
3
1
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
24H 09′ 26”
+ 00H 25′ 39”
00H 02′ 00”
4
17
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
24H 09′ 28”
+ 00H 25′ 41”
00H 01′ 00”
5
12
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
24H 16′ 45”
+ 00H 32′ 58”
Down in the dunes
The 455km special sage was 100% sand dunes which usually favour Toby who has won the Australian Finke race a record four times and the Hattah Desert Race five times.
However, he ran into some bad luck.
“Today’s stage started out really good,” Toby says.
“We were navigating really well from the front and I was only losing small amounts of time on the riders who started behind me so I was quite happy with the way I was racing, but unfortunately around the 400km mark my rear tyre fell off!
“I have no idea why this would have happened but I’m super grateful that Andrew Short pulled up and gave me his wheel which allowed me to get to the finish as quick as possible so thank you again for this mate.
“Overall I’m pretty gutted that this is how we finished up today but I guess that’s just how it goes sometimes.”
Toby can be expected to come out fighting in the second week of the rally as he usually does.
Meanwhile, Queensland veteran competitor Rodney Faggotter (Yamaha) was 16th, moving up three outright spots to 13th.
Fellow Aussie Ben Young (KTM) again finished a respectable 60th in his second Dakar, but dropped two spots to 66th.
Matthew Tisdall (KTM) finished 104th out of 117 stage finishers and is up six places to 107th outright.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
After leading on the first day and dropping back to ninth, Aussie Toby Price has scored his second stage win in the Dakar Rally and moved up to second outright.
The title holder is chasing his third Dakar victory and KTM’s record 19th consecutive win.
He finished the gruelling 453km special stage of rock and sand just 1:12 minutes in front of Husqvarna rider Pablo Quintanilla (Chile) followed by his teammate Andrew Short (USA).
Fellow American and Honda factory team rider Ricky Brabec was fourth and remains in top position outright, now just 9:06 minutes in front of Toby.
Ricky Brabec (Honda, USA)
Toby’s teammate Sam Sunderland, Britain’s first Dakar winner in 2017, crashed half way through the stage and is not out of the event.
He has participated seven times and finished only twice after five crashes.
Stage win
Toby says he pushed hard on the stage, which is unusual as he usually leaves his attack until the second week.
“It’s been a good day,” he says.
“I pushed hard at the start, made some good ways and by then I caught up with the Honda boys.
“Ricky and them were in front, but, yeah, it’s been a good stage.
“It’s actually the first time I’ve ridden with a whole big group, so it was quite enjoyable, but at the end of the day they are competitive so we need to stay in front of them.
“We’re happy with the day and we’ll see how day six goes now… I think that’s what we’re up to… I’m starting to lose count of it all.”
Queensland veteran competitor Rodney Faggotter (Yamaha) was 23rd and moves up one outright position to 16th.
Rodney Faggotter
He says he dropped a couple minutes finding a waypoint, but otherwise had a “solid and safe day”.
“Was another full-on day and up to this stage this is the fastest Dakar in overall speeds I’ve done.”
Fellow Aussie Ben Young (KTM) again finished a respectable 64th in his second Dakar and moves up 14 places to 64th.
Matthew Tisdall (KTM) finished 115th out of 124 stage finishers, yet is mysteriously listed as last outright in 113th, up from 124th.
There were 158 riders competing in this years event.
Tomorrow’s massive 477 km special stage is almost all sand which should suit Toby.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
An error in the roadbook has forced officials in the 2020 Dakar Rally in Saudi Arabia to amend the finishing results after a controversial day three and the second stage of the super marathon.
Aussie two-time winner and current title holder Toby Price was running in the top four when he and Frenchman Xavier de Soultrait veered 900m off the track because of the error late in the stage.
Toby spent time lost in the Saudi desert
The error was only in the roadbook for the motorcycle category. It showed a waypoint wasn’t where it was indicated.
Rally officials wisely decided to record the stage times only up to that point, which meant Toby went from finishing 11th to fifth.
Toby now moves up from ninth overall to sixth and less than 12 minutes off the lead. That gives him plenty of time for an attack in the second week of the gruelling event as he did when he won last year.
He described it as a “difficult day”.
“In the early parts of the stage we were getting on pretty damn good but unfortunately, I made a few mistakes which really cost me,” he said before the officials changed the finishing times.
“One of those mistakes was towards the end of the stage, where I had a hard time tracking down a specific WPC which was marked in a really tricky position; not sure what the go is here.”
Honda looks set to challenge KTM which is pressing for its 19th consecutive victory with the factory team taking four of the top six slots for the 427km stage led by American Ricky Brabec (top photo).
The two-day super marathon stage is a field leveller as riders have to do their own work on bikes and even teammates can’t help.
Toby works on his bike
Top 10 outright rankings
POS.
N°
EXP.
DRIVE-TEAM
MARK-MODEL
TIME
VARIATION
PENALITY
1
9
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
10H 39′ 04”
2
7
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
10H 43′ 47”
+ 00H 04′ 43”
3
2
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
10H 45′ 06”
+ 00H 06′ 02”
4
12
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
10H 50′ 06”
+ 00H 11′ 02”
5
17
MONSTER ENERGY HONDA TEAM 2020
10H 50′ 23”
+ 00H 11′ 19”
00H 01′ 00”
6
1
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
10H 51′ 02”
+ 00H 11′ 58”
00H 02′ 00”
7
5
ROCKSTAR ENERGY HUSQVARNA FACTORY RACING
10H 51′ 41”
+ 00H 12′ 37”
8
16
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
10H 53′ 24”
+ 00H 14′ 20”
9
3
RED BULL KTM FACTORY TEAM
10H 56′ 14”
+ 00H 17′ 10”
10
10
MONSTER ENERGY YAMAHA RALLY TEAM
10H 58′ 59”
+ 00H 19′ 55”
Other Aussies
Queensland veteran competitor Rodney Faggotter (Yamaha) finished 14th on the revised times, moving up two places to 15th outright.
“Had a good solid ride and feeling good,” he says.
“Bit of chaos late in the stage with a missing waypoint that wasn’t set up in the motos GPSs but was in the quads and cars.
“Fortunately commonsense prevailed and they took the stage times up to that point. Was funny for a while and even had a chat and trail ride around in circles with my old mate Toby.
“Was funny until we were still searching for that bastard waypoint a half hour later.”
Other Aussie Ben Young (KTM) finished 90th and moved up four places to 88th and Matthew Tisdall (Duust) finished 124th, with only two riders behind him. He was 131nd outright but is now 124th after riders dropped out.
Tomorrow’s 453km special stage is equal parts stony and sandy.
Like many Aussie sports stars and celebrities, Toby (right) is raising money for the bushfire appeal.
He is auctioning his starting jersey and pants for firefighters
Toby is also doing his bit for the current critical bushfire situation by auctioning his starting jersey and pants with proceeds going to the NSW Rural Fire Service.
It is open worldwide, just send in your bid in Australian dollars on his Facebook page or Instagram.
Three brands, three middleweights, three engine configurations, three very distinct personalities. Which one are you? Photos by Kevin Wing.
Three riders walk into a dealership…. (I know it sounds like the start of a bad joke but bear with me.) All three are in the market for a new middleweight motorcycle, and each has a unique style and riding experience in mind. They’re in luck — thanks to a challenging economy, increasing growth in female ridership and a need to attract younger riders, manufacturers are doubling down on the small- and midsize-displacement market, meaning there’s a middleweight machine out there for just about anyone. We gathered three of the newest for an unorthodox Comparo Review; rather than pitting them against each other in a head-to-head battle, we thought instead we’d focus on each one’s unique personality. So here we are, the door just swung closed behind us, and our first rider already seems to know exactly what he wants.
We find him standing next to the Honda CB650R, where he’s admiring the waterfall of header pipes cascading from its 649cc, liquid-cooled, DOHC in-line four. The replacement for the stale CB650F, this fresh CB650R rounds out Honda’s Neo-Sports Café lineup, slotting in between the CB300R and CB1000R released for the 2018 model year.
Honda gave the middleweight CB more than just a facelift, with new wheels, an updated steel frame and a new, smaller fuel tank that combine to drop a claimed 9.2 pounds (11.6 pounds on the ABS version), a new inverted 41mm Showa fork with adjustable preload, a slightly more aggressive riding position and a redesigned airbox. The engine got a few tweaks as well, with new pistons and valve timing and a redline that’s been bumped up 1,000 rpm to 13,000. Also new this year is optional HSTC (traction control), which is only available on the ABS-equipped model and can be switched on and off on the fly.
Liquid-cooled, DOHC in-line four is the most potent of the trio, with 83 peak horsepower on tap.Switchable HSTC (traction control) is only available on the ABS model (which our test bike was not). LCD gauge includes range to empty, fuel gauge, gear indicator and a clock.
The result is a seriously sporty machine that will pluck at the heartstrings of any rider yearning for the howl of a rev-happy in-line four in an affordable, fun-to-go-fast package. This is a bike that’s happiest when wound up, with the real action not kicking in until about 6,000 rpm. Per the Jett Tuning dyno, the CB650R spins out a respectable 83 horsepower at 11,000 rpm, with torque topping out at 43 lb-ft at 8,200. “Go fast or go home,” says our rider as he swings a leg over the nearly 32-inch seat.
Footpegs are just a tad higher and farther back than before and the wide, flat handlebar is lower and more forward, but the riding position is still relatively comfortable, especially when compared to the drop-down sport position of our other two comparo bikes. With suspension front and rear being preload-adjustable, it’s easier to find a happy medium for sporting canyon runs and bombing around town, and powerful radial-mount, 4-piston front brakes pinching big 320mm discs provide more than enough stopping power. As someone unaccustomed to an in-line four with less engine braking than a twin, I was happy for the peace of mind those brakes offered when winding things up on a twisty road. While the CB could be a good first bike (Honda says 25% of its 650cc bikes are bought by first-timers), it’s got enough juice to keep an experienced rider happily entertained.
“And,” smiles our first rider as we wander away, “it’s the right color: red.”
It might be fair to say that rider number two is the polar opposite; he’s drawn to the Kawasaki W800 Cafe, a new model (in the U.S. and Canada) for 2019 that evokes the look and spirit of the original 1966 W1. For him, sheer performance numbers aren’t a priority, but rather classic good looks and a timeless sense of style — although a few modern conveniences like a bright LED headlight, ABS and fuel injection don’t hurt.
With the possible exception of the paint, which is a polarizing metal-flake-brown and silver combo (I happen to like it), the W800 checks all the retro-loving riders’ boxes in the appearance department. Central to that is the 773cc air-cooled, SOHC vertical twin, with its distinctive bevel gear shaft-driven cam and 360-degree firing interval. Despite its balance shaft the engine vibrates significantly at idle and throughout most of the powerband, but the wide-ratio 5-speed gearbox shifts smoothly (thanks in part to the assist-and-slipper clutch) and the chrome peashooter mufflers burble modestly. “It’s got character,” shrugs our rider.
Air-cooled parallel twin looks the part, but vibrates excessively at lower rpm and idle. ABS is standard on the single front and rear discs.Classic round gauges include analog speedometer and tachometer and LCD trip info; there is no gear indicator, fuel gauge or consumption data.
That character extends outward from the engine, with the old school double-cradle frame that was designed using Kawasaki’s advanced dynamic analysis software for new school handling, 18-inch spoked wheels rolling on tube-type Dunlop K300 GP rubber, dual rear preload-adjustable shocks, a 41mm gaitered fork and a classic clubman drop-down handlebar. The 31-inch two-tone seat is comfortable enough for about an hour at a time, and the riding position is sporty yet civilized.
Mid-mount footpegs will drag early, the vertical twin generates a middling 46.7 horsepower at 6,400 rpm and 44 lb-ft torque at 4,600, and the two brake discs, one front and one rear, both with 2-piston calipers and standard ABS, aren’t up to true sport riding levels, but that’s not what the W800 is all about. Cruising city streets and weekend jaunts into the countryside are what it was made to do, and you’re almost guaranteed to draw some admiring eyeballs when you get to your destination.
Now where did our third rider go? Ah, she discovered the Suzuki SV650X, which mixes the best of both worlds — sporty and retro — and also happens to be a time-tested, proven platform that’s been pasting smiles on faces since 1999, the year the original SV650 launched. In the intervening 20 years there have been S models with clip-ons and half fairings, but in my opinion this new-for-2019 café-racer X variation is the most true to the SV650’s spirit.
The bones haven’t changed: it’s still powered by the same 645cc liquid-cooled, DOHC, 90-degree V-twin that pulls strongly from idle to its peak of 69.3 horsepower at 8,700 rpm and 43.3 lb-ft of torque at 8,100, wrapped in a familiar steel trellis frame. Dual 290mm discs with 2-piston calipers up front and a single 240mm/1-piston combo at the rear work well, and ABS is standard. It’s shod with the best tires of the trio, grippy Dunlop Roadsmart IIIs.
If it ain’t broke…. Liquid-cooled 645cc 90-degree V-twin is still tractable and fun.The SV gets standard ABS and solid if not great braking performance.LCD gauge is simple and easy to read, with range to empty, a fuel gauge, a gear indicator and a clock.
The SV650X also continues to be one of the most user-friendly middleweights out there; nearly everything about it is approachable, from its one-touch Easy Start feature and Low RPM Assist that automatically raises engine speed when releasing the clutch, to its 31-inch seat, narrow waist, predictable powerband and no-frills, easy to read, comprehensive LCD gauge.
It’s responsive and stable, cool as a cucumber, never demanding too much of its rider even when the road gets twisty, and with some suspension work it could be a great track day warrior. Best of all, it doesn’t need to be wrung out in order to have fun, and is equally happy munching through traffic or carving up canyons — though not for hours on end. The fairly long reach to the clip-ons requires a strong core, lest too much weight is placed on the hands, and the low seat and tallish footpegs create an aching need to stretch out cramped-up knees. That said, if you’re young enough, fit enough and/or willing to rest often enough, the SV650X is a cool ride that looks, feels and sounds great.
The Choice
So which one am I? The Kawasaki looks the part, but its annoying vibration, squishy suspension, uninspiring power and high price tag are turnoffs. The quick, flickable Honda is a hoot to ride, but my personal preference is for low-end grunt over a high-strung in-line four. I don’t have a long commute and we have plenty of more appropriate touring bikes in the Rider garage, so for cruising around town and half-day blasts up the local canyons, the cool-as-a-cucumber Suzuki best matched my personality. Wait…does that make me the “cool kid”?
Jett Tuning Dyno results for the 2019 Honda CB650R, Kawasaki W800 Cafe and Suzuki SV650X.Jett Tuning Dyno results for the 2019 Honda CB650R, Kawasaki W800 Cafe and Suzuki SV650X.The Suzuki’s low and forward clip-ons demand youth or stamina, or both. The Kawi’s clubman requires a less dramatic lean, while the Honda is upright and all-day comfy.
Frame: Twin-spar steel w/ aluminum swingarm Wheelbase: 57 in. Rake/Trail: 32 degrees/4.0 in. Seat Height: 31.9 in. Suspension, Front: 41mm USD fork, adj. for preload, 4.25-in. travel Rear: Single link-type shock, adj. for preload, 5.04-in. travel Brakes, Front: Dual 320mm discs w/ opposed 4-piston radial calipers Rear: Single 240mm disc w/ 1-piston pin-slide caliper Wheels, Front: Cast, 3.50 x 17 in. Rear: Cast, 5.50 x 17 in. Tires, Front: 120/70-ZR17 Rear: 180/55-ZR17 Wet Weight: 441 lbs. Load Capacity: 342 lbs. GVWR: 783 lbs.
Performance
Fuel Capacity: 4.1 gals., last 0.8 gal. fuel light on MPG: 86 AKI min. (low/avg/high) 43.0/45.3/48.2 Estimated Range: 186 miles Indicated RPM at 60 MPH: 4,250
Photo by Kevin Wing.
2019 Kawasaki W800 Cafe Specs
Base Price: $9,799 Warranty: 1yr., unltd. miles Website: kawasaki.com
Engine
Type: Air-cooled parallel twin Displacement: 773cc Bore x Stroke: 77.0 x 83.0mm Compression Ratio: 8.4:1 Valve Train: SOHC, 4 valves per cyl. Valve Insp. Interval: 7,600 miles Fuel Delivery: DFI w/34mm throttle bodies x 2 Lubrication System: Wet sump, 3.4-qt. cap. Transmission: 5-speed, cable-actuated assist-and-slipper wet clutch Final Drive: O-ring chain
Electrical
Ignition: Digital Charging Output: 154 watts max. Battery: 12V 10AH
Chassis
Frame: Double-cradle steel w/ steel swingarm Wheelbase: 57.7 in. Rake/Trail: 26 degrees/3.7 in. Seat Height: 31.1 in. Suspension, Front: 41mm fork, non-adj., 5.1-in. travel Rear: Twin shocks, adj. for preload, 4.2-in. travel Brakes, Front: Single 320mm disc w/ 2-piston caliper & ABS Rear: Single 270mm disc w/ 2-piston caliper & ABS Wheels, Front: Spoked tube-type, 2.50 x 18 in. Rear: Spoked tube-type, 3.00 x 18 in. Tires, Front: 100/90-H18 Rear: 130/80-H18 Wet Weight: 488 lbs. Load Capacity: 407 lbs. GVWR: 895 lbs.
Performance
Fuel Capacity: 4.0 gals., last 1.1 gal. fuel light on MPG: 87 AKI min. (low/avg/high) 34.1/40.3/52.9 Estimated Range: 161 miles Indicated RPM at 60 MPH: 3,500
Photo by Kevin Wing.
2019 Suzuki SV650X Specs
Base Price: $8,399 Warranty: 1yr., unltd. miles Website: suzukicycles.com
Engine
Type: Liquid-cooled 90-degree V-twin Displacement: 645cc Bore x Stroke: 81.0 x 62.6mm Compression Ratio: 11.2:1 Valve Train: DOHC, 4 valves per cyl. Valve Insp. Interval: 14,500 miles Fuel Delivery: DFI w/ SDTV & 39mm throttle bodies x 2 Lubrication System: Wet sump, 2.9-qt. cap. Transmission: 6-speed, cable-actuated wet clutch Final Drive: O-ring chain
Frame: Steel trellis w/ steel beam-type swingarm Wheelbase: 56.9 in. Rake/Trail: 25 degrees/4.2 in. Seat Height: 31.1 in. Suspension, Front: 41mm fork, non-adj., 4.9-in. travel Rear: Single link-type shock, adj. for preload, 5.1-in. travel Brakes, Front: Dual 290mm discs w/ 2-piston floating calipers & ABS Rear: Single 240mm disc w/ 1-piston caliper & ABS Wheels, Front: Cast, 3.50 x 17 in. Rear: Cast, 5.00 x 17 in. Tires, Front: 120/70-ZR17 Rear: 160/60-ZR17 Wet Weight: 437 lbs. Load Capacity: 488 lbs. GVWR: 925 lbs.
Performance
Fuel Capacity: 3.8 gals., last 1.1 gal. fuel light on MPG: 87 AKI min. (low/avg/high) 38.9/53.1/58.7 Estimated Range: 202 miles Indicated RPM at 60 MPH: 4,250
1985 Honda V65 Magna. Owner: Van Krebs, Fresno, Ohio. Photos by Jason Keller.
The motorcycling world looked upon this machine in absolute amazement — a cruiser putting out more than 100 horsepower. Unheard of! Sure, sportbikes like Honda’s CB1100R were knocking out that many ponies, but those were for riders who liked leaning into corners at insane speeds. But a cruiser with feet-forward pegs and wide handlebars — and a shaft drive no less? This was nutso!
If this bike could be put in a category, it would be Power Cruiser. Harleys were the standard cruisers of the day, and they were lucky to get 55 horses to the rear wheel, using a pushrod V-twin that had been around for the better part of half a century. Whereas this bruiser was a V-4 with two overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder. And liquid cooling to boot, so no worries about overheating when cruising down Main Street on a crowded Saturday evening. Except for that mildly unaesthetic radiator up front.
1985 Honda V65 Magna.
What was Honda thinking? The company had a whole bunch of bikes in the showrooms that year, 40 different models covering all the bases, from shopping-friendly Passports to huge Gold Wing touring platforms. Even a V-twin cruiser, the 750 Shadow. And a second V-4, the 750 V45 Magna, introduced the year before.
This all began with Soichiro Honda’s wanting to again be celebrated for putting an entirely new machine on the market. The world remembers (although this may be news to some of the younger generation) when he introduced the overhead camshaft, in-line four back in 1969, beginning the evolution of the UJM — Universal Japanese Motorcycle. Now the V-4 would do it again…he hoped.
But the backroom boys wanted to create a jaw-dropper, knock the American public back on its heels, as they used to say. The 750cc V45 was just a starting point for creating a machine the likes of which the motorcycle crowd had never seen. The V65’s majorly oversquare engine, with a 79.5mm bore and 55.3mm stroke, would cheerfully rev to 10 grand, with maximum rear-wheel power of 105 horses coming on at 9,500, redline at 10,000. A lot could go wrong with 16 valves popping up and down 10,000 times a minute, but Honda’s engineers made sure nothing untoward would happen.
1985 Honda V65 Magna.
These horses came from using some appropriate fiddling inside the head, with the four valves having a rather narrow 38-degree included angle. This and the shape of the combustion chamber effectively put the fuel as close to the spark plug as possible, compressed 10.5 times. Bang, bang, bang, bang — and the crankshaft spins.
Four constant-vacuum 36mm carbs, by Keihin, were accessible by lifting the gas tank. These had an easily changeable paper air cleaner. Fuel consumption was less than 40 mpg, but range was no problem as most riders wanted to get off after an hour or so. And at the time the U.S. was blessed (cursed?) with the 55-mph speed limit, so highway riders on the V65 had an excuse for not going very fast. With the V65 ergonomics city traffic was preferable to the interstates.
Power ran via straight-cut gears back to a hydraulically operated clutch. This had a diaphragm spring as an essential part of the device, which the engineers knew would be much abused, with the single diaphragm offering more consistent control than a multi-spring unit.
The gearbox had five speeds plus an overdrive sixth. If the bike could have pulled 10 grand in sixth gear, its top speed would be better than 170 mph. A more practical (!!) top speed was 140 in fifth. If the rider could hang on!
1985 Honda V65 Magna.
A full-cradle frame, with double downtubes, held this unit-construction herd semi-firmly in place, as rubber mounts were used to keep any vibrations hidden away. Which were few as the 90 degrees between the two pairs of cylinders presumed good balance, enhanced by that short 55mm stroke. A shaft final drive went out the left side, so those Levi’s would be nice and clean on cruise night, not having to put up with an oily chain. An air-adjustable 41mm fork suspended the front end, with an anti-dive unit. Rake was a pretty lazy 30.5 degrees with more than four inches of trail, and while this was OK in town, it was best not to get too optimistic out on the twisties. At the back a pair of shock absorbers had all the adjustments: spring preload, rebound and compression damping. The fork had almost six inches of travel, the swingarm a little more than four inches. Axle to axle measurement was just shy of 63 inches.
Cast wheels were 18 inches at the front and 16 at the back, with two discs at the front and a single at the back, all three squeezed by twin-piston calipers.
This power cruiser was designed by the Los Angeles boys for the American market, because the rest of the motorcycling world was not much interested in cruiser styling, preferring standard or sport. Honda hoped that the numbers would blow the Harley riders into the weeds.
Which they did. Quarter-mile times? Don’t even think about them. The 1,338cc Harley was in the 14-second category, and couldn’t break 100 mph. While the 1,098cc V65? In the 10s!! At 125 mph! More numbers? At $4,000 this V65 was at least three grand less expensive than a Harley.
What Honda had failed to realize was that in the cruising world of the 1980s, style was far more important than performance. Power cruisers would be a passing fancy, whereas Honda’s Fury model of today is a V-twin.
One final note: apparently somebody in the 1980s was selling a supercharger kit for the V65 Magna. Boggles the mind!
Harley LiveWire
Honda’s scooter airbag
Toby congratulates Ricky
Toby celebrates with victory donuts!
Rodney Faggotter
Ben Young
Trevor Wilson
Jack Miller’s MotoGP helmet
Deus Trumpy
Ricky Brabec
Rodney Faggotter
Ben Young (foreground)
Trevor Wilson on debut
Jack Miller’s MotoGP helmet
Deus Trumpy
However, Honda’s new patent is for a much smaller airbag.
Barreda Bort
Jack Miller’s MotoGP helmet
Jack Miller’s MotoGP helmet
Ricky Brabec (Honda, USA)
Rodney Faggotter
Jack Miller’s MotoGP helmet
