Honda Cr480r
HONDA CR480R
CYCLE WORLD TEST
More Speeds,Better Manners, and Improved Suspension
If we were to give an award for the most changed '83 motocrosser,
Honda's CR480R would be the easy winner. Playing a guessing game of “what's different,” one quickly finds everything is different. From the chassis to the hubs to the engine. Different.
Starting from square one, the engine: After beginning the switch to four-speed open motocrossers, Honda's new 480R has a five-speed transmission. Low gear is slightly lower than last year’s low, and fifth gear is slightly taller than the old transmission’s fourth. The rest of the gears are nicely spaced between the two extremes. The clutch is the same size and has the same number of plates but the friction material is improved to help combat heat. The primary gears are new. The front sprocket is offset so it aligns with the gear on the clutch hub, which is moved out due to wider center engine cases. The wider cases were necessary to make room for the added gear.
Power delivery has been highly modified for ’83. Peak horsepower is made at 6000 rpm, torque peaks at 5500 rpm.
The ignition has also been changed in an effort to boost mid and low-end power. The exhaust is new but the pipe’s cones are about the same diameter and shape as before. The headpipe is tucked in 10mm closer to the frame to help avoid damage and the shape is different so it fits the new frame and aluminum silencer. The silencer is repackable but requires drilling out the pop rivets that hold the end in. Of course you’ll have to re-rivet it back. The cylinder has new porting, again to improve mid and lowend power. The compression ratio and head are unchanged.
Shift and kick levers are new for ’83. The shift lever has an aluminum arm, folding steel tip. The return for the tip is a wound spring this year, not a rubber band. The left-side kick lever is also made of steel and aluminum. The lower part of the lever, the part that clamps to the kick shaft, is steel. The top of the lever, the part that contacts your boot, is forged aluminum.
The carburetor is a 38mm Keihin. The Keihin is the latest Mikuni cony and performs well.
Another all-new frame is used for 1983. And it’s real nice. Steering head rake is a steep 26° and the sub-frame unbolts from the main frame by simply removing four bolts and loosening the airboot clamp. Just like the factory racers. All frame tubes are chrome-moly steel, painted red. Welds are the normal sloppy-looking Honda machine welds but they hold well. Although the angles and lengths of the frame are changed it looks much like last year’s; the backbone and downtubes are large, the steering head is heavily triangulated and gusseted, the downtube splits into two smaller tubes just above the exhaust outlet, the smaller tubes wrap around the engine cases and then turn upward, ending at the rear of the backbone tube. The bolton sub-frame is made of lightweight, small diameter tubes that form a triangle. The new airbox, rear fender, seat, side number plates and silencer stay bolted to the sub-frame when it’s removed. The whole section is amazingly light. The pipe and silencer slide together in a rubber sleeve behind the left side plate and require a little fiddling when putting the sub-frame back on, but it’s not bad.
The aluminum swing arm looks unchanged. Wrong, it’s new also. The arms are thinner and the brackets for the ProLink levers are different. Ditto the levers themselves. They have new lengths and bends and they’re forged aluminum instead of forged steel. The new levers change the rear suspension’s progression curve once again.
A large-bodied Showa shock is standard. And of course it’s completely changed: slightly longer in length with adjustable rebound and compression damping. Compression damping can be set to 12 different positions by turning a knob on the top of the shock reservoir. The adjustment is clearly marked with arrows and an H and L, for higher and lower. The rebound damping adjuster is on the lower part of the shock, just above the clevis. It too is marked to ease adjustment. A flat-blade screwdriver is required to move the rebound adjustment through its 20 positions. Honda’s Showa rear shocks have varied greatly on previous test bikes. Some of them worked well for the duration of our tests (a year on one test bike) others died after the first pro moto. Honda claims the Showa quality control problem is solved for ’83.
Showa forks with 43mm stanchions and 12 in. of travel are, you guessed it, new. Internals are different from anything we’ve seen before. Normal forks have damper rods with compression damping holes in their sides, usually close to the lower end of the rods. The new Showas have damper valves similar to those used in shocks; a flat valve covered by a wave washer. Twelve compression adjustments are possible by turning a screw on the bottom of the fork leg. The adjuster has clicks for each position. The adjuster changes the spring pressure on the wave washer as it is tightened or loosened. (Earlier Showas had three adjustments, each click changed the size of the damping hole). Even the triple clamps are different. The steering stem is aluminum to reduce weight. And the offset between the center of the stanchion tubes and steering stem is 2mm less.
Hubs are new at both ends. Again. They are true straight-pull designs this time around. Well, as straight as Honda’s engineers deemed practical. They have a 6° offset as they leave the hub. The offset keeps the spoke from rotating when the spoke nipple is tightened! Clever. The new design makes it easy to replace a spoke if one breaks. They can be replaced without removing the wheel or any part of the bike. Their design makes it possible to slide one into the hub with the wheel on the bike. And you don’t have to bend them up to get them in place, since it’s a straight shot to the rim from the hub hole.
Brake drum sizes are unchanged from ’82 but the backing plates are new. The front also has new double-leading shoe brake linkage. The main lever is 15mm longer, and the hand lever has different leverage. Both the front and rear shoes are 3mm narrower. The backing plates have new seals to help keep out mud and water. The aluminum rear brake pedal is longer, has a flatter curve, and its pivot is higher on the bike’s frame so it doesn’t drag in turns. All these changes make the brakes more progressive.
Minor changes at each wheel help reduce weight; the static arm is an aluminum strap with holes in it, the rear brake is an exposed cable with the adjuster up by the brake pedal, and the adjuster screw on the front brake cable is aluminum. The main arm on each backing plate has a return spring, as does the brake pedal. These won’t get stuck in the muddiest race.
Even the aluminum DID rims are special; the stem hole is large so it’s easy to get the stem through and if the tire spins a little, it won’t cut the stem. There is little possibility of tire spinning on the new rim however. In addition to locks, the new rims have serated ridges that contact the sides and edge of the tire bead. Oh yeah, the large stem hole in the rim is covered with a slick rubber stopper so mud doesn’t get in.
All of the plastic components are new for ’83. The side number plates don’t extend as far forward, making it easier to get to the shock’s spring preload on the right side, and the compression adjuster knob on the reservoir on the left. The front fender is long and wide and keeps mud and junk off the rider. The rear fender is a familiar shape and length and appears unchanged . . . but it has one fewer mounting bolt and won’t fit last year’s bike. The plastic gas tank looks the same from the left side of the bike but the right side has a dropped bottom to lower the weight of the gasoline.
No one will confuse the seat with last year’s. It is the best off-road seat we’ve ever had the pleasure of sitting on. The foam is a perfect density. It’s firm overall but the top is springy and soft. And the cover is wonderful; it has the supple feel of leather. The rider can easily move about on it yet never slides around unintentionally. The front seat extension is thick enough to pad the rider from blows while not climbing the tank at a radical angle, so it’s easy to move as far forward as the rider wants.
Rider comfort is assisted by the position. Bars, seat and pegs are carefully positioned so riders of all shapes and sizes commented on how comfortable the CR is to ride. The rider sits in the CR more than on it. New footpegs offset an inch forward make the seating position more comfortable-
Starting the CR isn’t as pleasant. The new kick lever is mounted on the left side of the engine, where a rider can get a good kick at it from beside the bike. Kicking from astride the motorcycle isn’t as easy for most people, but with the longer travel suspensions now common, left-side kicks make more sense. The problem with the CR kick lever is that it engages the dog when the lever is still nearly vertical. The return spring moves the lever forward even more, so it isn’t possible to slap at the lever as Husky and Maico riders do. It’s necessary to stand on something tall beside the bike and then jump on the lever. Even then, it can wear out several people before it’s running. Adding to the problem, it’s necessary to turn your foot out about 30° while you’re kicking or your toe hits the footpeg. And, with your foot angled out it slips on the lever. We did have it start first kick a couple of times but it was the exception. With the engine warm, it’s easier, but still a pain.
Once running, the 480 is one of the smoothest large bore motocrossers around. There’s little vibration at any rpm. The clutch pull is easy and the transmission drops into low or second (from neutral) without any clunk or lurch. Engagement is sudden and a first time rider will probably stall the engine at least once before he learns to ease the clutch lever out while feeding a little more throttle than he thinks is needed.
Once under way the bike continues to shift smoothly and positively. Ratios are excellent. But the increased power in the low and mid-range means the bike doesn’t have as much top speed as last year’s 480. We entered several pro races with the ’83 and got smoked badly at Saddleback Park’s high speed, uphill starting area. The 480R was usually last or very close to it at the top of the starting area. At DeAnza the starting area is also uphill but a lot shorter. The Honda didn’t get outrun as badly there but it never came close to winning the race to the first turn either. Good handling and a good rider made it up at DeAnza. Our rider won both motos. At Saddleback the competition was tougher and the straights were longer. Our rider got third both motos. We watched some video tapes of the Saddleback race and the lack of speed in the longer straights was apparent. A new 490 Yamaha YZ won. An ’83 Husqvarna four-speed with Gary Jones aboard was second each moto after dueling wheel-to-wheel both motos with our CR480R. Our tester got past the Husky in several corners only to be outrun in the straights. No one likes to lose in a straight line. We called Honda and and complained.
They were surprised. “Should be faster than the ’82,” they said. “Lets try a new ignition.” After the magic box and crank rotor were replaced, the engine came alive. Midrange power was significantly improved although the engine still sputtered at very high revs. The boost in power moved the CR480R from the back of the start straights to the front. Even the awesome 495KTMs can’t humble the Honda when it’s right. Our tester won the annual Bosch Spark Plug Classic in Phoenix, AZ. and chalked up an impressive string of wins at Saddleback.
Everything is better for 1983. The steep 26° rake lets riders get through tight corners quicker than anything we’ve tested. Last year’s 480 shook its head violently entering corners with the brakes applied hard; the ’83 doesn’t. Honda warned us it would shake if the rear suspension was set up with too much spring preload or compression damping. Dialing the suspension to the rider’s weight is important. Our bike was raced with about 3.5 in. sack in the rear and about 1.5 in. sack in front. The forks were set six clicks out from maximum damping. Ten weight fork oil was in our bike with the level set at 6.7 in. (with the forks bottomed and the spring removed). The shock had the rebound and compression adjusters set at their softest positions (backed all the way out).
HONDA CR480R
Most of our riders liked the bike as it came, not wanting to change any of the adjustments. One of our pro motocrossers turned the fork’s compression adjuster in another two clicks to keep them from bottoming after landing from tall jumps.
After experiencing wide differences between Showa forks and shocks in past test bikes (and some quick failures of the rear shock), we worked extra hard trying to fault or break the suspension components on our bike. We couldn’t. The forks are excellent. They set a new standard for production forks. They don’t bottom, they don’t top. And they don’t skip or chatter when braking hard into a whooped, rippled turn. They just follow the bumps. The rear is almost as good. It works every bit as well as a Full-Floater. A Floater is more comfortable though.
Balance has always been good on the open Hondas. The ’83 has excellent manners, it flies straight and true. On the ground it never kicks or side-hops, it just goes through the bumps as fast as the rider wants. And the shock doesn’t get hot and fade, even during 40 min. motos.
After lots of tough miles racing and trail riding the front silencer bracket broke. We replaced it and the mounting bracket on the frame broke the next time out. But that’s it for problems. Everything else went the distance.
The 480’s brakes are spot on. The rear doesn’t lock and stall the engine as easily as before, and the front has good feel and progression. The rear does have an annoying squeal after it gets hot. The smaller parts that make a good package are well thought out and work well also. The grips are soft and don’t give the rider blisters, the stock tires work great on all types of ground, the spokes don’t loosen—even with a pro aboard, and the bike is comfortable on long-distance rides.
We did find a few things to pick on. The pipe burned some of the riders when they stood on the pegs (the spot between the rear of the gas tank and the front of the left side number plate). The clutch still overheats if slipped more than once and the rider has to be careful not to put the transmission in gear too early on the starting line. Otherwise the clutch will heat and start dragging. If you’re going to race on wet tracks the accessory airbox top will be a necessity too. Water gets into the top of the airbox easily.
Okay, so the new 480R isn’t perfect. Its quick, agile handling makes it pure fun to ride. Flicking it through tight turns, blasting through belly-deep whoops, taking the high line over jumps or just trail riding (no problem with the new five-speed gearbox), made all our testers eager for more. The 480R spent very little time parked in the garage.
