Long-Term Update

Long-Term Update

Kawasaki

ZX-14

Smooth as silk

IF YOU’VE NEVER RIDDEN A ZX-14, you might think Kawasaki’s go-fast Four is all about speed. Guess again. While the 170-horsepower ZX is capable of reaching a scorching top speed of 186 mph, it is also one of the most broadly focused and refined sportbikes on the road today. As we’ve discovered during the past several months, the sport-oriented-yet-comfortable ergonomics and silkysmooth, dual-counterbalancer-equipped engine make for a motorcycle that is just as happy on the daily commute or crossing state lines as it is arcing through a series of sweeping corners.

Even without requisite hard luggage (so far, a tankbag/tailpack combo has provided all the storage needed for weekend getaways), the ZX-14 does a fair impression of a sport-tourer. To run a satellite radio, a GPS and a heated vest, items that

are fast becoming commonplace on longdistance mounts, we installed two Powerlet sockets ($24 each; wnw.powerlet.net), one above the right intake duct and the second in the right “sidepanel” below the seat. Both are wired directly to the battery.

Puig Racing Screens sent a longer, taller windscreen ($77, www.puig.tv). Said to enhance wind protection, the 3mm-thick, high-impact acrylic screen fit perfectly, and airflow is excellent. Puig’s nylon frame sliders bolt to the front engine mounts, no cutting or drilling necessary. At $85 for the pair, cheap insurance in case of low-speed tipovers.

List price (2006)• . $11,499

Suzuki

GSX-R1000

Back on the road

POOR had sat GIXXER! neglected OUR in the ’05 CW SUZOOK garage ever since Online Editor Calvin Kim low-sided in Turn 5 at Willow Springs International Raceway last April. Seven months later, the blue-and-white beauty is finally back on the road.

Crash damage was limited to the left side of the bike. Among the OEM expendables were a bar-end weight ($26), a clutch lever ($30), a shift lever ($73) and two fairing pieces ($155, $64). MD Racing (wnw.mdracingstp.com) provided a stouter-than-stock, billet-aluminum stator cover ($189).

You learn a lot about a motorcycle when you take it apart. Behind the GSXR’s stator cover, for example, are vital

engine parts-stator windings, the flywheel and oil galley holes leading to the crankshaft. When the cover contacted the pavement, tiny pieces of plastic and asphalt found their way inside the engine. Hahm Suzuki in Newport Beach pulled the flywheel to make certain we’d found and removed all the debris.

Bike back together, we mounted a set of Metzeier Sportec M3 radiais ($163 front, $235 rear). Next came adjustable rearsets ($495), a fuel-tank quick-release pin ($43) and a superbly crafted titanium exhaust system ($1250), all from Sato Racing (www.satoradng. com).

Now, running stronger than ever, our GSX-R is once again ready for the racetrack.

List price (2005)• . $10,849

Yamaha

FJR1300AE

Mile-making machine

FUNNY zoot repli-rockets THING ’ROUND get all HERE: the headTHE lines, and everybody wants to play Wheelie King on street-motards and hightech nakeds, but when it comes to actual workaday riding, anything with saddlebags wins. Sport-tourers never spend nights in the CW shed; they’re almost always in motion.

That’s certainly been the case with our FJR1300AE, closing in on 10,000 miles after just six months in the long-term fleet. A big chunk of that came when freelancer Alan Rider entered the bike in the Utah 1088 Rally (see “The Long Riders,” CW, November, 2006). Alan also managed to drop the FJR at walking speed, a simple prang that resulted in a $1700 repair estimate. Going real-world, we ponied up for a new mirror ($125) but had a local autobody shop attend to the paint for $300. It’s not exactly factory but close enough. Our only other expense has been $214 for a new rear Bridgestone BT020 at 8500 miles. We’re also overdue for the 8000-mile oil change.

The jury is most definitely out on the AE’s electro trigger-shifter gizmosity. From the Editor’s logbook entry: “I’ve spent 38 years perfecting my clutch/shifting technique; something that does it for me had better be an improvement. This ain’t.” A certain paddle-shifting smoothness comes with experience, but so far we’d rate the $ 1800 option as an answer to a question nobody we know is asking. Hasn’t seemed to get in the way of the bike knocking off miles, though. □

List price (2OO6)~. $15,299