25 Years Ago November 1985
25 YEARS AGO NOVEMBER 1985
Gargantuan, automotive-engined and 900 pounds, the Amazonas led the charge this month in 1985. A full test of the stocker was the lead story, but far more entertaining was the accompanying feature on a built-to-the-hilt special with a 2275cc high-performance Volkswagen flat-Four in place of the 1600cc factory unit. Jay Gleason—all 5-foot-7 and 130 pounds of him— was enlisted for drag-strip duty. The 13.28-second, 102.38-mph pass was good; better was his quote: "This is definitely the weirdest streetbike I’ve ever ridden. But I'll tell you what; it puts out so much torque it makes my V-Max seem flat on the bottom end.”
•Speaking of torque, the 1986 Husqvarna 510 Cross Country was tested. It was generally praised for its performance and was one of only a few lightweight fourstroke dirtbikes on the market. True to form for a big-bore fourstroke, though, was hard starting when hot: “Sometimes the engine will fire up in one good prod, sometimes it takes as KCTMOTOWmi many as 20 kicks.”
• More quirks were ' ^ ■ -asa . found with the Moto Guzzi Le Mans 1000. > In fact, “dozens” __ were noted: “Begin ¿LLH____ with the centerand sidestand, both of which require learning new skills to use and which can cause heartburn if not fully mastered.” Further, the question was raised: “Comfort?” to which the answer was, “You must be joking.”
•In the news, Roundup featured a story titled “The Sale of the Century.” Times were hard in the U.S. motorcycle market in the mid-Eighties, with thousands of machines left over in warehouses. Deals were pretty amazing if you were willing to buy previous model-year bikes, much like now... Mark Hoyer
