001_PB_feb09 cover.indd 1 16/12/09 14:48:10

Q: suzuki gladius

Gentlemen. It may have come to your attention that certain members of the fairer sex have taken up the pursuit of motorcycling, having forsaken their previous positions as pillions. Still, even the most sexist among you would have to concede that it’s got to be better than having the ladies sit around talking about macrobiotic yoghurts, lipsticks and Posh ‘n’ Becks.

Yes, we live in an enlightened age of sexual equality, where women can do pretty much everything men can. With the possible exception of peeing standing up. However, if there is one thing we know about women, it’s that they don’t like being patronised. So the idea that a bike might have been designed with female riders in mind should be enough to have them looking beyond the row of Gladiuses (Gladii?) in the local Suzuki dealership in favour of checking out GSX-R colour options.

And if we’ve read the ladies right, only those self-titled ‘biker chicks’ – the type who favour Shaun the Sheep rucksacks, Loptoff Lugs and pillion rides with performance bike-owning boyfriends nicknamed ‘Mad Dog’ – might look twice at the Gladius if they’re thinking of graduating to the rider’s seat.

So is the Suzuki Gladius really a girl’s bike, or is that just our prejudice born out of an aversion to pink and pastel bodywork detailing?

Given that it has the 645cc beating V-twin heart from the likable and loveable SV650 at its core the Gladius is off to a reasonable, if aging start.

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IS thIS the world’S GIrlIeSt BIKe?Words alan seeley Pics rory game

Gladioli are easy to look after and very colourful, although the pink-coloured varieties are probably best avoided...

p8-11 big question PB feb CDP.indd 8 16/12/09 15:19:24

Suzuki gladiuS PRiCE£4700ClaiMEd POWER72bhp@8400rpmClaiMEd TORQuE47.23lb.ft@6400rpmTOP SPEEd130mph (est)CaPaCiTY645ccBORE X STROkE81.0mm x 62.6mmRakE/TRail25.0°/106.0mmBRakES290mm front discs with two-piston calipers, 240mm rear disc with one-piston caliperTYRES120/70-ZR17160/60-ZR17WHEElBaSE1445mmWET WEigHT202kgWEBSiTEwww. suzuki-gb.co.ukPB RaTEd■■■■■■■■■■

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p8-11 big question PB feb CDP.indd 9 16/12/09 15:19:46

kawasaki z1000

First ride

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t r a n s f o r m e rp16-20 z1000 STEW NEEDS SNAKESKIN SEAT.indd 20 16/12/09 17:47:57

KAWASAKI Z1000PRICE£8295 (est)ENGINE1043cc, four-stroke, liquid cooled fourCLAIMED POWER136bhp@9600rpmCLAIMED TORQUE81lb.ft@7800rpmBORE X STROKE77.0mm x 56.0mmRAKE AND TRAIL24.5°/103mmTYRESFront: 120/70 ZR 17Rear: 190/50 ZR 17WHEELBASE1440mmCLAIMED WET WEIGHT218kg FUEL CAPACITY15 litresWEBSITEhttp://www.kawasaki.co.ukPB RATING■■■■■■■■■■

words john mcavoy pics kawasaki

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t r a n s f o r m e r

Let’s get the snakeskin seat out of the way first. The man responsible is the unfortunately named Mr Fukomoto, Kawasaki’s senior designer who has been responsible for the style of every new Kawasaki since 2003. He tells me that it is ‘to be different’. I like his attitude, it’s very ‘because I can’. But I’m not keen. Mercifully, not all the colour schemes have it.

There is no component carryover from last year; this Z1000 is new from the ground up and totally bespoke. They claim the alloy beam frame is 30% stiffer and the new 1043cc engine is up from 953cc. It makes 13bhp more power, 10lb.ft more torque and is chained to a rear sprocket that’s two teeth bigger than last year’s one. That’s surely a recipe for fun. There’s fully adjustable suspension at the front but there’s still only rebound adjustment on the rear, despite it being a different shock. Kawasaki mean business with the 2010 Zed. A new ‘Transformers’ look completes the er, transformation. Only the name remains the same.

This is the first ‘super-naked’ bike I’ve ridden that feels like every single component on it is working in absolute harmony with the others. There’s no sensation that the front end feels vague or the rear has a mind of its own, like on most bikes of this genre. It has the same neutral and direct feel you normally associate with a sportsbike.

Riding the Z, the attention to detail and effort that’s gone into delivering Kawasaki’s ‘riding impact’ objective is clear. For example, the fuel tank is visually heavily dominant but is sculpted in a way that doesn’t take over when you’re riding. In fact, it adds to the experience by being narrow just where my knees rest. The Zed feels smaller and more manageable than it looks yet there’s plenty of room for obscenely tall people like me. It reminds me a lot of PB’s very own BABIYOS in the way it brakes, turns and changes direction, that is, quickly and accurately with no fuss at all.

The A397 from Rhonda to San Pedro is 45km of motorcycling nirvana with just about every combination of bends you could wish for. The Zed’s fusion of stiff chassis, snappy power delivery, close gear ratios and brilliantly damped suspension all mean I can focus totally on the road. I haven’t got to leave any margin for surprises or uncertainty from the bike. Before riding the Z ed I would never have chosen a super-naked to ride a road like this. Instead I’d have preferred a bike with a more precise, familiar feel such as a GSX-R750. It’s fair to say the Z1000 has changed the way I think of this kind of bike. It is the new benchmark and sets a new standard in the class; a super-naked feeling like a superbike. Accelerate hard out of a bend and the A damn good bike in disguise…

p16-20 z1000 STEW NEEDS SNAKESKIN SEAT.indd 21 16/12/09 17:49:03

p34-36 PB feb prodsfront CDP.indd.sp.indd 1 17/12/09 09:34:03

p34-36 PB feb prodsfront CDP.indd.sp.indd 2 17/12/09 09:34:53

Offers tO buy unique Hand built

13% 27% 60%

FAVOURITE MOD‘I’m pretty chuffed with the front sprocket/rearset/rear master cylinder mount. It started out as a piece of 10mm ally plate, but I changed it with a few hours’ worth of hacksaw and file work.’

4bikes we like this month...

words kar lee PICs supplied

whAt A Harley we actually like. With the motor from a 1998 Buell S1 Lightning slotted into a lightweight chrome-moly racing frame (which carries oil in the tubes) from the US, Gavin has made use of his Sportster tuning experience and created this road and track bike, which he’s named the V2RR – V-twin Road Racer. It’s still a work in progress but it’s so near completion we couldn’t resist showing you this home-brewed beauty early. There’s a whiff of Roland Sands inspiration in the air.whY Because Gavin always wanted to build the ultimate Harley, and this is the result of years of collecting parts from eBay and various bike jumbles. From dream to reality, we appreciate the thought, detailing, problem-solving and natural skill that’s gone into building it, e.g. the home-made LED tail light strip has been slotted into the tail unit perfectly. how C&J Racing in the US supplied the frame and alloy tank. ‘It took longer than expected to arrive but the welding was top notch,’ reckons Gavin, who also enrolled himself onto a machining course just so he could make the triple clamps, front wheel spindle and other various bits from a lump of alloy and a titanium bar. With a pair of magnesium Dymags, Buell X1 forks (at a bargain £45 for the pair), Penske shock, huge Mikuni HSR 45mm flatslide carb, Vance and Hines headers mated with an Arrow can, Honda RS250 tail unit, Yamaha MT-03 headlight, a host of engine mods and a smattering of carbon fibre, we have no doubt it’ll go as well as it looks. ‘It’ll be ready for next summer,’ says Gavin.

SpORTSbIkE bRITAIn

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1998 hArleY flAt trAckerG A V I n C U p I T

p42-43 PB feb 4 bikes. CDP.inddsp..indd 1 17/12/09 09:45:26

1998/2001 Yamaha R1M a r k B r u s hMark couldn’t afford the bike of his dreams so he built a replica. But then he destroyed it at a trackday and so promptly built another. With the motor from his original crashed 1998 bike, Mark used a brand new 2001 chassis, a rear sprocket from Brazil which set him back $300, YZR500 front wheel and discs, $2800 worth of paint and bodywork, titanium fasteners all round and various Öhlins and Brembo parts. His father-in-law Sonny Angel (the first US racer to compete at the TT in 1959 on a 250 Yamaha YDS1R) machined the wheel spacers. A month after completion Mark bought a real R7. Forced to break the R1 (financial reasons) it lives on as donor components in other bikes. But he’s not finished yet: ‘I’ve got a 2009 R1/M1 project on the horizon now.’ We can’t wait.

Crash, BaNG, WaLLET‘I got a bit overexcited at rockingham this year, but luckily I had some old bodywork on it when it went down, so it wasn’t the end of the world. But to be honest, I built it to thrash, not polish!’

2007 honda bladeD a r y L k E a r N - P r I C EFull titanium Akra system, HRC quick action throttle, Dynojet quickshifter, custom-mapped Power Commander, Gilles chain adjusters, HEL lines, R&G tail tidy, flapper mod (a popular owners’ tweak to increase power below 5000rpm), Skidmarx double bubble, Pazzo levers, ex-Lougher Ten Kate rearsets… the list goes on. It’s taken Daryl two years to sort his Blade special and he’s not finished yet. ‘A Brembo master cylinder, some decent suspension and possibly a slipper clutch is next. I keep looking at supercharger kits too,’ he says. His favourite additions are the lightweight (£800, eBay) Carrozzeria wheels – ‘it changes direction like a two-stroke 250.’

1991 honda nSR250SPPa u L G o aTWe stumbled across this subtly modified NSR250 MC21 while putting together the 250s feature last month. An SP version (that is with the gold Magtek wheels, dry clutch and adjustable suspension) in Pentax colours, of which only 1500 were ever made. Not only has Paul rebuilt the bike from the ground up but he’s also converted the front end to RVF400 spec – front wheel is NSR, forks, spindles, spacers and bigger discs are RVF. ‘It all slotted neatly in and mating the NSR stem to the RVF bottom yoke was straightforward.’ he reckons. Tyga pipes, a drilled airbox, and rejetted carbs results in a whisker over 58 reliable horses on the GT motorcycles dyno.

ThE rEaL DEaLat the 2008 Laguna MotoGP, Factory yamaha mechanic seamus Taaffe spent 20 minutes looking at the bike. ‘It’s amazing’ he was heard to mutter, saliva dribbling down his chin.

Bolt-on Bling-ness

nice wheels

road and track weapon

40%BaBiYos dedication

made metal

28% 32%

upgraded Brakes

sp loveliness

thrashaBle trackdaY fodder

16% 13% 71%

32% 68%TIGhT FIT‘The hardest part of working on the bike is honda’s mass centralisation as it means everything is wedged under the tank.’

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p42-43 PB feb 4 bikes. CDP.inddsp..indd 2 17/12/09 09:45:58

PB road test///tHe Best MIddLeWeIGHt tWINs

There was a time when a 750cc twin was a man’s bike. Something with plenty of poke. Something that’d get you into the ton-up club. A big bike if you will. But the humble twin slipped from its pole position and become a bike for beginners or commuters.

While it didn’t happen overnight, it’s a result of development, our passion for racing and ever more performance. Bikes in this class don’t get much of a glance when there’s a 120bhp 600 sitting next to it in the showroom with its sleek bodywork and promise of instant prowess. That’s a crying shame because there’s been a quiet revolution going on. The twin is back.

eVIL tWINsMiddleweight twins haven’t been terribly exciting in recent years. After all, they’re just commuter fodder aren’t they? Er, no. Not any longer...

BMW F800r £6150 84bhp 206kgThe stunt monkey. Most likely seen with motorised Parkour exponent Christian Pfieffer on top.

KaWasaKI er-6n £4999 66bhp 204.5kgThe commuter. One of Kawasaki’s best-selling bikes. Most likely seen nipping through traffic at 8.30am.

aPrILIa sHIVer Gt £6774 79bhp 224kgThe all-rounder. After the roaring success of their litre V-twins, the 750 V-twin is next on their hit list.

dUCatI MoNster 696 £6470 72bhp 185kgThe café poser. A development of Ducati’s best selling mini-Monster with more capacity.

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words BEN WILKINS pics johN NoBLE

p54-63 PB feb TEST Part 1.indd.sp.indd 64 17/12/09 20:05:55

Your PB testers are...

Ben WilkinsRoad test edCornishman Wilkins reckons these twins are perfect on tight twisty roads that are covered in cow shite

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Chin on the tank and flat out. Middleweights are just gagging to be

ridden like this

kev smith Road testeRQuite possibly the only person in the world to have slid the rear end of an ER-6n on purpose

John mcavoy Road testeRThe biggest bloke in road testing on some of the smallest bikes isn’t funny apparently…

des o’connellRoad testeRIf it’s been made, this swarthy Romany gypsy has ridden it. Rumour has it he originates from the Cretaceous

p54-63 PB feb TEST Part 1.indd.sp.indd 65 17/12/09 20:06:10