May 2013 - CityBike

and the shift lever throw is very long,making the shifting seem slow and notchy.That’s a pretty short list, two of which arevery easily fixed.First Ride: 2014 Star Boltbike ahead of car traffic,offers a flexible powerbandthat’s easy to use and isgood for a top speed wellinto the 90s.Actually, “nineties” is agood word to describethe GT250R. The ridingposition, big humped tankand general feel of the bikeis Japan, Inc. c. 1994—andthat’s a good thing, I think.The adjustable footpegs(nice touch!) and lowclip-ons are classic Japanese sportbike,as are the chassis numbers. This makesthe motorcycle feel stable in turns, withsteering that’s high-effort for such a smallbike. Suspension is surprisingly wellsorted, even for me at 140 pounds and BigAl at...well, let’s just say at a lot more. I didexperience some jarring from the backend, but I didn’t adjust the preload, andthe forks are probably easily tuneable with$20 of fork oil and some spring selection.The tires seemed grippy enough, but arean unknown quantity and damped myenthusiasm for pushing it on cold winterrides.Not that 25-ish hp can push 420-ishpounds very fast. It’s a lot like riding anold GSX-R with three missing sparkplugs.On the freeway, it’s tolerable, and the bikeactually isn’t too bad cruising at 80 mph.With enough downshifts and some riderchutzpah, you can pass cars at freewayspeeds, and the wind protection and decentseat—coupled with observed fuel economyaround 60 mpg (Hyosung claims 78mpg)—will let you ride all day. For sportrides, the low motor output is perfect forstudent sportbikers—you learn to workthe five-speed gearbox, how to conservecorner speed and to really ride, rather thanjust point-and-shooting like your big-bikemounted friends. Sure, they may leave youbehind—far, far behind—in the straights,but you can take solace in the fact that yourbike is actually teaching you something.With a limited two-year warranty (thesecond year is parts only), the GT250Rrepresents a solid (but not great) valueat $4099. I’d strongly recommend it tobigger riders looking for a sportbike thatlooks cool but is forgiving and suitable forlearning—or somebody looking for a funand frugal everyday commuter (you maywant to also consider the naked GT250,which has an upright handlebar and $3799MSRP). I really enjoyed my time on theHyosung and am eager to try out the $5599GT650.Alan Lapp:The amazing little big bike.Gabe and I were talking about the GT250Rwhile I was shooting photos. We were bothin agreement about the chassis stability:there is lots of it, perhaps too much. Ouropinions coincided that the steering andturn-in are very heavy, which is emblematicof lots of stability-inducing trail. Weconcur about the engine: it’s adequate andmanages highway speeds. The dual-frontdiscbrakes fell into the same category:surprisingly good for this category, albeit abit noisy, which will probably go away whenthe disc surface breaks in.Our like-mindedness extended tohigh praise for the appearance: it’s ahandsome bike. Our solidarity includedergonomics—it feels a lot bigger thanwhat is usually offered in the 250 class.My sole dissenting observation is that therear shock is severely under-damped, but Iweigh just under two Gabes.In short, we were almost completely inharmony that this is an outstanding bikefor some beginning riders (because it’sthe size of a full-sized bike, the seat heightisn’t especially low, which removes it fromconsideration for the inseam challenged).The GT-R doesn’t do anything surprising:it’s absurdly stable, has good-but-not-toogoodbrakes, the chassis goes where youpoint it with no drama, and the motor istame and predictable. It’s a sane, fun, unintimidatinglittle bike, and that’s a goodthing.The GT-R is not perfect, however: thebeginner-friendly slow-pull throttle (theopposite of a quick-pull) makes it wristbreakinglydifficult to reach full throttle,the LED instrument panel goes completelyblack when polarized sunglasses are used,COME CELEBRATELast Century’s Tire Change PricesHours: Monday through Friday, 9 am - 6 pm415-552-8115 | werkstattsf.com3248 17th Street San Francisco, CA 94110The unexpected turn to the conversationcame when we started discussing…racing.Yes, racing. Both Gabe and I are formerracers, and it’s a touchstone for us. The localracing organization, AFM, has two classeswhich this bike is eligible, 250 Production,and more interesting, 250 Superbike. TheNinja 250/300 is the dominant force inthese classes. We discussed what it wouldtake to make this bike into a competitivetool for Ninja beating.The obvious shortcoming is the motor. Itdoesn’t rev very quickly, which is indicativethat there is an air-flow restriction. It couldbe something as simple as a restrictor plateat the airbox intake, or under-sized exhaust.We believe that any competent tuner couldfind some more power in this motor. TheOEM tires are a high-mileage compound,but in a fairly common size supported byrace-tire manufacturers (Pilot Powers,for instance).Rubber brakelines are easilyreplaced withmore-rigidbraided-steellines (thoughbrake padsmight be aproblem). Theupside-downforks could besprung andvalved, anda rear shockcould besourced froma builder thatdoes custom work, such as RaceTech orWorks (I suspect an older Japanese sportbikemodel may use a similar shock—ed.).Reducing weight would necessarily beanother important step toward achieving alight, fun little race platform, but this bikehas a lot of heavy-looking stuff attached toit.Seriously, when was the last time anyonegot exited about the idea of taking a $4099bike racing? Getting two ex-racers to seethis kind of potential in an entry-levelproduct is a real achievement for Hyosung.Bench racing aside, it’s a very user-friendlybike which runs well and looks great.4 days of AHRMA & AFM Racing at Sonoma Raceway!Race Party!Friday, May 3rd5:30-9pmWerkstatt MotorcyclesMeet our sponsored riders,check out their race bikes,plus FREE BBQ, Beer & RaffIe!RACIng & REPAIRSInCE 1994Photo by: Kevin HippBy Gabe Ets-Hokin, Photos by Brian J.Nelson and Tom RilesEvery motorcycle begins with agoal. The goal of the 2014 Star Boltwas to create a product that wouldappeal to a new generation of cruiser riders.Younger buyers are less affluent than theirBaby-boom forbearers, but they’re alsolooking for a simpler, more stripped-downaesthetic. Hipsters, for instance (and I’mnot saying Bolt buyers will be hipsters, butI’m Just Sayin’) “fetishize authenticity,”according to Time Out New York writerChristian Lorentzen. That means youngerbuyers want a more authentic experience—or at least look like they’re riding the realdeal, something they found and rebuiltthemselves—even if they can’t afford achrome-dripping $30,000 custom sled.These new buyers are anti-establishmentand want to ride something that’s simple,stripped-down—but unique. “They don’twant to follow fad or fashion—they want tobe their own person,” said Yamaha ProductPlanner Derek Brooks. Showing us slidescharting Star motorcycle’s brandingstrategies, there were lotsof XS650 photos andreferences, a low-slung,torquey, vibey andthoroughly imperfectmotorcycle thathas lots of fansand has beensubjected toevery kindof modification you can imagine, frombobber to flat-tracker to cafe-racer andevery possible interpretation in between.The frame is all-new but familiar-lookingnonetheless. It’s a rigid tube-steel itemthat solid-mounts themotor. Suspension issimilarly simple,but Ulrich tellsus the springand dampingrates havebeen carefullyselected toget both a“high-Sadly, a retro big-bore air-cooled parallelTwin was never in the cards (I askedProject Leader Ooki Miyakozawa aboutthat, and he justlooked at meblankly). Instead,the design teamstarted with theStar 950 V-Star’sfour-valve, dohc,942cc (58 cubicinch) air-cooled60-degreeV-Twin. Thebore and strokenumbersare slightlyoversquareat 85mmX 83mm,and it hasother hi-perf touches, like forgedaluminum pistons and ceramiccylinder liners. “We dowhat we can to improveperformance,”explained toYamaha testingdivision guru MikeUlrich. That said,there’s but onethrottle body,although itdoes use dual35mminjectors, working with a Mikuni systemoffering 3-D ignition mapping. Thecatalyzed exhaust system’s headers areforward-routed, which means the bigbazooka of a muffler doesn’t stick too far tothe rear.Usability is the word for the motor. Thegearbox uses five straight-cut gears for easyshifting, and it’s worked with a “light-pull”clutch to make it attractive to new riders. A21mm reinforced belt looks nice and sendspower quietly and efficiently to the rearwheel. The valves adjust with screws onthe tappets, good news for budding do-ityourselfmechanics—and they’ll get plentyof practice, with 4000-mile valve-checkintervals.quality feel and get a low look”—thepreload-adjustable rear shocks offer just2.8 inches of travel. The R-Spec’s reservoirequippedgold-anodized units don’t justlook better, they have different internaldamping, though the springs are thesame. The non-adjustable 41mm KYB forklocates a 19-inch aluminum wheel slowedby a 298mm wave-style disc/two-pistonsliding-pin caliper. The 16-inch rear wheelgets the same disc and a one-pot caliper.Tires are Bridgestone Excedras, a 100/90-19 and 150/80-16.The rest of the bike is a mix of minimalisticnostalgia and high-tech touches. Thefenders are steel, the solo saddle is low andthin (just 27.2 inches off the ground todeliver “showroom confidence,” Brookssays) and there are no passenger pegs(although they’re available as a kit with ap-pad). But there is an LCD speedometer,LED taillight and a multi-function switchon the left switchpod to toggle through theodometers and clock.Okay, I’ll come right out and say it, sinceeverybody’s thinking it—the Bolt’s stylingis a clear shot across Harley-Davidson’sbow, with styling clearly derivative ofthe 883 Iron. From the exposed framebackbone to the engine’s hulking look tothe clever plastic covers over the cylinderheads to make them look like MoCoitems, Star really nailed the look...untilyou get to that tank, or more specifically,the huge seams around that pressed-steelcomponent.Ooki-san looked sad when Ipointed out the seams, butwhat can you do? Harleyjust has a different way ofdoing things. To create thenecessary spaces betweenbodywork and variouscomponents and get the tankthe right width to achievethat narrow, purposeful look,you’re going have a more-prominent seam,especially if you want to keep the pricepoint down below $8000. I wassurprised an accessory tank isn’tavailable. At least it carries auseful 3.2 gallons of gas, andif you ignore the seams thebike has a very appealing,well-proportioned andbalanced design thatcertainly grabbed yourattention—that’s whyyou’re reading this, no?The Bolt promisesan authentic ridingexperience—and itdelivers.May 2013 | 20 | CityBike.comMay 2013 | 21 | CityBike.com