Untitled - FLYV65.COM
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Untitled - FLYV65.COM
ililil|ilililililil|ililffi Redefined by the Inter ceptor . Reengineer ed by Honda !. l astyear,the H ondaV 45 SaI A ,hen rtw as i ntroduced \/ \/ bre appearedto be designedfor lhe fuil rangeof U U duti eson the sporti ngsi deof the 750 cl ass.Wit h thoseexpectati ons i n mi nd,w e w ere a l i ttl edi saoooi n t ed w henw e testedl he bi ke.H andl i ng w as shyof the markwe had set for lhe firsl V-4, and performancewas only average for the 750 cl ass. Theadvenlof the Interceptor redefinedthe Sabre'smissi on.l t becamecl earH ondaneveri nl endedthe S abret o be a ful l -fl edged sporti ngbi ke.l t w as meantto span the gap betweenthe full-attackInterceplor, the most sporting of l he 750sportbi kes,andthe l ai d-back V 45 Magnacru iser. l l w as i ntended l o be a sport/tourer, w i ththe emphasis on tourer. Withthe Interceptor on handlo establishils lrue identity, the Sabre seemedsufficiently slrong lo surviveanother year or lwo withoutany significantchanges.However, H onda w as apparentl yi ntenton maki ngthe S abre a s competi ti ve as possi bl e.S o, even thoughi t i s j ust i n it s secondmodelyear,the Sabrehas alreadybeenlhe object of numerouschangesto i mprovepow er,handl i ng,an d ri de. To exlract more power from the Sabre, Honda engineersappl i edsometri cksfromthe V 45 Magnaand the I nl ercepl or.E venthoughthe ' 82 V 45s-S abreand Magnahad identicalengines,lesting revealedthe Magna was slightlyfaster.The reasonturnedout to be the difference i n l ocati onand desi gnof the ai rboxes;the Magna' sdel ivered a lessturbulentair flow to the carbs.So the frameof the 1983S abrew as redesi gned to posi ti onthe ai rboxb ehind the steeringhead,whereit flows air more eificiently. To make room for the airbox,the ignitioncoilswere reposi ti onedbehi ndthe si de panel s. Otherbreathingimprovements provideadditionalpower increases. Thecarburelors'venturishavebeenooeneduo trom292mm to 30.0mmand shapedl i ke the C B 75OF's The i ntakeporl sare 1.0mmw i derfor thei renti rel engths. The cam timinghas been alteredto matchthe Interceptor's. Thesecams open the intakevalvesthree degrees earl i erl han thosei n l astyear' sS abre,open the exhau st valvesthreedegreeslater,and close the exhaustvalves two degreeslater.They also providea quarterof a milli- ,. l' , : 't . ; ' ... . $3398 S uggestedretai lpri ce.... months,unl i mi tedm iles .....,...........12 W arranty 1800 ..............A p pr ox. N umberof U .S .deal ers m iles i nterval s................ . . 8000 mai ntenance R ecommended 2400 2500 2800 3000 3200 PBICI WET WElOllT I lLl TIIE 450 47o 4eo s1o 530 1o. o 10. 5 11. 0 11. 5 12. 0 DRIYETRAIX gears,1. 736:1 ...................S trai ght-cut P ri marytransmi ssi on l l , plat es .........W e1 C | utch........... 3.t 40: ............S haf , 1 Fi naldri ve.... I ct{assrt IXTIRYALS sooo 42oo s4oo 6600 78oo 63 RPI lT GO IPH COXSUIPflO]{ 66 69 72 75 S how a,5.5 i n. t r avel; Frontsuspensi on.......................37mm TRACanti-dive,adjustmentfor air pressure P ro-Li nk, si ngl eS how ad am per , R earsuspensi on......H onda 4.2 in. wheeltravel;adjustments for air pressureand rebounddamping caliper s ...........,...2, si ngl e-acti on Frontbrake... with dual live pistons,276mm discs drum, rod o per at ed R earbrake..............S i ngl e-l eadi ng-shoe unlopF11 ...............110/90HD18 Frontti re....... D17 unl opK127C .................130/90H R earti re .29.5"14.6i n. (117m m ) R ake/trai l ...61.4i n. (1 560m m ) W heel base... .....30.4i n. (772m m ) S eathei ght,unl aden......... gal ( 17. 81) ......4.75 Fuelcapaci ty .539 l b (245k9)wet ; W ei 9ht.......... 510 l b (?31k9)tank em pt y or r ed .............B1ack C o1ors.......... tachom et er , soeedometer, l nstruments...................E l ecl roni c odometer,LCD tripmeter,clock/stopwatch, gauge,gear indicator/ fuel gauge,watertemperature 6-functionwarningsystem;lightsfor turn signals, neutral,high beam 3800 4000 4200 4400 4600 20 25 30 g MOTORCYCLIST/NOVEMBER 1983 35 40 1st,4 7 m ph; .....(10,000) 2nd, 68 mph; 3rd, 8 8 m ph; 4th, 105 mph; Sth, 127 mph; 6th, 149 m ph mph, actu al29. 2; error................................30 S peedometer 60 mph, actual56.9 PHOTO:PAUI-MARTINEZ ,- j d ! ! E ' metermore lift,for a totalof 8.25mm.The camshaftsnow have more suppor t at tnelrends,thanksto beefierbossesin the cylinderheads. The 9O-degree V -4 engi ne is so smoolhthat it is easy to wind right past redlinewithoulknowingit. To make the Sabre safe for overrevvers,the pistons' val ve pockets have been deepened sl i ghl l y and the pi ston domes r aised 0.7mm to rel ai nthe same 10.5: 1com pressionralio as lasl year's.Incidentally, all of lhese internalchanges have also been madeto the Magnaengi ne . A new airboxand changesin the cams and valvesof a few degreesor a fraction of a mi l l i meter don' tsoundl i kemuch,but theyadd up to a quitesignificant performance increase.On a hot, muggy day at the dragstrip,the new Sabre,in spite of the lousy surfacetraclion,carvedthreetenthsof a secondoff the bestlime of last year' s bi ke, l urni ng 12.03 seconds at 110.7mph i n l he quarter-4.4mph f ast er l han l ast year' s bi ke. (C orrectingf or horsepow erl oss i n the unusua llyhot w eal her,the ' 83 S abreshoul dha ver un about 11.85secondsat 1 12.5moh. )At 75 mph, the new bi ke w as al so runnino 3.2 mph fasterthroughthe speedtrapsii our 200-yardtop-gearaccelerationtest By increasing fork-tube oveilap and changing the sleering-head angle and rigidity, Honda has tmprovedthe Sabre'shandling.However, suspenstonis stilla Droblem. A dial now controls the rear suspension's operated by a rod tinkaae, the drum rear damping setting, but y-ou still have to remove biake offeri good feel and controt combined the ,saddle to do it. suspension with plenty of-power. ltsaction doesn't change and road holding are problems at.c,ompliance both ends. when ridihg ih the rain, either. Always smooth and responsive, the ZS0 V-4 now.nas more power due to betterbreathing on the intake side. Airbox, carbs, ports. and cams have all been alteredfor more power. Theelectronicinstrumentsinclude a useful selection of functions.On the lefl is a clock/stopwalch.Buttonson the left bar selectand control the stopwatch. P HOTOS PAI]L MAFI NFl Tailsection storage comparlmentsare vanishing on street bikes, but the Sabre has a fairlv roomy one. The turn signal mounts are fleiible, an increasingly common feature. MOTORCYCLIST / NOVEMBER1983 31 MilMUIEITIIEilI Jhe HondaV45 Magnarunsverycloseto I the mainstreamof Americanmotorcycling.The appealot lhe Magna'scuslomits 750 V-4 lype stylingis well documented; erqine is regardedby manyas a piece of future.Theseelementsseem motorcycling's combination. tOptoduc€a very marketable But the Magnais a lot morelhan a clever packags.Overall,it mightjust be the most enfryableridein its class,TheHonda'scomFtition comegfromtwo directions:Kawasacruisers, ki has two shafl-drivefour-cylinder the LTDand the Speclre.Yamahaotfersa ragularMaxim,as wellas a MidnightMaxim. four-cylinder cruisCallit the 750shafi-drive, or clasg.Withinthisrathernarrowrange,the $3298 HondaV45 Magnais one of the ch€apestbikesavailable.TheMidnightMaxim b the moslexp€nsiveat $3599. Essentiallyidenticalwith the motorin the V45 Sabrs,the Magnamill poss€ssesall of lh€ 6ameattributes.The V-4's good points am num€roue.lt's smooth,quiet,powertul, and prsdiclable.lts mannersare impeccable at all times.Warm-uprequiresonly a few secondsof choke.Throttleresponseis crisp and immediale.The rider has an 8500-rpm powerbandat his disPosal;the motor pulls smoothlylrom 1500rpm all the way to the 10,000-rpm redline.Ina sprint,theMagnais the fastestin the class.lts 12.25-second, r is a 107.9-mphbest run in the quart€r-mil quickerthanthe Spectre's €olidthrse-lenths bsst and four-tenthsquickerthan the Maxpoweris excelim's.TheHonda'smidrange lenttoo.At matchingenginerpm,lhe Honda will motorawayfromtheYamahaandKawasakl.TheV45is hamperedin our roll-ontesting sincewe usea startingspeedof 50 mph In top gsar. The Hondahas a tall overdrive sixth gear, so il is spinningconsiderably retailprice........................$3295 Suggested transverse Liquid-cooled, Erginetype........... 4-stroke90" V-4 Showa,5.5in. Fronlsuspension........37mm travel;TRACanti-dive, for air Pressure adjustmenl ............? Showadampers, The Magna's instrumentationis classicaily R6arsuspension lravel: sUled and lacks a lot of gimmicks. A fuel 3.9in.wheel adjustmenttor sPringPreload gauge would be a worthwhileaddition. 110/90-H1I Bridgestone Fronttire...........,.,. Mag.Mopus1303 slowerthan lhe other bikeswhen lhe throtlle 16 Bridgestone is whacked ooen. Thrs resulls in a predict130/90-H Raarlire................ Mag.MopusG508 ably slow top-gearroll-onspeed{or the Hon1 in. ( 105mm) da. 11averages73.8 mph; lhe Yamahaturns Rake/trai|...........,.......,.30"/4. in. ( 1539mm) in a 75. 6- m p hf i g u r e , a n d t h e K a w a s a k i ......................60.6 Wheelbase in. (754mm) Spectreis good for 77.7 mph.lf downshifted un|aden.........29.7 Seatheight, ...3.7gal (141) to fifih gear, the Magna should perform alFuelcapacity.. l b (2 3 92k89 ) most as well as the 80.1-mphInterceplor. We tw eight . . . . . . . . . . . . ................5 tachometer, In day-to-dayriding,the Magna'sengineis Instruments.........Speedometer, water by and large an enjoyablecompanion.ll's tripmeter, odometer, gauge;lightsfor eas y t o m a n a g e a n d a m a z i n g l yf l e x i b l e . temperalure turnsignals,highbeam,neuVal, Ther e' s a f a i r a m o u n l o f d r i v e l i n e l a s h , (thoughnot as much as the Maxim has) as overdrive;warninglightfor fuellevel, well as shafl-inducedsuspensionrise and oil Pressure, taillightfailure fall. but both conditionsare livable. The to 42 mpg, shiftingis occasionallyindefinite;sometimes ..................36 Fuelconsumption 39.3mpgavg. the transmissionpops out of gear immedi145 miles alely after a casual upshift. The hydraulic louringrange.................. Average 12.25sec., clutch requiresno adjustmentand engages ............ accelefation Eest%-mile 107.9mph predictably.The clutch won't take much abuse,however.After five runs at the drag200-ydlop gear mph slrip,ours was slippingbadly underfull-powfrom50 mph.............73.9 acceleration terminalspeed er upshifts,althoughil continuedlo work well 1983 32 MOTORCYCLIST/NOVEMBER I I I l l I I i i duringnormalriding. The Magna'schassisis standardfare. ll's got two shocks on the back, just like in the old days. The Showasadjust for spring preload only, but they do a fair job under most conditionslust the same. There's a paucity of rebounddamping if you go blastingover big bumps or swoop through fast corners, but the highwayride is betler than average. In fact, the dual Showas are more responsiveto smallerbumpsand ripplesthanis lhe Pro-Linkrear suspensionon the V45 Sabre. This, combinedwilh lhe Magna's cushier seat, actuallymakes it a more comfortable long-rangelourer than ils sporling sibling. With ils moderalelychopperstyle riding position,the Magnastillisn'tideal,but the control layoutis less extremethan the Kawasaki Soectre's.The Maxim is the most comfortable of this herd, since it is more spacaous than the olhers. The Magna'smaincomforlweaknessis its long leading-axlefront fork. lt is reluctantto PI]( IIO5 PAI]I MAF T NF I Very basic shocks support the rear end. Don'l bother hunting lor rebound-damping adJusterc,spnng preload is the only variable. respondto small bumps,no matterhow its adjustableair pressureis set. On big sharp bumps, like rough pavementpatches,the fork exhibitsas much as a half inchof forea nd-af l f le x, wh ich se nd s a pr onounc ed shudderthroughthe enlire bike. When the fork beginsto flail,it becomeseven less responsiveto bumps,and the ride qualitydeterioratesturtherstill.We noticedlhe same phenomenon on both the V65 and V45 Sabre testedin lhis issue. When the road gets bumpy enough to makelhe fork misbehave, the Magna'soverall handlingsuffers.The bike can get a litile spookyif you charge hard throughbumpy lurns.ln smoolherbends or with a bil less speed, the Magna turns out to be a pretty nrcehandler,and we suspeclgg percentof ils buyerswon'l eventry to ride il beyondlhis comfortzone. The sleeringeffortis low, and t h e bike ieels lig ht an d nim ble, The big Bridgestonetires hold solidly beyond the point when the pegs begin to drag, which neatlycoincideswiththe onsetof significanl tork {lex.lf the speed is kepl at or belowpegd r aggingv e locity,lh e Ho nd a wor k s v er y well;it's betterthanthe Spectre,but several nolchesbelowthe Maxim. Each ol the three bikes in the 750-multicruiser-shafty class has its strongpoints.The KawasakiSpectre offers the best susoensioncompliance and ride,as wellas thesecond-bestengine.The YamahaMaximis the besthandler,rides well, and has a comfortableridingposition.And the Hondahas the finesl, faslest molor, coupled with decenl comfortand overall,goodhandling.ln the cuslomclass,the motor is the focal Dointof the machine;the appealof the V-4 is very hard to ignore.For many riders,the engine aloneis enoughto makethe V45 Magnathe king o{ lhe class. fro m 5 0 mp h .In short,w i thoutsacri fi ci ng N umerous changes to the ch assis a n y l o w -ra n gepow er, H onda has sub- have al teredhandl l ngand ri de. I n cons ta n ti a l liyn c re ased the S abre' smi drange j uncti onw i th the redesi gnof l he a ir box, a n d h i g h -rp mpow erto the poi ntw herei l the steeringhead has been rakedoul an a p p ro a c h elshe performance of someal l - addi ti onaldegreeand gi ven more supo u t s p o rti n gbi kes. port. The offsetof the triple-clamps has Anotherbit of trickeryborrowedfrom beenrncreased from55 to 60mm.A side th e In te rc e p t or rsa one-w aycl utch,w hi ch effectof thesechangesi s a sl i gh|ylongcan be retrofitted to lastyear'sbike.This er w heel base.U p front,the fork slider s d i s e n g a g essli ghtl duri y ngharddecel era- havebeenchangedto provideadditional ti o nto h e l pp reventrear-w heel l ockupon engagement and overl ap,and the shock s l o p p yd o w n s hi fts. l t i s connectedto the for the P ro-Li nk rearsuspensi on now has s a mes i x -s p eed transmi ssi on usedi n l asl four i nsteadof three rebound-d am ping y e a r' sS a b re ,not a fi ve-speed as i n l he posrti ons. R ebounddampi ngnowa djust s In te rc e p l o r. The hydraul i coperati onof w i tha smal lw heeli n the l op of the shock th e c l u tc hi s a bout the same-l i ghtand i nsteadof the sl i di nghandl euse d last s mo o th -w i th l he dri vetrai n' s smal l year, but you still need to remove lhe a m o u n l o f l a sh noti ceabl eonl y as the saddle to adjust il. The sidestandhas c l u tc hb e g i n slo engage.Gearshi fl i ngre- been relocatedto providemore cornerm a rn sa w e a k spol ,and w e experi enced Ing clearanceon the left. s o m e o f th e same poppi ngout of gear H ave thesechangesmade the Sabr e a n d m i s s e dg ears thal w e di d on l ast a handl i ngfool ? H ardl y.l t i s noticeably y e a r' sSa b re . moresl abl eat hi ghspeedsw henchar gBra k i n gc o n l i nues l o be one of l he S a- i ng a corner,but the suspensi on stillpr ob re ' ss l re n g ths. pow erandcon- vrdesa roughri de over sharpbum psof E xcel l ent tro l , c o mb i n e dw i th the bi ke' sw i de (but al l si zes.A s a resul t,road hol di n gand s l i g h tl yh a rd )t i res,provi deterri fi cstop- tracl i on sl i l l suffer i n bumpy cor ner s. p i n g c a p a b i l i ty. Onl yon roughsurfaces, H ow ever,w i l h the sl ow er steeringr ew h e re th e TR A C anti -di ve system sponsecreatedby the geometrychangre d u c e sth e s uspensi on'abi s l i tyl o cope es, the bi ke i sn' t bouncedoff cour seas w i thb u mp s ,i s theV F750F' sbraki ngany- easi l yas i t w as before.E venthe v er sion th i n g l e s s th an excel l ent. The onl y w e l esl edw i l h H onda' sfai ri ngand bags c h a n g ema d ei n the braki ngw as the sub- i s more manageablduri e nghardcor ner s ti l u l i o no f s p i ralsl ol si n the di scsfor l ast i ng than l asl year' s,and ei ther' 83 ver y e a r' ss l ra i g hlones,w hi chw as done to si onrs consi derablmore y stabl eth ant he re d u c ec o s l . 1982modeli n fast,smoothcorner s.The llff illr RrG0Rll I put In aboul800 touringmileson the standard Sabreone weekendand did another500 on the dressedversiona coupleoi weekendslaler.I'm lefla littlepuzzledby the bike now. lt's no longer possibleto dismissits taut nde, sincethereis no needtor it to excel in the super-sportmode. Yet the ride intrudesrntothe Sabre'scomfortwhen you are touring.Withdifferenlsuspension, the Sabre couldbe an excellent tourer,whichseemsto be somethinglhe 750 classneeds.As it is, I'm not sure what the bike is intendedto do or be; it is neitherlourernor sportbike,and somehow,it doesn't quile seem to fit in the sport/lourernicheeither. On the other hand,and despitethis lack of abilityto placeit, I stilllike'theSabre.lt has been ov er s ha d o w e db y t h e I n t e r c e p t o r , whichcertainlyhas more personalappealfor me. I also iind the V45 Magna almost as comfortableas the Sabre,and I certainlypre{er its ride to the Sabre's. Nonetheless,the Sabre is a competentmotorcyclein almost any role. lt would just be nice if it stood out in at leastone area. -Art Friedman those of us who bent il through a corner were, and stillare, irrevocablyspoiledto the core. Ridingthe Sabre now leaves us nonplussed,not so much becauseit falls short of expectations,but because il ofters only minor improvemenlswhere we have seen majormiracles. The suspensionis slill harsh, the fork still flexesannoyinglywhen calleduponto speed the pulse rale, and lhe bike is nol nearlyas comfortableas a handfulol other sport/tourers. Add the weight of the accessoriesand lhe suspensionbecomesa bit more compliant, but il's still harsh enoughto induce a number of ratlles in otherwise high-quality touring garb. And the accessoriesare a bit pricey. The Sabre does, however,still have a terrific enginethal calersalmostperfectlyto the sport/touringmode. And, all things considered, it is a nice motorcycle.Adding the handsomefairing to the package makes senselo me, but, given lhe price, l'd opt for larger-capacitysaddlebags' -Ken vreeke Thoseof us iorlunaleenoughlo samplethe initialSabrewere highlyimpressed,not so much becauseof what the bike did, bul because of what il represenled-thefirst trickle of what soon became Honda's rushingtorrent of engineeringtrickery.The magnificant Interceplorwas lhe crest of the wave, and Until Honda gets lhe suspensionot the Sabre right, I have to think of the chassisas a perfect example of good lechnology gone bad. lf I were in a positionof power al Honda, l'd assignlhe engineerwho tuned the smooth and silky CX650 Turbo suspension to the Sabre project and then gel out of his way. -Dexter Ford MOTORCYCLIST/NOVEMBER 1983 33 ml [Rr$$Hr uP Hondalinefairingand bags for the Sabre:expensivebut effective Jhe Hondalinefairinginstalledon one of I our Sabres shouldlook familiar.lt first turne d u p a fe w yea r s ago as s t andar d equipmenlon the CBXand has beenfittedas optional equipmenllo most ol Honda's big road bikes. We tested a 1982 CB900Fwith the fairinginslalled.Althoughthe fairingwas around before the Sabre was ever inlroduced, it looks as thoughit were builtjusl for the Sabre;the linesof bike and fairingmesh perfeclly.The Hondalinesaddlebagshave a similar history,but they, loo, seem lo have been designedwith the Sabrein mind.Since the bike and accessorieslook so good togetherand since the Sabre has been reposilionedin Honda'slineupas moreof a louring machinethis year, it seemedappropriateto sample the accessoriesand the V45 Sabre together. This is not a cheap way to dress your Sabre. The HondalineSport fairingwith lowers will devour $565, plus whaleveryou pay to have it installed.The bags are $42 1, and theirmounlscost an additional $105. By lhe time you have paid tax, the tolal is over $1 100.Forlhat kindof money,you mightexpect something extraordinary,which the Hondalineaccessoriesaren't.The qualityis cerlainlytop-notch,with excellentfit, finish, and delailing,but the performanceis nothing soecial. The frame-mountSport fairingcomes wilh detachablelowers, mounls,and a cover for the old headlight.All wiring is included,and it usesa round headlightinsteadof the stock rectangularunit.Thereare two pocketsin the fairing, and the right one locks. The tinted windscreenlurns up at its lop, creatingthe same annoyingbuffetingwe noted on both previousbikes lested with the tairing.lt rattles your face shieldand shakesyour helmet. It would be nice if a taller windshieldwere available.Since this is a "sport" fairing,the windscreenis low, and anyonewill be able to look over it. This improvesyour view of the road ahead but doesn'toffer much wind protectionfor your head. However,the protection otfered the rest of your body is quite good. Allhough your hands are out in the wind, the upper portionof the fairing keeps lhe wind off the riderfrom kneeslo neck.The lowers protect most of your lower legs. We left the lowers off most of lhe time, though, since we were testingin the midst of an unusuallyhot summer.Evenwith the lowersoff, you can feel an increasein engrneheal. Unsleering re tain s mo st of it s am az ingly neut ralfe el, alth ou gha lit t lehas been los t in the steering geometry changes. For touring,commu ting ,an d ev en t he c or ner ing done by lhe vast majority of street riders, the Sab re's h an dling is m or e t han adequate; that last, loony percenlile of sport riders, though, would be better off with an Inlerceptor. T he cha ng es to its geom et r y hav e made the Sa bre sligh t lyles s nim ble t han before, an d low-spe ed handling is s light ly less lig ht an d respo ns iv e. The bigges t problem at low spe ed is t he Sabr e' s shorta ge of ste erin g loc k . You s im ply NOVEMBER1983 34 MOTORCYCLIST/ bags takesjust a few seconds,and when removed,the bags are easy to carry with handles that fold flush into lheir lops. They are nol as roomy as some of the popular aflermarkel bags, and they won't hold a helmet. Straps inside help you organize and separate the contents,and a retainingarm keeps each bag trom openingmore than about 60 degrees,a convenienceif you want to open one while it's mounted.lf you wish to open a bag all the way,the retainingarmsmay be disengagedat one end. These accessoriesadd 46 pounds and raisethe centerof gravityof the Sabreslightly. Some of the bike's neukal feel is lost as Removing thesaddlebags is quickandeasy. a resull; the Sabre wants to sit up slightly Thekey unlocksthe top mount,whichpulls when you brake while cornering.However, rearward,out of engagement witha bracket the overall effecl on handling is minimal, probably less than you would experience on lhe bag, whichlhenliftsoff. with any otherfairingthat gave equal proteclike otherfairings,the Hondaline has pads lion, Unless you have something loose in whichcushionthepointswherelong-legged one of lhe bags, there are no new rattlesor riders'kneesmighltouchlhe fairing. squeakswith these piecesadded, and even L i k e th e l ai ri ng,the bags are col or- engine noise isn't much increasedwilh the matchedto the Sabre.They may be de- fairing mounted. Gas mileage was barely tachedby unlocking thesinglelockfor each changed*less than two mpg-so the fairing thelocksin the may be slipperyenough to compensatefor bag.Thesamekeyoperales bags'latches. Detaching andremounting the the addilionalweight. c a n ' ttu rnthe frontfork very far i n ei ther d i re c ti o nso , l he S abrew i l lnot maketi ght tu rn sa t l o w speeds.The bi ke sl i l l feel s l i g h te th r a nyou mi ghtexpect. T h e Sa bre' ssaddl ei s fl at and roomy, b u t i t i s a l sofi rmerthanmoslcomparabl e b i k e s ' s e a ts.The fi rmnessw oul d probe i l houtthe sl i ghta b l yb e l e ssnoti ceablw l y h a rs hri d e,but the combi nati on of the mostri derssadtw o w i l le v entual lmake y d l e s o re whi l e touri ng.Thosetw o cri ti c i s ms a s i de,the S abre i s an excel l enl tourer.The 9O-degreeV-4 is extremely s mo o l ha t al l speeds,w i th nary a ti ngl e may re a c h i n gthe ri der.The handl ebars be pivoted where lhey clamp to the top ot the fork tubes, and there{orethey provide l e e w a y f o r a v a r i e t yo f p h y s i q u e s a n d r i d ing styles. Both the standard and dressed versions of the Sabre go about 165 miles at louring speeds before you have to switch t o r e s e r v e .A l o w - f u e lw a r n i n g l i g h t o n th e dash comes on a few miles aller switching to reserve, which seems backward to u s . l n h e a v y e x p r e s s w a y t r affi c, th e switch to reserve can be an exciting mom e n l , p a r t i c u l a r l yi f t h e d r i v e r b eh i n d yo u i s n 't p a y i n g a t t e n t i o n . A d i o s t i c k h a s r e o l a c e d t h e o i l - l e ve l Ir l L r l {r :i lrALrl MARI N[2 *- I o a z w r n d o w i n r es pons e t o cu s to m e r re _ Kawasaki GPz750,the Suzuki GS750E quests,and the warranty (as on other and ES,and the Interceptor. Thosefavor_ Hondastreetbikes) has oeen extended i n g th e c h o p p er l ook w i l l turn to the to 12 months.Maintenanceand service Ya ma h a Vi ra g o or Maxi m, H onda' s requirements remainthe same. lt is still Shadowor Magna,or the cruisersfrom necessarylo rearrangethe radiatora lit_ K a w a s a k i a n d S uzuki .There are al so tle to get to the valveson the frontcvlin_ 750s that exist in their own categories, der bank. l i k e th e fu l l -d ressS eca and H onda' s The engineand chassischangeshave Nighthawk. Since stylingand the image madethe Sabrefasterand more stable. n conveys are much more importantto improvements ridersof all ilks are likelv mosl buyersthanfunction, the othermod_ to appreciate.However,even wilh its in_ els will probably outsellthe Sabreand the creasedemphasis on touring, brought other less stylized 250s. However,the aboutby lhe introduclion of the Intercdo_ standardmodelshave usuallymanaged tor,the Sabrewould stillbenefitfrom an to outperform the otherversionsbecause improvement in suspensioncomoliance. of theirwiderrangeof uses.A maiorrea_ Thereis a big hole out there for a 750_ son for their successin this broad range crasssuper-tourer. The Sabre has most has generallybeen their superior coir_ of thecredentials to fillit. lt is smooth.reli_ fort. But the Magna and Interceptor are able,and powerfulenoughfor the task, a D o u t a s c o m f ortabl e as the S abre. but it needsa bit more comfortto com_ Therefore, riderswho would traditionally plelelyhandlethe role.As it is, the Sabre forgo the image offered by the special'_ is a good, broad-spectrum250 sport/ ized versions in orderto get the bestall_ touringbike with less competitionin the aroundbike have less reasonto buy the classthanever.Yamaha'sSeca is avail_ Sa b re . ableonly as a full-dressmachine,so the The Sabre remainsa compelent.at_ S abre 'sd i r ec t c om pet it io nc o n s i s tso f lractivemotorcycle, but pressurefrom its lustlhe KawasakiKZ7S0and the Suzuki own increasingly competentsiblingslimGS750T,bothof whichare slighflydated rls the number potential of buyers who and haveflawsof theirown. will find maximum motorcyclinghappi_ Of course,thereare all sortsof flashier ness-even if function is a primeconsid_ 750s.On the sportingend, thereare the eration-on a Sabre All MOTORCYCLIST/ NOVEMBER 1983 35