Classic Motorcycle Mechanics Magazine 381 July 2019 Back Issue

There’s something so cool about the way a power delivery can brighten your day…

This issue sees Jeff Ware get under the skin of the best of the 1980s Turbo bikes and it’s interesting to read the comparison of the types some 35 years or so after they first saw light of day. I recall my uncle – a mechanic for Dave Fox Kawasaki (now, sadly gone) – explaining how the GPz750 Turbo had the same performance as the GPz1100 and how it bucked out of control on him on a test ride when the turbo spooled up as he hit a bump on the A2… Fast forward 15 or so years and this was in my mind when I finally managed to have an hour on the 750T myself for a magazine. Fun? you betcha. Scary?

Well, even back then the power output wasn’t all that – it was the WAY it kicked in. See, we may love the smooth, linear power pumped out by a V4 four-stroke, but the two-stroke addict in us also loves the punch you get somewhere – anywhere – in the rev range. It’s why people love the Yamaha V-Max.

This mighty V4 would use the V-Boost system, where butterfly valves would kick the oomph up to 11 at 8000rpm. I spent my first ride watching that tank-mounted rev-counter to see if the difference was noticeable. It was, sadly I wasn’t looking where I was going and mounted the pavement. Lesson learned… we will visit the mighty V-Max soon in CMM…
What characterful motors spin your crank?
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