Yamaha Fzr1000 Target Practice
YAMAHA FZR1000 TARGET PRACTICE
CYCLE WORLD TEST
Yamaha fires a GSX-R-seeking missile
"IT’S A GREAT COMMUTER BIKE,” ONE RIDER SAID AS he climbed off the FZR 1000. He then turned and was greeted by the blank expressions of the other riders gathered around the bike at Willow Springs Raceway. “...as long as you live in Turn One and work in Turn Nine.”
He had a point. Yamaha’s new-for-’87 FZR 1000 is a thoroughbred roadracer with low handlebars, high footpegs and the kind of performance that can earn a lot of trips to victory circle. It's a bike that can show its true potential only on the racetrack, or perhaps on certain speed-isn't-a-crime stretches of road in Europe. The turnsignals, mirrors and horn are incidentals, merely dutiful concessions to the Department of Motor Vehicles. The FZR was born and bred for the track.
You don’t have to look far to find out why the FZR is the way it is—no farther, in fact, than the nearest Suzuki dealership. Not only was Suzuki’s GSX-R 1 100 one of last year’s best-sellers, but it also was a trophy for the company to put on display, a race-winning flashbike that drew people into dealerships to look as well as to buy. The GSX-R quickly became known as the most effective box-stock, street-legal racing machine Japan had ever produced. And that kind of reputation invites challengers.
Well, challenger number one has arrived: Yamaha’s FZR 1000 has the GSX-R 1 100 directly in its crosshairs. But even though the FZR was inspired by the GSX-R, the Yamaha is very much its own machine, technologically. The FZR 1000 is powered by a direct, close descendant of the FZ750 engine introduced in 1985; and as such, it is quite different from the engine in any other current literclass sportbike. The bank of liquid-cooled cylinders has a 45-degree forward inclination; and each individual cylinder has five valves—three intakes and two exhausts—which contribute to the engine’s ability to make big horsepower numbers and boast an 1 1,500-rpm redline. That's 1000 rpm higher, incidentally, than the redline on the 16-valve Suzuki GSX-R.
Through a longer stroke and a bigger bore, the FZR 1000 got an added 241cc of displacement over the FZ750 engine. The only other major design difference between the two engines is the 1000’s five-speed gearbox, which replaces the 750’s six-speed.
One of the FZR’s most interesting features is the way in which intake air is routed to the carbs. The air enters through openings on the front of the fairing, one per side, then is ducted into and through the frame via long, accordian-style rubber boots before reaching the carbs. This system supplies the engine with air that is substantially cooler than air drawn from the conventional location behind the engine. And this cooler, denser air, says Yamaha, results in more power under any given circumstances.
The FZR engine also has a very distinctive appearance, a look caused primarily by that radical forward cant of the cylinders. The designers wanted the engine to have straight intake ports between carburetors and valves; but with a conventional, 10-degree forward inclination of the cylinders, the row of four carburetors would have been situated right between the rider’s knees. So tilting the cylinders way forward was a natural solution, one first seen on the 1985 FZ750. With the downdraft carbs tucked in a cavity under the front of the gas tank, the bike could be made narrower in all the places that matter.
That slimness is especially noticeable when attacking backroads at a brisk pace. The FZR is light, but hardly a featherweight—at 497 pounds dry, it’s 26 pounds heavier than the big Suzuki. Nonetheless, the FZR feels a lot like a featherweight. On twisty roads, it is every bit as easy to toss side-to-side as a Honda VFR700 or 750. And besides being narrow, the FZR has a Deltabox frame that is extremely rigid, giving the bike a solid, secure feeling on twisty backroads and around the racetrack. The Deltabox design is built around two very large-cross-section beams made of sheet aluminum which run between a steering head and a swingarm pivot that are made of cast aluminum for rigidity. At Daytona this year. Jim Filice raced a 750 with the Deltabox design for the first time, and said that the frame was the single biggest improvement over last year’s FZ750-based machine.
That’s easy to believe. On the racetrack, the FZR's handling is inspiring. It doesn't feel like the 130-horsepower superbike it is, but instead seems more like a very potent 750. And in that respect, it is very much like the GSXR 1 100.
Some of that handling competence is brought about by the FZR’s suspension behavior, even though the 1000 doesn’t have the top-line suspension components found on its more-expensive little brother, the FZR750R. The biggest difference between the two is that the 750’s shock and fork have adjustable rebound damping, and the 1000’s do not. But the big FZR's stock spring and damping values hit an ideal compromise for a bike of this sort: stiff enough for the track, but still pleasant on the street.
Like the chassis, the FZRlOOO’s engine can often feel somewhat smaller than it actually is. There’s never a sudden burst of fearsome acceleration, never the feeling that you're about to kick into some sort of hyperspace drive. But no matter what it might feel like, the engine suffers from no lack of power, not by any stretch of the imagination. The engine sometimes feels a bit “soft” simply because there are no peaks and valleys in the power delivery, not because there is any shortage in power output.
Actually, we evaluated two FZR 1000s—one designed for sale in California, where more-stringent emissions standards are in effect, and another intended for the rest of the country. The 49-state model was clearly the quicker of the two, posting an 11.13-second quarter-mile compared with an 1 1.27 for the California model. The 49stater also had a top speed of 1 55 mph, marginally better than the California bike’s 153 mph. But the biggest difference was in fifth-gear roll-on tests, in which the 49-state FZ had noticeably better mid-range acceleration.
There are several reasons for the performance differences between the two. The California model has leaner jetting as well as more-restrictive exhaust and air-intake systems, plus an ignition curve that is more retarded in the mid-range. But both models are fractionally slower than the GSX-R1 100 in all the significant performance numbers—and for good reason. For one, the FZR’s gear ratios are calculated to enhance the bike’s roadracing and sportriding prowess, rather than its drag-racing quickness. And for another, it’s tough to outrun a bike that has less weight and more displacement. The Yamaha does, however, have a smoother powerband than the Suzuki, and its power is more controllable for all-around street use.
On the street, the Yamaha is a mix of good and bad. Its powerband is right at the top of the good list, with an engine that is powerful without being violent. Even on a twisty road, shifting is a do-it-if-it-makes-you-feel-good proposition. The engine pulls from such low rpm that you can shift yourself silly while not going one whit faster than a rider who stays in one gear, under-revs the engine and doesn’t work nearly as hard.
At the top of the bad-for-the-street list is the riding position. Not surprisingly, the FZR is very similar to the GSXR in that regard, with high pegs and low, roadrace-style bars. But the FZR’s seat is slightly lower than the Suzuki's, meaning that the rider’s legs are going to be even more cramped; you don't want to plan long, non-stop trips on this Yamaha. But at least the FZR allows you to move around slightly in the saddle, whereas the Suzuki locks you into one position. What’s more, the Yamaha’s fuel tank is more contoured and, thus, less obtrusive than the Suzuki’s, further adding to the FZ’s overall comfort edge.
Vibration is another reason to avoid long trips on the Yamaha. Right at 5000 rpm, the engine buzzes so badly that one of our test riders often would pull in the clutch when out on the open road and coast for intervals, just so he could enjoy a brief moment of blessed relief. And it’s unfortunate that the vibration peak occurs just above an indicated 65 mph in top gear.
If you’re willing or able to take the FZR up to higher speeds, though, it’s like opening the door to a whole new world. At 75 mph, the vibration goes away. At 85 mph, the wind against your forward-canted torso takes much of the weight off your hands, making the tucked-in riding position feel more natural. At 100 mph, you've completely forgotten that your legs were ever bent into uncomfortable positions. So, you can’t really say that the FZR isn't right for America; probably, the bike just might be the best way to cross Nebraska. Instead, it would be more accurate to say that America isn’t right for the FZR; there’s no road in this land on which the big Yamaha’s best features can be showcased—legally, that is.
But that’s what Yamaha wanted, and that’s what Yamaha built: a hard-core sportbike that doesn't really claim to be anything else. Just about everything on the machine is up to race specs. The brakes are about the strongest this side of a real, live roadracer. And the tires—Dunlop K455 radiais—are just about the best original-equipment sport tires on any Japanese streetbike. Not all the FZRs that land in this country, however, are going to have the Dunlops; some are going to be brought in with Bridgestone radiais. But we tried those, too, and can tell you that they aren’t nearly as impressive as the Dunlops, either on the track or on the street.
Still, despite its numerous shortcomings as a pure streetbike, the FZR is an excellent, exciting motorcycle that seems certain to fulfill its primary objective: to give the Suzuki GSX-R1100 something to race against, both on the track and in sales. The Yamaha has all the necessary credentials in speed, handling and appearance. And even if it doesn’t set sales records, even if there aren’t that many riders who are ready for such a serious machine, the FZR 1000 will doubtlessly be considered a success. Because it will give Yamaha something to put in its trophy case, too.
YAMAHA
FZR1000
List price $5799
