Ten Best Bikes 1995
TEN BEST BIKES 1995
CYCLE WORLD PICKS THE CHOICE RIDES OF '95
IF YOU’RE LOOKING HERE TO LEARN the identity of the year's best motorcycle, sorry—you’re out of luck.
There are too many riders, too many kinds of riding, and too many types of bikes for such a thing ever to be possible. To honor one machine above the others would be to minimize the validity of all the rest. That would be inappropriate, for all are valid.
If, however, you're looking for the best bike in each of 10 broad classifications that cover most of motorcycling's fantastic universe, that's more like it. You've come to the right place. Cycle World's staffers have tested, raced, toured, recreated and commuted on all the candidates. This experience puts us in an ideal position to evaluate them individually and as members of their respective groupings. That’s precisely what we’ve done. There's something for everybody. You’re about to find out what those somethings are. Isn't variety wonderful?
BEST SUPERBIKE
Honda CBR900RR
ANYONE LOOKING FOR THE BEST OF both worlds in this category had better actually look to both sportbike worlds-Japan and Europe.
Italy, of course, brought us the Ducati 916, selected for this honor last year by virtue of its audacious styling and incredi, ble performance. Just don’t underestimate Honda. For 1995 it gave the CBR900RR an upgrad» ed and improved transmission and fork, and revised bodywork. The result of those changes vaults the 900RR back to the top of the superbike heap.
They also confirm the 900RR as what must be the most effective sporting vehicle on the planet. Also, with a 432-pound dry weight, a top speed of 158 miles per hour and a quarter-mile time of 10.67 at 131.57 mph, one of the lightest, quickest and fastest. The price you pay for this is evident if you expect laid-back comfort. The 900RR isn’t about comfort. It’s more elemental than that. It promises incredible performance and quality at a price that’s almost $6000 less than that of the Ducati 916. This year’s Best Superbike from any sportbike world? Right here.
BEST OPEN-CLASS STREETBIKE
Triumph Sprint 900
MAN, WHAT A BLAST! YOU ALL KNOW BY NOW that Triumph-that wonderful old name riveted to an all-new company-has returned to the American market. And probably you know that the motorcycles bearing that name have received basically positive reviews. But what you may not know is that Triumph’s 10-bike model line contains a sleeper, a bike so surprising and compelling that it easily was elected Cycle World's Best Open-Class Streetbike for 1995. It’s the Sprint 900. You say it looks a bit like a codgerbike? Maybe so. But if that’s so, it’s a codgerbike with a hell of an attitude, delivered by the bike’s motor, a rowdy inline-Triple that is ready to rip. Turn it on, it turns you on. It isn’t the fastest of the Open class, and it isn’t the quickest. It’s just the most fun, is all.
BEST 750cc STREETBIKE
Honda VFR750
LISTEN, THIS IS AN EASY CHOICE, made that way because of what 750 streetbikes have become. Mostly, they’re hard-edged, brutal beasts aimed at AMA Superbike performance. Not so the VFR750. It’s aimed at general street excellence. And Honda’s aim is ture
The VFR750 is a success as much because of what it does not provide as for what it does. What it doesn’t provide is the uncompromising high-performance riding posture required by most other bikes in this class-fun for Sunday-morning blasts, but the rest of the time, ouch.
Ah, but what it does provide is all-round comfort and ridability that is absolutely not to be found anywhere else in this class. That gorgeous V-Four engine makes fine power and elegant noise, that twin-spar chassis is rigid and tight, and that swoopy bodywork is clean and beautiful. In short, you can ride this bike all day and dance all night, instead of spending time in the jacuzzi. VFR? Probably means Virtuous, Fun and Right again-for the sixth straight time, a CWTen Best record.
BEST 600cc STREETBIKE
Kawasaki ZX-6R
KAWASAKI’S MESSAGE OVER THE YEARS has been a basic one, delivered with the ringing urgency of a hammer pounding on a steel flywheel: horsepower, horsepower, horsepower. But handling to match that horsepower hasn’t always been present. Neither, frankly, has the fit and finish.
But Kawasaki has had its act together for a while now, and nowhere is the brilliance of that act more evident than in the newfor-’95 ZX-6R, the first of a new family of Kawasaki sportbikes. The ZX-6R is very narrow and compact. It handles. It’s comfortable and user-friendly. Of course, it’s powerful.
Some argue that 600 sportbikes are the new standards. If that’s true, Kawasaki is doing just fine, because it is setting standards with this bike-so much so that it was the winner of Cycle World's 600cc sportbike comparison earlier this year. It’s the winner here, too.
BEST STANDARD
Suzuki Bandit 600
BANDITS USUALLY LAND THEIR PARTNERS IN JAIL, BUT THIS one is poised to land its rider smack in motorcycle heaven. It is Suzuki's response to those who rattled the indus try's cage for a good new standard, just like those good old standards. Others have responded, as well, but the Bandit steals the show. No wonder. Look what it starts with: Basically, a GSX-R tuned for torque. Check that chassis. It's elemental and elegant, comprising nothing more or less than necessary. Best of all, check the com fort levels. Real handlebar, real seat and a real-world riding position that will bring your butt, back, arms and legs day-long happiness as you enjoy the Bandit's consider able charms. Features and family tree wouldn't matter if the Bandit didn't work, but it does. It's a satisfying and valuable tool with which to explore the joys of motorcycling. It is pre cisely that fact that makes the Suzuki Bandit 600 this year's Best Standard.
BEST CRUISER
Harley-Davidson Bad Boy
WE’RE ALL PRETTY SURE ELVIS IS OUT THERE, SOMEWHERE. AND we're just about equally sure that he’s cruising on this bikeHarley-Davidson’s new Bad Boy, maybe the most stylish cruiser ever to roll out of the Motor Company’s York, Pennsylvania, assembly plant. Now, there have been other bad boys, but never this Bad Boy. From its 21-inch front wheel to its blacked-out springer fork to its deeply scalloped seat to its bobbed rear fender, this has to be the Hog-most Harley, for under its considerable style, it wears the foundation that made Milwaukee famous. We’re talkin’ Evolution V-Twin, here, solidly bolted into Harley’s classic-look Softail chassis, all painted and trimmed with fine quality and attention to detail. The result is a riding experience that provides an unexpected amount of fun and satisfaction-enough to convince even the most hardboiled skeptic that, well, the Bad Boy is good enough to be this year’s Best Cruiser.
BEST TOURING BIKE
Honda ST1100 ABS-TCS
NO QUESTION ABOUT IT, TOURING ON A MOTORCYCLE IS ONE of the best things you can do. It’s a pretty good thing to do on a traditional touring bike, but it’s an even better thing to do on a non-traditional machine-a touring bike conceived for corners. That’s the ST 1100, complete with anti-lock braking and traction control, the child of Honda Europe, designed with unpredictable Euroroads in mind. But, believe it, the ST works fine on American roads. Yeah, we know, Honda also makes the Gold Wing, the most popular pure touring bike in the Universe. But the big ST gets our nod. It’s still got one of motorcycling’s great drivetrains, it still has great weather protection, it still will haul most of what a reasonable motorcycle tourist needs, and it still handles like crazy. That’s why, for the fourth straight year, it’s still the Best Touring Bike.
BEST DUAL-PURPOSE BIKE
KTM 620 R/XC
DUAL-PURPOSE RIDING IS A DIRTY BUSINESS, ONE THAT KTM seems to have figured out right down to the tips of its knobby tires. For the second year running, the D-P tool of choice is KTM’s big-banger 620 R/XC. It’s supposed to be a dualpurpose bike, but hell, if it looks like a dirtbike, rides like a dirtbike and sounds like a dirtbike, it must be a dirtbike. Right, except this dirtbike is like few others. First, it is based on KTM’s 620 LC4, a very competitive piece of enduro equipment; no compromises there. Second, it is street-legal-dig it, completely street-legal. But while it has lights-and-license, it has little else. This thing is absolutely ready to roost. Roost is just what it does, too, thanks to a megamotor, and thanks also to the finest suspension, brake and body components. About the only thing this KTM doesn’t have is long-range pavement capabilities. That isn’t what it’s about. What it’s about is dual-purpose dirt-digging; for that there’s none better.
BEST ENDURO BIKE
KTM 250 E/XC
You ARE so COOL: YOU ROLL YOUR RACEBIKE OUT OF THE back of your pickup, cruise sign-up and tech, and when your minute comes up, you’re gone. You make every check right on a gnat’s ass, you’re never even close to lost, and you get no flats. You take the win, the trophy and the trophy girl. Why not? You and your bike are still clean, and you haven’t as much as worked up a sweat. Party time. A dream for sure. But riding enduros really is getting a bit less fraught, thanks in part to the KTM 250 E/XC, an absolute rarity in this class. It's rare because it’s ready to race, right now, right out of the showroom. That wouldn’t matter if the bike wasn’t competitive. It is. Real competitive. For almost everybody. How can this be? An engine with an easy-tohandle power curve, and terrific suspension that is fully, and widely, adjustable, that’s how. And that ain’t all. This bike comes with KTM’s usual high quality and fine detailing. So, race or play-ride? Expert or Novice? Doesn’t matter. You’re on the year’s Best Enduro Bike.
BEST MOTOCROSS BIKE
Kawasaki KX250
YOUNG MOTOCROSS-HOPEFUL TO MXER WHO HAS MADE IT: “LIKE, WHOA, dude, can I, like, have your old bike?” Good question, smarter than you might think. No segment of motorcycle racing is as competitive as this one. If you’re gonna win in 250 MX, you’d better be upgrading your bike every year, thereby rendering last year’s bike obsolete for all but eager Novices. The thing about upgrades, though, is that you can ask the right questions and get the wrong answers. Sometimes this year’s model isn’t as good as the bike it replaces. It happens. But not to Kawasaki, not to the 1995 KX250. Start with the engine, which develops lots of power over a wide band. Check the suspension, which is nearly perfect on its standard settings. Brakes, clutch and controls? They’re all terrific, too. What all this adds up to is a broad span of excellence that results not in a finely honed tool suitable only for specific talents, but in the best bike for the widest spectrum of riders. That’s why the KX250 is the Best Motocross Bike of 1995.
