More Power To Us Speed By the 1000s
MORE POWER TO US Speed by the 1000s
EYEBALLS FLATTENED WHILE YOU WAIT! AND THERE ain’t much of a wait with any one of our little collection of pumped-up, pared-down supermissile liter-bikes gathered here. So, sure, Suzuki’s new GSX-R1000 is a smokin’ fast and surely excellent expression of the maximum-horsepower/minimum-weight theory, but it’s only the most recent addition to an already crowded horsepower party. Take your howling Fours, your thumping Twins (which, quite frankly are learning to wail, too) and tie one on. We’ve got 6000cc and roughly 750 horsepower to buzz you down the road. And no, you’re not hallucinating, the scenery really is moving that fast.
Aprilia RSV Mille R
Like a Mille, only more so
This is your basic Mille, but with special sauce. The spicy tang comes from upgraded Öhlins suspension components, lighter, stronger forged wheels, better Brembo brakes, lots of carbon-fiber bits, racier graphics and more. Aprilia’s been hard at work, tweaking quietly away on what was already a stunning performance package. Styling is massaged, power is up and already excellent suspension settings have been refined. Big news for 2001, though, is that the 60-degree, counterbalanced torque-reactor V-Twin has been repositioned in the frame to improve weight distribution and handling. It needed better handling? All right then, we’ll take it. Standard RSV: $13,899. Pictured Mille R-the only real choice for the well-heeled performance junkie-will run you $17,299.
Ducati 996R
Seeing redder than ever
This is a very special Ducati. For while this 996 is similar in look and almost same in name, it is actually a shorter-stroke, bigger-bore, higher-revving 998cc version called the Testastretta. In simple terms, Ducati smashed more engine into a smaller space and got more power out. How much? A claimed 135 bhp. Talk about more bang! Factor in carbon-fiber bodywork, other lightweight go-fast bits and you get a claimed no-fuel weight of 407 pounds, about 30 lubs lighter than your run-of-the-street 996S. Just what the doctor ordered for this long-running classic. But the good doctor best get his order in (Ducati says just 50 at “less than $30,000” will come to the U.S.), and start renting a racetrack. Because as far as Ducati is concerned, this thing is competition-use only. Nice thing about the Italians, though, is that they seem to subscribe to the trickle-down theory when it comes to performance, so can a mass-produced street version be far behind?
Honda CBR929RR
Performance thirst
Time was when big bikes were big and little bikes...well, they were big, too. Then little bikes got littler, but big bikes stayed big. Then Honda made the first big bike that really got small. The CBR900RR was born, and it was the most insane game in town. The CBR929RR is so far beyond the old 900 that if we hadn’t flogged the new one on the road and track mercilessly, we wouldn’t have believed it were true. Supple, controlled suspension, impossibly neutral and precise steering and perhaps the most-perfect inline-Four power delivery we’ve ever experienced. And if all that’s not enough for you, have a gander at the limited-edition Erion Racing color scheme (a grand more than standard) pictured here in its blacked-out-frame, custom-painted glory. Either way, what we have here is simply the most versatile, flickable, easiest-to-ride corner-carving liter bike ever made (pre-GSX-R1000, anyway—and, yes, a shootout is in the works). In standard paint, it’s yours for just $9999, making it the lowest-priced bike in the class. Power to the people, for sure.
Honda RC51
Japan's 1-2 thump
World Superbike Championship, anyone? Honda took one, to go! And with an all-new Twin, no less. But this RC51 isn’t much like any V-Twin Superbike before it. It’s a bargain, for one-just $10,999. And although it’s got the signature 90-degree Vee Ducati made so familiar to us, it’s had the Honda stamp put on it. Which means right off the showroom floor, some 118 genuine ponies gallop out in a most un-Twin-like way. Sure, it’s perfectly linear power, but this baby screams on top in a way more reminiscent of its four-cylinder brother, the 929, than any street-going Twin before it. As you would expect, this power is carried in a most graceful way by its twin-spar alloy frame and taut, racebike-like suspension. Makes it so easy to go fast it feels like you’re cheating, which is our way of saying Honda magic has come to the V-Twin Superbike.
Kawasaki ZX-9R
It's easy being green
No, the ZX-9R is not honed to the fine edge of the other bikes here. So maybe the bike makes a compromise or two in terms of absolute flick-it-on-your-knee performance. But maybe this also means you don’t have to make so many compromises using it in real life. For while the chassis is a nominally slower-steering, larger-feeling piece, peak power’s on par with everybody else, as is quarter-mile and top speed, which, for example, is knock-knock-knocking on 170 mph’s door. So, yeah, it’s about 20 pounds up on the other Fours here, and overall damping rates are a little softer. But it’s got the most comfortable seat, most protective fairing and best riding position this side of a sport-touring bike. Sounds great, too. Just think of it as your luxury liter bike for the real world. Bring $10,199 and it’s all yours.
Yamaha YZF-R1
Cat's got your fun
We suspect this was the bike that really set off the alarms in the Honda camp. Stunning, cat-eyed good looks, fabulous, light handling and an unparalleled midrange whack that’s still a thrill. Hell, it’s even pretty comfortable, too, for a bike of its “incredibility.” But it woke the sleeping Red Giant, and brought on the 929. R1 obsolete then? Hardly. That stomping midrange makes the R1 arguably more thrilling than any other streetbike. Wheel up? At will. True, at the limit, it asks for more effort and concentration than the 929, say, but that limit is way, way beyond most other motorcycles. Pictured is the $10,799 Champions Edition, a specially painted version that will run you $500 over standard. Either way, color it fast.
Mark Hoyer
