Thrust!
THRUST!
Life, liberty and the high-speed pursuit of happiness
MARK HOYER
GATHERED BEFORE YOU IS 460 HORSEPOWER AND 545 mph. You won’t find another 3×3 comparison that has more of either of these thrilling commodities. But these bikes-the Honda CBR1100XX, Kawasaki Ninja ZX-12R and Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusaaren’t just about sick excess, they’re also three of the smoothest, best all-around streetbikes in the history of the wheel. Actually, make that three of the best vehicles, because there is nothing for sale, no license-plate-carrying conveyance capable of doing what these motorcycles can do. Particularly not for a roughly $11,000 asking price.
You want quick? Give these bikes 10 seconds and they’ll give you the quarter-mile. The ton comes up in half that time. Versatility? How about a third gear that will work from 15 to 145 mph? Yes, click the gearbox, one-two-three, lug down to a parking lot crawl, then, should the fancy arise, whack the throttle WFO and peel the paint off your helmet, all in less time than it takes to exchange top-of-the-moming pleasantries with your co-workers.
Each will approach (Honda) or better (Suzuki, Kawasaki) any other motorcycle made in both acceleration and terminal velocity, all while offering competent, sporty handling, great brakes and a comfy place to sit while watching the world ahead of you explode.
Speaking of which...
“Hey, doughboy, move your fat ass behind the bike so I can’t see it,” photographer/master of diplomacy Jeff Allen said to me as we lined up for a roadside static shot. Okay, so he might be right, I may have stacked on a few extra pounds and the Aerostich doesn’t fit quite like it used to. But I was feeling A-okay about myself anyway, seeing as how I was in the company of these overpowered sumo-smackdown megabikes. I mean, have you seen the Hayabusa? It’s looks like the Stay Puft marshmallow machine...
Seriously, though, these things are on the heavy side, each one a solid 100 pounds or more up on the hunger-striker lOOOcc sportFours featured elsewhere in this issue, and a similar amount beyond those yappy little Shih Tzu-like 600s nipping at your toe-
sliders on Racer Road.
But we’ve said it before-these road-burners are a different kind of drug. The weight isn’t the point, and if somebody gives you grief, the only response that matters is “Yes, but have you seen the dyno charts?” It’s like trying to explain your religious beliefs to somebody who disagrees with you.
“Horsepower works in mysterious ways, my brother.”
Plus, the extra poundage lends a certain “Cadillac effect” to the ride quality. And with so much space between the axles, there’s plenty of room for your body, even if you’ve gotten a little portly. Still, ergonomically, each of these bikes represents some sort of compromise to help deliver the speed of which their manufacturers wish them to be capable (high pegs, low windscreens). So, the seat foam falls readily to sphincter on each when you light up full thrust for superpyscho groundbound flight (150 comes waaay too quickly), with wind-protection and ergos about as good as you could expect.
But each bike also translates well to lower-stress daily use. Even the Ninja, with its ass-high seating position (higher even than last year due to a new subframe) and lowish bars does pretty well at keeping you comfy. The big fairing is a plus both at high speeds and just putting around-it offers the best protection of the group. As ever, the Hayabusa’s nearhorizontal windscreen opens an upright-seated pilot to strong windblast at chest level, and obscures the gauges for taller riders who have good posture. Everything’s cool at full tuck, though, at which point if it weren’t for the speedo needle crowding 160 mph, you might actually call it serene behind the bubble. Likewise for the XX-good fairing with a skosh more wind protection than the ’Busa and none of the gauge obscurément.
HONDA CBR1100XX
$10,999
But trust me, you’ll be concentrating on the road ahead most of the time-particularly on the Hayabusa. Despite having its very-top-end speed electronically limited in the wake of all that velocity hubbub over in Europe a couple of years ago (“Speed Bleed,” June, 2000), the Hayabusa is still the King of Acceleration. Like every ’Busa we’ve tested before, this ’02 model (now with improved clutch action) broke easily into the 9s at the dragstrip, and delivered the kind of crushing roll-on performance that makes the bike so dear to us. Turning in a 2.6-second 6080-mph time kept it well on top of the heap, although the Ninja was no slouch either, grinding out a 2.9-second run, with the XX another tenth behind at 3-flat. The numbers are all the more impressive when you consider the tall gearing with which these bikes are equipped. Should spacecraft ever need gearboxes, we have some ratio suggestions.
The podium was the same in the quarter-mile, although this heavily redone Ninja was barely off the Hayabusa’s 9.89-second E.T., with its equally brain-numbing 9.93 run, even bettering slightly the 144-mph terminal speed of the HBus. Stock bikes with street tires, running on pump gas turning in high-9-second quarter-mile times-it’s still unfreakin’-believable! Even the XX’s (relatively) slow 10.35 allows it to show taillight to most bikes on the road.
As mentioned, the Great Top-Speed War of the last century is over-manufacturers agreed voluntarily to limit maximum production-bike velocity to 300 kph (186 mph). So the fact that the ZX-12R finally went faster than a speed-limited Hayabusa (186 mph vs. 184) simply isn’t relevant. Besides, do you think you’d notice the difference? Even on the 176mph XX? As a note to the nutbags among you: Devices are available to defeat the ’Busa’s electronic limiter, which will unleash the last 8-10 mph on the top end, because God knows you have to have it...
Actually, no, you don’t, and we’d like to convince you of this. For as straight-line capable as this trio is, they’re just as much fun when the going gets kinky. Even with stabilitypromoting long wheelbases and road-hugging dryweights of more than 500 pounds, changing direction is still what sporty bikes are all about. Sure, you may have to slow more for comer entrances with this semi-rotund bunch than on your average flyweight racer-rep, but that just means you’ll get to use even more of the profound amount of rubber-punishing torque when it comes time to leave the apex behind.
The bike upon which you’ll most look forward to the next apex is the Ninja-it is by some way the most sporting of this group. The 12R is shortest firmest susest. So desj >rt td turn ai turning on its excellent brakes), it was the bike testers felt they could ride most aggressively.
KAWASAKI ZX-12R
$10,999
It has a taller, more top-heavy feel than either the Honda or Suzuki, but after a few miles you just don’t notice. It also has the snappiest, quickest-revving engine, producing power sort of how one might expect a supernatural 750cc engine would-the 1199cc mill makes the most peak ponies by 3.6 bhp over the ’Busa, but only at the very top of its rev range. Lower down, the Suzuki makes more power sooner. The 1299cc Hayabusa also makes more torque, some 8 footpounds up at peak, while offering at least that much more twist from 3500 to 8500 rpm-right where it counts. Even after all these years, snapping the throttle open on the Hayabusa is still impressive, still incredible.
Add to this the Suzuki’s kinder, more neutral-steering chassis, and you’ve got quite the street-riding experience. The fully adjustable suspension is firm, but it’s more compliant and better balanced than the Ninja (both feature full adjustability, the Kawi even adding rear ride-height shims). The ’Busa’s brakes, meanwhile, were impressively powerful, but didn’t offer the feel or initial bite of the Ninja’s. Overall, though, the Suzuki is nearly as sporting, while being a little more comfortable and easier to ride than the Kawasaki.
All you have to do with the Honda to know it’s pitched toward a slightly different end-user is start with the rubber-the Dunlop Sportmax tires say “Touring” on the side. From there, move to the mostly non-adjustable suspension (just shock-spring preload and rebound damping), and carry on to the LBS linked brakes, where lever or pedal sends braking force to both wheels-nice except in the most aggressive riding, when it tends to make the rear end a little lively entering comers. There’s also some 20 bhp less power, although unless you plan a lot of head-to-head drags with Ninja or Hayabusa owners, you’ll never notice the lack. What you will notice every time you ride the XX is the fabulous refinement and smoothness of this motorcycle. Sure, all of these engines are smooth, but the XX’s is simply better. Control feel is also fantastic, as though every pivot and moving part were rolling in perfectly machined bearings. And with damping this good, who needs adjustments?
SUZUKI GSX1300R
$10,849
Like the others, the XX has a sporty riding position, but the footpegs are the lowest (they were making that scraping sound through the last set of comers, unlike the other two bikes’). It’s a bit more of a handful at the limit, protesting bmsque inputs, but the XX has by far the most neutral steering. In fact, through fast sweepers, it’s as though the bike finds its own line, the bars guiding your hands instead of the other way around. And even in the tight stuff, trailbraking has no effect on cornering attitude. It’s fabulous. No motorcycle this big and powerful should have such wonderful, light steering.
Where does that leave us? Ultimately, in normal street riding where full-throttle and triple-digit speeds are rarely seen, each bike is effectively the same “speed.” So it works like this: If you want to slap on some saddlebags and hit the road, get the Double X, because what it gives up in outright performance is canceled out by its refinement and comfort. If you want to slap on a set of knee pucks and hit Racer Road, get the ZX-12R, because what it gives away in refinement is made up for in outright cut-and-thrust cornering prowess. If you want to do both, the Hayabusa is the correct answer. Whatever you decide, may all your straightaways be long and unpatrolled. □
