BIKE (UK)

MOTORINGAL­ONG

- º o , Mikearmita­ge

7KH 7XRQROV 9 LV IURP WKH 569 VSRUWVELNH ZLWK VRIWHU FDPV DQG ORQJHU inlet trumpets to boost the midrange and make it easier to ride. The first bikes IURP KDYH D G\QR WHVWHG EKS WKH PRWRU ZHQW WR FF LQ DQG PDNHV EKS DW WKH ZKHHO %RWK YHUVLRQV DUH UREXVW 'RQOW EH SXW off by a rattle from the right-hand side after a hot start – oil drains out of the hydraulic camchain tensioner when you stop the engine, and it takes a moment to get back up to pressure when you restart.

Traditiona­l-style bikes don’t come more traditiona­l than Kawasaki’s parallel twin W800. Moto Guzzi’s V7 is convincing­ly retro and Triumph’s very many Bonneville­s are pleasing things – but it’s the Kwak that’d fool the most people if you slapped on a black-and-white plate and wheeled it into a classic bike show. ‘Ooh, look at the bevel-drive cam,’ they’d all coo. This means old-fashioned performanc­e, too. But if you’re going retro, isn’t that the point? In a time when we crave ‘authentici­ty’ the thrumming motor, jiggly ride and slim-tyred agility are as old-school as it gets without UHVRUWLQJ WR DQ (Q HOG %XOOHW 8VHG ELNHV IURP ~ " 6ROG

 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United Kingdom