$2,995
Waddell, Arizona
Category
Dirt Bikes
Engine
450 cc
Posted Over 1 Month
2008 Suzuki Rm-Z , Lets face it: Not everyone buys a motocross bike to be a champion. Working-class folk ride mostly for fun. Suzuki is hip, and its goal when redesigning the RM-Z450 was to create a balance between ultimate performance and fun weekend riding. Thats one of the reasons Suzukis engineers equipped the new 450 with electronic fuel-injection (powered by a single-phase alternator rather than a heavy battery). The EFI helps the engine deliver user-friendly power, and upping the transmission speeds from four to five allows for a broader range of use. Toss in an all-new chassis and you have balanced performance for all skill levels. Revisions to the 449cc, dohc, four-stroke, four-valve Single involved the intake system, the combustion-chamber shape and the addition of a little more flywheel weight. It all works well, with superb, smooth power delivery from right off idle to the upper end of the midrange before falling off a little on top. The EFI allows the engine to run very much like a perfectly. In fact, the power is so controllable and linear through the turns that it almost makes the bike feel slow. But when on the gas coming out of slick, hard-pack turns, the rear wheel feels glued to the track. Even if youre hard on the throttle, the RM-Z always maintains excellent traction. Suzuki changed the shifter from a gear type to a link type, supposedly to improve shifting, but its actually worse. Our testbike was hard to shift and missed shifts very easily. It always took a lot of effort to ensure that the tranny was locked into the intended gear. Handling-wise, the new chassis makes the RM-Z feel light, even though it is heavier than the previous model. The bikes cornering ability is awesome, and its always willing to go right where its aimed every time. This allows you to be more confident when knifing through fast turns without worries about the bike popping out of ruts or sliding out. Both front and rear suspensions are by Showa, and individually, they both have good damping characteristics. The problem is that the balance between the front and rear is off. The fork can be unpredictable when youre on the brakes entering a turn, and sometimes it headshakes or even dives. The shock, meanwhile, often wont let the rear end track or follow the ground and instead kicks side-to-side. All this makes it hard to enter turns with as much speed as you might like. When youre on high-speed sections and not using the brakes, however, the 450 is dead-stable, always tracking straight and following the ground nicely. All in all, the new RM-Z450 is an excellent MXer that just needs a few suspension tweaks to be fully competitive. With its fantastic turning ability and ultra-smooth power delivery, the bike is a joy to ride. That makes it fun for big-time racers and real world ridersand that was the goal, after all. $2,995.00 8312147052
