This article was sent to me by Dave Poston <[email protected]>(Thanks Dave!)
                

    Source:  Hot Rod, Nov 1985 v38 p39(2).

     Title:  Middleweight muscle; the 700-class performance cruisers.
             (evaluation)
    Author:  Dexter Ford

  Subjects:  Motorcycles - Evaluation
  Products:  Kawasaki ZN700 LTD (motorcycle) - evaluation
             Yamaha XJ700 Maxim (motorcycle) - evaluation
             Yamaha XJ700X Maxim X (motorcycle) - evaluation

   Magazine Collection:  30A3322
 Electronic Collection:  A4000223
                    RN:  A4000223


 Full Text COPYRIGHT Petersen Publishing Company 1985

 There used to be a clearly defined group of motorcycles called, for lack of
 a better term, "standards." These were the bikes that could function well in
 almost any street-riding mode, from longhaul touring to backroad rat-racing
 to urban trolling. They are mostly gone now. The choice today in mid-size
 motorcycles is between all-out road racers, ready for sticky tires and a
 trip to the race course,and the bikes you see before you: street-wise bikes
 with 4 cylinders, flashy styling, more or less laidback riding positions,
 and, we are discovering, a remarkable ability to do almost anything a rider
 could want from them. The standard look (low, conservative bars, muted
 style, and a comfortable seat) may be gone, but these three shaft-driven
 inline fours from Japan arethe heirs to the class in terms of sheer
 versatility.

 KAWASAKI ZN700 LTD

 The LTD is the most cruiser-oriented machine of the three: its high,
 pullback bars and radically stepped seat force the rider into an easy-chair
 position, and its aging, but very effective, DOHC two-valve motor is the
 strongest of the bunch in terms of low-end punch. Mid-range is good--but the
 two Maxims, from Yamaha, can eat it up when all-out acceleration is the
 game. The motor is the smoothest of the group, with its rubber mounting
 system, and the chassis is quite competent, even for hard going on the
 backroads, though a little less agile than its Yamaha brethren. If your idea
 of the ideal machine is a mellow, nicely engineered city bike that lets you
 loll back against the seat step and delivers velvety power from the bottom
 of the tach dial, the $3149 LTD may be your choice.

 YAMAHA XJ700 MAXIM

 The Motorcyclist Magazine testers almost unanimously chose the air-cooled,
 DOHC, two-valve Maxim as their favorite, day in and day out, of the three.
 Its newer and more expensive sibling, the awesome five-valve Maxim X, has
 more top-end power, and if racing for pinks is the game, the Maxim X is
 going to be the outright winner. But on the street, keeping the Maxim X's
 engine spinning up near its 10,000-rpm redline gets a bit tiring; the pros
 all preferred the torquier, smoother, and slightly slower Maxim.

 The chassis of the two Yamahas is almost identical; like the Kawie, they're
 both shaft-drive 5-speeds, but both Maxims have much more alert, upright
 riding positions. For most riding, from high-speed rural outings to freeway
 crusing, the testers liked the erect Yamaha setup better. The Maxims allow
 the rider to lean into the wind on a highway--to keep from having to support
 the upper body by pulling back on the bars all day; the lower, flatter
 handlebars also help make the steering feel more immediate, and let the
 rider haul his way forward to get extra traction at the front wheel when
 cornering hard.

 The engine is not new, but it works wonderfully; carburetion is glitch-free,
 and there is always power at hand, from 1500 rpm to redline. And most judged
 the Maxim's styling to be the best of the group as well; the candy-red tank
 and tastefully applied brightwork make the XJ a bike even a confirmed sport
 bike rider could love.

 YAMAHA XJ700X MAXIM X
 Yamaha broke new ground this year with the FZ750, a very serious sport bike
 with a radical five-valve-per-cylinder, DOHC head. Verysimply, the FZ makes
 more power than any 750 has ever made before,and all with impeccable low-end
 and mid-range. The Maxim X has the cruiser version of that motor; the bottom
 end is substantially different, but the business end--that wonderful
 five-valve head--is identical.

 And the thing moves like the technology leader it is. When the tach needle
 winds past 7500 rpm the bike takes off like an F-14 from the deck of the
 Hornet. Yamaha's V-Max, the 1200cc, V-4-powered monster that's now the most
 powerful bike available overthe counter, now has a little brother in the
 stop-light wars.

 For confirmed speed freaks the Maxim X is a standout, but a couple of flies
 stray into the adulation ointment. The carburetion is not great at low
 speeds; trying to open the throttle smoothly from idle gets you a
 substantial lurch, no matter how gentle you are. And the power is impressive
 only at the top end; both the Kawasaki and the two-valve Maxim were faster
 in our roll-on race from 50 mph in top gear. The liquid-cooled, high-tech
 motor is a jewel, but you can get more tasteful styling, easier-to-use
 power, and the same chassis in the plainer Maxim, and for $500 less.

 Whichever you choose, the 700 cruisers will be giving you fast,
 low-maintenance transportation--and with all the style you'll need to turn
 heads.