While the most exciting news coming from Subaru these days has to do with a certain all-wheel-drive turbocharged rally-car-for-the-street, the company also is making news headlines with a possible single cylinder motorcycle. If the rumors hold true, expect to see the bike with a 500cc engine from Fuji Heavy Industries (Subaru's parent company), a twin-spar aluminum frame, Showa USD forks and rear shock and Tokico radial mount brakes. Considering the expected output of 50 horsepower, the specifications otherwise seem rather high. The bike appears quite large despite being on the short end of the stick displacement-wise. The American market in particular has not been kind to machines in this size-class, but we're still quite interested in knowing just how much truth there is to this one.
[Source: Faster and Faster]
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
GT @ Dec 4th 2007 6:04PM
it might be neat if subaru can bring some of its features to the bikes if it decides to make them - boxer engine and 2 wheel drive (if that's even possible, lol)
oil oil man @ Dec 4th 2007 6:40PM
there is absolutely no reason to put 2wd on a street motorcycle.
50hp is plenty.
"The American market in particular has not been kind to machines in this size-class, "
you're kidding right? How many R6's et al. are there on the road? TONS.
GT @ Dec 4th 2007 6:45PM
u know, i never said they should transplant the STi's engine, just boxer.
bobloblaw @ Dec 4th 2007 7:18PM
a 500cc single is a lot different than a 4cyl r6 making 120hp, if this bike is a real prospect I really doubt they have any plans of trying to sell it in the us.
jason @ Dec 5th 2007 9:02AM
No! please keep the boxer motor in the auto line.
I think that was BMW's largest mistake, should have put the boxer motor in the car and the inline in the bike, there we go..
Guenther @ Dec 4th 2007 6:22PM
2wd is possible, but not viable. Someone (I think yamaha) had one for the Dakar a few years back.
I think a full-size bike with a 5-600cc motor would make a fine entry level bike for non-midgets.
Luis @ Dec 4th 2007 7:11PM
I bet they could make a mean motocross bike...
cheese302 @ Dec 4th 2007 7:27PM
Excited, i love subarus, would def take a look as a future motorcycle aquisition
Golferal @ Dec 4th 2007 8:09PM
Whoop-dee-do for my Subaru!
(anyone remember those ads from the 70's?)
ptschett @ Dec 4th 2007 8:55PM
"I think a full-size bike with a 5-600cc motor would make a fine entry level bike for non-midgets."
With the right bike, you could stick with it a while too. I've gone 2-1/4 seasons on a KLR650, about twice what I planned, and even though it's slow for a bike it'll still outrun most cars to 60 mph.
Guenther @ Dec 4th 2007 9:53PM
I have a KLR. It's not fast, but has plenty enough juice to get around at only about 38hp. I think my next biike fill be the ne F800GS, but not for a few years. Last years F650GS had about 50hp, got close to 70mpg (if you're nice to it) and rides nicely. Thumpers are great for lazy riding, because of their fat torque.
HotRodzNKustoms @ Dec 4th 2007 9:58PM
That is a big and nasty looking bike for such a wimpy motor. Defiantly a market for nasty looking with small motor. The biggest problem with most bikes in the sub 600cc 4cyl knee dragger department is they look like glorified scooters i.e. Kawasaki 250 and 500 Ninjas.
EhisforAdam @ Dec 4th 2007 10:33PM
I own a Ninja 500, its my first bike, and it's certainly not a glorified scooter and it's an excellent learning bike. You just go to show why sport bike riders get such a bad name. You don't need 600cc and 100HP to carve through twisties and have fun. Go back to popping wheelies on the freeway, squid.
Rob @ Dec 4th 2007 10:54PM
I agree the 250/500 Ninjas look bad. They brought out a ninja 650 in the past couple years that looks much nicer. If they put that look into the smaller bikes they would sell more of them. Suzuki makes a nice 650 (SV) which was my 1st bike. The only thing keeping me from a ninja at the time was the 1980s styling. I spent an extra $1500 just for a better looking bike, not because I wanted a bigger motor. A nice looking 500cc bike priced around $5500 would be great for commuters and beginners.
timmer @ Dec 5th 2007 12:22AM
The Ninja 250s were redesigned and now look like the 650r.
h8rain @ Dec 5th 2007 9:54AM
WOW! The 250 was redesigned! It actually looks somewhat modern now. I had a 250 as my first bike, and I loved it. 70mpg, more than enough speed, and very agile. Kinda like a Miata in bike form.
MotoGuru @ Dec 5th 2007 12:33AM
The older 250 and 500 bikes do look pretty horrible, but it is a safe learning bike, cause even a 6 will own alot of new riders. The new ones do look good now though, so you may see even more new riders. That aside, this bike sounds like a slow, heavy pile.
mk @ Dec 5th 2007 1:40AM
I have a 47hp 650cc honda hawk GT.
50hp is acceptable, but it is far from great. The saving grace for the hawk is that it is very small and light, with good suspension. A twin is one thing, but a single (like the GB500 Honda) is interesting, but probably not a long-term ownership proposition.
it is very easy to want to upgrade to a more powerful bike.
I would think that a boxer engine would make sense, like the BMW 1200 HP2 DOHC. Subie could do a clean-sheet design, or even a lightened motorcycle-specific boxer-twin 750cc block, with parts related to their 1500cc boxer 4. (an engine sold outside of the US...) Derived from the 2.0 would be a 1000cc, or 1250cc if derived from the 2.5 liter block.
A Subaru bike could be cool, but I'll have to wait to see it. Triumph, BMW, Aprilia, Ducati, and MV all have nice products that I know that I like, (as well as YamaKawaHondaZuki) and Subaru doesn't mean much in motorcycle circles, unless the rider also drives a Subie car, like I do.
fm @ Dec 5th 2007 2:22AM
Will it be 2 wheel drive? :D
Mark @ Dec 5th 2007 4:35AM
if they are making a bike with those specs, that picture up top aint it, those are the specs of a motocross bike, or maybe an adventure bike (think KTM). 500cc single cylinder just won't work on a sports bike.