Short but Sweet!
BACK IN the
Spring of last year NVT introduced a new trail bike to an already very competitive
off-road machine market and waited to see how it would sell.
The Rambler,
as it was called, was unusual because it used a 125 cc Yamaha two-stroke engine
carried in an NVT - designed frame - the whole packages assembled at NVT's Garretts
Green factory in the Midlands.
NVT tagged
the machine for the 'posers' market at its launch and with Yamaha featuring
both 125 and 175cc machines in their trail bike range the obvious follow-up to
the 125 Rambler was a 175 bigger version.
That was
duly announced towards the end of last year with Yamaha importers Mitsui
agreeing to supply NVT with the necessary engines.
Sales of both
machines have lived up to expectations and having just tested the 175 Rambler
it is easy to see why it is proving popular. Main fault of the 125 was that it
lacked steam for any serious type of riding but the extra 50 cc of the 175
makes all the difference.
Identical
In looks the
175 Rambler is identical to its smaller brother. It uses the same one-piece
glass fibre moulded tank and seat unit, cantilever type frame with the suspension
unit housed underneath the petrol tank and disc front brake.
The frame is
made in Italy. When NVT were scouting round for a firm to make the frames they found
it was cheaper to travel to Italy to have them made than buy them anywhere in
this country! The same can be said of the exhaust system which sweeps under the
engine before breaking into an upswept expansion and silencer box.
The
wheelbase is short at 52.5in and when sitting on the Rambler it feels more like
a trials machine than anything else, short and compact.
That
impression is maintained when riding on the road. The foot pegs are tucked up
well out of harms way and the
handlebars, along with most trail bikes, are reasonably high and wide giving a
seating position that could well prove troublesome on long journeys.
But for the
short trips for which the bike is intended, the position is ideal giving plenty
of control in traffic and all types of conditions.
The engine
is the standard 175 six-speed Yamaha two-stroke unit with the autolube lubrication
system maintained - the oil bottle is
underneath the Seat.
The only
change to the unit is that the Yamaha name is machined off the clutch cover and
replaced by the NVT motif.
The engine
started easily, though the kick start position is a little awkward and the
exhaust and silencing system muffles the noise effectively. The choke could be
shut off after only a few minutes, leaving the motor to tick over easily with
only a trace of blue smoke from the tail pipe.
Gear ratios
are slightly lower than the ones used by Yamaha and the engine picks up the
front wheel easily enough in both bottom and second gears if the throttle is
snapped open. It could prove disconcerting but the engine has enough feel to it
for any resulting nasty moments to be easily controlled.
The rev-counter
was redlined at 7,000 and the engine would buzz to that limit easily enough, giving
a 75 mph top speed whack, according to the speedometer, on the open road. Our model
would certainly cruise easily at, or
near, the legal limit all day.
At those sorts
of speeds there was some vibration mainly through the seat but also through the
handlebars.
Handling
seemed good, though the machine wasn't ridden in the wet. The shortish wheelbase
means, of course, that the bike can
prove lively when cornered hard on suspect roads but the suspension seemed perfectly
able to cope with all that was thrown its way.
Brakes were
also reasonable, though not outstanding. The front disc, the only one fitted to
a trail bike,
seemed to lack bite but the rear drum was perfectly adequate.
Fitting a
disc brake to a trail machine may seem a slightly odd move when it is to be
supposed that it will prove ineffective in many off-road conditions. But NVT
point out that as most trail machines never see anything more exciting than the
trip to work a disc brake is a bonus.
This machine
did see some rough-going, however, and seemed to like it. The wheelbase means
it can be manoeuvred along trails with ease - and the trials type Dunlop tyres
fitted were able to cope with the stretches of mud we could find.
The lower
gear ratios proved nearly perfect, the bottom three ratios all proving usable.
Competitive
So what's
wrong with the Rambler then. Though NVT have paid obvious attention to detail -
note the rubber mounted headlamp and rear tail lamp and well protected controls
- they have missed such things as an exhaust guard underneath the engine (though
this is on the way they say) and mudguards which won't clog (this is also being
attended to).
Apart from
those minor gripes the machine is very competitive. It is priced in the same
range as its Japanese counterparts and though NVT say it is intended for the
person who wants something different and not as direct competition, demand is
proving it is a popular machine.
"Motor
Cycle Weekly" ratings:
PERFORMANCE:
Adequate.
HANDLING:
Good.
COMFORT:
Reasonable.
ECONOMY:
Good.
VALUE: Good.
SPECIFICATIONS:
ENGINE Two
stroke single cylinder, piston controlled induction.
CAPACITY
171cc (66 X 50mm).
COMPRESSION
RATIO 6.8:1. 4
CARBURATION
Single Mikuni BBHS.
MAXIMUM
POWER 15 bhp at 7,000 rpm.
LUBRICATION
Autolube oil feed.
TRANSMISSION
Wet multi—plate clutch with six speed gearbox. Overall ratios 34.5; 21.8; 15.4;
11.7; 9.4 and 7.9 to 1.
ELECTRICAL
EQUIPMENT Six volt, four amp/Hour battery, horn, direction indicators,
five-inch headlamp.
FUEL
CAPACITY 1.2 galls.
TYRES.
Dunlop 2.75x21 front, 3.50x18 rear.
WHEELS Laced
spoke type.
BRAKES
Front, 10 in hydraulically operated disc. Rear, 5 1/2 in drum.
SUSPENSION
Front telescopic fork, rear swinging arm.
FRAME Single
downtube splitting into duplex cradle underneath engine.
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase 52.5 in; overall height 45.1 in; ground clearance 9.5 in.
WEIGHT 212
lbs.
PRICE £625
including VAT.
ROAD TAX £10
a year.
MANUFACTURER
NVT Motorcycles Ltd, Garrets Green, Birmingham.
