European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - July 24, 1978, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 10 the stars stripes july 1978 u Corner although this column normally deals with motorcycles get into the act today and ire present a us of the Harley David son written by staffer Jim Coles a enthusiast of Long Well have More of his reports from time to Randy Barntt b Jim Coles m staff writer several things in life All into the 1 lore a or i Bate it category and somewhere near the top of that list Are Harie David son design concepts on most harleys Haven changed in decades and the engines most of them the venerable twin Type remain unchanged for up to 40 with All this in i agreed to test the 1979 xlch1000 some of the results Are in the i once owned a but i didst own it very Long for the simple reason that i didst like it was a heavy it featured Bon crunching suspend handled like a didst Stop Well j and it seemed to need Gas about every two blocks but that was a Long time and changes have taken place that make it renew sports Ter fun and almost 79 Model is still heavy at 513 pounds but it feels much lighter both rolling to say this Bike is nimble be stretching the but it is a l improvement in feel Over previous Els i suspect the change in Saddle height from 31 inches to a new Tow of has to do with the lighter feel of the Bike while even a relatively Short person i in about 58 can now reach the ground thus having to work the leg Muscles a Little less and reducing Wear and tear of the especially in City some weight has been dropped by adding mag losing the drum brakes in favor of triple weight has been redistributed by raising Overall height to inches and lowering ground clearance a fraction to 63 the Inch we debase distributes the weight nowhere does this Bike fed Nubal perhaps the biggest Surprise for me was the what a change where my old beast nearly bottomed out at the slightest hint of a this Bike was actually comfortable to ride for Short but touring is out for reasons ill discuss no Bott Tomling out Cobblestone streets present one of the Bugaboo of Riding in but the sports Ter performed Well on the i took it at a variety of speeds and loads i up to 50 pounds More than the recommended Load of 620 pounds and never bottomed the rear Shock Spring set up i when adjusted to heaviest ride id say the suspension has improved Over the years to the Point where the sports Ter is almost pleasant to handling has also though not Lew Mustang roomier and quicker the Ford motor recently released full details on its new Mustang de a tired by Ford As roomier and and offering More handling and of prance features than previous mod the new Mustang i Fords Lincoln Mer by division has a similar Model in the is the third since the series was launched in 1961 the original Mustang established an Industry record that still stands for firs year sales of a new Model the original car ballooned in size during its 10year and in 1974 Ford made a major reversal in presenting Mustang a car that was a foot Shorter than the 73 Mustang and even five inches Shorter than the original 64 with the Model for Ford has gone the european certainly from an appearance the Mustang built on a is four inches longer than the 78 Model and has 20 percent More Interior Ford along with the sleek aerodynamic style much of the interest in the new Model lies in the powertrain with both the Mustang and Capri offering As Standard a four Cylinder overhead earn engine with either automatic or four Speed manual transmission a v6 with transmission Only a is with airspeed manual overdrive or optional automatic transmission and a turbocharged version of the Standard the Turbo developing 30 percent More horsepower than the base Standard equipment includes rack and Pinion front disc a front Stabilizer bar and new strut Type front and four bar Junkan Coil rear suspension sys the Mustang will be offered in two and three door models while the Capri is Avail Able in three door configuration per Formant oriented versions with the Turbo charged engines will feature Mustang cobra and Capri Turbo is special suspension Low profile Michelin tax forged aluminium wheels and other goodies Ore included in the performance from the press the new Mustang is a visual and if the car is As Good As it the sales record established by the original Mustang could very Well be the car goes on Sale in the on and it will make its euro Pean debut at the Paris Auto show in octo Harley Davidson sports Ter the Aew Al chem sports Ter Model loses weight by adding mag wheels and As much As it the biggest change 1 noticed came in the increased control afforded by the Norton style pull Back there just about the same bars that appeared on my old Norton 750 those were the most comfortable bars i Ever and the sport sters closely resemble them in looks and Arm this Bike will take the meanest curve quite nicely at though it has a ten Dency to flounder a bit on lows peed the Best japanese Bike makers solved this problem a Long time ago and Harley could learn some lessons from them on this Tricky balance i noticed the floundering especially in City sell dub rant one of the most pleasant surprises was the Way the Bike handled in All varieties of heavy Rains bad arrived in Ger Many the Day i got the Bike and i was a bit apprehensive about Riding an unfamiliar machine in bad but once i got the fed of i Felt the Bike rides even in one of my tests for a Bike is to ride and Over truck ruts on the Auto wet or this Bike tracks solidly through a real Boon to Safe Riding on the sports Ter is the Brake twin discs in the front and a huge single disc in the rear pro vide controllable stopping in most the swept area on the brakes makes them some of the Best Ive come one of the things i didst like about the Bike was the Small Semi tear drop the maximum cruising Range is about 85 Miles and in town you need to refill at about 65mile its a Nui Sance but it May be a Blessing in disguise because 65 Miles is enough on this Bike Why because harleys still vibrate be even at cruising above 45 Dropps Wybe dram Banka Triplettt Mph the mirrors Are i possible to sit Oft the Attef hour without by for Short cruises or for i youre not Bony i Lake a break e very to to 1 the Only really stupid ing is the turn signal co Button for left and another 1 Clever but Dunlea As Large As Kareem impassible to work the Button and operate dangerous setup which the Bike never failed Toi kicks there is no Al Chandl would say j is Well designed and quite m the electrical system is tonal the air setup and the Generator juice even in the wet juice to prevent excessive f even on a new its my Uthe Tinute Hub vol works i liked the Choice of they near m that grips web on wet o Harley Davidson in the nicest Umill the Power is f performance its i but a hot i any drag in spite of i mend this hike to i Ting emotionally far and who is prepared to i maintenance time on it the Harley Davidjr be ordered the sales representatives Force Exchange service a featuring Eara Pem the uts b of from attend from new Mustang has european look1 poor