Cagiva Navigator

Now the irony of that word came home to roost recently, particularly as I was testing Cagiva's all-new tarmac trailie, the Navigator, which was nearly totalled in the process. Now, before you all start spouting off about journalists playing the fool, let's put the near abolition of the Navigator in its proper context.

Yes, it all had to do with a vehicle losing its bearings, but it wasn't the said motorcycle. Instead it was a 10-year-old Mitsubishi wagon that lost its way.

You see, the photo shoot with the Navigator was about to wind up. All that remained was a few static shots on the side of the road with the hazy sight of Melbourne's CBD in the background. Certainly no cause for alarm in all that, but then the hoon in the Mitsubishi made his grand entrance. Now I've been scared before. A blood-thirsty leech gnawing at my eye is probably the most noteworthy, but the sight of an out-of-control car heading straight towards me, the diminutive photographer, Ellen, and the Navigator was up there with the best.

Fortunately, the driver managed to swerve at the last minute, from where he continued to snake down the road for another 100 metres before he crashed into the gutter on the wrong side of the road, nearly rolling the vehicle on impact. Turns out it was a mechanic taking a serviced car for a quick shuttle to make sure everything was dandy. Guess who'll be taking things a little more cautiously in future...

LOTS OF SPIRIT

The lunatic episode aside, you have to hand it to Cagiva in releasing the Navigator. It's a succession plan that's worked a treat. The bike is a follow up to the Ducati SS-engined Grand Canyon, which had been a loyal servant of the Italian marque for a number of years. The Navigator supersedes the Grand Canyon, and will go on sale in Australia in early December, following its mid-year debut in Europe (Alan Cathcart's first ride on the bike was published in Vol 49 No 23). While undoubtedly sharing a few styling features with the Canyon, the new Suzuki TL1000S-engined Navigator really does lift the tempo in terms of spirit and performance, as it should with the sophistication at its beck and call. In my books, that goes down as a declaration of war against the established class protagonists, the Honda Varadero ($15,065), BMW R1150 GS ($16,645), Triumph Tiger ($14,750) and Moto Guzzi Quota ($13,995), soon to be joined by the Mille-sponsored Aprilia Caponord in 2001.

GRUNTY DELIVERY

Although detuned in its Navigator form, the grunty fuel-injected TL engine is still very expressive. Cagiva claims 97ps at 8400rpm, down on not only the original TL1000,s 125ps, but still 6ps below that of Cagiva's other TL-based machine, the Raptor. In fact, the disparity in performance between the Raptor and Navigator is quite profound, notwithstanding that the Nav is lugging around an extra 18kg of poundage (claimed dry weight is 210kg). Still, like any premium V-twin, the power delivery is smooth and progressive, and before you know it the legal limit is a thing of the past. The power kicks in from around the 4000rpm mark, with the boldness continuing all the way to 10,000rpm.

But power in this case is an adjunct to the bike's torque, which peaks at 9.0kg-m at 7000rpm. It probably goes a long way to explaining why the steering-head bearings appeared to be showing signs of decay after just 3000km. And I wasn't even the one who had been doing all the wheelies... I know it's a standard line, but this bike really does pull cleanly in any gear, sans any real vibration, and that's what makes it such an ideal long-distance machine, aided by the long 1530mm wheelbase for stabilities sake. And the reach to the handlebars is quite conservative, so you don't have to strain at the leash to get a hold. While on the highway theme, conservative 100kmh (at 4000rpm) riding would easily see you get around 19km/lt, so you'd definitely be looking to fill the 20lt tank up (actually, two 10lt tanks if you want to be picky) well before the 300km mark. Pity there's no clock, fuel gauge or luggage hooks to add to the whole shebang...

CITY HOON

It would be selling this bike short to pigeon hole it in the "strictly for highway" use basket. Around town I found the Navigator more of a hoot, with the sweet six-speed gearbox, coupled with the light-action clutch, great for minimising the effects of the typical start-stop urban snarl. That's probably not the impression you'd get after a first inspection. It does really look quite imposing, especially from the rear, punctuated by the high-set front fairing and screen. But those fears were soon put to bed. Granted, the 850mm seat height isn't a big help for locating terra firma with any assurance, but it's something you soon work around sub-consciously. However, it does pay to stay alert doing u-turns one of my colleagues got pinned under a Varadero once after a switchback turned sour, and it still haunts him today. The pegs are also positioned a fair way back on the Navigator, which means you really do adopt an aggressive seating position. Even allowing for the widish seat on the Nav, there's always some underlying bum fatigue, not for a passenger though, as they get to plant themselves on the plusher part of the seat. There's four-way adjustment on the brake and clutch levers, and the mirrors are also positioned well.

SLIGHT UNDERSTEER

The Navigator is quite precise in the steering department, although it does tend to understeer. It's not a terrible affliction; with the excellent Metzeler MEZ4 radials under you there's always the confidence to drive the bike through a turn. The 110-section, 18-inch front tyre feels quite planted despite the understeer, but maybe it's worth punting with a 17-incher in the future if it's going to spend all its life on the blacktop there's no real harm in taking that course of action.

The front suspension is quite soft, which means there's a quite a bit of dive when the excellent Nissin twin-piston calipers are given a workout. With 150mm of travel on the Marzocchi 45mm front forks, that still doesn't test the suspension limit, if you had a spare set of enduro hoops lying around the garage you'd be tempted. But, sadly in a way, this bike is no Cagiva Elefant, so the closest you'll get to gravel is when you take a daring shortcut through the sports oval on the way home from work. On the other hand, the rear suspension, which has 160mm of travel, is quite firm, and more befits the bike's road demeanour.

The rear Nissin brake caliper grips a 240mm steel disc, providing just enough feel and strength to complement the excellent set-up on the front. The Navigator, which is available in blue and purple, represents excellent value at $14,990. With an abundance of power, light and sweet controls, excellent protection from the elements and a good look, it's a machine that satisfies most senses. Sure, it might be a bit of an exaggeration to label it with an "all-rounder" tag, but it does it so well on the road that you almost forget this bike was made to rough it a little. With the fun I had, that's just fine with me.