California "STONE" - Basic Instinct (*)
The USA, the Fifties. The new generation's yearning for independence extends to a passion for biking. To be in the saddle of their own personal bike, different from all the rest, spartan and essential, they stripped everything they felt to be superfluous from a standard bike. The result was essential super-fast "bobbers", the ancestors of all today's cruisers.
The California "Stone" is directly inspired by these bobbers - young, free and unconventional. Two wheels made to streak without a care through ever changing landscapes. It has a simple and essential "back to basics" character, minimalist with no frills.
A temperament emphasised by the new name "Stone", rough, solid and strong. The essence of the bike is revived in this model in four variations Slate Black, Porphyry Grey, Flint Orange and Limestone White. Slate, porphyry, flint and limestone - four different ways of expressing the spirit of Stone, with colour connotations expressing the long history of a pedigree cruiser and reinterpreting it in more modern colours.
The beauty of simplicity
The mechanics speak eloquently. Stone is a California in every way - reduced to the essential, but without losing even a drop of the California charisma. The engine is still the legendary 90° V twin in its most recent incarnation. An engine with amazing torque values, setting the record for its class (94 Nm at 5,000 rpm). The frame is the classic detachable tubular steel duplex cradle for a rock-like grip on the road. Two disks, one 320 mm at the front, one 282 mm at the rear.
Numerous innovations for 2001. The handlebars now have a 30 mm diameter with new handgrips and electric controls to improve riding comfort.
For the same reason, the gearbox has also been revised, with a reduction in travel and engagement loads. Idle is easier to locate and the lever rubbers are new and more efficient. Travelling is more comfortable, with modified calibration of the rear shock absorber (also equipped with new springs) and a new better padded and more comfortable saddle.
The frame and rear swingarm have been modified to allow a wider cross-section tyre to be fitted. The side stand has been redesigned to make it more ergonomic and easier to position, with a new elegant joint cover. The moulding of the rear shock absorber attachment represents a concession to appearance.
Because the California is spartan - but not too much.
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