ULTIMATE RAPTOR PROJECT
When it comes to exotic quads, this
one here would be at the top of the
list. It was put together by Charlie
Moliwari in Southern California. He
started with a Yamaha Raptor 700,
but only kept the center aluminum
section of the frame. He scrapped the
front and rear steel subframes and
had them remade out of titanium.
The A-arms and swingarm were
remade out of titanium as well.
The Raptor’s engine wasn’t used,
either. Instead, Charlie installed the
powerplant from a 2008 Yamaha
R1 street bike. These 1000cc, four-cylinder motors produce around
180 horsepower (measured at the
crank). To increase that number, a
PROTOTYPE ATVs
This is an early sketch of Arctic Cat’s new XR line of
4WD quads. We expect to see a few more new utility and
sport ATVs come out in 2015, and we will have the news
and tests here first.
occasional moments when that’s not
enough, Charlie also has a nitrous
bottle feeding into the injectors. His
quad isn’t just a straight-line dragster, though. As you can see, it’s set
up with good suspension and is able
to aggressively carve the dunes
alongside normal Raptors.
READER’S HONDA TRX250R
We never get tired of admiring a 250R, and this month
we’re taking a look at a 1988 model owned by Reece
Hurley in Iowa. He has it properly set up with PEP
shocks, Laeger swingarm, A-arms and steering stem,
Flexx handlebars, RPM axle and carrier, 2001 CR250
ignition, 38mm Airstriker carb, Galfer rotors, full-bore
plastic, Maxxis Razr tires and Douglas Ultimate wheels.
We’re glad to see you guys keeping classic, high-performance two-stroke machines like this in good-running
order. Thanks.