All Duels – ER-6f Vs XJ6F: the Japanese-style convertible – GT (well almost) on the road …

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ER-6f Vs XJ6F: the Japanese-style convertible

All the Duels - ER-6f Vs XJ6F: the Japanese-style convertible - GT (well almost) on the road ...

Like a convertible sofa bed, the ER-6f and the XJ6 Diversion F attempt a large gap between different uses for a reasonable cost. An ambitious positioning for these two little routsters who want to be both playful and practical. Duel !

GT (well almost) on the road…

Crossing a congested and humid Paris turns out to be a true justice of the peace on the handling and balance of a two-wheeler. Because between avoidance and emergency braking, lightning reminders and repeated maneuvers to get out of the disorderly flow of motorists, walking the streets of the capital requires an intuitive and responsive machine !

At this little "game", our two mounts do wonders: light, low saddle (785 mm for the Yam ‘and 790 mm for the Kawa) and capable of turning around a one euro coin, the ER- 6f and the XJ6 Diversion F also benefit from efficient ABS (available as an option) which compensates for their common lack of bite when engaging the right lever..

Thanks to the intuitive ergonomics of their controls, pulling up the lines is just a formality while fire starts are facilitated by the smoothness and progressiveness of their clutch..

The two Japanese are almost equal in town, but the smoothness of the "four-legged" allows a smoother and more comfortable ride: of course, the windmill of the Div ‘is as inexpressive as possible under 4000 rpm, but it is able to resume in sixth at 30 km / h (!), where the vertical twin suffers and takes its turns with force hiccups and knocking in the same conditions.

In addition, the firmer suspensions of the Zak ‘have a hard time absorbing the cobblestones of small Parisian streets, while pernicious vibrations begin to be felt from 4,500 rpm. "Moto-schools" in agglomeration, the Yamaha does not however have only virtues: its rough selection and the appearance of tingling from 3500 to 5000 rev / min mar the picture, as its direction has become slightly understeer on this faired version.

Fortunately for the Green, the four-lane and its virolous secondary network prospects replace the plugs: reworked to smooth the engine response under 4,000 rpm, the bi is rediscovered and is the quickest to set off on the acceleration lane !

Well stalled in sixth at 130 km / h at 6,000 rpm, the Kawasaki traces its route by correctly protecting the bust, shoulders and lower part of the helmet from the air streams. However, if the long dress of the ER-6f manages to protect the upper body in a fairly satisfactory way, it is obviously far from the degree of protection of a real road and brings little benefit to the legs of the pilot..

As expected, the upper appendage of the Yamaha does not perform a miracle: like a thong, it only briefly protects the essential and shamelessly exposes the rest of the body! Or, in this precise case, a good part of the bust, shoulders and almost the whole of the head: except in the dab position on its tank almost as narrow as that of the ER-6f, difficult for the pilot to to escape the whims of Aeolus !

As for its rival, the addition of a lower shell is also of interest clearly more aesthetic than practical: at 130 km / h in sixth at 7,000 rpm – the "4-legged" grinds quickly! -, the lower fairing of the Div ‘only preserves more or less a half-ball joint…

To this insufficient protection on long motorway journeys is added a placement of the footrests which significantly strains the joints: a discomfort due to the Lilliputian format of the Yamaha, as well as to its roadster origins, and which we find in a way slightly less pronounced on the Kawasaki, more welcoming for large sizes.

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