* Redesigned cylinder head
including reinforced camshaft bridge, valve retainers, and updated cam chain
tensioner to help reduce engine noise.
* New clutch primary gear and springs for better engagement and clutch
action.
* Updated counterbalance bearings for increased reliability.
* Stronger cam chain guides
* Increased oil volume to the engine cam chain for reduced friction.
* New oil drain plug for easier oil changes.
* Offered in 350, 450, and 520 versions for 2012
Chassis:
* 45mm Marzocchi front fork
valved for Dual Sport use.
* Redesigned frame with extra gussets. This new frame has less flex and has
improved stability.
* Striking new red frame with white plastics for 2012
* Over 65 accessories to make your RS yours.
* Exclusive Beta BYOB (Build Your Own Beta) program
For all
intents and purposes, the 520 RS is a 520 RR - Beta's full-race
off-road bike - with mirrors, turn indicators and a
license-plate holder hanging off the rear fender. The RS is
powered by essentially the same 497cc, DOHC, four-valve,
four-stroke motor that powers the RR, which is carried in the
same molybdenum steel, split double-cradle frame as the RR.
The Sachs shock and Marzocchi forks are also identical to the
previous '11 RR's, but the fork has been revalved slightly to
provide a bit more cush in the initial part of the travel.
Our first ride on the new 520 RR simply left us wanting more -
not necessarily more power, or anything like that, but more time
to play with it. That's because the 520 RS is quite fun to ride.
Even though it's a rather large dirt bike, it just doesn't feel
that way when you're on it. At a claimed 249 pounds dry, but
adding roughly 12 more pounds worth of fuel from the 2.1-gallon
gas tank, the Beta is hauling around well over 260 pounds in
weight, probably closer to 270 in reality, but it feels much
lighter than that. For a rather big bike, the Beta is remarkably
agile and eager to respond to your every input. We spent a good
part of our first ride on the Beta on some pretty tight and
technical trails, and we were impressed by how well it
performed. It just didn't feel like a big ol' 520. A somewhat
narrow profile, firm seat and an extremely flat platform made
moving around on the bike and putting it where you want a
breeze.
A light pull and smooth-working clutch
helped out as well, as did the torquey motor. However, lower
gearing would've made things even better. The stock 14T front
and 45T rear gearing was more suited for the open roads.
We also noticed the Beta's spacious 12.6 inches of ground
clearance, which we came to appreciate in one extremely rocky
section.
The Beta's motor is impressive. It makes great power off the
bottom and pulls quite well until it's time to change gears. And
there is little vibration. But even with its tall gearing, the
motor can easily pull you from one turn to the next quite well
and do so without having to shift all that much, despite being a
six-speed. Still, lower gearing will no doubt give the Beta a
bit more snap when you first crack the throttle.
In the tight stuff, we certainly gave the Beta ample
opportunities to stall or flame out, and it resisted quite well.
But the dreaded pop-and-die would happen occasionally.
Unfortunately, our test bike didn't start easily. The electric
starter turned the motor over slowly and would usually take a
few tries on the starter button. It had all the signs of a weak
battery but it would never charge back up, no matter how long we
rode it. The folks at Beta later replaced the battery with a new
one and said all was good, so for now, we'll just chalk it up to
a bad battery. We'll see how it goes when we put more time on
the bike with the new battery.
Luckily, the Beta is fitted with a
back-up kickstarter, though the bike is not easy to kick over,
and you really won't want to rely on it.
The Beta is one of the few European big-bore off-road bikes that
is still carbureted, using a 39mm FCR Keihin, which actually
works quite well, instead of EFI. We noticed no real issues with
fueling, but from our experience with the 2012 350 RR, you will
if you there are any significant elevation changes planned on
your ride.
The Beta's suspension is quite good, in fact, it's outstanding
for a dual sport bike. You can push the bike quite hard and
hammer the whoops with remarkable confidence. You'll quickly
forget you're on board a street-legal machine when the trail
gets rough.
The Beta has many other nice features. We were quite impressed
with the Beta's Nissin brakes, comfortable handlebars, spacious
ergos, well-placed footpegs, and Metzeler 6-Days DOT knobby
tires, that performed quite well on a variety of surfaces.
Our first ride on the bike didn't end when the sun went down,
either. We put some time in the dark on the bike and managed to
get by just fine with the Beta's fairly brightly illuminant
headlight. We didn't get a chance to see how long a tank would
get us, but that will come soon. But the 2.1-gallon should
provide a decent range. We did get a 45-mile ride in and there
seemed to be plenty of fuel left, though it was hard to tell
with the solid, black plastic gas tank.
Any corrections or more information on these motorcycles will be kindly appreciated.