Kawasaki Z 305CSR

305 Public Transportation: Faster than a free token.

□ Here's about the longest deal on short-hop transportation you're likely to find. The Kawasaki 305 CSR B1 costs as much as a three-year supply of subway tokens, doesn't make nearly as much noise as an underground railroad, comes with pinstripes rather than graffiti, and always runs on your schedule. The 305 is as simple as a turnstile to operate and about as reliable.

As a city street and suburban avenue transpo-module, the Kawasaki has the right scale. Light and nimble, the 305 will please even people whose definition of threatening begins at 350 pounds. Part of the bike's non-intimidating nature results from its low saddle height, a dab over 29 inches. At stoplights shorter riders can stick their legs out like spaceship landing struts and anchor both feet to the pavement.

Riders exposed to the thrills and yawns of 39cc mopedery will discover on the 305 the benefits of wheel movement dignified by the term "suspension," the comforts of a human-sized seat padded with something other than vinyl over plastic, and the basic utility of power enough that the rider can actually identify the stuff.

There's power here for safety. In

heavy traffic on surface streets, the Kawasaki can accelerate with authority, letting the rider seek and use openings, and move decisively from one lane to the next—a far better approach than skittering along in the rain-gutter, painfully threading your moped between a line of heavy trucks on the left and parked cars and sewer grates on the right. Since the Kawasaki has ample displacement and punch, the rider can use expressways and freeways with impunity, and carry a passenger without needing a calendar to calculate estimated time of arrival. The six-speed transmission gives the rider a gear ratio for any load, grade or condition, other than straight up or down.

The 305 CSR has belt drive. Because there's no chain to lube, chain oil won't drip on the driveway or garage floor, igniting a family feud. In 1982, a mere $1599 would put a guy onboard the KZ305B1; Kawasaki has now ripped the price down to $1199. See there, four hundred dollars disappears faster than you can say "a year's worth of bus tokens."