Bikes that make you go HMMM!
A couple of weeks after taking a spin on the very cool QJMOTOR SRV 600 V4, the guys from KMSA asked if we’d like to borrow something that’s, perhaps a bit more sporty. Bodies were dispatched in short order and a few hours later an inline four cylinder QJMOTOR SRK 450 RR came howling down the street.
Howl? Well yes. We are pretty certain that QJ engineers spent a lot of time making sure that this one sounds just as good as it looks. And it looks like a million bucks.
It’s all about the induction noise you see, that howl as you open the throttle wide…
But we are getting ahead of ourselves. Let’s have a closer look at what this bike is all about.
If you are old enough to remember the golden era of bikes like the NC30, NC35, ZXR400, GSX-R400 and FZR400 – little screamers that were many-a-riders entry into the wonderful world that is superbikes, you’ll remember how much fun those bikes were.
We rode them on the streets and we raced them on the weekends – the 400cc class was fast, cool and enormous! Mini replicas of the bikes that the manne out there were riding.
It’s a long story, but those bikes were eventually phased out in the SA market, mostly due to changes in the law, the prices climbed and for many, it became unaffordable to enter the superbike market.
But now, maybe those bikes have been replaced with this one. Like we said earlier it sounds awesome, looks like a million bucks and costs less than a dirtbike.
Read that again. A four cylinder four-stroke with all the mod cons, Marzocchi suspension, Brembo brakes, TFT display… for less than a single cylinder dirtbike.
“Not possible!” you say and we’d have to agree, but somehow, somewhere, the stars have aligned and you can get a pokey little sportsbike for a relatively small sum of your hard earned cash…
Lets face it, sports bikes are all about having fun. ADV bikes and commuters are about comfort, practicality and all of that – but a sports bike is a finger to the world, a crotch rocket designed to make you grin every time you open the throttle.
And grin is what you do on the little QJ. It’s a lot of fun.
Climbing aboard this beautifully finished machine, you are greeted by an unashamed sporty riding position. High pegs, lean over, head up to peer over the TFT screen.
Tickle the starter and the little inline four burbles to life, snick her into gear and you are off.
Chaps – this bike loves to rev, you can watch our vid review here. Equipped with a high-revving 421cc inline-four engine producing around 77 horsepower, this pocket-rocket needs to be pushed well into the high RPM range to unlock the fun.
Its all about induction noise as the little QJ works its way up to somewhere between the 7 and 8000 RPM mark and that’s where things start to happen. Considering it is only 421cc (we know, don’t ask us…), she actually hauls along really nicely. She loves to rev. She loves you to play with the six speed gearbox – no quickshifter by the way but it’s all smooth and good as she howls along to top speeds close to the 200KPH mark.
The Marzocchi suspension is stiff which adds to the overall sportiness. Incidentally, the QJMotor has fully adjustable forks and rebound and preload adjustability on its Marzocchi suspension. Impressive for a bike at this price point. Commit, open wide and just have a good time. Brembo brakes on radial calipers keep the stopping duties under control and they give you some rider aids in the form of ABS and traction control.
So – she loves to rev, but can you ride the bike in normal SA traffic?
Well – yes. After our week or so with the bike, we had to get it back to the importers offices and that required a commute along the freeways and back roads to the KMSA offices. It was not as big a chore as we expected it to be, while she makes power in the upper rev range, you can still ride her like a normal human being for your daily commute.
Best of all, you can look the part.
But – she’s a lot more fun to open wide and listen to the scream…
