CPI GTR 50 - Scootabike?

"If the most famous Italian sports car producer had developed a scooter, it might well have been like the GTR from CPI." Hans-Jürgen Leeb MD, CPI

 

The future is bright, the future is here, but it isn’t orange – no, the colour, for now at least is red! Scootering has potentially changed forever with the launch of the new CPI GTR 50. T&G were invited to not only sample the last of the pre production models but to also have some considerable input into the final set up and specification that will be used for the model when it hits the streets around the end of September. The GTR is like virtually no other machine currently around, but the feeling it won’t be for long is very strong. The GTR successfully morphs the accepted visual signals from both genres and comfortably bridges that gap between the sports bike and twist ‘n go scoot. Looking for the entire world like a bare stripped down Ducati Superbike, the automatic 50cc machine, even at a standstill is a real show stopper. Designed, developed and tested entirely in Austria, it is only the final process of manufacturing that is carried out in the Far East. Even then the work is not farmed out to a contractor or individual factory, as the CPI company owns its own fully equipped and modern production unit in Taiwan and the same incredibly high standards set in Austria are mirrored on the other side of the world.

Company principle and keen rider, Hans-Jürgen Leeb and his team not only do their great work at the Austrian factory and offices situated in the sleepy alpine town of Wolfsberg, but also use the superb research and evaluation facilities at Graz university as they create the stunning GTR along with similar machines yet to see the light of day. This is so much more than just another far eastern scoot and owes far more to its Europeans roots than is initially visible. The build quality is top-notch stuff, as is the work gone into development and assessment. At every stage the GTR has been scrutinised closely and those all-important little touches attended to long before the production version hits our showrooms.

The spec of the machine is impressive, the dash has the potential to deliver lap times, average speed and as well as the more conventional speed read out and mileage while the chassis and components are capable of performing way beyond that of a 50cc machine. Even the headlights, with their twin 55w menacing eyes, exceed most small machines capabilities.

Riding The Hybrid

Lovely little touches stolen from the bike world are all over the GTR, from the Honda Fireblade-like dash to the sporting end can and fuel cap. The fairing and overall design owes little to the world of twisting and going - none the less, this is a pure T&G machine with the usual variable belt final drive and simple ease of driving.

In use the GTR feels like any small bike, very capable in twisty bits and eager to please, I reckon if Valentino Rossi was 16 he’d have one! Using the very best of everything, the soft compound Heidenau tyres act just like the real thing and with very little weight to carry grip tenaciously, even in the tricky conditions found half way up an Austrian mountain.

 

The ride is initially confusing to the brain with the senses shouting aloud that this is a bike like any other and several times I reach for the rear brake lever to clutch it and change gear. Even braking caught me out most times, with my right foot attempting to press a non existent lever. Normally, as we have to do several times most weeks, it is easy to jump off the latest Superbike "hot ship" straight onto a scoot without trouble, but this feels like a bike - it even looks like a bike, so the initial confusion is understandable. The chassis came into its own during the photo shoot as we hurtled the little machine down the side of a tortuous and twisty mountain route several times. The GTR never put a foot wrong and accurately tracked the narrow road superbly. The auto engine apart, the GTR handles and feels exactly like a proper bike.

The forks handle the front end impeccably, while the readjusted rear gives superb feedback enabling some ridiculous corner speeds. Grabbing a tight hold of the front brake lever (which in turn gets the two pistons biting hard into the 250mm discs surface) provides awesome braking with tremendous initial bite and a good strong consistent stopping sensation all the way down to a huge stoppie. The rear is also very sharp with the ability to lock up the wheel at any speed and must be treated with great respect when the bike is anything like away from the vertical.

Having spent over a year now in development, it was with some surprise that, upon our initial ride, we were asked for our opinion on several areas of the machine. By the very next day, every issue that we brought to the development teams attention had been attended to and altered to Tag’s liking and the suggestions implemented into the final production version. The twin shock rear suspension, for instance, was too hard and couldn’t keep the rear end in proper control when cornering hard. Some alternative ideas were banded around and altered to suit, making the already agile machine even more so.

All we need now is for the GTR to spawn a whole new breed of larger capacity bike-like autos. This can only be good for the person that wants to buy into the more mainstream biking culture, but without the hassle of learning about gears and clutches.

In the very near future a factory produced 70cc tuning kit and a whole host of GTR accessories are on their way especially for the UK customer.

CPI Hussar 50

The recent regrouping of importers for the CPI range has prompted a new lease of life for the superb range of European designed and far Eastern manufactured scoots. The range has been re-vamped and a whole host of interesting and potentially groundbreaking machines are in the pipeline. Just like many other machines, The Hussar is an unlikely named scoot but, moniker apart, being the current CPI brand leader it performs admirably. The equally diversely named Oliver sits along side the Hussar and a more likelier christened Popcorn as the current 50s in the CPI range. Of course all this is set to change shortly with the upcoming and much awaited introduction of the trellis framed and big wheel GTR 50.

Exemplary Design

The design and influence is quite obviously European even if the bike as a whole is of Taiwanese manufacture, the paint finish, general colour ways and design are exemplary, even at a stand still the bike exudes stylish lines and a top quality build level. The single wrap around headlight aperture finishes off the droop snout front end completely and the cast alloy painted and polished wheels look really trick. CPI have wisely steered away from the usual low slung front indicators mounted on the body paneling opting instead to hang them high up under the handlebar console where they catch other driver`s attentions so much easier and quickly.

 

The console is also well thought out with the fuel gauge matching the speedo in circumference and consequently attention with the indicator, main beam and oil warning lights sitting clearly viewed within the formers dial. A handy digital clock sits below these two for those out there that are concerned over time although sometimes on a fifty when traveling long distances a calendar may well prove more useful!! On the move the ride is reassuringly solid, more like a mega scoot than a 50 and this gives the confidence to hold ones own in the traffic of a busy town centre. The new importers are based in Barnsley, South Yorkshire, and leaving their spankingly modern premises during the lunch time rush was more akin to traveling in central London, with serious amounts of driving aggression being evident from those unlucky enough to be sat in a metal box going nowhere fast, making sitting on a capably solid machine a pleasure if not a necessity.

The Hussar feels complete and well balanced around town and this feeling doesn’t diminish when the roads start to open out. With the air-cooled engine liberated a wee bit especially for this test, top speed on the flat is very near the half ton mark, while any incline soon has the needle bending off its stop, making keeping up with the traffic flow, both in and out of town, a whole load easier and safer than when fully strangled in compliance with the learner laws. The tiny engine pulls very strongly off the line and will easily leap away from lights and junctions with a bit of a spring in its step.

Stainless Steel Exhaust

The extra large stainless steel exhaust creates an image more reminiscent of a super bike than that of a scoot but within this is the catalytic converter required to ensure the small capacity two-stroke can exceed not only the current but also any future European emission regulations. The current talk and thinking may well be aimed at the death of the two-stroke but the people at CPI still reckon there is a bit of life in the old dog yet and are planning a long and rosy future for the design. The European based CPI design people are currently working on technical solutions that reach and indeed exceed the Euro 3 emission limits, which come into force all over Europe in 2006 and will mean the scrap heap for any design that doesn’t meet these requirements fully.

The catalytic process causes immense heat within the can area which would decimate a standard steel exhaust into a pile of rust in no time hence the stainless systems use, stainless being so much more resistant to high heat and corrosion than more conventional metals. This doesn’t seem to effect engine performance too much although the noise created is almost silent to passers by, as will be the dealers spares counter, CPI users shouldn’t need a replacement exhaust in anything like the period that other scoot owners do.

Time didn’t allow any close inspection of the fuel consumption figures actually achieved by the Hussar but we did cover around forty miles during the test and the gauge moved around a quarter of its arc. The claimed fuel consumption figures by the factory are equally impressive with 2.2ltr per 100kms being stated as achievable, that is roughly 120 miles to the gallon, albeit around town, in old money! With a tank 5 litres in capacity ( if you can remember Thunderbirds that’s just over a gallon) a full tank is going to get you quite some distance before the next fill up.

The single piston floating front brake isn’t over powerful, just enough for safe braking but nothing too excessive, this could be down to pad material or just the fact that the bike was brand new and needed bedding in some what, as the caliper is similar to more effective designs, however the Hussar does stop well especially with some coordinated rear brake added in to the equation as well. The steadiness and sturdiness of the chassis came into its own making manoeuvring close to the camera car a doddle, believe me on some small scoots it certainly isn’t with flighty steering and road holding making holding a safe line very difficult in close proximity to other vehicles. The Hussar feels slightly front end biased making the steering very positive and surefooted, with out weighing each end its difficult to accurately asses the balance factor say for sure but that’s how it feels when compared to similar designs.

Under the seat is the ubiquitous helmet storage area which, in keeping with most machines on the market today, could not store a conventional full face helmet with the seat down, so there will be the need to carry the lid once parked or risk leaving it attached to outside of the scoot for drunks, and similar hang about’s, to unload that dodgy kebab or even relieve themselves in!! (Note: "After reading this article, I tried this out with out new Oliver City 50's and was pleased to find that a full face helmet placed upside down with the face shield pointed towards the front of the scooter can indeed stow nicely under the seat." -Jim Smith, Ptown Scooters)

The helmet storage problem aside and the fitment of accessories and ancillary equipment is very good and certainly up to the higher levels of more expensive machines making the Hussars place in the budget group of our “What Scooter” guide a great value one.

With an on the road price of £1599 and some great deals with insurance being offered, combined with some superb fuel consumption and overall low running costs and the Hussar starts to look like top value.

CPI Hussar 125

Hot on the trail of the latest offering comes the new Hussar 125.

Powered by a highly efficient and environmentally friendly Honda-based 124cc engine, and almost exactly the same dimensions chassis-wise as the capable 50cc version, the new machine is a sprightly performer, particularly from a standstill up to around the 30mph mark. Quite how they have slotted a bigger engine into the frame so neatly is difficult to see, but the end result is very neat and tidy. The sturdy chassis can ably handle the extra gee gees, making this little scoot a belter around town and amongst traffic. The extra weight provided by the four-stroke engine adds considerably to the stability that so impressed us when we tested the 50cc Hussar two issues ago. Road holding is nothing short of superb, whether making its way around traffic or on the open roads. As the pictures show, we fell foul of the English summer and found ourselves riding around in the wet for the most part, but even so, the bike held its position at all times, the low down grunt making light work of treacherously wet corners before shooting off into the distance ready for the next one.

The engine, albeit very new and potentially tight, seemed to run out of steam quite early on in the rev range, giving a top speed around the 60 mark, not fast I hear you say, but the catalytic converter must surely be robbing a cart-load of power from the eighth of a litre engine and the narrowness of the exhaust down pipe cannot be helping here either. This can only improve with age as the bike we rode had a mere 19 miles on at the start of the session and could barely be called run in! The gearing is also ideally suited to scooting around town, so different weight rollers would no doubt give an alternative approach if required. The throttle is responsive and always ready to accelerate from the scene and other traffic, as and when required, indicating that the fuelling is spot on throughout the rev range.

Missing from the usual CPI spec is the big shiny stainless steel exhaust system (the one fitted to the 125 looking more like a mild steel item painted matt black). The noise that this makes is a subdued and inoffensive burble, making the Hussar no nuisance to passers-by and allowing the rider to enjoy the view completely aware of surrounding traffic and potential situations. The brakes and the front stopper that we found only just capable on the identically specified, but slightly lighter, 50, is far better on the 125, indicating that the pads on the smaller bike were either contaminated with something, or not fully bedded-in to the disc, so unworthy of major criticism. Add the rear drum into the equation and the 125 stops on the proverbial sixpence (any idea what decimalisation has done to braking distances? A 5p piece maybe), even in the wet and slippery conditions found on the day of the test.

Looking around the Austrian designed/Taiwanese-built scoot, the build quality is all too evident with accurate mouldings and flawless paint finish equalling that of any Japanese or Italian scoot. This is also reflected in the solidity felt when riding, making the Hussar feel very safe and competent at all times. The instrument panel contains the same information as the 50cc version, with the clear and easy to read dials providing the all important licence saving info on the left hand side and the fuel gauge giving the state of play on the right.

The difficult to read clock is bang in the middle and could do with a few degrees of tilt back towards the rider, to make it more visible. Within the fuel gauge sits the high beam warning and the two indicator lights (along with a loud bleeper that sounds with each flash of the bulbs), tell you when you have forgotten to turn them off. Under the seat is the ubiquitous helmet storage which once again will not take a modern full face lid, but will easily carry four portions of pie and chips, a kebab and maybe a Madras with basmati rice. So all is not lost, perhaps the big engine just below this area will help keep it all warm too on a longer trip!

Overall I’m impressed with the CPI Hussar. It is well put together and as supplied complies with all of the latest European emission regulations. With a bit of tinkering around, the engine could easily be made to output double the quoted figures and maybe much more, making this well built, fine handling and solid machine a real treat.

With a cleverly pitched price of £1799, the Hussar has little competition within the price range and capacity class – certainly when you have a look around at the cheaper machines spares back-up and build quality, when judged alongside the superb and professional Barnsley-based CPI set up. One would have to look a little higher in the money stakes to find the CPI’s real rivals with the Italian-made Honda Dylan being the closest in specification and quality.

CPI GTR 50 Review – taken from Twist & Go Magazine September 2004 issue www.twistngo.com.