P I Z T C E J O R P ADRENALIN’S POLINI
EVOLUTION 3 PIAGGIO
DAY WORDS: CHRIS HALLI N SO BIN RO L PHOTOS: PAU
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Pedstop Boys: Chris and Sam
fter a few years selling performance parts from big names like Polini and Malossi, we were over the moon to hear that our Italian partners Polini were making their Evolution 2 parts available as a complete unit, tuned and ready for the track. Seeing as we haven’t yet found the time to dip our toes in the scooter racing scene we thought Polini’s engine would make for an interesting road scooter (actually this is a poor excuse and frankly bollocks). If truth be told we didn’t really think about what we were going to do with the engine. It was a typical boys toys scenario, we wanted to play with something that Polini’s technicians had put together, surely this engine would be something special?
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PROJECT ZIP The perfect mate for Polini’s engine would have to be our lovely Zip RS 50 which had been kindly donated to us by Sykes Bikes, actually it was donated only after we parted with our swear box takings off the counter. Can we just say a big thanks to all the bad mouthed Barnsley folk for funding our Zip project.
Better than the cinema
After a few weeks of finger tapping and a big change in direction for the Polini Evolution line of products we received our engine, No 23 (it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to work out each one has a number). Changes to the engine were the cylinder and exhaust. The Evolution 2 cylinder had now been replaced with the Evolution 3 and the exhaust was on its latest mark, No 10. It would have been great to test the Evolution 2 set-up before the upgrades but we can go back to that after we’ve found out how this set-up performs on the dyno. Mr. Muscle: Lifting engines builds big forearms
So how much will Polini’s engine set you back? Well the price varies due to the Euro at the moment but approximately £2991 would be the RRP. Knock our usual 20% discount off and the cost is significantly cheaper ehhhh? If any of you guys out there are considering one of these we would be happy to help, expect around three weeks for Polini’s technicians to build the engine. Swapping our Piaggio engine for one that had already been pre-tuned and tested was easy and we agree maybe even a bit lazy, but we don’t care. We had our petrol and even a helmet, we were ready. And while we were at it, we thought we’d change the front brake disc and fit some fancy Giberlaniniiiiyagranni suspension before we fire it up! Two hours later and approaching 11pm, we decided it might be better to wait until morning to have the first blast.
PIAGGIO ZIP RS 50
The Piaggio Zip RS 50 is a limited edition machine, only 250 of them exist in the UK. Each one comes with retro sports styling and a 50cc watercooled engine as standard. Of course, we don’t do standard...
So how good was it on the road? Is it fast? It’s fuggin’ quick! Comparing it to something we’re accustomed to like a tuned Aerox or even a 172 Runner it feels very handy and thanks to the new suspension and brakes it feels very solid and it actually stops which is always useful.
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SUSPENSION Polini shocks (front and rear) by FG Gubellini Suspension not only look the biz, they offer a smoother ride and improved control.
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BRAKES Floating wavey brake discs improve the stopping power, which is always a bonus in our fast paced world. This one comes from Polini and was made in collaboration with Braking.
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TYRES Sticky rubber. In true sports fashion, we’ve opted for a pair of 10 inch PMT racing slicks from Polini.
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Shiny, the engine obviously
“A BIG THANKS TO ALL THE BAD MOUTHED BARNSLEY FOLK FOR FUNDING OUR ZIP PROJECT”
“IS It FASItN?’ IT’S FUGG QUICK!”
TESTING, TESTING... We’re hoping this little 70cc will be good for 90mph+ in its current state. So to follow we’ll be putting our Piaggio Zip through its paces with some more road testing, a dyno run and all being well a few quarter mile runs on the drag strip. And who knows we might even get some track time too. Feel free to join us in the next instalment of Project Zip. n
TECH SPEC Engine No 23 was tuned by Polini technicians and fitted with the following parts: ENGINE: Polini Evolution 3 70cc cylinder kit Polini Evolution crankshaft Polini Evolution 10 exhaust Polini internal rotor ignition 19mm Dell’Orto carburettor Polini Evolution air filter Intake manifold Reed valve TRANSMISSION: Polini 9 roller Super Speed variator Polini Evolution 3 two shoe clutch Polini Speed clutch bell Pulley kit Clutch springs kit Kevlar drive belt Primary gear Secondary gear
POLINI MOTORE No. 23
www.adrenalin-pedstop.com
PROJECT ZIP