1967 Bridgestone Hurricane 175 Street - 4-Page Vintage Motorcycle Test Article

Description

1967 Bridgestone Hurricane 175 Street Scrambler - 4-Page Vintage Motorcycle Test Article
Original, vintage magazine article.
Page Size: Approx. 8" x 11" (21 cm x 28 cm) each page
Condition: Good
The concept, “street scrambler,” may seem curious to
some of our readers, who will conjure up the image
of a rider in chinos and suede boots jumping curbstones
in downtown Urbsville. Curious it is not, judging by the
response of the buying public, who may show the greatest
apathy for the most revolutionary of new models in street
trim, only to snap up copies of essentially the same thing
as soon as they appear with the veneer (if not all the
characteristics) of a scrambler. One may wonder at the
fascination such a machine holds for the buyer. Maybe it
has something to do with the appearance itself; anything
that looks like it “goes” in the dirt has a certain competi-
tive allure to it. Indeed, a street scrambler may be a
Godsend to the mostly-street rider who has crunched the
pipes on a more conventional model after he discovered
the joy of hooking slides in a nearby back lot.
And so we come to the Bridgestone I75cc quasi-
scrambler, which carries the model name, Hurricane. It
is essentially a Bridgestone 175 Dual-Twin, and owners
of this street model could order most of the changes neces-
sary to come up with the Hurricane (or better it, if they
were inclined to spend the money). These changes are,
basically, upswept exhaust system, installation of fatter
tires, crosspiece handlebars, a similar seat with a suede
finish, and a '/u-turn throttle. Engine tuning, suspension,
frame, lighting, tank, brakes, fenders, rolling gear and
instrumentation remain the same as on the street bike.
The lack of “changes” should by no means be con-
strued to imply that the bike is ill-suited for other than
street riding. For example, the frame is a tough affair,
offering rigidity and extra bracing uncommon to a road
bike of 175cc displacement. As it is heavy for strictly
street usage, one may suspect that Bridgestone had a spot
of trailing in mind when they built the frame for the road
bike. The top tube, for instance, is reinforced by a secon-
dary pair of top tubes coming from the subframe, which
are bolted to a gusset below the steering head. The rear
downtubes are liberally linked with crossbracing. There
is certainly no lack of strength-producing triangulation of
frame members.
The Bridgestone’s rotary disc valve engine, also, is
more appropriate to dirt play than the conventional piston
port two-stroke engine, as the rotary version may be tuned
to produce a wider power band. This characteristic shows
up in the smooth-running Hurricane, which has adequate
punch high in the rev range, while still being able to
“tractor” (relatively speaking, to be sure), a fair accom-
plishment for a two-cylinder machine of this displacement.
Our only complaint is that the engine feels like it could
be turned up another 1,000 rpm, without losing too much...
13508-AL-6701-08 RL- nav06