suzuki Archives

2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 MotoGP replica unveiled!

Suzuki has announced the 2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 MotoGP replica bikes together with the Suzuki GSX-R1000R.

The launch was in conjunction with the launch of the new livery for their 2018 Suzuki GSX-RR MotoGP machines in Sepang.

The UK market will be able to get them at £13,599 (around RM74,281) and £16,099 (around RM87,937).

In conjunction with the recent unveiling of Suzuki’s latest MotoGP GSX-RR machine with new livery just a couple of days ago, the Japanese manufacturer also announced that their 2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R will be available in the MotoGP replica colours. (more…)

HJC Helmets sponsors MotoGP rider Andrea Iannone!

HJC Helmets has announced that they will be sponsoring Andrea Iannone for the 2018 and 2019 MotoGP seasons.

The 29 year old Italian from the Suzuki ECSTAR team will be using a brand new professional racing helmet based on their highly-regarded HJC RPHA 11.

Catch Iannone and his brand new HJC helmet this Sunday during the MotoGP 2018 Sepang winter test.

HJC Helmets is proud to introduce their latest sponsored rider, Andrea Iannone from the Suzuki ECSTAR of MotoGP. The number 1 brand helmet in North America has signed the 28 year old Italian rider for the 2018 and 2019 MotoGP seasons. (more…)

MotoGP: Michael Dunlop will test Suzuki factory bike for Sepang winter test

15-time Isle of Man TT winner Michael Dunlop will be joining the MotoGP Sepang winter test this Sunday.

Dunlop together with Toni Elias, Josh Waters and Sylvain Guintoli will throw down some laps on the Suzuki GSX-RR MotoGP machine.

Suzuki is giving the opportunity to Dunlop as thanks for winning the 2017 Isle of Man Senior TT race on board the latest Suzuki GSX-R1000R.

Malaysians are well aware of the world’s most dangerous motorcycle road race of all time that is the Isle of Man TT. While we are familiar with some of the high profile riders like John McGuinness and Guy Martin, getting any exposure from the race series or its riders is pretty difficult. (more…)

Ten Most Unusual Motorcycles (Part 4)

Here in Part 4 of the Ten Most Unusual Motorcycles, we look at a Suzuki which has gone on to a cult status.: The GSX1100 and GSX750 Katana.

Please click here for Part 1 (Suzuki RE5), here for Part 2 (Honda CBX1000), and here for Part 3 (Yamaha GTS1000).

The name “Katana” alludes to the Japanese Samurai sword, hence the symbol. The name and logo went on to grace many other Suzukis thereafter. Here in Malaysia, remember Suzuki Best and RG owners would apply the stickers to their bikes? That was part of the Katana’s legacy.

The Suzuki Katana was designed by Hans Muth and his company, Target Design. Muth was the ex-design chief at BMW and was tasked with overhauling the Japanese manufacturer’s image.

Suzuki chose one of Muth’s designs and the first production Suzuki GSX1100S Katana was made public in 1980. While they didn’t follow the concept’s design to the letter, many important design cues were adopted.

The design was avant-garde from the cookie cutter bikes of the era. Most notable feature was how the rear part of the fuel tank and front portion of the seat blended together. Also, the passenger’s seat was slightly raised and coloured differently, lending to a solo-seater look. Yes, it was the Suzuki Katana that started it.

The 1075cc, air-cooled, DOHC, inline-Four produced 109.5 bhp and Suzuki claimed the Katana as being the fastest production motorcycle. It ran the ¼-mile (400m) in 11.9 seconds at 191.5 km/h.

Following in the 1100’s tyre tracks, Suzuki launched the GSX750S Katana in 1981 and it had no windscreen. The model with the windscreen was the 750SS. The 747cc, air-cooled, DOHC, inline-Four produced 68 bhp.

1981 also saw the superbike racing homologated 1000S, since superbike racing capped the engine capacity at 1000cc. it had Mikuni smooth-bore carburettors among other racing accoutrements. This was the rarest Katana and collectors will pay a ransom for one!

1982 saw the Katana’s futuristic looks being modified to feature a round headlamp and tail unit from the previous year’s GSX1100E for the American market. Buyers there were obviously slow in adapting to change.

Not many changes were afoot for the Katanas in 1983, but it was 1984 when the 750 was forever known as the legend.

For that year, the GSX750SE Katana was a completely new model. The 16-valve, oil-cooled, inline-Four was taken from the GSX750R/ES/EF and made 90 bhp. It was also given the Positive Damping Forks up front and Suzuki Full Floater rear suspension which did away with the dual shocks. The frame, parts of the wheels and engine were painted in gold.

The most well-known feature was of course the pop-up headlight.

The Suzuki GSX750S continued into its last year of production in 1985 for the worldwide market and 1986 for the domestic market, making these models somewhat rare. Many collectors would love to have one in their collection.

It was sadly the same on the GSX1100S Katana front as it faded in obscurity as Suzuki had launched the GSX-R750F sportbike in 1985. Affectionately known as the “Slabside” or “Slabby,” the first Gixxer heralded the new age of race replica sportbikes and Suzuki went all out to capitalize on it.

Perhaps realizing their mistake, Suzuki in America tried to revive the Katana name in 1988, by slapping the name and symbol on a host of sport-touring and touring models, but it was not to be the same.

It’s a great shame to lose the Katana as it is still beautiful even after 27 years. It was truly unusual for its time and it still is somewhat today (that’s why there are many customized Katanas around today).

Please click here for Part 1 (Suzuki RE5), here for Part 2 (Honda CBX1000), and here for Part 3 (Yamaha GTS1000).

Ten Most Unusual Production Bikes (Part 1)

Among the cookie-cutter bikes, there are a few that were meant to break the mold.
These unusual designs sometimes worked, while some failed.
Here’s the first instalment of this series.

Is it surprising that a non-biker says, “That’s a what? And that one? All motorcycles look the same to me.” In this age where bike designs are governed by the wind tunnel or heritage, his observation is correct. So, please don’t get upset if he didn’t recognize your XZRT3000SR.

Motorcycles have evolved over the years and we are at an age where designers are churning out designs that have either proven to work or stood the sales floor test.

That meant they must’ve experimented with other concepts at some point, right? Correct. The successful ones evolved into the bikes today but whose concepts were too outlandish died unceremonious deaths.

Here’s Part 1 of the Ten Most Unusual Production Bikes.

1974 SUZUKI RE5

The rotary engine enjoys a cult status, especially in the automotive segment, powering the equally cult Mazda RX-7 family.

However, how many motorcycles have actually utilised that kind of powerplant? It’s rumoured that all the four Japanese manufacturers have rotary engine prototypes at some point, however it was Suzuki – typical in pushing the boundaries of motorcycle engineering – who had the jujubes to put it into production, in the form of the RE5, sold from 1974.

The rotary engine, also known as the Wenkel, offers a number of advantages when compared to the ever-popular piston engine. Rotary engines are more compact and lighter as they have fewer parts, and produce higher specific power outputs from smaller displacements.

via GIPHY

So, that begs the quiestion: Why aren’t there more motorcycles powered by rotary engines?

While simple in concept, rotary engines require numerous complex subsystems to perform, and these add up to a weight penalty that outweighs its gains.

For example, although the RE5’s rotary engine consists of only a single rotor, exhaust temperatures could reach 930^o Celcius – more than hot enough to melt aluminium, copper and zinc. Because of this, Suzuki engineers had to design a crazily complex double-skinned exhaust system. Besides that, the engine had to be lubricated from three oil reservoirs each with its own pump. The throttle controlled both primary carburetor butterfly and inlet manifold of the port valve, besides governing oil supply into the combustion chamber. A total of five cables were connected via the throttle grip.

The RE5’s 497cc engine produced 62 bhp and 74.4 Nm of torque, achieving the high specific power output objective of the rotary engine. However, the motorcycle weighed 260 kg, wet. On the other hand, the Honda CBX1000 “Super 6” with an inline-Six cylinder engine produced 105 bhp while weighing only 12 kg heavier.

Maybe its styling could save it? Err… but what about those “tin cans?”

Suzuki roped in the famed automotive designer, Giorgetto Giugiaro (yes, he whose company designed Alfa Romeos, Bugattis, Maseratis among many others), to style the RE5. He designed the “tin can” instrument cluster and taillight to reflect upon the “rotary” theme.

Not surprisingly, the RE5 bombed on the sales floor. Cycle World called it “expensive, over-complicated, underpowered and hideous,” and was subsequently declared as one of their “Ten Worst Motorcycles.” Ouch.

The RE5 was canned (pun intended) in 1976.

New colours for 2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R

Suzuki has announced that their 2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R will be available in new colours for next year.

The all-new white colour scheme with blue stripes is available for both models.

Those who prefer the GSX-R1000R has another colour option which comes in a sinister black colour scheme with grey stripes.

While Suzuki’s top of the line premier superbike remains virtually unchanged for 2018, they have announced that both the 2018 Suzuki GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R will be available in brand new colour schemes for the upcoming year. (more…)

2018 Suzuki GSX-S1000FZ Phantom edition announced

Suzuki has announced their updated 2018 Suzuki GSX-S1000FZ Phantom for next year.

The new addition to the GSX-S Phantom family comes with all-matte black livery with red highlights plus a blacked-out exhaust.

Suzuki also introduced the 2018 Suzuki GSX-S1000 which now comes in white and the middleweight 2018 GSX-S750 in red and black.

Suzuki has announced their latest addition into the Phantom family which comes in the form of the 2018 Suzuki GSX-S1000FZ Phantom. The GSX-S1000FZ joins the 2017 Suzuki GSX-S1000 Phantom and Suzuki GSX-S750 Phantom which are already available in several markets worldwide. (more…)

2018 Suzuki SV650X – One sexy middleweight cafe racer

During the recent EICMA 2017 in Milan, Suzuki launched their one and only new bike for next year which is the 2018 Suzuki SV650X cafe racer.

Based on the popular SV650 platform, Suzuki’s new cafe racer receives a brand new facade with one killer paint job.

The 2018 SV650X comes with a 645cc, liquid-cooled, DOHC, V-twin engine which produces 75hp and 64Nm of maximum torque.

With so many awesome bikes being launched and highlighted at the great EICMA 2017 just last week, it was way too easy for anyone who attended to actually absorb all the motorcycle-goodness in just a short period of time. Suzuki has hopped into the modern retro bandwagon with the launch of their latest 2018 Suzuki SV650X Cafe Racer. (more…)

Suzuki suspends motorcross activities in FIM World MXGP and Japan for 2018

Suzuki Motor Corporation announced that they will be suspending their motorcross activities throughout Japan and the FIM World MXGP Championship starting next year.

In the announcement, Suzuki stated that they will be focusing more on its motorcycles operations and core business functions.

Suzuki also stated they will continue to produce their motorcross bikes like the RM-Z250 and 450 series.

Suzuki Motors Corporation has just announced that they will be suspending all of their motorcross efforts in Japan as well as in the FIM World MXGP Championship beginning of 2018. The sudden announcement was made on its official Suzuki Racing website at www.suzuki-racing.com just moments ago. (more…)

Best practical sports bikes to buy!

When talking about the best practical sports bikes to buy now, there are a few options available with different specs and price tags.

The latest addition to this growing category is the 2017 Ducati Supersport S with features and performance to match.

To those who feel that it carries a huge price tag, here are some other prime examples when it comes to a bike that has both performance and touring capabilities.

In this day and age, motorcycle enthusiasts are constantly looking for the best motorcycle that is able to tackle a number of riding and weather conditions. The constant search for the ultimate balance between sports performance and comfort touring rideability is inevitable and manufacturers are beginning to take notice. (more…)

Will we finally see a turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa in 2019?

Rumours coupled with trusted sources have confirmed a turbocharged Suzuki Hayabusa coming in 2019.

Suzuki will be celebrating the Hayabusa’s 20^th anniversary in 2019 but since then its debut in 1999, it has yet to gone through any major changes.

Expect to see more than one turbocharged Suzuki bike in 2019 with the possibility of Suzuki revamping its entire GSX-R line up.

According a recent article published by Asphalt and Rubber, it was stated that the great folks from Suzuki has major plans to develop a turbocharged Suzuki GSX1300R Hayabusa for 2019. (more…)

2017 Suzuki Burgman 400 ABS scooter launched – from RM45,000

Suzuki Assemblers Malaysia (SAM) has officially introduced the 2017 Suzuki Burgman 400 ABS scooter during last weekend’s test ride session at the Sepang International Kart Circuit.

The ultimate premium maxi scooter option from Suzuki is powered by a 399cc DOHC, fuel-injected, Euro4-compliant engine that churns out 31hp.

SAM has priced their latest Suzuki Burgman 400 at RM45,000 (basic price excluding GST).

Suzuki Assemblers Malaysia Sdn. Bhd. has launched the the new BURGMAN 400 ABS maxi scooter, over the weekend at their inaugural New Bikes Test Ride event, held at the Sepang International Go-Kart Circuit. (more…)

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