Bob
5th July 2011, 07:11
The GSR750 is an important bike for Suzuki. The middleweight naked sector (I refuse to use the term ‘factory streetfighter’) is grabbing more and more market share, plus it comes in to replace the much-maligned and unlamented GSR600. With the Bandit’s days surely numbered, it will be Suzuki’s main mid-sized naked, sitting in between the newbie-friendly 600cc Gladius and the big, muscular 1340cc B-King.
A moan in some circles is that the engine – donated by the GSX-R750 K5 – has been reduced from 140 to 100bhp. Think about it; who can hold on to 140 horses on a naked bike? Oh yeah, and if it was built to handle 140 brake, then in this 100bhp guise it’ll be bullet-proof. Also, 100bhp allows you to market this bike in Europe, or more specifically Germany and (this is the biggie) France. These are the lands where the Z750 is king: grab a slice of that market and you’ll be in rolling in baguettes for a very long time.
The GSR750 takes the Kawasaki head on. The looks of the bike show a clear intention to collar some of that European market. It says “ride me hard”, with a short, stubby build, sportbike-like twin spar frame (though steel rather than aluminium to help keep the price down) minimalist rear and wide-ish bars that beg you to muscle the bike around. You sit in, rather than on the bike, with a separate saddle and (tiny) pillion perch; personally I’d lose the pillion replace it with a pod to add to the aggressive profile.
Click here for the rest of the review (http://www.bobpickett.co.uk/bkit/11gsr750.htm)
A moan in some circles is that the engine – donated by the GSX-R750 K5 – has been reduced from 140 to 100bhp. Think about it; who can hold on to 140 horses on a naked bike? Oh yeah, and if it was built to handle 140 brake, then in this 100bhp guise it’ll be bullet-proof. Also, 100bhp allows you to market this bike in Europe, or more specifically Germany and (this is the biggie) France. These are the lands where the Z750 is king: grab a slice of that market and you’ll be in rolling in baguettes for a very long time.
The GSR750 takes the Kawasaki head on. The looks of the bike show a clear intention to collar some of that European market. It says “ride me hard”, with a short, stubby build, sportbike-like twin spar frame (though steel rather than aluminium to help keep the price down) minimalist rear and wide-ish bars that beg you to muscle the bike around. You sit in, rather than on the bike, with a separate saddle and (tiny) pillion perch; personally I’d lose the pillion replace it with a pod to add to the aggressive profile.
Click here for the rest of the review (http://www.bobpickett.co.uk/bkit/11gsr750.htm)