Suzuki Gsx-R1000
SUZUKI GSX-R1000
Composure in a clutch
DON CANET
RUNNING A SUZUKI GSX-R 1000 IN BEYOND THE 300-METER marker on approach to the first turn at Circuito de Catalunya during last year's MasterBike comparison required huevos grandes. Late-braking from 170 mph for the sharp second-gear chicane is serious business on any machine, but proved particularly tricky on the big Gixxer due to excessive engine braking. Feathering the clutch following the last couple of downshifts helped keep rear tire chatter in check and the chassis in line, but the added workload and distraction was unsettling. Same corner, the winning Kawasaki ZX-10R simply got the job done.
News that the all-new 2005 GSX-R1000 is equipped with a backtorque-limiting clutch (like the ZX-10R) should be headline material for any rider who’s ever charged an apex in anger aboard Suzukis powerhouse sportbike. I traveled to Sydney, Australia, for the bike’s world press launch at Eastern Creek Raceway, and returned home impressed with much more than the bike’s newfound corner-entry composure.
The first thing you notice when settling into the ’()5’s saddle is that the bike is significantly more compact than before, yet doesn’t feel cramped. Suzuki achieved this by revising the frame geometry, shortening the distance between steering head and swingarm pivot a quarterinch, lowering seat height ,8-inch and narrowing the space between the footpegs .7-inch-the latter has allowed the pegs to be positioned lower to retain legroom without sacrificing cornering clearance. The rider now sits 1.6 inches closer to the clip-ons and lower “in” the bike, gaining a heightened sense of control with less weight on the wrists and forearmssomething street riders will surely appreciate.
Redesigned engine components have also played a role in making the bike more compact. With the outer intake ports on the new cylinder head angled inboard, throttle body width has been reduced .4-inch, lending to a narrower airbox and fuel tank as well. The sides of the slimmed tank don't curve outward at the top, which in many cases uncomfortably splays taller riders’ legs. The seat is very spacious front-to-rear, allowing a full tuck under the bubble without contact between elbows and knees.
CW RIDING IMPRESSION
An auto-idle feature makes cold starts cake with no lever to mess with. The instrument cluster now includes a gear indicator. Seems rather Bavarian for a hardcore Japanese sportbike, but then, the next time you ask Mat Mladin what gear he uses in Turn 8, he should be able to tell you-not that he would!
First gear is now taller, to go along with more tightly spaced ratios throughout the six-speed gearbox, yet I found no difficulty
with smooth, low-rev launches when pulling away from the pit garage. A couple of slick upshifts to third reveal that the big Gixxer’s characteristic low-to-midrange grunt is better than ever. This is a nice bonus, considering the revised engine now offers an addi-
tional 1000 rpm and an appreciable power gain on top. All without sacrificing power elsewhere. Beautiful!
Performance gains center around a .4mm increase in bore, taking displacement out to 998.6cc without altering cylinder-block width. New pistons have shorter, narrower skirts, making them lighter than last year’s for higher rev capability. Use of lighter titanium valves along with heavier valve spring loading has also helped raise the rev ceiling to 13,500 rpm. Intake valve diameter has grown 1mm, now fed by larger intake ports and new 42mm throttle bodies that are 2mm larger than last year.
As with all current GSX-R models, the 1000’s fuel-injec-
tion system features dual throttle valves in which the rider controls the primary butterfly with the twistgrip, while a CPU-controlled servo-motor operates the secondary butterfly valve tasked with maintaining optimum intake air velocity. New to the 1000 is a twin-injector system, locating a second injector just downstream of the secondary butterfly. Like the showerhead injector setups that have begun to appear on several sportbikes, Suzuki’s secondary injector kicks in at higher revs with additional fuel and atomization. The main advantage Suzuki’s approach has over an airbox-mounted showerhead
design is compact packaging.
Each time I took to the track I performed roll-ons in various gears from different points in the rev range while the Bridgestone BT014 Battlax radiais warmed up. Broad and linear best describes the healthy torque spread of the GSX-R mill. Never a stumble or hesitation, just loads of smooth power that builds as revs increase. Roll-ons performed in second gear from middle revs torqued up a fluid power-wheelie as the tach needle swept past 9000 rpm. Yee-haw!
With 10 of Eastern Creek’s 12 turns taken in second gear aboard the GSX-R, lapping at speed placed a premium on controllability. Fortunately, the connection between throttle and rear contact patch was exceptional, and the transition from brakes back onto the gas could be done quite smoothly. With the ability to overpower the 190/50 street radial always looming, picking the bike up early out of corners while dialing-in the power was the best way to get around quickly and safely. Corner exits with sweet, subtle slides soon became routine without any sudden sideways snaps spoiling my fun. I noticed a few other journalists doing the same, which says something for the bike’s engine/chassis balance.
We’re talking a bike that will likely produce around 160 rear-wheel horsepower when strapped to CWs dyno, and for it to offer such confidence and control is no mean feat. Suzuki adjusted the new frame’s vertical, horizontal and torsional rigidity for improved feel and feedback during hard cornering.
A new sculpted swingarm made up largely of cast pieces has replaced the extruded assembly of the past. Even the swingarm pivot shaft-now 3mm smaller in diameter-factors into the tunedflex equation. Lessons learned from racing the previous-generation GSX-R have resulted in a revised rear suspension linkage
that now delivers a more linear rising rate for improved tire grip and control. Undulation in the track’s surface exiting the final comer provided a testament to the rear end’s ability to absorb bumps under hard, second-gear acceleration.
The familiar 43mm inverted Kayaba fork has undergone internal refinements to reduce friction and improve damping characteristics. So-called Diamond Like Carbon coating on the inner legs furthers friction reduction. Goofy name or no, it seems to work, as the few mid-corner bumps were swallowed up and the fork felt reactive to ripples under extreme hard braking.
Wheelbase has shrunk .2-inch, with an equal increase in trail maintaining excellent stability. As with earlier GSX-Rs,
the 1000 is fitted with a non-adjustable steering damper providing that added bit of security when the going gets rough. While claimed weight is 4.5 pounds less than last year, the lightness in handling feels much greater. Just goes to illustrate the importance of where weight is carried and the benefit of improved mass centralization. Negotiating Eastern Creek’s sideto-side transitions was literally a snap; but then again, these were not particularly fast sections,
either. It’ll be interesting come shootout time to learn if the new Gixxer proves as fleet-footed as Kawasaki’s ZX-10R.
I have no doubt that the Suzuki has the Kawi covered in terms of handling composure, even when banging down through the gears into a slow corner. At these elevated performance levels, composure is key in breeding confidence that’s tough to beat.
