Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Thinking of buying a Suzuki GSX R1000? Here’s what it’s like

Post Thumbnail

One statistic sums up the dominance of the Suzuki GSX R1000. It’s the best-selling bike over 125cc sold in the UK, outselling sensible middleweights, workaday commuter bikes and trendy big scooters, despite the fact that it’s still one of the fastest point-to-point motorcycles around.

So, what are we to make of this new GSX-S1000?
A naked bike that takes many of its cues from the star superbike that is the GSX R1000. But don’t get me wrong, the GSX-S1000 is a brand new naked bike.

This Suzuki may not be a superbike but if you are looking for performance at a relatively bargain price then the GSX-S is certainly a steal.

The 2015 Suzuki GSX-S1000 retails at just £8,999 for the entry-level model and £9,499 if you want ABS. There is also a faired version, the ‘F’ retailing at £9,999.

This latest bike from Suzuki offers razor-sharp handling and incredible power from its GSX R1000 K5-derived engine.

The engineers have redesigned the cam profiles and removed a tooth from the gearing to increase the bike’s thrust. And boy does it go!

The machine has a low centre of gravity and a very comfortable riding position while its light weight allows it to be flicked from side to side like a 600.

The bike feels small and neutral, eager to tip into a corner, while the light clutch allows you to leave your braking good and late. Just about the only criticism it’s possible to level is that it’s so good it makes everything feel easy.

There is a slight irritation with the throttle that causes a snatch when accelerating hard out of a corner but apart from that the bike is brilliant.

It’s only when you look at how hard riders on rival bikes are working to try to keep pace that the Suzuki’s talents become manifest.

The great thing about the GSX-S’s 145bhp engine is that although you expect it to be a peaky screamer, it in fact has a decent slug of torque available across a broad rev range.

While that may not be the number one selling point for a naked bike, it makes the Suzuki a whole lot more versatile than expected, especially on the road. Through the gears the thing is absolutely ballistic and great fun to ride.

So is this the definitive naughty naked bike? The Suzuki GSX-S1000 could very well be. It may not tick every ‘best in class’ box but it certainly ticks enough of them to reassure you that you have made the right choice.

THE FACTS

Bike: Suzuki GSX-S1000

Price: £8,999 (£9,499 with ABS, £9,999 F version)

Engine: 999cc four-stroke, inline four-cylinder, liquid-cooled, DOHC, 16v

Power: 145bhp @ 9,500rpm

Torque: 78lb/ft

Weight: 207kg (wet)

Seat height: 855mm

Tank size: 17 litres