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Monday, October 20, 2008

True Grunt

On the lookout for neck-snapping torque in a tough, streetfighter package? Suzuki's GSX1400 could well be just the ticket...

Essentially I'm an honest, decent kind of a guy, largely devoid of any criminal tendencies. I did once flog a lolly from a supermarket checkout while on a shopping trip with mum, but as the item in question was worth five cents, and I was only six years old at the time, I'm happy to write the incident off as a blip on the radar, various traffic offences notwithstanding.

So it was with some surprise I found myself admiring the pristine clutch lever of a brand-new Suzuki GSX1400 in the bike parking paddock of the recent Aussie motorcycle grand prix - a whole and complete clutch lever, unlike the sad, snapped example which now hung forlornly from the GSX1400 testbike I'd taken delivery of about a week earlier.

It was at that point Lucifer momentarily hopped on my shoulder in a puff of smoke, leant in close to my ear and whispered, "that would look a treat on your bike, and the mob at Suzuki would never know what a monumental dickhead you'd been yesterday when you dumped it in the mud..."

But of course, being essentially an honest, decent kind of a guy, I retorted "Bugger off Luci, you know the only thing I've ever nicked in my life was that sweet from Waltons, and that's how it's going to stay!" - and proceeded to promptly knock him from my shoulder into a nearby puddle.

No, there would be no disguising I'd been a monumental dickhead the day before: I'd been given an embarrassing reminder that a big heavy bike with fat tyres and three inches of slick mud simply don't mix...

PROVEN PEDIGREE
Another aspect to this reminder was that a truckload of grunt isn't always appreciated when things get greasy, and that's one thing Suzuki's new GSX1400 has in absolute bucket-loads.

Suzuki is no stranger to the ballsy nakedbike class, indeed it made a huge impact back in 1996 with the GSF1200 Bandit - a high power/low weight package for its time which handled too, and proved a big hit with the biking public the world over.

Five years on, the Bandit is still a capable, value-for-money bike, but it's no longer the hooligan machine it once was, now finding itself more in the realm of budget sportstourers - especially in the case of the half-faired Bandit S version.

The Bandit's technology is dating a little, and there's now models like Kawasaki's ZRX1200S/R vying for class supremacy, with Yamaha's XJR1300SP edging ahead in the seemingly endless 'bigger is better' game of oneupmanship.

Now Suzuki's struck back, its GSX1400 boasting not only the biggest engine in this particular class of production motorcycle, but the only one equipped with electronic fuel injection too. And while the GSX's donk may be loosely based upon that found within the Bandit - namely an air/oil-cooled, four-stroke, in-line four - that's largely where the similarities end; by and large it's a new-from-the-ground-up bike.


SLEEPING GIANT
Hopping aboard and lifting the thing up off its sidestand you immediately realise you're aboard one substantial hunk of motorcycle. At a claimed 228kg (dry) and with a claimed seat height of 790mm (it's broad too), the sheer feel of the thing matches its muscular retro lines well.

You don't have to go far to realise you've got a Suzuki underneath you either - a quality six-speed gearbox is mated with relatively light and responsive controls. Not too light and responsive, mind you - Suzuki hasn't sanitised this brutish musclebike too much.

The injection is a welcome feature, an auto choke system allowing easy starts every time, even on chilly Phillip Island mornings over GP weekend, and delivering crisp throttle response without needing the concentration of a chess champion to keep things smooth around town.

But without a doubt it's the mumbo that throttle is controlling which will be behind the smile of anyone who takes a GSX1400 for a spin, because if it's grunt you want, it's grunt this baby has got.

The GSX1400 is akin to a sleeping giant really - you can potter around in town or cruise down the open road and never strain a muscle. Just exercise a little restraint with that right hand and nary an eyebrow will be raised - by you or onlookers.

But wrench that twistgrip open with a bit of conviction and get set for a muscle-ripping ride you won't forget in a hurry. In stock form around 100ps is pumped out at the back wheel - nothing exceptional here, but it's the torque curve which is sure to get grunt fiends smacking their chops with anticipation. We're talking about 12.7kg-m, and believe me, the engine revs willingly enough to get you to this peak (found at 5500rpm) before you can say, 'anything wrong officer?'

ACRONYM ANTICS
Smooth, seamless power is available everywhere, from tickover to its 9000rpm redline, but of course it's the bike's stonking mid-range where the majority of the jollies are to be had. In fact, the thing's so flexible you just can't resist the odd silly test: standing starts two-up in fifth? No problem. How about how low will it pull from? As it turned out, about 800rpm - think of it as a performance tractor with motorcycle manoeuvrability...

And while the 1402cc powerplant can trace its roots back to the original Bandit in '96, and the '86 GSX-R1100G and '85 GSX-R750 before it, Suzuki is quick to point out the GSX1400 engine is very much the next generation of the tried and true air-cooled family.

Suzuki has once again gone to town in the acronym stakes, and its latest machine comes equipped with SACS (Suzuki Advanced Cooling System - where a secondary oil pump uses oil for cooling purposes in addition to the standard air cooling), SDTV (Suzuki Dual Throttle Valve system - where a secondary throttle valve allows a better fuel/air mixture at all engine speeds), SCEM (Suzuki Composite Electrochemical Material - a funky cylinder plating for better heat dissipation) and PAIR (Pulsed secondary AIR injection - to reduce exhaust emissions). Phew, time for a CRAP system too perhaps (Cut Ridiculous Acronyms Please)!?!


NICE SUSPENDERS
Of course all this grunt amounts to naught if the bike handles like a stoned octopus on rollerskates, but thankfully with the GSX1400 this isn't the case.

It's a fairly standard retro musclebike package in the chassis stakes - a double cradle-type steel frame with dual piggyback rear shocks and conventional 46mm telescopic forks. The suspenders are fully adjustable though, and the preload, rebound and compression adjusters are easy to get to in each case.

The plush and compliant suspension soaks up the bumps in an adequate if unspectacular manner, allowing the big GSX to be punted hard up a twisty road quite effectively for a machine of its size.

On the road its lengthy 2160mm wheelbase, 26-degree rake and 105mm of trail predictably deliver stable and surprise-free handling, and while sportsbike nuts will be feeling its weight and conservative steering geometry when flicking it from side to side, for the remainder of motorcycledom it'll prove agile enough.

Hauling the mutha down from speed is entrusted to twin six-piston Tokico calipers up the front and a twin-piston Nissin down the back, and combined they do a pretty good job, plenty of power tempered slightly by an satisfactory level of feel.

REAL WORLD ROCKET
As far as practicalities go, you'd be hard pressed to pick any faults with the GSX. Its super broad seat is good and comfy, there's just about room in the massive under-seat storage area to stash a small child, there's plenty of ocky strap mounting points and there's an easy-to-use centrestand.

It's still relatively narrow enough to slip through traffic snarls with ease, a fact helped along by a generous steering lock, while hitting the highway in legal cruise mode will see a lazy 2900rpm show on the tacho in top.

And while we're talking touring, be aware that all that mumbo does have an impact when it comes to economy. At around a thirsty 12.5km/lt on the open road, expect to get around 250km out of the 22lt tank before you hop off and push. Booting around town I found the LCD fuel gauge to be decidedly dodgy, reserve coming on at around the 185km mark, with about four to five litres still left in the tank.

The bike's finish is okay, although the wires coming from the handlebar-mounted switchblocks look a bit bitsy. In Oz it's available in Metallic Galaxy Silver, Candy Grand Blue, and blue/white - the latter representing a last-minute option made available only after the positive feedback given to Suzuki after the Sydney Motor Show and AMCN GP Expo.

TOP CHOICE
At $14,390 (plus ORC), the GSX is priced competitively with Kawasaki's $13,990 ZRX1200R and Yamaha's $14,299 XJR1300SP - shopping around in this class is going to come down to what you reckon looks the best as much as what you think goes the best.

You can have one hell of a good time punting this thing around, but it's the GSX1400's tuning potential which would have me champing at the bit if I'd recently coughed up the bikkies. We got an extra 22ps out of a Bandit back in '96 when we threw a Hindle Stealth exhaust system on it; by the look of the tiny diameter of the system poking its head out from the bulky twin mufflers, similar feats will be possible with the GSX.

The GSX1400 can be many things to many people. It retains that raw-edged excitement that naked muscle bikes have built their reputation upon, yet it'll still perform well across a wide variety of rolls - just forget it when it comes to carpark motocrossing...