What’s former SBK and GP racer Simon Crafar have to say about performance-enhancing electronics like launch control and traction control? Well, so long as Suzuki’s paying him, they’re the antithesis of the two-wheeled experience. Agree? I know I can’t slide a 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000 like that. :continue:
Last week, we reviewed the 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000 down at Homestead Speedway in Florida. Out on track that same day was AMA Pro Superbike rider Blake Young. In this video, he throws down a solid hot lap. :continue:
No traction control. No ABS. Down on power and heavier than most rivals. It’s easy to write off the 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000 before even riding it. But should you? We flew down to scenic Homestead, Florida, home of a NASCAR track, to find out. :continue:
If only be barely, but the 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000 has been updated with a view to optimizing performance and handling. It’s a little lighter, has a little more mid-range and looks slightly different. Here’s details of the 14 changes Suzuki made to it, plus a whole mess o’ images and action video. :continue:
Squint just right and you can just about tell that this isn’t actually a photo of a 2009 Suzuki GSX-R1000. The Brembo Monobloc brake calipers and single exhaust canister instead indicate that that this is the slightly-revised 2012 Suzuki GSX-R1000. What you can’t see is a wet weight reduced by 2kg (likely thanks to ditching that second exhaust can), a claimed boost in mid-range power and an unspecified reduction in unsprung weight thanks to thinner brake discs. What you really can’t see, because it’s not there, is traction control, ride-by-wire or any other of the electronic performance aids that are coming to define the liter bike class. Still, you can’t argue with 191bhp and 203kg (wet), plus decent suspension in the form of unchanged Showa Big Piston forks.
