2002 Yoshimura Tornado S-1 #21
Kilometers: 6,986
Clean Title
Asking: 40,000 EUD
Contact: sebastian@fabrykaklasykow.eu
aukcje@fabrykaklasykow.eu
Built for only one year, with just 50 examples ever made, and created by a company most would recognize as a tuner and parts manufacturer, not as a bike builder, the 2002 Yoshimura Tornado S-1 is an exceedingly rare and exotic motorcycle. Based on the first-generation Suzuki GSX-R1000, the bike’s pedigree and foundation were certainly sound, but Yoshimura wasn’t content to just fit a loud exhaust and a set of new bodywork with custom graphics and call it a day. They took their years of tuning experience and threw an entire catalog of updated and modified parts at the bike, leaving almost nothing untouched or original. The results were pretty astounding for 2002: 170hp and a wet weight of 412lbs, with a quickshifter and switchable ignition maps.
Founded by Hideo “Pops” Yoshimura, the company has a long association with high performance and racing Suzukis. After early successes in his home country, Pops moved to Los Angeles in the 1970s and established a shop, where he was active in the early days of AMA Superbike racing and made a name for himself building fast Suzukis. Prior to creating the very limited production Yoshimura Tornado S-1 seen here, there were other highly-modified, limited-production machines, naturally also based on existing Suzuki models.The engine of the S-1 based on Suzuki’s inline four found in the GSX-R1000, with Pops Yoshimura pouring a lifetime of racing experience into building the ultimate expression of his engine building art.
Compression was upped, cams and valve springs were upgraded to increase revs and power, and a custom ECU with switchable maps replaced the stock unit, a pretty trick setup in 2002. There was more tech we’ve come to take for granted on modern machines: a quickshifter and a shift light. The list goes on and on: the entire engine and drivetrain was improved for both power and longevity: Yoshimure was also famous for its success in endurance racing. Handling was improved by high-spec Öhlins components at both ends, along with a matching Öhlins steering damper, and the bike featured an entirely new aluminum swingarm
From a performance standpoint, the unique and striking bodywork designed by Yoshimura may not seem all that significant. Naturally, the lightweight carbon panels and aluminum fuel tank obviously shave critical pounds to improve handling and acceleration, but also help the bike shape its own identity distinct from the donor GSX-R, something very important when the finished bike wouldn’t even be called a Suzuki and would cost an eye-watering $35,000 in 2002, the equivalent of $64,000 in 2026. The styling and graphics are strangely subdued for such an exotic machine, but the bike is very handsome, with good proportions and a few aggressive touches like those shark-gill vents.
This is an original 2002 Yoshimura Tornado S-1, just 50 of these were made in period, and at the time they were among the fastest and most desirable superbikes in the world, with 175 bhp on tap and scalpel-sharp handling. Even by modern standards, the performance of the Tornado S-1 is blistering, so one can only imagine what it must have been like to read the spec sheet back in 2002 when they were released for the first time. The bike you see here is a low-mile original, and it’s now being offered for sale.
The Tornado S-1 was one of Yoshimura’s rarest complete road bikes, based on the first-generation Suzuki GSX-R1000 and produced in a run of just 50 individually numbered machines. Released in 2002 at ¥3,780,000, it represented Yoshimura’s most thorough reworking of a road-legal superbike from that period.
Yoshimura extensively revised the 988cc engine and chassis, raising compression, fitting ST-1 cams, upgraded springs, bespoke engine management, a quick shifter, titanium exhaust, Öhlins suspension, revised brakes, BBS wheels, and carbon-fibre bodywork. Output was listed at over 175 bhp, with a higher rev limit and many purpose-built parts throughout.
The motorcycle shown here is number 21 of the 50 built, a Japanese-market example showing 6,986 km and said to remain in original collector-grade condition. Imported into the EU in 2025 and serviced in Poland in March 2026, it is now offered with paperwork for international registration.
The engine work began with the cylinder head, which was re-ground and fitted with a thinner head gasket to raise the compression ratio from the stock 12.0:1 to 13.2:1. Yoshimura ST-1 camshafts and upgraded valve springs replaced the factory items, allowing the engine to rev 500 rpm higher than standard, to a ceiling of 12,700 rpm. The stock Suzuki engine management system was replaced with a bespoke Yoshimura EMS unit, controllable via a handlebar-mounted three-way switch that let the rider toggle between different fuel and ignition maps on the move, an advanced feature for the time. A clutchless quick-shifter was fitted, along with a dash-mounted shift timing light. A revised oil pan set increased oil capacity by 300cc over standard. The exhaust was a bespoke 4-into-1 titanium Tri-Oval Cyclone system with a carbon fibre silencer sleeve. The result of all this, per Yoshimura’s own specification sheet, was over 168 bhp (170 PS) at 12,000 rpm, with 80 lb ft of torque at 10,000 rpm. The suspension received equally thorough attention of course, Öhlins units were fitted front and rear, with Yoshimura-specific settings, along with an Öhlins steering damper. A revised steering stem, rear suspension linkage, and a bespoke swingarm completed the changes.Modified front brake calipers were fitted along with a Nissin radial-pump master cylinder and braided hydraulic lines. The calipers were six-piston Nissin units, and the standard steel wheels were replaced with lightweight cast aluminum units from BBS. The fuel tank was replaced with a 24 liter aluminum unit fitted with a Yoshimura racing filler cap. The entire bodywork was bespoke carbon fibre designed and produced by Yoshimura, giving the S-1 a completely distinct visual identity that thoroughly disguised its GSX-R origins. Lighting was upgraded with Hella HID projector headlights, this was a rarity on a motorcycle of the time but far more common now. AFAM aluminum sprockets and Yoshimura racing rearsets rounded out the package.
This is number #21 of the 50 Yoshimura Tornado S1 motorcycles produced, a Japanese domestic market exclusive that was never officially sold outside Japan. The bike shows 6,986 kms on the odometer and is described by the seller as being in original collector’s condition throughout, with the original paintwork said to be in very good order.
Bikes like this don’t come up for sale often, and plenty of our readers probably didn’t even know the Yoshimura Tornado S-1 existed until today. Only 50 were built, and this one looks the part: low miles, good history, sold by an owner who clearly knows what they have.
It’s currently in Poland and we’re promoting it for the European market. But if one of our U.S. readers has the pockets and the reach to bring it home, that’d be a fun one to see land stateside and actually get ridden.
-tad
