Suzuki’s RGV250Γ shows up on this site from time to time, but it’s been almost a year since we featured that v-twin powered bike’s predecessor, the RG250Γ. Two-strokes were the best way to get both power and light weight out of the same package in the 1980’s and, instead of the later bike’s v-twin, the…
Today’s bike is a bit of a flashback, something a bit older than we’d normally feature here on RSBFS. But this Suzuki GS1000S Wes Cooley Replica holds a special place as the last, and maybe best of the twin-shock sportbikes. Prior to the monoshock, endurance-racing GSX-R that we all know and love, this was Suzuki’s…
In countries where riders prefer their roads twisty and their exhausts smoky, bikes like this little Suzuki RGV250 aren’t all that rare and don’t command the prices they do here in the US, and titled examples of the little two-stroke sportbikes are even more difficult to find. Introduced in 1988, the RGV250 Γ “Gamma” replaced…
Today’s GSX-R750 is sort of the polar opposite of Sunday’s Ducati Supermono: the Gixxer was always intended to be ridden and enjoyed anywhere, street or track. It needed no army of trained technicians to make it run, or a crew to push start it like the Supermono did, or pro-level riding skill to appreciate, or…
Built between 1994 and 2004, the Aprilia RS250 has justifiably developed a cult following among dedicated corner-carvers and track rats. It’s the quintessential “giant killer,” wrapping an impossibly lightweight frame and sleek bodywork around a very compact, 250cc powerplant yanked straight out of Suzuki’s RGV250, with brakes designed to stop a much heavier motorcycle. That…
Even by today’s standards, the numbers are impressive… a claimed 95hp to go with a dry weight of just 340lbs would have this little 500 hanging right with the best of the modern 600s. And they don’t sound nearly this cool! The RG500 or “Gamma” was a legitimate monster back in it’s day. Yamaha had…
Introduced in 1981, the GSX1100S “Katana” was styled by Hans Muth, formerly of BMW and appeared to have been sculpted by someone wielding its namesake. So much for “conservative German design”! The new bike was powered by Suzuki’s 1074cc, air/oil-cooled four-cylinder hung in a relatively conventional twin-shock frame. While the technology under the skin was…
1986 Suzuki GSXR-1100 on eBay Often overlooked by collectors focused on it’s 750cc little brother, the 1986 Suzuki GSXR-1100 is just as important in the evolution of superbikes. Suzuki started the GSXR family on the other end of the spectrum, with their 400cc model while gradually working all the way up to the 1100cc masher…