Suzuki GSX-S 1000 / ABS

Based around the now legendary engine from the 2005 GSX-R1000, although retuned to better suit this mildly less focussed model, it’s been designed to give effortless performance without compromising on comfort. Suzuki describe it as a ‘pure sport roadster’.

Both iterations of the GSX-S1000 are powered by the 999cc inline-four from the 2005–2008 GSX-R1000. The long-stroke design allows the combustion chambers to be compact and delivers a broad spread of power throughout the rev range.

This isn’t a cut-and-shut engine transplant, Suzuki have been through the mill looking for improvements. Newly designed pistons are 3% lighter than the GSX-R’s, and new cam profiles optimise the valve timing for an improved spread of torque, Iridium sparkplugs ensure a strong burn, and the bores are plated with Suzuki’s Composite Electrochemical Material (SCEM). A new radiator helps to keep the engine cooler, and the new liquid-cooled oil cooler is light and compact, making more room for exhaust routing.

Suzuki’s Dual Throttle Valve (SDTV) system controls the feed of air and fuel to the pistons, squirting through 10-hole fuel injectors for optimum atomization, while balancers sit between each pair of headers – all aimed at improving low-to-mid-range output.

Three-mode traction control
Suzuki’s flagship GSX-R still flies without traction control, but the GSX-S gets a 3-stage system for added peace of mind. It works via front and rear wheel speed sensors, plus throttle, crank and gear position sensors, taking readings 250 times a second looking for discrepancies. It then near-instantaneously knocks back the ignition timing whenever it detects wheelspin, softening the drive to the back wheel. If you don’t like, or want, it to intervene, then you do have the option to turn it off completely.

Mode 1 is for sporty riding (minimal intervention), Mode 2 is for normal road conditions, while Mode 3 is for wet or particularly poor road conditions. There is an ABS version of the GSX-S, while the base version gets unassisted radial mounted Brembo monobloc calipers (straight from the 2014 GSX-R1000).

Information overload
The instrument cluster is a lightweight, brightness-adjustable LCD with readouts including speedometer, tachometer, odometer, dual tripmeters, gear position, coolant and ambient temperatures, driving range, average fuel consumption, instantaneous fuel consumption, traction control, and a clock. The display is flanked by LED indicators for all the usual warning lights.

All-new chassis
The GSX-S gets all-new main frame, focused on great road handling and control. The main tubes are straight from the steering head to the swingarm pivot, allowing high rigidity and low weight (it’s lighter than current GSX-R1000’s), while the aluminium-alloy swingarm comes straight from the R.

The cast-aluminium wheels are new, too, and run 120/70 R17 front, and 190/50 R17 rear tyre sizes, suspended from a new 43mm KYB inverted front fork which is fully adjustable damping, rebound, compression and spring preload, and the rear shock is adjustable for rebound and preload only.

Engine
Based on the best GSX-R1000 motor ever, the 2005 unit has been updated with new pistons and cams to re-profile the torque and power curves for the best road-bias balance.
 

Chassis
The main frame is all new, and actually lighter than the GSX-R’s, while the swingarm is taken straight from the current GSX-R. The 43mm inverted fork is fully adjustable, while the shock is adjustable for rebound and preload.

Electronics
Both GSX-S variants get 3-stage traction control as standard equipment. The modes are effectively intended as Sport, Road and Wet modes, and the system can be completely disabled, too.

Brakes
Both models get the radial-mounted Brembo monobloc calipers from the 2014 GSX-R1000. ABS is an optional extra, which will cost around £400 over the base model, and which is well worth having.

Naked aggression
The naked version of the GSX-S is identical in every aspect to the F model, except for the swooping fairing and dual headlamps – which are replaced with a single light and small binnacle. The radiator cowls – intentionally or otherwise – read as an R on one side, and an S on the other.

First Ride Review:

As I rode north to the famed Alice’s Restaurant nestled in the coastal mountains, I found the riding position roomy on droning stretches of highway, yet with enough of a sporting posture for some good fun while hustling the bike along the twisty redwood-lined back roads. I spent equal time on both models, and can confirm that no ergonomic difference exists between them, aside from the F’s added wind protection. The non-adjustable screen is a standoff design allowing airflow beneath that effectively minimizes buffet.

As the second Suzuki model to feature traction control, the GSX-S utilizes the same left bar-mount switch array introduced on the current V-Strom 1000. The system offers three levels of TC sensitivity, and the calibration is sportier than on the big Strom. The rider can switch among the settings or even turn TC off while riding. Level 3, intended for wet conditions, saw the yellow status light on the dash signal ignition retard intervention under modest acceleration on the dry road. It took some serious cornering effort to trip TC in the normal setting, and Level 1 seems like it will prove useful at an aggressive track day pace. Turing the TC off allowed for unadulterated wheelie antics with a snap of throttle in the bottom two gears.

The presence of GSX-R style aluminum foot pegs with no rubber damping hints at the S’s sporting intent. In fact, its twin- spar main frame is said to be lighter than that of the GSX-R, and its gull-style swingarm is that of the R. With a claimed curb weight (with 4.5-gallon tank full) of 456 pounds for the naked (add 5 lb. for ABS) and 472 pounds for the F, both flavors of GSX-S are featherweights of the category.

The fully adjustable 43mm KYB inverted fork appears to have been lifted from the 2005 Gixxer parts bin, providing firm sporting performance and excellent feedback and feel when attacking an apex. The shock is a garden-variety unit of the same make, featuring a ramp-type spring preload collar for ease of use along with adjustable rebound damping. While a shock upgrade is worth considering, the stock damper proved fit for sporting duty.

Steering was light and neutral, while overall stability proved excellent, even when I rode the Suzuki at a swift pace on the bump strewn Highway 236 out of Big Basin Redwoods State Park. Swapping to the GSX-S1000F following lunch provided more handling bliss as we threaded to the coast on the smooth and flowing Highway 84.

On both bikes, I never encountered a lack of cornering clearance, and braking performance was excellent. The Brembo monobloc four-piston front calipers biting on 320mm rotors provided strong, consistent power and very good feel at the lever. While the Bosch ABS cannot be turned off, I didn’t feel a need to do so because the system performed well in a sport riding role.

Review: Don Canet, Cycle World