20 YEARS OF THE SUZUKI GSX-R1300R HAYABUSA
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cheekily claimed the ZX-12R's top speed
was 301 km/h.
Even so, with the agreement in place,
the motorcycle public's attention was
quickly diverted from the top-speed argu-
ment into the looming 1000cc superbike
battle that really exploded in 2004, the
first year all four Japanese manufacturers
had full-blown 1000cc superbikes.
The Hayabusa may have been crowned
the King of Speed in perpetuity, but that's
only one facet of its game.
It was designed first and foremost as
the world's fastest touring machine, and
this is a title it arguably still has. In the 20
years that have followed since that 1999
debut, Honda euthanized its Super Black-
bird in 2006 (the same for Kawasaki's
ZX-12R), while they also went the other
way—Suzuki's way—and increased the size
of the ZZ-R1100 to 1352cc and called it
the ZZ-R1400. Although, it's arguable if
anyone really cared.
What the Suzuki had, more than any
horsepower and top-speed advantage,
was the name. Like some of the great
bikes that came before—Katana, Ninja,
Fireblade, Rocket—it was the name
that caught people's attention.
The word Hayabusa is Japanese for
the peregrine falcon, the world's fastest
bird capable of speeds up to 240 mph,
and it's also no small coincidence that
the Hayabusa often feasts on smaller
birds, like the Japanese Blackbird. What
a marketing dream that is.
The amazing thing about the Haya-
busa is the fact it has been on sale for
two decades and seen only one major
update. That happened in 2008 when
Suzuki gave the 'Busa a full-blown facelift
by punching the capacity out to 1340cc—
likely to stave off the challenge from the
ZZ-R1400—and gave the motorcycle
all-new bodywork and colors, although
it still looked very much like the original
design from 1999, just sleeker.
And that was it, aside from ABS and
some new brake calipers in 2013. No
Later model
Hayabusas
came in a
stunning white
and grey color
scheme.
