Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

~ ~ ... V ..D- e V ;> The GSXR1100 now comes with Suzuki 's New Electrically Activated Suspension System (NEAS), and increased engine oil cooling capacity. The GSXR750 features include improved cylinder head oi l flow, larger valves, im proved Full Floater rear suspension, and 36mm carburetors. The 1400 Intruder ro lls on in ' 8 8 with its 1360cc V-twin engine , a fo urspeed gearbox, and shaft drive. It's available in either maroon or black. 0 Suzuki 's entry level GN250J features a 249cc single cylinder eng ine, and a f ive-speed transmission. It comes in red and costs less than $1800. Intended f or enduro competition or trail rid ing, the DR200J fea tures Full Floater suspension and a four-stroke single cylinder engine. Two new m odels, the GS X600 Katana an d the GS XI IOO Katana, head Suzuki 's 1988 lineu p . Althou gh Suzuki 's popular GSXR street bikes an d RM motocrossers feature noteworthy im p ro vements for '88, the new Ka ta nas go t th e big trumpet fanfares a t Suzuki 's recent d eal er show i n Reno, Nevad..r. The GS X600F Kat an a feat ures a 16 valv e, DO HC , 59 9.6cc fou rcyli nd er engi ne tha t co mbines aircoo ling wi th th e Suzuki Adva nced Cooling System (SACS). Bore a nd stroke are 62.6 x48.7mm with an 11.1:I com pression ra tio . Dry weight is 429 pounds (432 for the Cali fornia mod el) and o ther features include Twin Swirl Combustion Chamber (TSCC), a n aerody na mica lly designed windshield and fairing, dual disc brak es up front a nd a single d isc in th e rear - all three with fo ur p iston ca lipe rs a nd sintered-meta l co mpo und pad s, Fu ll Floater rear s uspens io n wit h full y adj ustab le sp ring preload , a 5.2 ga llo n gas tank a nd J7-inch cast alum in um alloy wh eels wit h wide low-p rofile V-ra ted tires th a t have a special tread pa ttern developed just for th e 600 Kat an a', a steel frame, a nd 4Imm fo rk. The 600 Kata na is ava ilable in red a nd whi te or blue a nd whi te. The GSXIIOOFJ Katan a feat ur es a 16 valve, DOHC, 1127cc fourcy linder engine wi th T SC C a nd SACS and a 10.1:1 com pression ra tio . Dry wei gh t is 537 pounds (542 for Z The dual-purpose SP200J is powered by a four-stroke SOHC eng ine, t ips the scales at 242 pounds, and features Full Floater rear suspension . the California model ). A unique ad j u s ta b le windshield (S u zu ki Po wer Shield ) is powered by an electrica l mo tor and o perated by a ha nd lebar mo unted swi tch. Features incl ude Fu ll Float er sus pe nsion wi th adj ustable sp ri ng preload and fourway adj ustable da mp in g. Based o n th e GS X R I 100 engine, th e 11 00 Katan a engi ne prod uces more to rq u e; Suz u ki says, .. .. . m ore torque th an a ny Suzuki sport bike ever mad e." The spec chart cla ims 10.8 kg.m (78 lb. It.) of torque a t 6500 rp m. Optiona l Krauser sadd lebags (luggage sty.le) are ava ilable. Si xteeninch whee ls and tires and a 4.6 gall on gas tank are o ther features. The I 100 Ka tan a is av a ila b le i n b lu e o r maroon. Suzu ki 's popular GS XR750 and 1100 return with the G SXR750J rece iv ing th e m o s t n ote wo rth y im provemen ts. T he GSXR750 for 1988 features improved cyli nder head o il flow , larger valv es, an improved Full Floater rear susp ens ion, new 36mm Mikun i fla t-slide CV carburetors, a nd a n improved front fork . T h e G SXR ll O Oj's mo st no teworth y im proveme nt is Suzu ki 's New Electrica ll y Activated Sus pe nsio n System (N EAS) up Irorrt. Oth er improvements incl ude whi te threespoke whee ls, larger tires fron t and rear , and increased engi ne oi l coo lin g capaci ty. With an eye on first tim e bu yers o r "those who have been away from the sport," Suzuki offers th e singlecylinder G N250j. that features electric start a nd a price tag under $1800. Returnin g in '88 is th e twin-cylinder G S45 0L J, th e si ng le-cy li n de r L S650 P J . Sa vage, th e V-twi n VS7 50GLPJ Int ru de r a nd VS I400GLPJ In tr uder, a nd th e V-4 GVI 400G DJ Calvacad e. Suzu ki's SP dua l-purpose bikes retu rn in the SPI25J a nd th e SP200J. Alt ho ugh ai med for th e off-roa d se t, Suzuki 's DR . se r ies comes eq ui pped with lights in 100,200 and 250cc versio ns. • 21

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