Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1523001
"C an it be," sang Barbra Streisand, all the way back in 1974, "that it was all so simple then?" The way we were, at least the life as we knew it as motorcyclists in 1974, certainly seemed less complex than the way we are today. Ride-by-wire meant that a sturdy cable was lifting slides in carbu - retors that were feeding a splash of gasoline/air mixture to an air-cooled engine. Traction control was an attenuator located somewhere between our brains and our twist grips. Removing bodywork for maintenance involved loosening one screw for each side panel in order to access a battery, an air filter or the semi-real tool kits that were included with our machines. Simple? Or, as Barbra further queried, "has time rewritten every line?" What were the motorcycle manu - facturers offering back in 1974? Was "simple" even a good thing? Enter the Suzuki GT 380L, a three-cylinder two-stroke street bike. A multi-cylinder two-stroke street bike is a fantastical, conceptual thought today, but back then the company believed in the configuration, so much so that the 380L was joined by a 550 and a liquid- cooled 750 on the Suzuki dealers' showroom floors. Cycle News was serious about learning more about this unique machine and logged a full 1056 miles on a GT 380L for this test in its October 1st issue of 1974. This particular road test had a rather inauspicious beginning. Before you could even say the words "expansion chamber," the editor, apparently engaging in some sort of tomfool - ery, had crashed the test bike. But the show must go on, even with tweaked bars and a pretzeled clutch lever. Broken turn signal? That's what our left arm is for! Knee injury? Harumph! Let the ride begin. The Suzuki seemed to have plenty of power, as the tester mentions pass - ing cars, trucks, boats and even choppers (1974, ya know) with ease. The middleweight ma - chine thumbs its nose at CNIIARCHIVES P130 BY KENT TAYLOR two-stroke street bike is thought today, but back then the company believed joined by a 550 and a liquid- this unique machine and That's what our left arm is for! Knee injury? Harumph! the tester mentions pass Cycle News test rider Lane Campbell rode the 1974 Suzuki GT 380L more than 1000 miles to see if it lived up to the "Gran Turisimo" in its name. PHOTOS LANE CAMPBELL/ CHUCK CLAYTON SIMPLER TIMES 1974 SUZUKI GT 380L