Suzuki Motorcycles

About Suzuki

Suzuki Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu, Japan, which specializes in manufacturing automobiles, four-wheel drive vehicles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a variety of other small internal combustion engines.

In 1909, Michio Suzuki (1887–1982) founded the Suzuki Loom Works in the small seacoast village of Hamamatsu, Japan. He was making looms, did some cars for a short time, faced cotton market collapse in 1951 and so he came to new products.

Suzuki's first two-wheel ingenuity came in the form a bicycle fitted with a motor called, the "Power Free." Designed to be inexpensive and simple to build and maintain, the 1952 Power Free featured a 36 cc, one horsepower, two-stroke engine. An unprecedented feature was the double-sprocket gear system, enabling the rider to either pedal with the engine assisting, pedal without engine assist, or simply disconnect the pedals and run on engine power alone. The system was so ingenious that the patent office of the new democratic government granted Suzuki a financial subsidy to continue research in motorcycle engineering, and so was born Suzuki Motor Corporation.

In 1953, The Diamond Free is introduced and features double-sprocket wheel mechanism and two-speed transmission. That year Suzuki scored the first of many racing victories when the tiny 60 cc "Diamond Free" won its class in the Mount Fuji Hill Climb.

By 1954, Suzuki had officially changed its name to Suzuki Motor Co., Ltd. S mark was adopted as corporate emblem in 1958.

In 1955 the Colleda COX debuts, a 125cc bike equipped with a steel frame. It features a 4-stroke OHV single-cylinder engine with three-speed transmission.

Using MZ’s technology (Ernst Degner defected to the west while racing for MZ in the Swedish Grand Prix, and he took knowledge of Walter Kaaden’s expansion chamber designs), Suzuki wins the newly created 50cc class in the World Championship. The company will win the class every year until ’67, and win the 125cc class twice in that period, too.

The T20 is released in 1965 (aka Super 6, X-6, Hustler). This two-stroke, street-going Twin is one of the fastest bikes in its class. The ‘6’ in its name(s) refers to its six-speed gearbox. The T500 ‘Titan’ (1968) is an air-cooled parallel-Twin two-stroke.

In 1971 the GT750 2-stroke surprises people with its three-cylinder liquid-cooled engine. In North America, it’s nicknamed the Water Buffalo; in the UK they call them Kettles. Also the TM400A motocrosser goes into production, a 396cc bike designed for 500cc motocross races.

With the GS750, Suzuki finally builds a 4-stroke, four-cylinder road bike in 1976.

The 779cc DR-BIG, dated by 1990, has the largest single-cylinder engine in living memory. The much-loved 16-valve, 1156cc air/oil-cooled Bandit 1200 appears on the scene in 1995.

In 1996 Suzuki calls the new GSX-R750 the ‘turning-point model’ thanks to its twin-spar frame instead of the older double-cradle frame. The engine is also redesigned and featured 3-piece crankcases, chrome-plated cylinders and a side-mount cam chain as well as Suzuki Ram Air Direct (SRAD) system.

Moto blog

Elena Myers to Ride Suzuki GSV-R MotoGP Bike at Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Elena Myers will ride demonstration laps of Indianapolis Motor Speedway on the Suzuki GSV-R. After a visit at the Rizla Suzuki garage during the 2010 U.S. Grand Prix at Laguna Seca, the 17-year-old Myers received an invitation to ride the GSV-R at the post-season test in Valencia, Spain.

Dungey, Villopoto and Baggett Named to 2011 MXoN Team USA

Ryan Dungey, Ryan Villopoto and Blake Baggett will represent the U.S. in the 2011 Motocross of Nations, Sept. 17-18 at Saint Jean D’Angely, France.

Suzuki Reports Q1 2011-2012 Results

Suzuki’s motorcycle business saw a profit for the first time in 11 quarters despite selling 21.0% fewer motorcycles. In the quarter ended June 30, 2011, Suzuki saw an operating income of 300 million yen (US$3.8 million), compared to a loss of 1.8 billion yen (US$22.9 million) reported in the same quarter of 2010. Suzuki netted 75.4 billion yen (US$961.5 million) in motorcycle sales over the quarter, a year-on-year increase of 8.0% from 69.8 billion yen (US$890.0 million) in 2010.

2012 Suzuki DR-Z125 and DR-Z125L Announced

Suzuki is bringing back the DR-Z125 entry-level off-road motorcycle and its slightly larger DR-Z125L variant as part of its 2012 model year offerings. Last offered in 2009, the Suzuki DR-Z125 returns for 2012 with updated graphics similar to Suzuki’s RM-Z family of motocrossers. The DR-Z125 is powered by a 124cc air-cooled four-stroke engine Suzuki describes as having strong low to mid-range power.

US Motorcycle Sales First Half 2011 Results

The U.S. motorcycle industry saw a 4.6% decrease in year-on-year sales over the first six months of 2011, thanks mostly to a 17.3% drop in ATV sales. Motorcycle and scooter sales however saw a 1.7% bump in the first half .

Ben Bostrom Draws Wild Card for Laguna Seca MotoGP Race

MotoGP racing team LCR Honda seems to love America. For the second straight year, the Monaco-based team is enlisting an American racer to compete in the U.S. Grand Prix at Laguna Seca.

MotoGP should return to Suzuka

Suzuka was always one of the great circuits; unfortunately the Japanese track was dropped following the tragic death of Daijiro Kato in 2003 as the course was deemed too tight and dangerous for the rapid four-strokes. Owned by Honda, Suzuka is a magical place combining arching S-bends from the start of the lap, high-speed in the middle and finished off with the technical and oft racing deciding final chicane, the location of many fantastic last lap battles. However the death of Kato, and Honda’s major hope of a Japanese champion, placed a dark cloud over the 5.807 kilometres of tarmac.

VIR Pulls Itself from 2011 AMA Pro Racing Schedule

In a surprising move, Virginia International Raceway announced it would not host its scheduled AMA Pro Racing round, just a month before the event was to take place. The Alton, Va., circuit was set to host AMA Pro Racing on Aug. 12-14 but VIR officials have now decided against hosting or promoting the event.

Suzuki to Relocate R&D Facility to Lower Tsunami Risk Area

Suzuki is considering moving its motorcycle research facility from its current coastal location to its main factory in Hamamatsu, Japan, to decrease the risk of damage from future tsunamis. According to a report in the Nikkei business daily, Suzuki is acquiring more land in Hamamatsu to house the research center and other facilities. Suzuki CEO Osamu Suzuki first brought up the idea to relocate some of its higher risk coastal properties during its 2011-2012 fiscal year forecast report.

2012 Suzuki Motocross Lineup Revealed

Suzuki announced its 2012 motocross lineup consisting of the RM-Z450, RM-Z250, RM-85 and RM-85L. All four models return unchanged save for graphic updates. The 2012 Suzuki RM-Z450 and RM-Z250 (pictured above) are fuel injected and equipped with fully-adjustable Showa forks, twin-spar aluminum chassis and swingarm and five-speed transmissions.