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Japanese companies
are waging war on each other on
foreign soil. This is best
illustrated with the Suzuki and
Yamaha and Honda battle royal. The
Yamaha R1 has been eagerly awaited
by the sporting faithful and we
recently got a chance to sample
one. For the proverbial shits and
giggles, we also grabbed a 02
Honda 954 and the GSX-R one thou'
to test these "front-line" enemies
back to back. This is was an early
2002 delivered by Yamaha to their
premium dealers and this
particular model was supplied to
us by Glen Castle of Sportbike
Extreme magazine, who in turn,
grabbed it from Sky Powersports,
Lakeland Florida.
Now, I'm really a
typical human bean. I respect life
and the law, I have no real vices,
I don't drink much and I don't do
drugs. Heck, I don't even get
fluff in my belly button. Yet I
always seem to get into trouble…
Peer pressure? Beer? Drugs? Nope,
to all three. If you want to
witness rascally behaviour from
me, just give me a motorcycle.
A borrowed bike
is a borrowed bike, but looking at
these 2002's and back at their
respective new owners faces, death
and dismemberment would be mine to
enjoy if I lunched any of these
bike. So out of respect for the
poor guys present, I tried to stay
calm, ride smooth and get these
bikes back in one piece. So much
for that plan cause' lunch one I
did. More on that later…
 This
2002 bike has seen a total revamp,
it retains the typical R1
features, but looks as good today
as it did back in 1998, its first
year release. This bike looked
particularly impressive in its
liquid silver livery and it's got
an unforgettable, stance and style
that could be compared to a
Japanese equivalent of the 916/998
range.
This is the first
year of fuel injection and forced
induction, which brings it smack
up to date in technology as well
as looks. Sitting astride the
bike, it feels skinnier due to its
redesigned tank and front fairing
design. The frame is an all new
but familiar Deltabox III design
and is finished in a satin black
ala' R7. It's more rigid, lighter
and holds the motor some 20mm
higher it's also a fully stressed
member as an aid to rigid fuss
free handling.
The bike still
features a de rigueur titanium
muffler that again, looks R1
familiar but in reality is
reshaped, is lighter and has some
titanium header pipes for company.
The EXUP valve is still in situ,
but again, redesigned to be
smaller and lighter, better,
stronger and faster etc. Being a
Florida cracker, I'm glad to see
the radiator enjoys increased
efficiency with cooling fans that
produce a claimed 20% more
airflow. To further that process
of cooler running, the engine too
enjoys an increased oil capacity
and larger oil cooler providing
that same cooler cooling, cooling
performance.
 Turning
the ignition on sees a pre flight
sweep of the gauges, a quick, err
pre flight check, confirms that
the clutch, gear lever, throttle
and brakes are all where they
should be. No big surprises there
then. As I pulled away, I could
immediately sense the immense
bottom end of the big Yam'. The
nice thing about the R1 is the
fact it has very nice low rev
torque combined with that big open
class top end hit. The bike has
had some major attention to the
unsprung weight department, wheel
and brakes specifically, and that
lack of initial inertia sees the
R1 leave the line with convincing
authority
At speed, the bike is both calm
and collected and due to it's diminutive sizing,
feels much like a 600 with regards to those
ergonomics. The front end has revised geometry
too with reduced fork offset and increased trail,
initial turn in felt remarkably pin point, regardless
of late braking or heavy handedness with either
brake or throttle. The revised engine position
also helped with its tippy-ness (is that a word?)
I can't overstate how nice this bike turned.
These bikes are easy to ride fast and getting
in over your head requires some composure from
both bike and rider, the R1 won't let you down
though, the rider is what I'd be worried about.
 Once into a corner, the bike
was extremely stable on its "ear"
and the only time I saw a wobble or two was
over a bump under hard acceleration. The bars
calmed down within a couple of twitches and
never felt that it would become a problem. The
fuel injection was remarkably glitch free too,
picking up the throttle regardless of RPM never
failed to turn forward movement relative to
throttle position. I found myself picking up
the throttle earlier and earlier but with such
linear response, I could feel the grip I had
left and take the appropriate action (ie, calm
down). Oh, and I never dragged any pegs or hard
parts, a complaint from the bike of old.
 The brakes have always been good, and these
dare I say it, are even better. The twin 298mm
front rotors up front, now feature gold-anodized,
4-piston calipers with new aluminum pistons
and sintered brake pads. The bike only called
for two fingered braking all the time I rode
it. Stopping power is further enhanced on the
rear lighter-weight, smaller-diameter 220mm
disc with a redesigned 2-piston caliper. All
the time I rode the bike I consistently brought
my reference points closer to the corner with
no complaint from the bike or my under-garments.
So, it starts and stops well.
Anything else? Lot's of millennium goodies abound.
The clocks have a nifty and fully adjustable
shift light to bring out the boy racer in you.
The rear tail is restyled and significantly
sharper both physically and metaphorically.
The rear LED taillight is a tad anonymous when
viewed from behind, but when the brake lights
do come on, it's an attention getter to say
the least.
How does it stack up against the
"other two"?
The 954 is as the old R1 was,
and a bit more. It too was a scalpel on our
test track. When climbing onto this bike I went
the quickest, quickest but not the absolute
quickest. Confused? Allow me… Everything
on this bike is where it should be and offered
no surprises. I could go almost as fast as the
2002 R1 and the 954 had a familiarity about
it. That meant minimal learning curve from the
off. Yeah, I know, I just did a Vegas Speedway
intro, but the point I'm trying to make, is
the bike will not surprise you in any way. No
wiggles, no wobbles just honest and precise
handling and with a street comfort that will
not be beaten by anything (including the R1).
The GSX-R 1000 felt unwieldy in comparison to
the above two bikes. The bike is both light
and powerful compared to the newbies, but also
felt awkward with its wider gas tank, seat and
stodgy styling. Sure, I could go fast, but it
never felt as planted as either the Honda or
the Yamaha.
Truthfully though, I never got to
dial the big Suzuki in, so your mileage may
vary. Handling issues aside and looking at the
bike stacked in a row with its newer foes -
it looked a little dated.
Us sportbikers are
a fickle lot and last year I felt the big Gixxer
to be the top dog. I've learnt a bit, this last
year though, balance and power need to be equal
or one will overload the other. I truly feel
that with all riders being equal, the R1 and
954 will give the GSX-R fits in most environments
with less effort and less "moments".
They say there is no substitute for power, so
if you must have the big dog, so be it.
OK. I don't
make bikes or design them - I just ride them.
However, I do sympathize with the job that manufacturers
have with the current crop of open classers.
They have a tough job to make these bikes better
every year. If it was me, I'd be tempted to
just repaint it a jazzy colour, make the front
wheel lighter and re-introduce it as the new
(sic) faster, lighter XYZ-1000 and be done.
 My choice? I think the R1 is
close to the perfect bike. It's got the technology,
style, performance and a price that cannot be
beat. Yamaha, being the smashing chaps that
they are, saw fit to totally rework the bike
from (w)heel to toe. As you can see, it's a
winner.
The 954 is a perfect alternative
if you want to trade a tad sharper ride for
some creature comforts. I hate to use the term
Honda friendly, because this is one of Honda's
angriest bikes since the original RR. There
are no faults with the ride, style and rideabilty
of this years '54 , I'll just take mine in silver.
The Gixxer is relegated to last
place the same way the venerable Kawasaki ZX9R
was relegated by the Honda 929 and the R1 in
2000. The Suzuki has the beans but I think it
needs a freshening up that matches its stellar
power plant. If I really want a one thou' let's
not make it look (apart from physical sizing)
like its 600 little brother.
So what did I crash test ? (Dummy).
The hmmm, cough, hmmm Suzuki...
 Look ere' you doubters… I think I've quantified
its last place position and it's not because
I crashed it. Both of my fellow testers complained
about the big Zooks front end, too vague said
one, dodgy tires said t'other.
The forks admittedly
were a little stiff and unforgiving, so I stopped
after a couple of laps and took out a touch
of compression to try and get some compliance
and some feedback. Big mistake, because at the
next fast corner, the front end literally collapsed,
chattering so badly that I couldn't stay on
the brakes. I knew if I went off road I would
ding the bike. I did my best "look through
the corner move" and turned in, alas I
drug the back brake a tad too much, which saw
me slide in nice and sideways and disappear
over the highside. Game Over.
The bike faired reasonably well,
as did I. God bless Kushitani and Arai, but
there goes our petty cash for the next 10 years.
Written by Mike E. Article Courtesy Of
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