kwtoxman
Well-known member
A few other threads here got me thinking about benchmark litre sportbikes. You know, the ones that redefined the class over the years. Here are my fond memories with a list from the mid 80's time period to now. Interestingly all of these bikes were clean sheet designs, not the incremental changes/gains that the bikes in the class get most of the time.
1st was the 1986 Suzuki GSXR 1100. The bike completely redefined its class. It was much lighter than its competition and got the class to back to the roots of a light motorcycle. I found a reference noting the 1986 GSXR 1100 was lighter than every japanese competitor's 750 of that year. What a shot to the class from Suzuki.
2nd was the 1992 Honda Fireblade (CBR 900RR). Between 1986 and 1992 the GSXR gained something like 50-60 lbs. All litre bikes were heavy. But the new Fireblade was extreme. The most extreme mainstream Honda ever made generally available at a reasonable price in my opinion. No other Honda bike reshuffled its bike class deck like this one. It truly was a "light is right" designed bike. The 1992 fireblade was a euro model available in Canada, the model did not come to the US until 1993. And at that point it was called a CBR 900RR. This makes the 1992 Fireblade a very rare bike in North America. The bike itself was only 4 lbs heavier than the CBR 600F2. With the light weight the magazines loved it. Hell, if you rode it you loved it. There were quicker and faster bikes (and 50-90 lbs heavier), but around a racetrack the Fireblade was at least a couple seconds faster per lap. And the Fireblade was much more of a fun lightweight hooligan machine. The first of the real wheelie monsters. Again, light makes right.
3rd was the 1998 Yamaha R1. From 1992 to 1998 even the fireblade got heavier and bigger. It lost some edge. Yamaha took its turn to put the litre bike class on reset. Again a very strong design emphasis on light weight, with added power. The R1 was even lighter than the 1992 fireblade, with a bigger engine and more power. With a bit of a nod to Ducati in styling, its looks were unique and a massive hit on the market. It looked like to be a long reign. Beautiful bike.
4th was the 2001 Suzuki GSXR 1000. Interestingly the pace of improvement quickened with this bike coming out only a few years after the R1. It was even lighter than the R1 and it had notably more hp. 15-20 hp more. It was one of the biggest hp jumps on a light weight litre bike that the class had ever seen, and it was only a few years after the R1. This bike (generation) represented the last of the old school litre bikes imo. Traditionally litre bikes were stroked versions of their smaller brethren. This gave them big torque and big low rpm torque too. The GSXR 1000 was 9 lbs heavier than the 750 model.
Then there was a long gap. One of the longest waits in the class for redefinition. Power went up on various models in the class through those years but in small increments. Weights were not significantly changed, nor improved. Then a new standard hit town like a tornado.
5th was the 2010 BMW S1000RR. This bike redefined the litre bike class again. Light weight focus as a primary clean sheet design goal, and BMW went for the power juggernaut. This litrebike was designed like a bigger 600. It had a broad bore and short stroke. While torque and low rpm fun suffered, the high rpm power and limit were a new standard for the class. This bike again ended up with something around 20 hp more than any other bike in its class.
Since 2010, bikes are closer to the bmw in power (some more than others). But no big changes, yet. Soon hopefully.
It is interesting to see a cyclical nature in bike development, over and over again. Improvement/changes go bit by bit for a while, then wham, a manufacturer significantly ups the bar. Evolutionary then revolutionary. And these revolutionary changes come from a renewed focus on light weight as well as more horsepower.
Anyway, that is my trip down memory lane. What do others remember or think of in the litre bike class?
1st was the 1986 Suzuki GSXR 1100. The bike completely redefined its class. It was much lighter than its competition and got the class to back to the roots of a light motorcycle. I found a reference noting the 1986 GSXR 1100 was lighter than every japanese competitor's 750 of that year. What a shot to the class from Suzuki.
2nd was the 1992 Honda Fireblade (CBR 900RR). Between 1986 and 1992 the GSXR gained something like 50-60 lbs. All litre bikes were heavy. But the new Fireblade was extreme. The most extreme mainstream Honda ever made generally available at a reasonable price in my opinion. No other Honda bike reshuffled its bike class deck like this one. It truly was a "light is right" designed bike. The 1992 fireblade was a euro model available in Canada, the model did not come to the US until 1993. And at that point it was called a CBR 900RR. This makes the 1992 Fireblade a very rare bike in North America. The bike itself was only 4 lbs heavier than the CBR 600F2. With the light weight the magazines loved it. Hell, if you rode it you loved it. There were quicker and faster bikes (and 50-90 lbs heavier), but around a racetrack the Fireblade was at least a couple seconds faster per lap. And the Fireblade was much more of a fun lightweight hooligan machine. The first of the real wheelie monsters. Again, light makes right.
3rd was the 1998 Yamaha R1. From 1992 to 1998 even the fireblade got heavier and bigger. It lost some edge. Yamaha took its turn to put the litre bike class on reset. Again a very strong design emphasis on light weight, with added power. The R1 was even lighter than the 1992 fireblade, with a bigger engine and more power. With a bit of a nod to Ducati in styling, its looks were unique and a massive hit on the market. It looked like to be a long reign. Beautiful bike.
4th was the 2001 Suzuki GSXR 1000. Interestingly the pace of improvement quickened with this bike coming out only a few years after the R1. It was even lighter than the R1 and it had notably more hp. 15-20 hp more. It was one of the biggest hp jumps on a light weight litre bike that the class had ever seen, and it was only a few years after the R1. This bike (generation) represented the last of the old school litre bikes imo. Traditionally litre bikes were stroked versions of their smaller brethren. This gave them big torque and big low rpm torque too. The GSXR 1000 was 9 lbs heavier than the 750 model.
Then there was a long gap. One of the longest waits in the class for redefinition. Power went up on various models in the class through those years but in small increments. Weights were not significantly changed, nor improved. Then a new standard hit town like a tornado.
5th was the 2010 BMW S1000RR. This bike redefined the litre bike class again. Light weight focus as a primary clean sheet design goal, and BMW went for the power juggernaut. This litrebike was designed like a bigger 600. It had a broad bore and short stroke. While torque and low rpm fun suffered, the high rpm power and limit were a new standard for the class. This bike again ended up with something around 20 hp more than any other bike in its class.
Since 2010, bikes are closer to the bmw in power (some more than others). But no big changes, yet. Soon hopefully.
It is interesting to see a cyclical nature in bike development, over and over again. Improvement/changes go bit by bit for a while, then wham, a manufacturer significantly ups the bar. Evolutionary then revolutionary. And these revolutionary changes come from a renewed focus on light weight as well as more horsepower.
Anyway, that is my trip down memory lane. What do others remember or think of in the litre bike class?
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