#MakeSuzukiGreatAgain | Motokicx

Suzuki says goodbye to MotoGP. I really can’t shake the impression that building motorcycles really doesn’t seem to interest anyone anymore in Hamamatsu. Suzuki once spearheaded the Japanese reconstruction after World War II with Honda, four-stroke Honda and two-stroke Suzuki – credit where credit is due, loom builder Suzuki literally stole two-stroke technology from East German MZ when she became MZ factory pilot in 1961. and tech Ernst Degner.

Suzuki and Honda thus formed the main cornerstones of Japan’s economic reconstruction, with (from the 1960s) exceptionally high-performing and quality motorcycles. Shortly afterwards followed by piano builder Yamaha who in turn and through espionage got their hands on the MZ/Suzuki two-stroke technology; after which Degner went from Suzuki to shipbuilder Kawasaki to repeat his overflow trick. This is the origin of the Japanese motorcycle giants in a nutshell.

Aside from oodles of GP successes from 1962 through the 80s, in 1993 and 2000 (and in MX even longer), Suzuki regularly handed out motorized uppercuts. In 1985, the brand single-handedly launched the ex-factory racing replica with the GSX-R750. It would herald the beginning of the sports motorcycle madness that gripped motorcyclist Jan Modaal well into the 2000s. The GSX-R1000 K1 did just that, and the K5 is the best analog superbike ever made, crowned with a World Championship Superbike title. In addition, the Gixxer is and remains the World Championship Endurance engine to beat, witness current world champion Xavier Siméon.

In 1999, Suzuki threw the Hayabusa on top. Eventually faster ‘hyperbikes’ have been made, the Hayabusa remains the best as the first to really run 300. Self-checked by the way. The Suzuki SV was (and is) one hell of a naked middle-class car and the V-Stroms should be next to the word ‘proper’ in every encyclopedia. But since the 2008 financial crisis, Suzuki seems to be slowly imploding. Unlike Honda, their automotive division has never fully established itself, especially in the US.

In addition, they seem to share in the dieselgate blows due to the use of Stelantis engines, which could be a possible cause for the MotoGP withdrawal. In the Eastern markets, their cheaper models are pushed away by even cheaper Chinese. The result is that Suzuki seems to have stopped all development, whether or not because they simply don’t have the money anymore.

Yet in their annual figures I read a total sales figure of 3,400 billion yen, with profits of roughly 200 billion yen. Converted from a depreciating yen to euros, this means 1.5 billion euros in profit. In a corona crisis year. For comparison: at Honda I read (as a total stock market layman) 582 billion yen profit, which does not seem like a huge difference in percentage. Then I think there must be more to do than a V-Strom with a Katana headlamp?

If you look at the current line-up of the brand, it still consists of SVs, V-Stroms and – sure enough – the Hayabusa. The rest, apart from an occasional scooter and the current GSX-S, are essentially still direct derivatives of the GSX-R K5 from 2005. And those things all remain good, don’t get me wrong, but in the meantime everyone has it seen something. A low point, as far as I’m concerned, was the illustrious Katana that was revived with – surprise surprise – a K5 derivative and a design that was plucked from an Italian motorcycle magazine.

If you see how many European brands – but also Kawasaki and Yamaha – have withstood the past crises, then it should have been possible for Suzuki too? And now they are discontinuing that one, not entirely unsuccessful, prestige project that at least indicated to me that they still had new engines in the pipeline somewhere. Or at least had a pipeline. My heart as a motorcycle enthusiast does not only bleed for the brand, but also for their importers, dealers and brand enthusiasts. #MakeSuzukiGreatAgain