Suzuki GSX-S 1000 F

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• 17950 km - June 11, 2021
  Coming soon! If all goes well, coming next Wednesday. The Fireblade will be traded in and the Bandit is up for sale.
  Why this particular bike? Well, I was looking for an optimal mix of all the things I liked most about all of my bikes so far. Every bike is a compromise, so you're always looking for a sort of "best of"; and that list changes over the years, so never a dull moment... My list of wishes and requirements at this point in time:
  
  • An insane engine that revs like the Fireblade - although I still think I liked the ZX-12 engine the best because of the midrange torque it had over the Fireblade. So a 150+ bhp, K5 GSX-R1000 derived engine, tuned for more midrange torque, sounds like a great idea.
  • Full fairing, but a bit more relaxed (and larger) than the Fireblade.
  • Not too heavy. The Bandit was too heavy really, and so was the ZX-12. The GSX-S should be somewhere between the Fireblade and ZX-12.
  • Designed for fast road riding. The ZZR's, Blackbirds, ZX-12 and Bandit were not meant for tight corners. And the 999 and Fireblade were extremely accurate, but at the expense of comfort. And I'd like a bit of both :-)
  The only other candidate I seriously considered was the Kawasaki Z1000SX. Meets all the criteria listed above (although it is a bit heavier), and looks great, but from what I gathered it is a bit more of a touring bike that goes very fast - while the GSX-S is more of a very fast bike that can be used for touring. Small difference, but I liked the Fireblade so much that I suspect I'll prefer the latter philosophy :-)
• 17950 km - June 16, 2021
  Got it! It looks great (the red paint is just as nice as I had hoped), and it fits - at least when standing still :-) Haven't ridden it yet, but the insurance has been arranged, so I'll take it for a spin this afternoon. Even though it is 29 degrees Celsius outside...
• 18250 km - June 20, 2021
  Took it out for a couple of rides over the last few days. I like it! And I must say it look great as well, better in person than on pictures - that's a bonus :-)
  Some first impressions:
  • Great: The exhaust is civilized, even without a db-killer, but not too quiet. So a big improvement over the Fireblade.
  • Great: Wind protection is perfect for me. No weird turbulence but you can still feel the air rushing by, which I prefer over a "car-like" experience that a real touring screen would provide.
  • Great: Brakes as just fine - also the rear brake, which feels (and works) a lot better than the Fireblade and Bandit.
  • Great: Very little vibration in handlebars or footpegs. A lot less than both Fireblade and Bandit.
  • Great: Gearbox and clutch, both work perfectly.
  • Good: The Pirelli Angels STs are fine; a bit more movement on ridges and road repairs that I'd like, but no problem. I should have checked the tyre pressure beforehand though - front was 2.5 bar but rear was 3.1... Setting that to 2.5 front and rear did improve things.
  • So-so: At high speeds the bike is a bit sensitive to crosswinds. At one time this caused a slight speed wobble - nothing dramatic but I didn't expect it either. Maybe better rear suspension would help.
  • So-so: Very direct throttle response. A known issue on this bike, and it is manageable, but smoothing this out would be nice. Also the on-off effect is a bit annoying, as expected. But both are about a bad as on the Fireblade (maybe a bit worse), so I can live with that for now.
  • Bad: Rear suspension. The front is fine but the rear is a pogo stick really... Both the Fireblade and the Bandit were a lot better at handling the speedbumps around here - the GSX really hurts your back if you go at even half the speed I managed on the Fireblade. So that has to be fixed. I checked all the suspension settings, and they were all set to factory settings.

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Options & Extras

• Pirelli Angel ST, good as new
• Yoshimura slip-on R11
• Barracuda licenseplate holder
• Tankpad
• Tankprotectors (side)
• Barracuda led indicators (front and rear)
• R&G Bobbins


• Battery charge lead for the Optimate III charger
• SW-Motech EVO Tankring (for both EVO Daypack and EVO Trial tank bags)
• Datona front wheel chock & rear wheel paddock stand Xtreme, both black

To do

• Heated grips: Use the ones from the Bandit, those are fine.
• Suspension: Front is fine, but the rear certainly isn't. I'll play around with the rebound and damping settings, but I don't have a lot of confidence in that really. So a rear shock upgrade like a Hyperpro SU10-1AJ is an option.
• Tyres? The Angel ST's are more of a sport-touring tyre than my favourite 2CT's, so we'll see. They might be perfect for testing the traction control however :-)
• Fuelling: I can live with it, but an improvement would be nice - so maybe ECU remapping, Power Commander V, Throttle Tamer, TPS adjustment, etc. The ZX-12 and the Fireblade both had similar issues, but the GSX seems a bit worse in that respect.
  So some options are:
• Woolich ECU remap, e.g. at Druijff Racing.
• Change the throttle tube to that of the 2019-2020 model GSX-S 1000 (which is the same as for the Katana 2020). So replace 57110-21H02-000 with 57110-07L00-000. Some more info here and on Youtube.

Manuals

• 2016 Owner's Manual (html and pdf).
• 2018 Owner's Manual (pdf).

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