2007 Literbike Shootout - Mind the Gap

The subway system in London covers hundreds of miles of track and ferries almost 3 million people about town every day. It’s by far the easiest way to get around the huge metropolis and is a major part of that city’s culture. Affectionately known as the underground or the tube, some of the stations date back more than 100 years. Because the system is constantly in a state of flux, the trains don’t often line up perfectly with the station platform, leading to a sometimes significant gap that must be traversed to enter or exit a car. Constant warnings, by sign and by loudspeaker, warn passengers to “mind the gap.”

Suzuki engineers no doubt faced a dilemma when it came time to update the already incredible GSX-R1000. With a nice collection of literbike comparison-test wins, national Superbike championships and even a World Superbike title to its credit, the old model comfortably outpaced its rivals in many arenas. But as emissions standards tighten dramatically with every iteration, all manufacturers face the definite possibility that a new model, being progressively strangled by these requirements, may not perform as well as the old. While the GSX-R1000 has won our last two literbike showdowns, the ‘07 model is chal lenged by not only stiff competition from the other two new models in the group, but also the very real danger that it could fall into the clutches of the two carryover models. We can just imagine the Suzuki bosses hovering over the engineers as they toiled on the new GSX-R, urging them not only to make the new bike superior to the old, but also to mind the gap the old model had over its competitors.

Photo Gallery: 2007 Literbike Shootout - Sport Rider Magazine

Read More |
Digg It |
Add to del.icio.us

Popularity: 2% [?]

Tags: Literbike, Shootout

Posted on October 8th, 2007 by Klaus Roe
Filed under: Photo