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TL1000s review


Stu
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bloody hell where do i start with this one!!!


mine is a 1997 model registered in 98 production ran from early 97 to 2001 with minor engine and ecu adjustments to tame the bike :shock:


i never paid for it i swapped it for my old gsxr600 :?


owned it for the last 5 years!


with mine been the 97 model it has the full power ecu which is irrelevent now with power commanders but whats more important is the engine has bigger inlet ports then the others 8-)


mine has been recalled to have a steering damper fitted due to the power and crap suspension and the front end going a little (read a lot) light it used to tank slap big time and killed a few people which was then given a name of a widow maker! suzuki's answer was to recall them and fit a damper and dismissed anything said about the new revolutionary rotary damper system on the rear suspension!


as you can guess from above the rear suspension was different and crap it consisted of a separate spring and damper unit the spring was mounted on the right running along side the engine and the rear damper was a new design where the internals turn rather then a piston moving in and out hence rotary damper the idea was brought up so they could keep the wheelbase short so it handled really well, the rotary damper just didnt work full stop it was too hard to the point that suspension mounts could snap!! the oil could not flow through the valves quick enough anyway for those that doesnt knwo what the damper looks like heres a pic


http://i.ebayimg.com/21/!B-W5(s!!mk~$(KGrHqJ,!g4Ezd9iqNZ4BM8gBkg!,w~~_3.JPG


the front suspesion isnt too bad can be a little too soft but easily sorted


i replaced the rear system for a bitubo which does away with the oe spring and damper and puts it all together like it should be and while doing so transforms the bike 8-)


the handling of the bike is great now i have rid of the rear suspension! they can be made to handle with the rotary damper it just take a lot of work


the engine is spot on its a 90 degree V twin i have 34k on mine and at 28k was checked over and only needed 2 valves adjusting as they was slightly out! i know of a few of these engines with over 200k on the clock and only ever done routine maintenance on them they dont have a lot of power 125bhp but they have bags of torque about 80lb which is what matters you can squeeze 135bhp and about 90lb of torque from them but costs the earth!!


the riding position is full on race so no comfort at all i have done 400 miles in a day on mine and it almost killed me!


a lot of people swap the rear 190/50 tyre for a 180/55 to make it steer quicker i tried one and was always on the edge of the tyre and it moved about a lot!! the rear rim is 6 inch wide and a 180 tyre is made for a 5.5 inch rim so your stretching it out which isnt good! i now run a 190/55 which is the same hight as the 180 but is the right width so steers quicker and sticks like glue only had the rear slide a few times with the 190 8-)


the front brakes arent that great as you only have 4 pot calipers! but can easily be swapped for a set of 6 pots and a bigger master cylinder for less then £100 ive never have a problem with the brakes but its a big v twin you dont need brakes :lol:


ive done a few tastefull mods to mine undertray led rear light with built in indicators fender extender hugger and the most important bit a set of yoshimura open race cans 8-) the sound is amazing from them


a power commander is a must to smooth out the throttle response otherwise you may aswell have it on a on and off switch :lol:


hmmmmmm reading back through all this the bike doesnt sound all that great!! but they are brilliant bikes all the little bits are outweighed by the grin factor


if i got rid of this i would have another one tomorrow no questions asked :)



overall they are an excellent bike with a few quirks but once you ride one its miles of smiles :mrgreen:

TL1000s.jpg

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  • 4 months later...

Was having a quick read about the TL1000's and they sound a handfull but fun :D

Do you find you have to battle to keep the front down when giving it some, with all their torque?


And have you ever had a go on the newer SV1000's and what do you think of the two bikes? SV more boring or a improvement over the TL?

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Was having a quick read about the TL1000's and they sound a handfull but fun :D

Do you find you have to battle to keep the front down when giving it some, with all their torque?


And have you ever had a go on the newer SV1000's and what do you think of the two bikes? SV more boring or a improvement over the TL?

 


I don't really battle to keep the front down I don't mind it lifting I have got used to it over the past 5 and half years and know how much to give it without it coming up too much although its very easy to lift in almost any gear but Im not one for wheelies


Yeah I have ridden the SV it is a little bit more comfy and less power I found it boring it is the same engine in both but the SV has different cams although the fuel injection standard is better but that makes no difference with a power commander I have also ridden with a few of them and on a drag I pull away pretty easily

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Sounds awesome stu, mind you not a bike i will be considering for a long time as by the sounds of it they are much more of a handfull than a fireblade or the alike.

Do you do any track days with it and how dose it compair to the fireblades exc? im guessing not quite as fast on a track as the blades have a hp advantage? but when pulling away in general everyday use (not right in the power band) the torque from the vtwin must be so much better.


You got any vids of it btw? would be nice to take a look at it :)

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to be honest its about on par with the blades of the same year not a lot in it its when you get on the twistys these things come in to their own just wind it on in any gear and it goes and V twins produce a different wave of power which makes it much harder to spin the rear its not impossible it just takes a lot more throttle as i have found out :lol:


Ive never done a trackday on this so cant really comment


pulling away in everyday use there is just power right from 2000rpm all the way to 9500 redline is 10500

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