The All-New 2017 Suzuki GSX-R1000 and GSX-R1000R

Suzuki is finally going to release an all-new GSX-R1000 with upgrades to make up for an eight-year gap between new models.

The all-new Suzuki GSX-R1000 will officially be launched at the 38th Bangkok International Motor Show, which starts next week, the new flagship sportbike is expected to sell at a higher price as the current GSX-R1000 ABS. The new Suzuki GSX-R1000 will also be split into two separate models, one the standard GSX-R1000 and the GSX-R1000R.

We’re told that the jump in price is significant from the outgoing model, but buyers can expect much more bang for their money, with the motorcycles now the performance-class leaders.

Think 149kW (200 horsepower) at 13,200rpm, 118Nm at 10,800rpm and top speed of more than 280km/h, thanks in part to a shorter-stroke engine, higher compression ratio and variable valve timing.

But the upgrades don’t stop at the engine. Its electronics package has also moved ahead three generations since the last all-new GSX-R1000 was released in 2009. It comes with ride-by-wire throttle, launch control, and auto-blipping up-and-down quickshifter, a new management system, and an inertia measuring unit, which works with new sensors in the wheels, gear, crank and throttle.

Traction control, meanwhile, has 10 modes and the GSX-R1000’s braking system has also improved. The stainless-steel Brembo brakes are 10mm larger in diameter, and the monobloc calipers feature a radial-pump master cylinder. The standard model maybe available without ABS and the GSX-R1000R’s ABS can be turned off with a workshop tool.

Chassis-wise, the new GSX-R1000’s wheelbase is shorter, it has less trail, a longer swingarm and a lighter frame, for a wet weight of between 200 and 203 kilograms, depending on ABS inclusion and model. The chassis is also 20mm narrower than its predecessor’s.

According to Suzuki, that makes the motorcycles the most compact, most aerodynamic and the best-handling GSX-R1000s ever.

For suspension, the GSX-R1000R gets the high-spec Showa ‘Balance Free’ forks and shock, and the standard GSX-R1000 gets Showa big-piston forks and Showa shock.

The 38th Bangkok International Motor Show is from 28th March until 9 April 2017, at IMPACT Muang Thong Thani, Challenger Hall 1 to 3.