So there I was hungrily devouring the "Cycle World Exclusive!" first-ride intro article on the brandy-new Suzuki M109R, which opened with the evocative title "Haya-Cruiza", an obvious play on the Hayabusa sportike name, intended to illustrate the high-performance intent of the new Suzuki cruiser. "Haya-Cruisa, huh? Class-leading weightloss, class leading hp, oughta be kewl!", thinks I, in my momentary naivete.
I was captivated by the discussion of certain engine details, as the bike includes a vertiable plethora of GSXR-developed technologies, as well as stepping outside some of the usual cruiser-conventional wisdoms - as the extreme oversquare 112 x 90.5 mm bore and stroke, which , in the CW article, was claimed to help shorten the engine height, (along with the semi-dry-sump lubrication system) and provide a lighter engine package and low center of gravity...
But then I read a particular photo caption which mentioned a claimed dry weight of 720 pounds...*gulp*. 720 pounds, claimed? Look, I've been around the patch a few times, and it's been my observation that the manufacturers' "Claimed Dry Weight" is usually taken a the tip of the markenting guys pen - or, rather, the output cable of his keyboard - and that the actual weight will be somewhat, and often substantially, heavier. I'm thinking, with full fluids, including a 1/2 tank of gas, that thing's gotta be up around 780, maybe 800 lbs, and very possibly more. With me on it, in full riding regalia, we're talkin' 1000 lbs about, of bike and rider.
Sigh...That's sure a big-ass load of motorcycle to lug around. I got to thinking back to my old '93 1400, what I considered a heavyweight at about 580 lbs fulla gas...whatever, maybe it's me, diverging farther and farther from the conventional cruiserista mindset, but heavy bikes, in general, are a lot harder to wrestle around at speed, than lighter. I know most cruiseristi don't mind the old-school Pinto-sized levels of "Road Hugging Weight" that the current crop of mega-cruisers embrace, but, uh, I think it's loony...as well as being somewhat anti-performance.
(Please, save me the anecdotes about how heavier bikes can resist being blown around on the highway better than lighter bikes, as it's usually up to the rider to control the motorcycle, right? I'll be filing those claims away right next to the loud-pipes fascisiti stories of how they saved their own lives by using their exaust noise as a substitute for their HORNS. "Ka-WOOOSH" says Mr. Toilet!).
It's a really good thing that this - admittedly sleek, well proportioned, sshhinnnnneeee, and interestingly styled - tank has GSXR brakes, because it'll certainly need them. There's also a claim of 123 hp at the crank, but as with dry weight, mfgr's claims are usually suspect. C'mon, MConline dyno tests!
Performance motorcycle? 720 pounds? Man, my oxymoron alarm is going of like gangbusters. The paradox is too much for my little pea brain.
If you want to read the article, pick up the 12/05 ish of CW.
