The Suzuki Hayabusa: A Speed Demon of Japanese Descent

Suzuki's iconic Blackbird eater is not just meant to go fast in a straight line; it's also designed to be comfortable while cruising on curvy canyon roads, making it the perfect sport tourer. The bike has become a staple among enthusiasts who modify them like Harleys in the 70s, with customizations ranging from single side guards to ride suspension and even turbo powers.

The Hayabusa engine is so reliable that you can slap a turbo on it without worrying about internal damage. In fact, the high horsepower and low weight combo made it an ideal candidate for other custom vehicles as well. Imagine a 900-horsepower twin Hayabusa-powered streamliner that set the world land speed record at 394 miles per hour - it's truly mind-boggling.

However, not everyone is pleased with the Hayabusa's dominance on the track. In 2003, Suzuki's rival Kawasaki released the ZX-12R, claiming it could hit the 200-mile-per-hour mark and become the new speed king. This claim, however, raised concerns among politicians that such high-speed hyper sport bikes would eventually lead to safety issues.

To address these concerns, manufacturers agreed on a gentleman's agreement not to exceed certain speeds. Suzuki, in particular, kept its promise by releasing an electronically limited top speed for the Hayabusa, which was lower than Kawasaki's claim. The following year, both companies released their new models with similar limitations.

The second-gen Hayabusa arrived in 2008, bearing a resemblance to its predecessor while incorporating some minor updates from the custom scene. The redesign was a hit among enthusiasts and helped maintain the bike's polarizing appearance.

In recent years, however, Suzuki has struggled to keep up with Kawasaki's H2 series, which broke the 400-kilometer barrier in various markets. With this success, it's likely that Suzuki will soon release its third-gen Hayabusa to take over the spotlight and reassert its dominance on the track.

As for the European market, the original Hayabusa model was discontinued due to stricter emissions regulations as of December 2018. This move left enthusiasts with a void in their speed-hungry hearts, but it's clear that Suzuki is still committed to creating bikes that push the limits of speed and performance.

In summary, the Suzuki Hayabusa has become an iconic symbol of speed and power, with its rich history and impressive customizations making it a favorite among enthusiasts. With new generations and limited-edition models on the horizon, fans can expect even more thrilling experiences from this legendary Japanese manufacturer.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enit's a motorcycle named after a bird that eats other birds a motorcycle so fast that the company who made it agreed to limited speed only a year after its initial release it broke the rules of what a sport bike could be an in doing so created a custom scene that's unlike any other to date this is everything you need to know to get up to speed on the Suzuki Hayabusa it's an early motorcycle I know that sometimes I can be a jokester but I also have a serious sight a classy side a sophisticated side excuse me can I get everyone's attention please I'd like to thank nas energy drink for partnering with up to speed and me James pump free this lavish event wouldn't have been possible without their love and their support so I'd like to make a toast to noughts energy drink two nos energy drink now back to the show car boys has always had an itch for going fast and our two wheel bro bros is no different going all the way back to 1907 when Glenn Curtis set a world speed record on a motorcycle with a v8 aircraft engine plucked between his legs he 136 miles per faster than any plane train automobile or John Candy so going fast on two wheels is nothing new the first bike to break 150 miles per hour speed record was the 1949 Vincent Black it was the fastest production bike for 35 years another 35 year old record you might not know about is my life I'm actually 34 in terms of just pure raw speed these bikes were ahead of the curve now fast forward to the 1980s the days of Teddy Ruxpin bears slap bracelets the decade of my birth but 1984 Kawasaki was sick of this Vincent Kompany holding the title and released upon the universe the GPC 911 our Saki ninja that set in motion a speed war in a two-wheeled game that would change hands for the next 15 years it took Kawasaki over six years to make in secret because of course ninjas do everything in secret and it was the world's first 16-valve liquid-cooled inline four-cylinder motorcycle engine it went a hundred and fifty-one miles per making it the first stock road bike to exceed 150 it was so badass they featured it in the little movie I don't know top friggin gun things we could do an entire up to speed on the ninja and I'm sure we will it's an iconic button but while Kawasaki was off basking in the light of success Suzuki was glum because three years prior they'd released the most powerful production bike ever the GSX 1100 katana it was a completely new design in the motorcycle world with sharp angles and bodywork that blended into the frame it looked like a vehicle plucked out of a Star Wars movie one of the good ones when I was a kid one of the only DHS's that we had was Return of the Jedi and I loved it and then I found out that it was the third movie in a trilogy yeah yeah for like years oh yeah and also they made a version with top speed record was flipping and flopping between manufacturers in the 90s from the Cowie tuba modem back to town right for harness showed up with their super Blackbird in 1996 let me tell you this was a quick birdie on 69 like all great Japanese vehicles the name Blackbird had meaning named after the Lockheed sr-71 blackbird the world's fastest plane blackbird singing in the dead of night this motorcycles so fast I'm gonna take it on the Honda was getting all this fast boy attention and Suzuki then my kids they went to work on their own speed machine and in 1999 Suzuki released their all-new motorcycle to the adrenaline themes all over the flat and hollow earth the GS x 1300 r ha Hayabusa means peregrine falcon in Japanese if you're curious as to why Suzuki named their new speed bike after a bird I'll give you a rundown one it can dive up to 200 miles per hour - they hunt and eat black birds the first gen Hayabusa had a liquid-cooled 16-valve inline four banger with double overhead cams he used a ram air system with two air intakes placed on both sides of the headlights at high speeds air rushing into the intakes will become pressurized as it whirled its way to the motor it was insanely fast with the top speed of 194 miles per it made acclaimed 173 horsepower and 98 foot-pounds of torque it was bulletproof engines with over 150,000 miles can be found still running strong to this day the booster could screen from 0 to 16 2.7 seconds to put down perspective the fastest 0 to 60 in a car in 1999 was the dodge Hennessey Venom Viper which was a full second slower the shape of the booster was created by Suzuki's Koji Yahshua tried his goal was to create a totally new styling that wouldn't be dated in a few years time a styling that would be the face of Suzuki the booster got its infamous looks from the extensive amount of wind tunnel testing performed with a rider on the bike from all the data they collected they shaped the bodywork specifically for high speed riding the tank was shaped to allow the rider's knees to tuck behind into the bike even further reducing drag at high speeds even the seat cowl was shaped to reduce drag and on top of everything it's got the Japanese character for the peregrine falcon or at least that is what the internet tells me Suki made sure their Blackbird eater wasn't just meant to go fast in a straight line technically the boosah was a sport tourer so it needed to be comfortable while cruising but still able to run on a track or there's curvy canyon roads everyone's always talking about in their quest for speed Suzuki had made the sportiest sporty sport touring bike effort and because the bike was such a blast to ride a lot of people bought and a lot of people that bought um modified them like Harley's in the seventies Hayabusas we're getting customized oh-hoo verts yeah anything your sweet little heart desired you can get done single side sweet guard yep a ride suspension yep Turbo Power baby alright yes the duck hawk got a turbo the engine was so reliable that you could freakin slap a turbo on it keep the internal stock and push your motorcycle to over 250 horsepower a high horsepower and low weight combo on the Hayabusa motor lended itself nicely into other custom vehicles as well you want a turbo boost a smart car on a Hayabusa modern replica of the Bugatti model 100 air racer yeah a 900 horsepower twin Hayabusa powered streamliner that set the world land speed record at 394 miles per as our french fans across the pond would say if they were in america yes but first i would like to add this year there one of our writers sara put one in a Miata boost even got featured in a hit summer blockbuster of 2003 biker boys The Fast and Furious of motorcycles with a fraction of the success but I shouldn't have to tell you of course you've seen it it's freaking biker boys Kawasaki was also working on a bike to dethrone the Blackbird at the time the ZX 12 R but the Busa beat them to it but Kawasaki was claiming though was that their new bike could hit the 200 mile per hour mark and for whatever reason 200 miles-per-hour was too fast for politicians 190 for sure but 200 heavens no this 200 mile per hour claim created a fear that this escalating speed war would end with Europe and other countries I guess that means America banning these high-speed hyper sport bikes so the manufacturers went off and made one of these gentlemen's agreements although Suzuki and Kawasaki never officially released a statement regarding the agreement the following year both the Hayabusa and ZX 12r had an electronically limited top speed Honda publicly stated that their bikes wouldn't exceed 186 miles per which is the nice and round 300 km/h for my foreign friend and it wouldn't be until 2008 that a second gen Hayabusa would be released they wanted to keep true to the look of the first gen but still updated a little bit so they came to the US and traveled around biker bars and motorcycle shows to see what they could take from the custom scene to influence the new design the redesign was a hit it built upon the already polarizing look of the previous gen while still giving it a light overhaul they made some engine tweaks the bike got bastard displacement increased to one thousand three hundred and forty CCS in horsepower got bumped up to 194 but major portions of the frame and engine were kept unchanged to save cost it's pretty much the same bike you can buy today 11 years later because of stricter euro for emissions regulations as of December 2018 the European Hayabusa model was discontinued was discontinued howdy does that feel Europe you get everything cool we'll get anything ever whoo-hoo son oh and you remember that gentleman's agree when we talked about earlier yeah it was broken in 2007 when MV Agusta broke it because they just didn't care anymore and soon kawasaki followed with the h2 are a track only bike that broke the 400 kilometer in our market but maybe just maybe suzuki will once again get fed up with sitting in the shadow of their green brother and make it third gen Hayabusa to take over the spotlight shout out to a nice energy back to the showit's a motorcycle named after a bird that eats other birds a motorcycle so fast that the company who made it agreed to limited speed only a year after its initial release it broke the rules of what a sport bike could be an in doing so created a custom scene that's unlike any other to date this is everything you need to know to get up to speed on the Suzuki Hayabusa it's an early motorcycle I know that sometimes I can be a jokester but I also have a serious sight a classy side a sophisticated side excuse me can I get everyone's attention please I'd like to thank nas energy drink for partnering with up to speed and me James pump free this lavish event wouldn't have been possible without their love and their support so I'd like to make a toast to noughts energy drink two nos energy drink now back to the show car boys has always had an itch for going fast and our two wheel bro bros is no different going all the way back to 1907 when Glenn Curtis set a world speed record on a motorcycle with a v8 aircraft engine plucked between his legs he 136 miles per faster than any plane train automobile or John Candy so going fast on two wheels is nothing new the first bike to break 150 miles per hour speed record was the 1949 Vincent Black it was the fastest production bike for 35 years another 35 year old record you might not know about is my life I'm actually 34 in terms of just pure raw speed these bikes were ahead of the curve now fast forward to the 1980s the days of Teddy Ruxpin bears slap bracelets the decade of my birth but 1984 Kawasaki was sick of this Vincent Kompany holding the title and released upon the universe the GPC 911 our Saki ninja that set in motion a speed war in a two-wheeled game that would change hands for the next 15 years it took Kawasaki over six years to make in secret because of course ninjas do everything in secret and it was the world's first 16-valve liquid-cooled inline four-cylinder motorcycle engine it went a hundred and fifty-one miles per making it the first stock road bike to exceed 150 it was so badass they featured it in the little movie I don't know top friggin gun things we could do an entire up to speed on the ninja and I'm sure we will it's an iconic button but while Kawasaki was off basking in the light of success Suzuki was glum because three years prior they'd released the most powerful production bike ever the GSX 1100 katana it was a completely new design in the motorcycle world with sharp angles and bodywork that blended into the frame it looked like a vehicle plucked out of a Star Wars movie one of the good ones when I was a kid one of the only DHS's that we had was Return of the Jedi and I loved it and then I found out that it was the third movie in a trilogy yeah yeah for like years oh yeah and also they made a version with top speed record was flipping and flopping between manufacturers in the 90s from the Cowie tuba modem back to town right for harness showed up with their super Blackbird in 1996 let me tell you this was a quick birdie on 69 like all great Japanese vehicles the name Blackbird had meaning named after the Lockheed sr-71 blackbird the world's fastest plane blackbird singing in the dead of night this motorcycles so fast I'm gonna take it on the Honda was getting all this fast boy attention and Suzuki then my kids they went to work on their own speed machine and in 1999 Suzuki released their all-new motorcycle to the adrenaline themes all over the flat and hollow earth the GS x 1300 r ha Hayabusa means peregrine falcon in Japanese if you're curious as to why Suzuki named their new speed bike after a bird I'll give you a rundown one it can dive up to 200 miles per hour - they hunt and eat black birds the first gen Hayabusa had a liquid-cooled 16-valve inline four banger with double overhead cams he used a ram air system with two air intakes placed on both sides of the headlights at high speeds air rushing into the intakes will become pressurized as it whirled its way to the motor it was insanely fast with the top speed of 194 miles per it made acclaimed 173 horsepower and 98 foot-pounds of torque it was bulletproof engines with over 150,000 miles can be found still running strong to this day the booster could screen from 0 to 16 2.7 seconds to put down perspective the fastest 0 to 60 in a car in 1999 was the dodge Hennessey Venom Viper which was a full second slower the shape of the booster was created by Suzuki's Koji Yahshua tried his goal was to create a totally new styling that wouldn't be dated in a few years time a styling that would be the face of Suzuki the booster got its infamous looks from the extensive amount of wind tunnel testing performed with a rider on the bike from all the data they collected they shaped the bodywork specifically for high speed riding the tank was shaped to allow the rider's knees to tuck behind into the bike even further reducing drag at high speeds even the seat cowl was shaped to reduce drag and on top of everything it's got the Japanese character for the peregrine falcon or at least that is what the internet tells me Suki made sure their Blackbird eater wasn't just meant to go fast in a straight line technically the boosah was a sport tourer so it needed to be comfortable while cruising but still able to run on a track or there's curvy canyon roads everyone's always talking about in their quest for speed Suzuki had made the sportiest sporty sport touring bike effort and because the bike was such a blast to ride a lot of people bought and a lot of people that bought um modified them like Harley's in the seventies Hayabusas we're getting customized oh-hoo verts yeah anything your sweet little heart desired you can get done single side sweet guard yep a ride suspension yep Turbo Power baby alright yes the duck hawk got a turbo the engine was so reliable that you could freakin slap a turbo on it keep the internal stock and push your motorcycle to over 250 horsepower a high horsepower and low weight combo on the Hayabusa motor lended itself nicely into other custom vehicles as well you want a turbo boost a smart car on a Hayabusa modern replica of the Bugatti model 100 air racer yeah a 900 horsepower twin Hayabusa powered streamliner that set the world land speed record at 394 miles per as our french fans across the pond would say if they were in america yes but first i would like to add this year there one of our writers sara put one in a Miata boost even got featured in a hit summer blockbuster of 2003 biker boys The Fast and Furious of motorcycles with a fraction of the success but I shouldn't have to tell you of course you've seen it it's freaking biker boys Kawasaki was also working on a bike to dethrone the Blackbird at the time the ZX 12 R but the Busa beat them to it but Kawasaki was claiming though was that their new bike could hit the 200 mile per hour mark and for whatever reason 200 miles-per-hour was too fast for politicians 190 for sure but 200 heavens no this 200 mile per hour claim created a fear that this escalating speed war would end with Europe and other countries I guess that means America banning these high-speed hyper sport bikes so the manufacturers went off and made one of these gentlemen's agreements although Suzuki and Kawasaki never officially released a statement regarding the agreement the following year both the Hayabusa and ZX 12r had an electronically limited top speed Honda publicly stated that their bikes wouldn't exceed 186 miles per which is the nice and round 300 km/h for my foreign friend and it wouldn't be until 2008 that a second gen Hayabusa would be released they wanted to keep true to the look of the first gen but still updated a little bit so they came to the US and traveled around biker bars and motorcycle shows to see what they could take from the custom scene to influence the new design the redesign was a hit it built upon the already polarizing look of the previous gen while still giving it a light overhaul they made some engine tweaks the bike got bastard displacement increased to one thousand three hundred and forty CCS in horsepower got bumped up to 194 but major portions of the frame and engine were kept unchanged to save cost it's pretty much the same bike you can buy today 11 years later because of stricter euro for emissions regulations as of December 2018 the European Hayabusa model was discontinued was discontinued howdy does that feel Europe you get everything cool we'll get anything ever whoo-hoo son oh and you remember that gentleman's agree when we talked about earlier yeah it was broken in 2007 when MV Agusta broke it because they just didn't care anymore and soon kawasaki followed with the h2 are a track only bike that broke the 400 kilometer in our market but maybe just maybe suzuki will once again get fed up with sitting in the shadow of their green brother and make it third gen Hayabusa to take over the spotlight shout out to a nice energy back to the show