![]() A friend of mine who’s been riding since before the original Katana debuted sat on this bike and looked at me with a confused face – “did they make it a 500?” I can understand why he asked. But this is better than most factory offerings.Ī big reason why I like riding the new Katana is how compact it feels. ![]() That makes me feel old, but I think the silver looks better, as the black hides the styling edges and turns the whole bike into a blob in all but the best lighting situations.ĭon’t get me wrong – I’d still call up Yoshimura for an exhaust. Their thought process is that older riders will prefer silver, as it reminds them of the original bikes, while younger riders will prefer black. Suzuki reps project sales between the two colors to be roughly half, which is insane to me. The new Katana is available in two color options: Metallic Mystic Silver and Solid Black. I strongly agree – this is a beautiful bike and a welcome respite from the robot insect-styling that’s so pervasive in modern motorcycling. Nathan sees me on motorcycles all the time, and he has mentioned on multiple occasions how good the Katana looks while moving. That brings us to the third and current generation. The second generation was unfairly looked down upon by the American market (you may have heard it referred to as the “Can of Tuna”), so let’s just skip that one for now. The original Katana is a legend, and we’ve featured several here on Bike-urious. I don’t mean to overemphasize how important styling is by starting with it – my personal garage (and most of the adventure bike segment) is plenty of proof that a bike doesn’t have to be good-looking to sell. If you don’t care for it, then the $2,400 premium over a GSX-S1000 is a waste of money. I happen to love it, though I know styling is subjective. The appeal of the Katana is mostly superficial – it will only make sense if you like the way it looks. Feel free to join in the spirit while you read along. Pop on over to Suzuki’s site if you absolutely need to know details like how many links there are in the chain (the answer is 116).Įvery time I ride the Katana, I feel obligated to listen to 80s music. So in lieu of a traditional “first ride” review, let’s just focus on the specific things that I like and don’t like so far in my first couple of months with the Katana. ![]() That doesn’t feel particularly necessary with the Katana, as it shares a whole lot with the GSX-S1000. Typically when I do a review, I’ll spend some time discussing the chassis, drivetrain, and other core concepts that might be new. Maybe it’s just because I’m a child of the 80s, but I love the way this bike looks, on one wheel or two. ![]()
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