“THE TFT DASH IS A BIG STEP FORWARD…”
It was late in the day on a lazy Sunday afternoon. The shadows were growing as the GSX-S descended the Oxley Highway, taking me down the great divide. Despite breakfast being 350km earlier, I was fresh and focussed to take on the unrelenting turns down the mountain, able to enjoy the lack of traffic, the smooth blacktop. It was a perfect example of what sports-tourers are built for — long distances and twisty roads.
Suzuki’s new GSX-S1000GT has arrived, delayed by COVID-19 and strong demand around the world for a fast, capable and affordable sports-tourer at a time where the class has been on the wane.
VALUE AND PRICE
The GT follows a clever design path to value by drawing on Suzuki’s GSX-R heritage and incorporating modern elements where needed. It does this using an upgraded 2005 superbike engine and many generic parts from other bikes in its range (but mostly the GSX-S1000 and Katana).
The net result is litre-class sports-tourer with lots of tech and well equipped for 19 grand (plus $1847 for the panniers). There are European competitors that are double that, so it’s a great-value bike (although when 2023 production starts coming through I’m expecting a price rise).
The engine may have originated from a mid-2000s GSX-R, but it’s been continually developed, and it may now be one of the
