Suzuki GSX1550

Name: Andy Taylor. Age: 27. Job: Telecoms consultant. Previous bikes: Honda CBR600; Suzuki SV650; Hornet 250. Bike: GSX1550. Tuner: Richard Albans at TTS. Power: 157bhp (stock 97bhp). Torque: 120ftlb (stock 93ftlb)

” I went down to a dealer last September, saw the GSX1400 and fell in love! I bought it, then figured out how to pay for it.

” I knew I would want more and I thought this might have the potential. After talking to TTS I found it does! As stock, the GSX has a fair amount of power and torque, but it’s a 1400cc – it should make more. I can’t ride sports bikes after injuring my knee, but I wanted that kind of performance. I know this won’t keep up in corners but I wanted to have a chance in a straight line. I also like the idea of having something that doesn’t look that special but does the business.

” It’s a work in progress. At the moment it’s got 157bhp on the dyno and it’s mental when you wind it up. With 96ftlb of torque as soon as you let the clutch out you’d think it would be a handful but around town it’s great. When you open it up it really roars, it’s fantastic!

” Around 5500rpm it’s a bit lurchy, but TTS haven’t finished with the fuelling yet. At Santa Pod it did a 10.3-second quarter mile at about 132mph and it’ll do 0-100mph in about six seconds.

” It’s hard to hold on to at speed. I’ve added a little screen and that makes 90mph cruising possible, but I went for a naked bike to slow me down. I travel a lot and can’t afford to lose my licence. The windblast is a constant reminder if you go too quick.

” That said, it’s comfortable. I can do 350 miles in a day and still walk afterwards. I can’t do that with a sports bike. ”

What the tuner did

Richard Albans at TTS is a Suzuki specialist. He did the work on the GSX.

” You can see from parts like the conrods that the bike was only intended to have 100bhp, they look like they’re made for a small two-stroke, but there’s a lot of tuning potential. First we put an Akrapovic full system on it. Then there are TTS cams in the head, JE 1550 pistons that take the bore from 81 to 85mm, and a gas-flowed and skimmed head that raises compression from 9.5:1 to 12:1. To take the power we’ve put TTS forged conrods in.

” We’re working on bigger throttle bodies, modifying GSX-R1000 ones up to 45mm. We’ve added a Techlusion TFI box (similar to a Power Commander) but it needs more fuel. The throttle bodies will help but we’re also working on an air filter. We’re making up an alloy plate that will cover all four bellmouths and then a single filter to go over that. I think it’ll be good for near 180bhp when we’re finished. The midrange is awesome. We don’t want to lose that. ”

Riding it

This is a bike that will surprise quite a few people. It’s capable of a genuine 164mph and that little screen makes a world of difference at that speed.

Staying in control of the rear tyre is something else. The rear Bridgestone BT56 was well worn and span so easily that fast launches were something of a problem, but get it going and it really does let rip. The high, wide bars tug at your shoulders and you feel the need to hunch over the tank to keep your arms in their sockets and the front wheel down.

Out of corners, it’s got the sort of grunt that makes you scared to wind it on until you’re upright for fear of the rear wheel kicking sideways. With the right amount of contact patch it will keep up with most sports bikes. The straight line performance is stunning, and exaggerated by a riding position that seems to stretch your arms as you twist the throttle.

The chassis needs work. The rear is wallowy making it steer badly in the corners. It feels worse than a stock bike and wants to run wide – the result of the rear end squashing down and taking weight off the front under all that power. But owner Andy Taylor plans to get that just as sorted as the engine.