25 Years Ago February, 1983
25 YEARS AGO FEBRUARY, 1983
"The look of speed, the feel of Formula One, with more
power than ever.” So read the copy accompanying a full test of the 1983 Suzuki Katana 1100. The styling was out there, the riding position aggressive, the $4599 price expensive, and the bike was said to be best suited to high-speed work. A11.05-second, 123.65-mph quarter-mile run made the Katana the quickest stock streetbike tested by CW.
• That run was nothing compared to what Terry Vance and his tuner Byron Hines managed to achieve with their Top Fuel Suzuki. The story was called “The 200-mph Problem,” and the subtitle read, “Terry Vance was the first man to go 200 mph in the quarter. He’s not sure he wants to do it again.” The 590-horsepower, blown 1325cc inline-Four ran a 6.98-second, 203-mph pass. Vance recounted years later that the aerodynamics were not very good and that because of the special cast-iron engine cases, riding the bike was like trying to fly a dart with the weight in the wrong spot. At 200 mph. Wheel
• On the weird side of things, a small ad from Equalean showed a leaning sidecar the company actually called a “non-sidecar.” The ad also said one of their products was featured on the TV show CHiPs. Must not have had the hoped-for marketing effect.
• The story of the $8000 Englishmade Hesketh V1000 was termed the “Official Obituary” of Lord Alexander Hesketh’s attempt to “drag the British bike industry into the Eighties.” Undeniably cool and an admirable effort, but the company was underfunded and production ground to a halt. Mark Hoyer
