There are plenty of sports bikes in the world, with newer companies coming through every year. However, there are very few sports bikes that are as iconic as the Hayabusa. Suzuki’s monster of a machine is one of the fastest, most striking looking sports bikes the world has ever seen.

The name “Hayabusa” is also Japanese for the “Peregrine Falcon.” This bird is known for reaching incredible speeds during its vertical dive. There are records of the falcon reaching speeds between 290-325 km/h, which is the fastest among all birds.

Suzuki went for the same ideology when launching the Hayabusa back in 1999. As soon as it came into production, it became one of the best performing bikes on the market. The raw performance you got was staggering. You could reach speeds above 300 km/h and beat supercars for acceleration easily. To this day, the Hayabusa is one of the premium performance bikes on the market.

Here are some of the lesser-known facts regarding this monster vehicle.

15 Fastest Production Motorcycle

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Upon the launch of the Hayabusa, Suzuki managed to create the most rapid production motorcycle on the market. The Bike could reach a top speed of 312 km/h, which blew the competition out of the water. This didn’t sit too well with other major bike manufacturers, and after a lot of lobbying, Suzuki put in a limiter at 300 km/h.

14 Ghost Rider’s Favorite

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Ghost Rider is a famous Swedish motorcycle stuntman and is arguably among the best in the world. His ride of choice is a black Suzuki Hayabusa. You can find him performing insane stunts in several of his YouTube videos. These regularly garner millions of views and display the full performance capabilities of the Hayabusa.

13 Insane Acceleration

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It has been two whole decades since the launch of the Suzuki Hayabusa. However, even to this day, it’s still among the fastest accelerating machines on the planet. You go from 0-100 km/h in mind-boggling 2.74 seconds. That’s enough to obliterate million-dollar supercars on any drag strip. Just be very careful!

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12 Even The Police Can’t Help Themselves

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Several Highway patrol units across the world have the Hayabusa as a part of their team. The first instance was in the year 2006; the government of Oklahoma would order a Hayabusa for the highway patrol. Its performance was so impressive that they ordered two more vehicles the very next year!

11 The Engine Is Used In Cars As Well!

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The Hayabusa engine is arguably among the most exceptional engines Suzuki has ever built. Due to its lightweight design and massive power output make it a prime switch for one-off racing cars. The Westfield Megabusa uses a Hayabusa engine while sporting a design that’s super similar to the iconic Lotus Seven!

10 Smartbusas!

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Smartbusa sells you a conversion kit, that’ll allow you to run your Smart car on a Hayabusa engine. Yes, we know, that sounds absolutely mental but nothing is stopping you from trying it out. The size of these cars makes them perfect for this sort of experiment. You can expect a significant improvement in performance!

9 Powering Aircraft

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Perhaps the biggest compliment to Suzuki’s Hayabusa engine is the fact that it found its way inside an airplane. Scott Wilson and John Lawson use two Hayabusa engines to help propel their prototype aircraft. The design of their engine is so diverse. It can help fuel more than just a lightweight superbike!

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8 Engineering Icon

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The Hayabusa engine’s inline-four design is truly an inspiration to those in the search for speed. Car designer Radical uses the model to replicate a V8 engine for one of their production vehicles. That same vehicle would go on to set the fastest time for any production car on the Nurburgring.

7 Koji Yoshiura Quote

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Koji Yoshiura is the man responsible for the design of Suzuki’s Hayabusa. He reveals that his intent while creating the Hayabusa was to create a grotesque design. His intentions were building a model that has such a strong impact; it becomes impossible to replace or recreate. Twenty years later, you can argue that he was very successful!

6 Suzuki VS Kawasaki

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The inception of the Hayabusa is responsible for the creation of the biggest rivalry in the superbike industry. Kawasaki and Suzuki regularly attempt to outdo each other with each new iteration of their superbikes. Before the release of the Hayabusa, there was no such threat to Kawasaki’s dominance!

5 Never Going Out Of Demand!

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When it comes to importing bikes, there are very few that can boast the popularity of the Hayabusa. The inline-four design of the engine makes it surprisingly tunable. If you’re willing to take the risk, you can get even more power out of these insane machines. You can also customize the look according to what you desire!

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4 Bill Warner Speed Record

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Bill Warner association with speed ultimately led him to his design. It’s no surprise, however, that he was riding a Kawasaki for one of his high-speed record attempts. In 2011, Bill hit a staggering 502.027 km/h on a heavily modified Suzuki Hayabusa. The performance capabilities of this machine are unparalleled.

3 Not Just A Speed Demon

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While most companies would forgo other features, to reach the ultimate performance mark in speed, Suzuki doesn’t make the same mistake. The Hayabusa is a brilliant bike when you’re just cruising as well. It has a surprisingly comfortable ride and is much more economical than its competitors. It’s an excellent all-round vehicle.

2 Hayabusa VS Blackbird

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Before the Busa came out, the Honda CBR1100XX blackbird would rule from the top of the superbike hierarchy. Suzuki was hellbent on changing that, which you can see from the Hayabusa name. Hayabusa’s or the “Peregrine Falcon” would regularly hunt and prey on the Blackbird. Yikes! Suzuki doesn’t play around!

1 Too Cool For Europe

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Several countries in Europe are starting to go against the Hayabusa. They are no longer road legal in such countries and can only be driven on tracks. Suzuki isn’t making any comments on the situation thus far. However, any plans for a new Hayabusa are far from concrete. Given its legendary status, fans are eagerly waiting for the latest iteration!

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