In-line four-cylinder muscle bikes are a big part of the motorcycle culture in Japan. They score high in terms of practicality and yet have a high power output. Also, these machines have proven to be among the most reliable motorcycles in the world. However, if you were to look at some of the best muscle bikes from Japan, one might argue that, visually, they look a bit bland. Not to forget, some of them may not sound great too. However, the bike we are talking about is a black sheep in that herd and originally, it comes from Suzuki which is known for making iconic motorcycles like the Suzuki Hayabusa.
This motorcycle is a 2008 Suzuki GSX1400 owned by custom motorcycle aficionado Luke. With the help of Tom Gilroy and his team at Purpose Built Moto, they built an achingly beautiful iteration. Luke has earlier worked with the same team before on his CBX1000 cafe racer and after being impressed with their work, he decided to ink a deal with them once again but this time, with the GSX1400. Initially, the motorcycle project began with just cosmetic updates, some mild engine performance mods, and better handling. The final product, clearly, went on a bit further and created an identity of its own.
And in today’s time, when custom motorcycles can go well beyond the $100,000 mark, this custom Suzuki gets a lot of things right, making it one of the best café racers that we have seen in recent times.
What's New On The Custom Suzuki?
To start with, the motorcycle was completely stripped of its stock parts. Most of the factory body parts were sent to the bin except for the fuel tank. Early in the brainstorming process, Tom and Luke had agreed on white wheels, hence, the color palette took form. Shortly, the wheels were sent off to paint while work began on the subframe.
Tom shortened the tail section of the motorcycle and fitted it with a generously-padded Alcantara seat from Timeless Auto Trim. What followed was the addition of the longer YSS shock absorbers that were fitted to the new shock mounts, raising the rear of the bike. The steering head angle was also sharpened for a more aggressive stance and look.
The front look of the motorcycle looks as mean as the rear. It gets a custom fender that looks perfectly in line with the white wheel and white-painted lower fork legs. Tom put together the front fender using one of Purpose Built Moto’s own fender kits.
The rather quirky headlight is a 4.5-inch PBM LED headlight, which acts as a high beam. Meanwhile, the low beam is taken care of by a pair of small projector lights that are mounted on the top of the air cooler (a design element that harks back to the Honda CBX1000 build). The low beam lights also get their own shrouds with paint to match.
It is quite interesting that the headlight nacelle, rear cowling, and the shrouds that protect the low beams were all hand-beaten out of an aluminum sheet. Post the fitting, the front lighting assembly took up the space of the instrument panel, and hence, a Daytona gauge had to be mounted onto the bar clamps. Speaking of which, the stock bars on the motorcycles were swapped out for a set of black ProTaper Contour units, adorned ProTaper grips, PBM’s own 3-button switches, and a pair of 3-inch mirrors.
The Custom GSX1400 Gets Purpose-Built Electronics
Before his time building bikes, Gilroy specialized in custom motorcycle electronics. Purpose Built Moto still offers all its products for sale and the full suite of the same was used on the motorcycle. This means, from the switches up front, to the lighting and the Black Box control module under the seat, everything came from the shop’s shelves.
After this, Tom wanted to plan something special with the exhaust, so he left the stock headers in place, and then fabricated a connector that is pulled through the subframe. Gilroy also terminated the rear cowl by using a custom-made muffler made from 3.0-inch perforated tubing with two-stage muffler packing inside. For those who are wondering, yes, this thing would sound as sweet as you can imagine.
The Heart Of The Custom Suzuki GSX1400
The mechanicals on the motorcycle was pretty much retained. Purpose Built Moto used a new set of DNA pod filters, and put the motorcycle on a dyno to have it tuned. The output figures speak fluent speed with 107 horsepower at the rear wheel and 96 pound-feet of torque available with the twist of the throttle.
According to Bike Exif, Gilroy seems to be really proud of his work, and for all good reasons for that matter. He believes that the only thing better than looking at the bike is riding it. Considering the attention to detail and the proving figures, we would say that’s not a stretch. Put in the power of an inline-four with the lightweight construction and the improved suspension and that by itself seems like a formula for a successful design. And if you have been wondering that this custom Suzuki GSX1400 looks a bit familiar, that’s because it carries the same paint scheme as the older Suzuki MotoGP bikes.
To sum it up, this motorcycle really has it all - a design that you can look at for hours, an iconic in-line four-cylinder engine at its heart, and a paint scheme that celebrates the Japanese automaker’s racing pedigree, what more could you ask for?
Source: Purpose Built Moto, Bike Exif