When Suzuki brought out the Hayabusa back in 1999 it was the fastest, most powerful motorcycle the world had ever seen.
It wasn’t necessarily revolutionary, it was not the most sophisticated and it most certainly wasn’t the prettiest, but boy was it fast. Suzuki simply applied the time honored tradition of adding displacement. At 1.3 liters, it was the biggest sportbike on the market, and made a huge impression on the public.
It quickly got a reputation for being something of a hooligan motorcycle, and became a bit of a cultural icon as a result. It has since left that past life behind it and has been developed into a softer, more touring friendly bike, that anyone can enjoy.
10 Should Consider: Pure Adrenalin
The first generation bike is one wild machine that doesn’t come with any safety features. It is an absolute beast that takes a second to get going, then just keeps going and going.
60 mph will come up in around 2.5 seconds (depending on the weather and your weight), a quarter mile in around 10, and it will keep going until it reaches its top speed of 190 MPH. From the year 2000, the top speed was restricted to 186 MPH in line with a Japanese mandate for all local manufacturers to limit their top speed.
9 Should Consider: Affordable
Looking to the used market, you can find some serious bargains, and some genuine death traps. These bikes got used and abused in their day, so it will take a discerning buyer to find a bargain, but they do exist.
You can also still buy it new, because, you know, Suzuki. It is also pretty affordable at under $20,000, especially considering its capability and incredible power.
8 Should Consider: Modern Classic
It might be a little off saying a bike that is technically still in production is a “classic,” but the shoe fits for the venerable Hayabusa. Especially for the first and second generation.
It is a motorcycle that forced an answer out of other brands, and as much as it has long since been overtaken in terms of outright performance, it is an icon of the sportbike world.
7 Should Consider: Speed Machine
173 horsepower was unheard of at the turn of the century, this was a bike straight from the future. That ugly design is actually pretty aerodynamic, especially with the rider in full tuck.
It will maintain pretty much whatever speed you desire for as long as you desire. It has a long, stable platform that remains planted even at the most absurd speeds.
6 Should Consider: Smooth Inline-4
The party piece of the Hayabusa is undoubtedly that incredible inline-4. It delivers smooth, linear power that will just tear your arms off if you are not careful.
It has since become the engine of choice for lightweight sports car builds, as it makes astonishing power for its size and weight.
5 Should Consider: Touring Friendly
Over the years, the Hayabusa has softened somewhat with little to no improvements on the chassis and suspension.
It is a comfortable cruiser, and even though it has fairly aggressive ergos, it remains significantly more comfortable than comparable sportbikes.
4 Should Consider: The Turbo Busa
In an almost comical twist, the single most powerful bike on the market back in the 2000s got even faster. Scary fast. Maybe, stupid fast.
People started retro-fitting superchargers, turbochargers and even nitrous injection to the bike. Some bikes make as much as 600 horsepower, but it takes a special kind of character to pilot one of these machines.
3 Should Consider: Huge Aftermarket
You don’t need to be into forced induction to enjoy modifying a Hayabusa. There's an almost endless aftermarket for these bikes.
The overall design of the bike has not changed all that much over the years, so most mods that fit the first generation 1999 model will fit the second generation bike.
2 Shouldn’t Buy One: One Trick Pony
At the end of the day, the only thing these bikes are really good at is going fast in a straight line. Suspension and frame technology is all straight out of the '90s, and it has nothing going for it in the aesthetics department.
It was passable back then, but today, making 190 horsepower, the bike is already too powerful for its own good. You will find yourself tip-toeing around corners, then doing a power-wheelie on the straights. You can do touring on it, but there are better, more capable bikes for that, too.
1 Shouldn’t Buy One: Experience Required
A lot of power coupled with an outdated chassis is always a risky combination. Even new bikes with updated safety features are still challenging to ride.
It is a very heavy bike by modern standards, and it's not something you should ever consider riding if you are a new rider.