Comparison test Kawasaki Z750, Suzuki GSR 750 and Yamaha FZ8: the roadster war
Slowly but surely, the Japanese resistance is organizing in order to push the Z750 out of its throne: already threatened by the Yamaha FZ8, the Zed must now counter the offensive of the Suzuki GSR 750. A fight refereed by MNC: comparative test.
In search of the new Ztar !
In the wake of Yamaha and its, the Suzuki GSR 750 comes (finally!) To hunt on the land of the reference of the French market since 2005: the essential .
Third – and a priori the last – Japanese manufacturer to invest in the niche of "seven and a half" roadsters – insofar as launching a Hornet 750 would not be part of Honda’s plans – Suzuki could have been the first to react to the insolent success of the "Zed": it was enough for him to insert the excellent four-cylinder of the GSX-R 750 in a chassis of 600 GSR, and voila! !
But marketing has its reasons that reason, sometimes, seems to ignore … even though Kawasaki sells its Z750 by full containers since its release at the end of 2003 (more than 125,000 sales in Europe!) And that the Street Triple, F800R and other Monster are increasingly successful !
This astonishing passivity cannot be justified by the sole desire to take the time to respond with panache, by designing a motorcycle whose originality of lines and level of technicality would return the Z750 to the rank of antiquity. Because despite their status as new 2010 and 2011, neither the FZ8 nor the GSR 750 really deviates from the paths beaten by Kawasaki for almost eight years (read in particular our and our).
This observation is all the more obvious when these three Japanese roadsters share the same color of coat, like this comparison placed under the sign of white! The lack of daring of the challengers, both aesthetically and technically, is then inevitably obvious….
Cloning is not playing…
Take the FZ8: a true clone of the FZ1 whose in-line four-cylinder would have simply been "deflated" to 779 cc, the Yamaha is only distinguished by its oblong front optics (very inspired by the XJ6), its bulky exhaust outlet (very inspired by a modest stove pipe) and its pretty anodized Showa fork.
In fact, if the pencil stroke of the tuning fork roadster deviates most noticeably from the sharp angles and certainly manga lines of the Z750, its lack of aesthetic originality evokes an irrepressible feeling of dejà vu …
On the other hand, with its host of beautiful, carefully crafted pieces, this same FZ8 flatters the retina and the ego: its impressive aluminum chassis (made of steel on the Z750 and GSR 750) impresses, while its superb swingarm and its Four-piston monobloc calipers borrowed from the FZ1 have no trouble eclipsing the mundane square section elements and juxtaposed two-piston calipers of its rivals.
In this area, the latest arrival is the least well served: while the GSR 600 displayed an aluminum chassis worthy of a sports car, four-piston calipers, a 43 mm diameter fork and two original silencers under the saddle, its replacement gives in the "low cost" with its steel frame, its Gladius brakes, its non-adjustable 41 mm fork and its "traditional" side exhaust…
Unfortunately, it is not only on the equipment that Suzuki has sought to save money: the degree of finish of the GSR 750 is far below that of the Z750 – very suitable since its redesign in 2007 – and a fortiori light years away from the quality of workmanship brought to the FZ8. Its coarse welds and poorly camouflaged electrical network work, as does the gaping space left between the double beam frame and the 749 cc block of the 2005 GSX-R….
To seduce, the GSR 750 will therefore have to bet on its rather successful angular look and on its compact and collected appearance on the front, even if one like the other does not contrast much with the Z750: in profile, the two Japanese are resemble two grains of rice with their slim, raised back shell, pot-bellied tank and point-cut radiator scoops.
A closer look reveals many differences of a "cosmetic" order, such as the very successful petal discs and white indicators of the Zed, or the front headlight surmounted by a black cap and surrounded by blue night lights on the GSR 750. But the least we can say is that the Suzuki designers did not take too many risks !
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