On the road and on the track the new bike was a hit, with enough performance that earned it SR's "Bike of the Year" honors in both '96 and '97.
The addition of electronic...
The addition of electronic fuel injection to the GSX-R750 in 1998 not only offered more performance through more precise fueling, but also ushered in the era of instant adjustability via programming boxes, and later, "piggyback" fuel alteration units like the Power Commander. No more pulling the airbox to get at the carburetors and changing jets to alter the fuel curve.
Although competitors were leaving the market in '98, Suzuki stuck to a rigorous two-year development cycle. The biggest news was the inclusion of electronic fuel injection, with 46mm throttle bodies using a single injector per cylinder. Also new on the 1998 were different cams sporting revised duration and more lift on the intake side, plus engine internals were lightened. The airbox gained some volume, as well as an electronic flapper valve to maintain air velocity at lower rpm. The drive chain shrunk from 530 to 525, the gearbox ratios were tightened up, a steering damper was fitted standard, and CDI ignition coils were adopted. Wheelbase was shortened by 5mm, but overall weight stayed the same-which was still 74 pounds less than the Kawasaki ZX-7R.
The net result was another five horsepower and a 14,000 rpm redline. The revisions also cured the 5500 rpm flat spot and surging, but the off-idle throttle transition would start to show up as an issue for the first time. Since there was no real competition left in the 750cc class, Suzuki instead looked at the Honda CBR900RR as its nearest competitor. The Suzuki ran a 10.54-second quarter mile at 131.0 mph, with a top speed of 162.2 mph; the Honda ran a nearly identical 10.54 seconds at 131.95 mph, with a top speed of 161.4 mph.
1998 GSX-R750
1998 GSX-R750
The original EFI on the '98...
The original EFI on the '98 model suffered from abrupt throttle response caused by massive intake fluctuations at very light throttle settings wrecking havoc with the fueling. That was solved by the introduction of the servo-controlled secondary throttle plates on the '00 model, smoothing out off-idle throttle response considerably.
The 2000 model went to four-piston...
The 2000 model went to four-piston calipers that were 640 grams lighter than the six-piston units, with the 320mm brake discs losing 28 grams as well. This was just a fraction of the weight reduction program that resulted in the '00 model coming in an amazing 27 pounds lighter than the already lightweight '96 edition.
In 2000, Suzuki continued to develop the GSX-R750 and dropped a bomb on the industry with yet another landmark bike. On a bike that was already a market featherweight to begin with, Suzuki dropped an astounding 27 pounds from the previous generation; weight was shaved everywhere by small margins that added up. A few examples of the extreme diet were a frame that was 4.4 pounds lighter, while the swingarm lost another 1.8 pounds despite a 20mm gain in length. A switch from six-piston to four-piston brake calipers, a shorter front fork and shock (the shock body was also made from aluminum), thinner bodywork, and many other minor changes were all part of the fanatical attention to weight loss. Even the rear wheel was trimmed back down to 5.5 inches for quicker handling and additional weight reduction. Because the bike was lighter, the spring rates had to be revised to maintain the correct handling balance. The wheelbase stayed at 55.1 inches but the overall height shrunk by 30mm.
The engine was reworked with many internals receiving the lightening treatment. The compression was increased from 11.8:1 to 12.0:1. The EFI system was also new including a new 16-bit ECU and servo-controlled secondary throttle plates to smooth the off-idle throttle response (throttle bodies also shrank from 46mm to 42mm, but with a new tapered bore). The result was just what Suzuki wanted, another dominate sportbike. On the Sport Rider dyno, it made 123 horsepower at 12,500 rpm, and ripped through the quarter mile at 10.26 seconds at 135.6 mph. Top speed was an impressive 172 mph.
2000 GSX-R750
2000 GSX-R750
2000 GSX-R750
Not only was the bike fast with great handling, it was also very reliable. We had a few owners that reported stator problems that required a replacement, while a few others had a bent shift shaft under hard use. Otherwise the entire '96-'01 Gixxers and beyond seemed to be very reliable bikes. Many owners reported the bike's coolant temp running high in traffic or very hot weather, so a popular modification was to outfit the bike with a manual radiator fan switch that allowed them to simply turn on the radiator fan if the coolant temps got out of control.