About a decade ago, I rode up to my father-in-law’s house astride a Suzuki V-Strom 1000. He visibly recoiled at the sight of my bike and hissed, “Suzuki” in the tone one might use for a sworn enemy.
“I had a Suzuki in the ’70s,” he said. “Can’t even remember the name of it, it was so boring. Nothing wrong with it, but it was just so boring it put me off biking.”
The Katana was designed to counter that reputation. Dreamed up by independent styling house Target Design ─ which had been founded by former BMW designers ─ the bike was aimed initially at the European market, where Suzuki had been struggling.
Initially revealed as an 1100cc model (well, 1074 cc, to be precise) in the 1980 Cologne motorcycle show, it received rave reviews and was quickly rushed into production the next year. Almost instantly, the decision was made to also produce a 1000cc version to ensure the Katana would qualify for racing.
Driven by a 998cc inline four, the GS1000SZ produced roughly 90 horsepower at the wheel and fast became an icon. The modern Katana, launched in 2018, hasn’t made nearly the same impact because, well, it’s hard for lightning to strike twice. When the original Katana appeared in the 80s it was unlike anything anyone had seen before.
There are some after-the-fact parts, but on the whole this example maintains its original beauty and seems in good condition for a 42-year-old machine. With an asking price of $8,500, it is almost half the cost of another 1982 Katana that I spotted on eBay (though, that one is more pristine).
You can find this Katana for sale in Miami, Florida here on eBay.