Back to back comparison: '03 Yamaha R1 vs GSX-R 1000 K1
Discussion
Hey all,
As my '03 Yamaha R1 (fuel injected model) is poorly and i've been given a Gixxer Thou' K1 to tool about on I thought it would be churlish not to post a back to back test, seeing as more stuff like this has been requested to expand this section on PH.
I've never written one of these before, and i'm certainly no expert so i'll just post my impressions, formed after some 600 miles on the R1, and 300 miles on the GSX-R. It's also worth mentioning that neither of these bikes is new - the R1 has covered 12k miles and the GSX-R 8k. Suspension settings have certainly been changed on the Yamaha (I changed them!) and the GSX-R may well have been fiddled with too. Value-wise I paid £4250 for the R1 6 weeks ago, and the Suzuki is up for £4650.
Performance:
The Gixxer feels a bit faster, and seems to carry it's power a bit lower down the rev range than the R1 which peaks at 10,500rpm. There's not an awful lot in it to be honest - they're both blisteringly fast. The GSX-R's front wheel lifts more easily than the R1's I find.
Braking:
The R1's four pot stoppers are much more powerful, though the GSX-R's 6 pot Tokico setup offers more feel. This could of course merely be down to pad wear/brand.
Handling:
Now, this is where the fun's at. The GSX-R feels MUCH more planted than the R1. It's a proper big, lardy bike - feels a bit heavier, much more stable and holds it's line a bit better than the R1 does. The R1 feels like a 1000cc bike in a 600cc chassis, which I guess it probably is - it's much narrower, feels much lighter and is far more flighty and will happily wag it's head over bumps, wheelie over crests and generally keep you awake if you want to ride it hard. The GSX-R will do this, but you have to REALLY be riding hard. Much of this will be down to the OE steering damper i'm sure - the R1 doesn't have one. The GSX-R reminds me of my old ZX7R - ultra stable, glued to the road, but only this time with a big rocket up it's back end! The GSX-R sounds MUCH better than the R1 though - my R1 has an Akrapovic system on it which is pretty muted unless you're right at the top of the rev range, and it doesn't have the airbox growl of the big Gixxer - it sounds absolutely superb. I'm going to miss that when I get my R1 back.
Aesthetics:
The R1 is small, comfortable, ultra intuitive and just feels 'right'. It's also IMHO one of the sharpest designs to come out of Japan for some time (ignore the stickers on mine - since removed!), with it's sculpted back end, pointy nose and, in my case, subtle metallic silver paint. Even the clocks look cutting edge which is impressive for a 3 year old bike - that's a long time in the superbike class! The Gixxer on the other hand looks dated, with it's fat back end, wide tank and house bricks for wing mirrors. I also don't like the 80's shell suit colour scheme. It's just showing it's age, and I found the area where the saddle meets the tank cut into my inner thighs over time. I did 130 miles on it today and i'm not a comfy boy tonight - even my back aches, something I haven't experienced since I sold the ZX7-R. I did a 160 mile day on the R1 the other day and felt fresh at the end of it with my aches or pains.
So there you go, both epic sports bike and in many ways very similar, but at the same time very different
Dave
'03 R1
'01 GSX-R K1
As my '03 Yamaha R1 (fuel injected model) is poorly and i've been given a Gixxer Thou' K1 to tool about on I thought it would be churlish not to post a back to back test, seeing as more stuff like this has been requested to expand this section on PH.
I've never written one of these before, and i'm certainly no expert so i'll just post my impressions, formed after some 600 miles on the R1, and 300 miles on the GSX-R. It's also worth mentioning that neither of these bikes is new - the R1 has covered 12k miles and the GSX-R 8k. Suspension settings have certainly been changed on the Yamaha (I changed them!) and the GSX-R may well have been fiddled with too. Value-wise I paid £4250 for the R1 6 weeks ago, and the Suzuki is up for £4650.
Performance:
The Gixxer feels a bit faster, and seems to carry it's power a bit lower down the rev range than the R1 which peaks at 10,500rpm. There's not an awful lot in it to be honest - they're both blisteringly fast. The GSX-R's front wheel lifts more easily than the R1's I find.
Braking:
The R1's four pot stoppers are much more powerful, though the GSX-R's 6 pot Tokico setup offers more feel. This could of course merely be down to pad wear/brand.
Handling:
Now, this is where the fun's at. The GSX-R feels MUCH more planted than the R1. It's a proper big, lardy bike - feels a bit heavier, much more stable and holds it's line a bit better than the R1 does. The R1 feels like a 1000cc bike in a 600cc chassis, which I guess it probably is - it's much narrower, feels much lighter and is far more flighty and will happily wag it's head over bumps, wheelie over crests and generally keep you awake if you want to ride it hard. The GSX-R will do this, but you have to REALLY be riding hard. Much of this will be down to the OE steering damper i'm sure - the R1 doesn't have one. The GSX-R reminds me of my old ZX7R - ultra stable, glued to the road, but only this time with a big rocket up it's back end! The GSX-R sounds MUCH better than the R1 though - my R1 has an Akrapovic system on it which is pretty muted unless you're right at the top of the rev range, and it doesn't have the airbox growl of the big Gixxer - it sounds absolutely superb. I'm going to miss that when I get my R1 back.
Aesthetics:
The R1 is small, comfortable, ultra intuitive and just feels 'right'. It's also IMHO one of the sharpest designs to come out of Japan for some time (ignore the stickers on mine - since removed!), with it's sculpted back end, pointy nose and, in my case, subtle metallic silver paint. Even the clocks look cutting edge which is impressive for a 3 year old bike - that's a long time in the superbike class! The Gixxer on the other hand looks dated, with it's fat back end, wide tank and house bricks for wing mirrors. I also don't like the 80's shell suit colour scheme. It's just showing it's age, and I found the area where the saddle meets the tank cut into my inner thighs over time. I did 130 miles on it today and i'm not a comfy boy tonight - even my back aches, something I haven't experienced since I sold the ZX7-R. I did a 160 mile day on the R1 the other day and felt fresh at the end of it with my aches or pains.
So there you go, both epic sports bike and in many ways very similar, but at the same time very different
Dave
'03 R1
'01 GSX-R K1
Edited by Mad Dave on Sunday 1st April 23:01
Rawwr said:
And how did the GSXR compare to its bastard cousin; the TL?
Totally different kettle of fish. The front end on the TLR always felt like it was trying to run wide - proven on track where I was off the edge of the front tyre as well as the rear - usually there's a little left on the front when off the edge of the rear, if that makes sense. The GSX-R is a MUCH better bike than the TLR. Stable, handles well, incredibly fast. At the end of the day, the TLR was a 1998 design - the Gixxer is 2001, and the R1 2002 so they're bound to be much more developed. Not to mention that FI was in it's infancy in '98. By '01/'02 they'd got it sussed.
The K1 is also a 2 year older design. Your R1 came out as the K3 was launched, however the only real changes were the brakes (4 pots and acknowledged as being slightly better than the 6 pots) and a bit more power from the engine. Good review, the GSXR is a wheelie machine in K1 or K3 versions!
a.g. said:
The K1 may seem a bit "lardy" these days as Mad Dave puts it but its got a confidence inspiring front end which I like. My previous bike to this was a 7X7-R which also had a really well planted front. The R1's of the time were certainly a little more flighty and flappy. Cracking tools but not my cup of tea. I like me Gixxers I do.
Good sum up there Dave apart from "fat arse, shellsuit colours and housebrick mirrors" How very dare you!.
Until last November-ish, I had a ZX7R for two years and absolutely loved it. The front end was wonderful, felt as if the stanchions were connected directly to your shoulders. I only sold it as it was getting long in the tooth (over 40k miles and definately feeling it!). I really liked the fact that it was 'lardy' too - felt like a proper big bike and was very stable. The Gixxer is just like that, and i'm certain that point to point i'm faster on the GSXR than I am on the R1. As mentioned though, they're both epic bikes - I just prefer the R1. I don't say that only because I own the R1 - I was seriously worried that I would prefer the GSXR and have to swap it, but thankfully for my bank balance I prefer the Yamaha. I stand by my comments though - it does feel a bit lardy to me in comparison to the R1 (as you mentioned, you prefer the GSXR for the same reasons I place it second), it does look a bit like a shell suit (
) and it was actually a friend of mine who said "I can't understand why they evidently spent so much time working on the aerodynamics and then plonk a couple of house bricks on the top". 
As mentioned though, it's a cracking bike - i'd be happy to own either of the bikes mentioned and the fact that I can hop on the Gixxer having never ridden one before and ride the wheels off it is testament to the fact that it really does handle well, and is very similar to the R1 that i'm more used to. Please don't see any offense in my remarks
a.g. said:
Mad Dave said:
a.g. said:
The K1 may seem a bit "lardy" these days as Mad Dave puts it but its got a confidence inspiring front end which I like. My previous bike to this was a 7X7-R which also had a really well planted front. The R1's of the time were certainly a little more flighty and flappy. Cracking tools but not my cup of tea. I like me Gixxers I do.
Good sum up there Dave apart from "fat arse, shellsuit colours and housebrick mirrors" How very dare you!.
Until last November-ish, I had a ZX7R for two years and absolutely loved it. The front end was wonderful, felt as if the stanchions were connected directly to your shoulders. I only sold it as it was getting long in the tooth (over 40k miles and definately feeling it!). I really liked the fact that it was 'lardy' too - felt like a proper big bike and was very stable. The Gixxer is just like that, and i'm certain that point to point i'm faster on the GSXR than I am on the R1. As mentioned though, they're both epic bikes - I just prefer the R1. I don't say that only because I own the R1 - I was seriously worried that I would prefer the GSXR and have to swap it, but thankfully for my bank balance I prefer the Yamaha. I stand by my comments though - it does feel a bit lardy to me in comparison to the R1 (as you mentioned, you prefer the GSXR for the same reasons I place it second), it does look a bit like a shell suit (
) and it was actually a friend of mine who said "I can't understand why they evidently spent so much time working on the aerodynamics and then plonk a couple of house bricks on the top". As mentioned though, it's a cracking bike - i'd be happy to own either of the bikes mentioned and the fact that I can hop on the Gixxer having never ridden one before and ride the wheels off it is testament to the fact that it really does handle well, and is very similar to the R1 that i'm more used to. Please don't see any offense in my remarks
None taken at all. A brand new GSX-R 1000 parked next to me on Sunday. Really makes my older bike look podgy. Also I think I am old skool in that proper Gixxers have to be blue and white for me. I think is a mental throwback to the hooligan GSX-R 1100's of old.
Edited by a.g. on Monday 2nd April 23:15
I can understand the heritage of the blue and white, and I loved the corporate green of the ZX7R I owned - but I rather like that my R1 is a subtle, and dare I say it, classy metallic silver. It feels more like a 'proper vehicle' and less like a plastic toy. Just my opinion though, and after the lime green Kawasaki and retina-burning yellow of my TL1000R I think i'm just ready to be a bit less noticeable
good write-up
makes interesting reading,given the choice of those two i'd prob have your R1,the early gsxr1000's ive looked at/ridden are rusting to bits already
the R1's are better finished and handle/brake better judging by the ones ive ridden
dave were you out in salisbury area on sunday 18:00ish? i passed a R1 that colour going the other way along the 40mph dual carrageway on my way through
makes interesting reading,given the choice of those two i'd prob have your R1,the early gsxr1000's ive looked at/ridden are rusting to bits already
the R1's are better finished and handle/brake better judging by the ones ive ridden
dave were you out in salisbury area on sunday 18:00ish? i passed a R1 that colour going the other way along the 40mph dual carrageway on my way through
Indeed! I use www.wiltshirebikers.co.uk too which is quite good.
I'm off to Poole quay tonight, assuming my new tyre arrives, which it should.
I'm off to Poole quay tonight, assuming my new tyre arrives, which it should.
Mad Dave said:
Indeed! I use www.wiltshirebikers.co.uk too which is quite good.
I'm off to Poole quay tonight, assuming my new tyre arrives, which it should.
I'm off to Poole quay tonight, assuming my new tyre arrives, which it should.
cool
i wont be at poole quay tonight...have a good one
Gassing Station | Biker Banter | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff