October 20, 2005 Six cylinder motorcycles have been few and far between in the history of powered two-wheelers – Benelli’s Sei, Honda’s CBX and Goldwing, Kawasaki’s Z1300 and now Suzuki’s Stratosphere. The Suzuki Stratosphere is only a concept bike at this stage but vapourware is not in Suzuki’s vocabulary and the company has a strong track record for turning its concepts into reality.
The raw figures are 1100cc, 24 valves, 180 horses and a motor reportedly turbine-like smooth. The motor is an engineering masterpiece akin to the miniaturized sophistication of a Swiss watch and the aluminium fairing, electrically-adjustable windscreen, LED headlights, adjustable handlebars, built-in GPS navigation just add to the high-tech cred. We’re not so sure about the orange seat, but love the Katanesque profile. See the photo gallery for details – a stunner and one that we sincerely hope will make it to the showroom floor. More details as they come to hand.
