£1000-£10,000
Brilliant buys to get you on the road this summer!
Brilliant buys to get you on the road this summer!
Under £1000
1988-2001 • 599cc • 80bhp • 197kg • 125mph
Buying a good, useable road bike at under a grand involves patience or luck. Set your sights too high and be prepared for disappointment. Select carefully and good machines can be had – and 1980s and 1990s middleweights are a target-rich environment.
Sure, Honda CBR600s are brilliant, and there’s lots out there, and Yamaha FZ600s are fun – but at under a grand those two models would need work, so look for less fashionable machinery
We’ve always had a soft-spot for Suzuki’s GSX600F. When new they were overshadowed in every 600s group test, but 30 years later the slight deficiencies in finish, handing and performance compared to period opposition are almost irrelevant. The used bike’s tyres, shock absorber and aftermarket exhaust (because it’ll certainly have one, possibly along with a tinted screen, coloured handlebar grips and other period accessories) are going to be what defines its on-the-road performance and feel.
And realistically, what’s not to like about a 130mph motorcycle with a GSX-R750 derived oil/ air-cooled engine that was nicknamed ‘Teapot’?
True, it’s peaky (and that aftermarket pipe may have exacerbated this) with proper power starting at around 7000rpm and tailing off after maximum output at 11,000rpm. And the fairing’s not the best, but what were you expecting? Here’s a do-it-all motorcycle on which you could ride (two-up if you like) to Scotland or the shops. A 4.4-gallon tank gives it proper range.
Introduced in 1988, there were slight updates for ’89 and ’94, and then a significant makeover for 1998. Wheels are 17in, which means there’s a decent choice of modern rubber, and the engine was also used in the 600 Bandit and GSX-R, so parts availability is good should anything dramatic go wrong.
The ’98 update improved the bike’s midrange, but the restyle included a distinctive ‘Baboon’s bum’ tail. On looks alone we’d go for the earlier bike – there are limits...
The simple fact is that the GSX (see also ZZ-R, SV, FZS, FJ, GSX-S, etc) that you buy for budget money should be in far better nick than a CBR or FZ at the same price. And you’re buying to ride, not restore. Right?
