Suzuki appears set to resurrect the famous Katana name, having reapplied for a trademark on the Katana name and logo in America.
There’s a strong chance its plans are to apply the name to the upcoming production version of the Recursion concept bike.
That turbocharged parallel twin was originally shown at the 2013 Tokyo Motor Show, powered by a 588cc SOHC engine making around 100hp.
However, in 2015 Suzuki revealed the near-production version of the engine, reworked with DOHC cylinder heads and a capacity of about 700cc. That should push its performance up quite significantly, probably to around the 150hp mark.
The production version of the bike is expected in 2019, carrying the title GSX700T. The ‘GSX’ bit refers to its line arrangement (GS) and four-valve head (X). The 700 clearly denotes the capacity, while ‘T’ stands for turbo.
But that’s a pretty dry name for an exciting new model. Now Suzuki has revealed its interest in reusing the Katana name and logo; the trademark application says it will be applied to ‘motorcycles and the parts and fittings thereof’.
Last year, a Katana-inspired concept bike was shown on the Suzuki stand at EICMA in Milan.
Based on the GSX-S1000F, the show bike featured a modernised version of the original styling theme. However, it wasn’t an official Suzuki project. Instead, it was made at the behest of Italian magazine Motociclismo.
That means there’s relatively little chance the GSX-S1000-based ‘Katana 3.0’ concept will be moved towards production.
However, if it was, it would be a case of history repeating because the original Target Design-styled Suzuki Katana, by Hans Muth, Hans-Georg Kasten and Jan Fellstrom, was first seen as a magazine commission rather than a factory effort. German mag Motorrad asked Target Design to create a futuristic concept in 1979, and the result – despite being based on an MV Agusta rather than a Suzuki – was clearly a preview of the Katana that appeared a few months later.
By Ben Purvis
