SUZUKI HAYABUSA GEN 3

3 Days Of Heaven

- Ferdie Pieterse

Since I went on the launch of the Gen 3 Suzuki Hayabusa last year, I’ve wanted to get back on the bike for a longer stint because although I did a longish ride from Knysna to Cape Town in one go then, it wasn’t enough to really get to know the new Busa well enough. The long weekend in March presented me with the perfect opportunity with a nice 1,300km road trip planned via Polokwane, Tzaneen, Sabie and back home. Accompanying me on the trip would be my wife on her BWW K1200S which was BMW’s counter for the Suzuki Hayabusa back in the mid 2000’s.

This time round Suzuki SA gave me a black one, where I rode the white one on the launch. I’m not a fan of white bikes or cars, and I must say that the black Hayabusa is definitely the best looking one in my opinion. Also fitted to the demo bike was a genuine Suzuki aftermarket higher screen, which was something I mentioned in my original article I would fit to a Busa as soon as I own one. In addition, the demo also had a single-seat cowl fitted, which just rounded off the rear end of the bike perfectly.

Leaving our house in Randburg early Saturday morning, making my way up to the N1 highway, I immediately felt right at home. The Suzuki Hayabusa is a very easy bike to ride through traffic, the low centre of gravity helps slow speed riding and the torque from that awesome motor means you don’t have to play tunes with the gearbox to get going, basically any gear will do, as the bike pulls extremely strongly from low down in the rev range. The quickshifter is also up there with the best in the business, both up-anddownshifts are dispatched with ease.