Classic test: 1978 SUZUKI GS550E THE BEGINNING

But luckily the little blue Suzuki rose to the challenge. On the stretches of open road the air-cooled four put in some impressive bursts of acceleration, as I revved it through the gears with confidence that the old but famously unburstable motor wouldn’t complain. And on the twistier bits the Suzuki handled and braked pretty well, too, even nipping through the traffic in respectably nimble fashion.

It was a short but entertaining ride, and probably the biggest thrashing that this GS – which had sat unused for years until being put back on the road by a classic collector – had been given for at least a decade. Reaching a shop to collect a package two minutes before closing time meant my main aim had been achieved. Equally importantly, the adrenaline-filled journey had proved that you can have a lot of fun on Suzuki’s first four-stroke middleweight – even if the GS550 was originally known more for competence and reliability than excitement.

When Suzuki released the GS550 in 1977, as a follow-up to the superb GS750 four that had appeared earlier the same year, it was only the second serious four-stroke that the firm had