Strip search!

There’s a real sense of anticipation as the garage door slowly rolls up and the sun spears onto the flanks of the recently captured trio of Suzukis.

Cowering in the far depths of the garage, the GSX-R11, Bandit 12 and remains of the Gixer Thou look a fairly motley representation of the Japanese brand’s last three decades of big-cc’d progress. As we’ve all been getting along so well up to now, I’m hoping the result of this project turns out to be more of a Stockholm Syndrome kinda deal than a ‘you’ll never take me alive,’ shootout. Let’s have no trouble out of you lot, okay?

With six wheels, three frames and only two engines, the new fleet gets pushed out into the early-morning Australian sun. The engine-less Gixer Thou obviously won’t need a test-ride and, as I rode the Bandit 12 before I laid out the grand for it, I know it