Suzuki Hayabusa 1340

I put nearly 18,000 miles on a Gen 1 Busa and it never stopped feeling like controlled insanity in the best possible way — that 1299cc motor pulls from 3,000 rpm with a smoothness that makes 100 mph feel like 40, then absolutely detonates past 7,000 rpm with a howl that still raises neck hairs. The aerodynamics actually work; at genuine highway speeds it tucks you in rather than battering you, which is either brilliant engineering or an uncomfortable reminder of what this thing was designed for. Weaknesses are real though: the brakes on early examples were genuinely underpowered for the performance on offer, the suspension is calibrated for smooth tarmac and punishes you on broken roads, and that 215 kg wet weight makes slow-speed urban maneuvering an exercise in concentration. It aged better than anything in its class — a 2001 model still embarrasses modern middleweights — but treat the throttle with disrespect and it will absolutely collect you.

I put 18,000 km on a 2010 Hayabusa and the 1340 upgrade is genuinely felt — the extra torque makes 130–200 km/h pulls feel almost violent in a way the 1299 never quite managed, and the revised fueling killed most of the old model's throttle snatchiness at low speeds. It's still a 266 kg commitment every time you push it into a tight corner, and anyone who tells you the weight disappears at speed is half-right — it stabilizes, but you're always aware you're wrestling something enormous. The brakes were a real improvement over Gen 1, but by 2010 standards Brembo radials were already leaving these stoppers looking dated, and you'll feel that gap in hard canyon riding. Daily commuting on this thing is absurdly comfortable for a superbike — that wide seat and relaxed crouch genuinely work — which is either a selling point or a symptom of how much bike this is.