The Suzuki Madura was a cruisermotorcycle sold by Suzuki in 1985 and 1986. It was available with either 1200 cc or 700 cc V4 engines. It was created as a response to Honda's Magna V4 muscle cruiser and was a direct competitor with Yamaha'sV-Max power cruiser, also released in 1985.
A cruiser is a motorcycle in the style of American machines from the 1930s to the early 1960s, including those made by Harley-Davidson, Indian, Excelsior and Henderson. The riding position usually places the feet forward and the hands up, with the spine erect or leaning back slightly. Typical cruiser engines emphasize easy rideability and shifting, with plenty of low-end torque but not necessarily large amounts of horsepower, traditionally V-twins but inline engines have become more common. Cruisers with greater performance than usual, including more horsepower, stronger brakes and better suspension, are often called power cruisers.
A motorcycle, often called a bike, motorbike, or cycle, is a two- or three-wheeled motor vehicle. Motorcycle design varies greatly to suit a range of different purposes: long distance travel, commuting, cruising, sport including racing, and off-road riding. Motorcycling is riding a motorcycle and related social activity such as joining a motorcycle club and attending motorcycle rallies.
Suzuki Motor Corporation is a Japanese multinational corporation headquartered in Minami-ku, Hamamatsu. Suzuki manufactures automobiles, four-wheel drive vehicles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a variety of other small internal combustion engines. In 2016, Suzuki was the eleventh biggest automaker by production worldwide. Suzuki has over 45,000 employees and has 35 production facilities in 23 countries, and 133 distributors in 192 countries. The worldwide sales volume of automobiles is the world's tenth largest, while domestic sales volume is the third largest in the country.
In response to the Honda Magna, Suzuki made the Madura model. Like the Magna, it was a V-four powered cruiser. Like the Magna, the Madura was offered with two different engine sizes. Both bikes' smaller engines displaced 700 cc, but while the larger V65 Magna displaced 1100 cc (actual 1098 cc), the big Madura displaced 1200 cc (actual 1165 cc).
The Honda Magna was a cruiser motorcycle made from 1982 to 1988 and 1994 to 2003 and powered by Honda's V4 engine taken from the VF/VFR. The engine technology and layout was a descendant of Honda's racing V4 machines, such as the NS750 and NR750. The introduction of this engine on the Magna and the Sabre in 1982, was a milestone in the evolution of motorcycles that would culminate in 1983 with the introduction of the Interceptor V4. The V45's performance is comparable to that of Valkyries and Honda's 1800 cc V-twin cruisers. However, its mix of performance, reliability, and refinement was overshadowed by the more powerful 1,098 cc "V65" Magna in 1983.
Engine displacement is the swept volume of all the pistons inside the cylinders of a reciprocating engine in a single movement from top dead centre (TDC) to bottom dead centre (BDC). It is commonly specified in cubic centimetres, litres (L), or cubic inches (CID). Engine displacement does not include the total volume of the combustion chamber.
Production of the Madura was halted after just two years. According to Peter Seifert of Vernon, B.C., Canada, 5099 Maduras were produced.
Features
The Madura had a V-four engine with hydraulic lifters. The lifters reduced maintenance, and avoided the kind of cam-wear problems that plagued the Magna. Despite displacing 100 cc more, the Madura didn't have more power or torque than the Magna. The Madura was factory rated at 117hp, while the Magna was rated at 116hp. Actual power in a road-tested bike was found to be about 89 horsepower (66kW). For comparison, a same year V65 put down 93hp.
In addition to the maintenance-free lifters, the Madura had a self-adjusting hydraulically actuated clutch, and a low-maintenance, shaft final drive. The rear suspension was a sophisticated monoshock arrangement that used a single rear swingarm tube to carry the driveshaft as well.
Ergonomically, the Madura featured a low, scooped seat, swept-back handle-bars, and foot-controls that wouldn't be considered "forward" by later standards, but at the time were noted for being 14" ahead of the center of the seat.
Speed
According to Cycle magazine, the 1200 cc Madura completed the 1/4-mile in 11.753 seconds at 115.08mph. For comparison, on the same day the V65 Magna ran 11.86 at 115.86mph
Cycle Guide recorded an 11.36 at 117.181⁄4 mile. while their Magna clocked 11.44 at 118.42
Motorcyclist clocked a corrected 11.47 at 117.6 with the GV1200 Madura.
Cycle World magazine reported the 700 cc Madura doing the 1/4-mile in 12.89 seconds at 102.68mph.
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