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This gorgeous custom Suzuki Katana gets a curvy makeover inspired by a championship-winning racebike.
Building custom motorcycles is an art. The only limitation here happens to be the builder's imagination, sans the money! We have come across some pretty wild and out-of-the-box builds from the custom motorcycling world. There are intense creations like a three-wheeled BMW R18 (which makes complete sense!), minimal beauties using Boxer-powered Beamers, a Suzuki GS650-based turbocharged parts-bin project, and even questionable ones like the Suzuki Hayabusa build by Gotham Garage.
But all these builds have one thing in common, there are original ideas that started life as sketches. Today we bring to your notice, a very creative and bold custom build based on a classic Suzuki GSX 1100 Katana. This build can be labeled as borderline questionable as the man behind this project, Maurizio Carraro of IMBARCADERO14 Venice, decided to replace the most iconic feature of this Suzuki - its wedge-shaped body with curves.
This is a very special build for a friend and takes inspiration from a winning world championship bike of the 1970s. But we must say that this Suzuki Katana from an alternate universe sure looks desirable with the classic race-bike appeal and curvy cafe-racer vibes. The mechanicals is mostly unchanged, and even the generic form factor has not strayed much further away from the stock Katana. While this build might split the internet, we actually dig it.
This gorgeous custom Suzuki Katana gets a curvy makeover inspired by a championship-winning racebike.
The Suzuki Katana is an iconic motorcycle, so much so, that the automaker decided to bring it back in a modern avatar. The original Katana launched in the 1980s was a bold new step in motorcycle design. And we must thank German designer Hans Muth for his radical design ideas.
Before that, everything was simple and smooth. Suzuki took things out of the box was a sharp new design. This custom motorcycle is based on a 1985 Suzuki GSX 1100 Katana. Maurizio of Imbarcadero 14 Venice has not fiddled with the engine and has kept it close to stock.
It uses a 1,074 cc air-cooled four-stroke transverse inline0-4 that churns out an impressive 111 hp @ 9,500 rpm, and 72 lb-ft of torque @ 6,500 rpm. These figures are "fast" by today's standards too. It packed a carbureted system and came coupled to a five-speed gearbox. This bike is a special project for Maurizio as it was commissioned as a gift for the 50th birthday of a friend of his who loves cars and bikes alike, and is an experienced rider.
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The boldest decision with this modified Katana was to change the one design factor that made it stand apart - its sharpness. Maurizio wanted this Suzuki to have a classic café racer charm and had all its custom bodywork fabricated, sans the lines. He did a rough design overview using Photoshop and then brought things to life using the good old method using hands.
He got help from Ronner Biasibetti, a regular collaborator of his various custom motorcycle builds, and he helped Maurizio carve all the new body panels to life from aluminum. The front fairing and fender, fuel tank, belly pan, and tail section were all done by this method. Various custom brackets were made to hold the new panels in place. And Maurizio managed to keep the dimensions and classic silhouette of the Katana intact, despite all those sharp lines being replaced with graceful curves.
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The cool color scheme used on this custom Katana 1100 has been inspired by Barry Sheene's 1976 Suzuki XR14, a World Championship-winning motorcycle. The owner is clearly a fan of the rider and his motorcycle. The paint job is not a direct copy but a clever inspired layout with a fresh outlook. White, yellow, and red graze the motorcycle body tastefully and there is "7" layered onto the tail section.
The stock wheels get a dash of gold which goes on well with the overall paint scheme. The engine is more exposed than ever and also gets its casings painted in black. The lighting setup has been completely revamped and this custom Katana flaunts twin round LED project headlamps and an LED taillight assembly.
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This build is a clever fusion of classic appeal, bold design choices, and various custom parts that bring all of these elements together into one complete picture. Various components have been retained from the donor motorcycle. The wheels, brakes, yoke, and clip-ons are from the classic Katana that has been refurbished and repainted for added charm.
The front forks have the same external casing but come with rebuilt and improved internals. The rear suspension setup has been completely swapped for a longer set of gas-backed units. Maurizio has put in extra effort to bring about a "brand new" vibe from this build and so has also polished up the original logo back to form. Most of the stock aluminum shade on various components has been replaced with a contrasting black finish.
The stock air filter has also been replaced with a row of cool-looking aftermarket pod filters. To complete the setup, this custom Katana also gets a cool set of Virex slip-on mufflers. The cockpit gets a custom digital Acewell speedometer. As for the saddle, it is a custom racing seat pad. The foot pedals are custom units by Tarozzi, the ones uses on this motorcycle are more rear set and provide a sportier stance. The rear section gets a cool up-swept hand-made license plate as well.
Sources: Imbarcadero14_venice Via Instagram, Suzuki Motorcycles, Bikeexif
Tijo is an engineer, mechanic, and an avid content creator. He is a grease-monkey who loves tinkering with automobiles every now and then, when not busy penning down his passion for them. He has always had a soft spot for JDM and is keen on diving deep in for anything that involves wheels and engines.