The Suzuki TR750 was a racing motorcycle from the Japanese manufacturer

Suzuki is a Japanese multinational mobility manufacturer headquartered in Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Shizuoka. It manufactures automobiles, motorcycles, all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), outboard motor, outboard marine engines, wheelchairs and a va ...

, which was developed for

Formula 750 Formula 750 was a FIM motorcycle road racing series based on a 750 cubic centimeter engine capacity. History The series began in 1971 as a collaboration between the American Motorcyclist Association and the Auto Cycle Union. The FIM adopte ...

racing. The machine was first raced at the 1972

Daytona 200 The Daytona 200 is an annual motorcycle road racing competition held in early spring at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida, Daytona Beach, Florida. The race was founded in 1937 when it was sanctioned by the American Mo ...

Barry Sheene Barry Steven Frank Sheene (11 September 1950 – 10 March 2003) was a British professional motorcycle racer and television sports presenter. He competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing between and , most prominently as a member of the Su ...

won the 1973 season and was runner-up in 1975.

History and Technology

The motorcycle, designated ''XR 11'' within the group, was developed from the Suzuki GT750 road model, but none of the components were interchangeable. The performance-enhanced

water-cooled Cooling tower and water discharge of a nuclear power plant Water cooling is a method of heat removal from components and industrial equipment. Evaporative cooling using water is often more efficient than air cooling. Water is inexpensive and no ...

in-line three-cylinder

two-stroke engine A two-stroke (or two-stroke cycle) engine is a type of internal combustion engine that completes a Thermodynamic power cycle, power cycle with two strokes of the piston, one up and one down, in one revolution of the crankshaft in contrast to a f ...

had contactless thyristor

magneto A magneto is an electrical generator that uses permanent magnets to produce periodic pulses of alternating current. Unlike a dynamo, a magneto does not contain a commutator to produce direct current. It is categorized as a form of alternator, ...

ignition and fuel was delivered via three 32 mm Mikuni carburettors. As with the production model, lubrication was carried out using fresh oil, the Suzuki CCI system (Crankshaft Cylinder Injection). The power was transferred to the rear wheel via a

dry clutch A clutch is a mechanical device that allows an output shaft to be disconnected from a rotating input shaft. The clutch's input shaft is typically attached to a motor, while the clutch's output shaft is connected to the mechanism that does the ...

and a five-speed

gearbox A transmission (also called a gearbox) is a mechanical device invented by Louis Renault (who founded Renault) which uses a gear set—two or more gears working together—to change the speed, direction of rotation, or torque multiplication/r ...

. The usable speed range ranged from 6000 to 7500 rpm, the maximum torque (93 Nm) was reached at 7000 rpm. The double-loop tubular frame from the series had been lightened in order to reduce weight. Dunlop race tires, 3.25–18 at the front and 3.50–18 at the rear, were fitted. The chassis did not do justice to the "brute" performance. When it debuted, the Suzuki TR 750 was nicknamed the "Flexi-Flyer". "The catastrophic driving characteristics of the fastest racing machine of its time resulted from an unfavourable

weight distribution Weight distribution is the apportioning of weight within a vehicle, especially cars, airplanes, and trains. Typically, it is written in the form ''x''/''y'', where ''x'' is the percentage of weight in the front, and ''y'' is the percentage in t ...

in connection with a high centre of gravity."

References

Bibliography

* * * * * {{cite book , last1=Walker , first1=Mick , title=Japanese Production Racing Motorcycles , publisher=Redline Books , isbn=978-0-9544357-0-7 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TB2v4CR7K4kC&q=suzuki+tr750&pg=PA154 , language=en, year=2004 TR750 Racing motorcycles