Originally Posted by
Ewfflyer
Newer 600's produce 110+hp, and weigh less than 380lbs. My old 600 probably makes 85hp and weighs over 400lbs(still has a steel frame, not aluminum). My old dog will "do" anything a newer bike can, just not as powerful or quick out of a corner.(my brother owns a 01' GSXR750 and burns me out of a corner every time, but in corner I hold just as well and my bike is 6yrs older)
I owned a mid 80's Yamaha Radian 600 and it was fast up to about 60 mph, something like 3 sec but had no top end. A Honda Nighthawk 750 I had was a bit slower at low speeds but a higher top speed and more torque. I had a friend with a new Suzuki SV650 and I used to ride it sometimes, and it was faster than the NightHawk but it did not accelerate as well. That might have been because it was 2 cylinder. I was not impressed with the low end torque on that bike. I almost went in on a Honda streetfighter at one point, because low end performance is what counts for me.
You are correct they have been getting more power out of engines in the last ten years as a general trend. Any idea how? Fuel injection, shorter strokes with higher rpm bands would be my guess.