THE last vehicle I had with an 1,800cc engine was an old-school Mondeo diesel estate. It was quite possibly the slowest mode of transport I’ve ever dealt with apart from the donkey I sponsored as a child. I even had a friend with a Trabant that was faster.

But of course the former taxi’s motor was in a dire state of tune, and hauling the old Ford up to 60mph was a time-consuming affair. More often than not I ran out of road first.

Fortunately, the bike I have today is at the other end of the 1.8-litre spectrum. The biggest of Suzuki’s Intruder series, the M1800R is faster, smoother, lighter, a thousand times cooler, and, er, almost as wide as the Mondeo. Sure, I can’t use it to move a Chesterfield sofa or take the family to the seaside, but none of that matters because it looks awesome.

The M1800R is what’s known as a sports cruiser. It’s laid back, yet thunderously quick in a straight line. In shiny black clothes and dripping with chrome, it garners unfeasible levels of attention, and here’s an example. Hunger set in just five miles after picking the Intruder up, and with limited options I pulled in for a McBurger. Within seconds, two stripy-shirted office dudes sauntered over, latte in hand. "Nice bike, mate," they dribbled. "We thought it was a Harley."

Well, it isn’t. It’s a Suzuki. And a damn fine machine it is, too. The sports cruiser market is a pretty small affair, and the big Intruder’s main rivals are, of course, the Triumph Rocket III and the Harley-Davidson Night Rod. Each has its merits, and each is an extraordinary bike in its own right. They’re all water-cooled, so they can rev higher to produce the power to match their looks. They all have excessively wide rear tyres, fatter than you will find on 95% of cars on the road, and they all have enough torque to pull your arms from their sockets.

But, as usual with Suzuki, the M1800R has a trump card up its sleeve. It’s under 10 grand. Almost a grand under 10 grand, in fact. Smell a rat? Well you shouldn’t, because there’s nothing wrong with this bike. I spent two weeks blatting round Bristol, South Glos and North Somerset’s coastal roads, and I can tell you it’s a truly solid performer. The seat is as big and soft as a school crash mat, the digital rev counter is a constant source of amusement, and on the track I use for testing, the M1800R pulled strongly all the way up to an indicated 135mph with another thousand revs still in the bag.

One of my favourite features on this motorcycle, from a design point of view, is the long, sloping headlamp cowl, which brings to mind the Grim Reaper’s hood and suits the bike to a tee. Not only does it look good, it does a remarkable job of pushing the air clean over the rider’s head. OK, so it’s not as aerodynamic as a fairing, but with this much power on tap, it doesn’t need to be.

Of course, the braking is pants, as is the cornering. But you expect that on cruisers, and indeed there's little that can be done about it. The brakes themselves are top draw, it's just that the rake doesn't allow as much fork compression as on a more conventional bike. And the 240-section rear tyre is always going to be a bit of a pig to manhandle. But that’s the nature of bikes like these and isn’t a fault with the M1800R. If you don't like it, don’t buy a sports cruiser.

Special mention must also go to the dual slashed chrome pipes which will crackle and bang with the best of them. They’re surprisingly loud for a standard bike, meaning there’s no real need to shell out on expensive aftermarket items.

As a status symbol, there’s no need to be put off by the M1800R’s Japanese roots. This is a mighty fine bike y’all -- and a proper bargain to boot.

Article written: June 13, 2008

The Suzuki M1800R was kindly loaned through the Suzuki GB Press Office

OUR STEER ON THE SUZUKI M1800R

Price: £7,999 (@ Jan 2009)

Engine: 1,783 cc, 54 deg V-twin

Power: 123 bhp @ 6,200 rpm

Torque: 118 lb ft @ 3,300 rpm

Transmission: five-speed, shaft drive

Weight: 319kg

Top speed: mph (limited)

Fuel capacity: 19.5 litres

Seat height: 705 mm

by Jon Bennett