K5 and K6 frame problems!!

[Slaughter]

Got a letter from Loxton Suzuki this morning about problems on the K5 and K6 frame. The guy to speak to about this is Phil (0825666564).
Reinforcment brace will be installed or cracked frames will be replaced with 5 year factory warranty.

[Doctor G]

Hey Slaughter,

This topic was discussed at great lenths (aka beaten do death) on the GSXR forums and this is more of a precausionary action taken by Suzuki.

Under normal riding conditions there is no issue. But a handfull of people have managed to crack the frame in extreme riding conditions (constant daily wheelie-ing and banging down the front over and over). Also, in accidents, the frame would brake constantly in the same place. (which bike doesn't brake in a head on crash?)

Personally I'm not too phased. And good on Suzuki for supplying the extra bracing and also giving a new 5 year warrenty on the frame if they brace it or replace it. I will only have the brace installed at a very reputable dealer as it seems to be quite an involved process.

Also, the k7/k8 seem to suffer from a crack in the tip of the tail subframe??

I see the K9 frame has no welds on the sides of the twinspar at all. Nice.

[Scorp]

...really, this frame will not break unless you hit something hard enough, and hard enough means the forks, triple clamp and wheel would be in their chops too.

Wheelying will break other stuff before the frame, like your triple clamp, its only weak aluminium anyways, your fork seal will pop and fairing will probably shake or break itself to detah before the frame cracks.

Its just that in every front end shunt the K5/6 has been in seems to break in the same place every time.

..http://roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=35357

hhhm seems like looong wheelies also the culprit.. :P this bike was meant to wheelie!

[Doctor G]

It's times like this I guess it pays to own a genuine SA suzuki. I'm sure if someone with a parrallel bike walks in there they will get shown the door.

I'm gonna wait till the dealers have "practised" installing the brace on a few bikes before getting mine done. I don't wheelie (willingly) and I don't do stunts.

In the event of a crash, (like the picture above) I think the frame is the least of the worries. Also, I'd prefer the frame broke so I could get a new bike from the insurance, instead of having them fix a bike.

I just wonder that when a frame is reinforced, won't the stress just be transferred to the next weakest point?

[Scorp]

.. if this is a weak point, once reinforced the force required to break something else would probably be lots more...

so yes, its really the last thing you should worry about...