Even today, Suzuki’s TS400 makes a convincing urban warrior
Trail bikes make perfect sense on Tarmac as well as out in the wilds – a theory we put to the test with Suzuki’s big-bore TS400 in the capital
Most trail bikes sold back in the 1970s never saw the dirt – especially in the UK. People bought them for the look. Trail bikes were cool and, as thousands of riders soon discovered, they made great road bikes, too – especially on crowded city streets where their characteristics of nimbleness, light weight and punchy engines really come into their own. And ’70s trail bike engines don’t come much punchier than Suzuki’s two-stroke TS400.
In fact, Suzuki obviously felt it was too much of a good thing for the UK market and it was never officially imported here. It was a bike targeted at the wide open spaces of countries like America, Australia and South Africa and although a few private imports have made it to our shores, the big TS is still a comparatively rare sight on British roads.
Rick Proops, proprietor of long-established purveyors of rare and unusual motorcycles, RAP Superbikes, has had his eye on this one for a long time, though. “I spotted it in a collection in Holland a few years ago,” he confirms. “I nagged the owner for four years to sell it to me – and in January this year he called me and said I could have it. It had a nut-and-bolt restoration in 2012/13 and it hasn’t done a lot since then. We’ve just given it the once-over, cleaned the carburettor out, set the oil pump, fitted a new battery and plug, and got it registered. I’ve put an MOT on it, too – even though it doesn’t need one as it’s pre-1978. It’s a bit of extra reassurance for the buyer.”
The bike is the penultimate version of Suzuki’s largestcapacity trail bike of the ’70s. Introduced in late 1971 for the 1972 sales season as the TS400J, the bike featured a short-stroke, piston-ported engine in a conventional single-downtube, twinshock chassis. Suzuki made much of the TS range’s connection to their highly successful works motocrossers (they amassed six world titles between 1970 and 1973 with riders Roger De Coster and Joel Robert) but in truth, the TS trail bikes were worlds apart from the works bikes. That’s not to say they were without merit, though.
After the launch of Yamaha’s DT-1 in 1968, all the manufacturers had to up their game in the dual-purpose market and the old-style street scramblers had given way to a new breed of trail bikes with genuine off-road credentials. Suzuki’s initial response was the TS250 Savage. The 23bhp single proved a success and was swiftly followed by a range of TS models from 50cc to 396cc. The TS400 appeared for 1971 and was billed as ‘the fastest dirt bike you can ride in the street.’ That may (or may not) have been so, but it was certainly the most potent machine in the six-bike Suzuki TS line-up. With a claimed 34bhp available to haul its 273lb (123kg) dry weight, the TS400 Apache was capable of over 80mph on the road. A five-speed gearbox, electronic ignition and Suzuki’s CCI (Crankcase Cylinder Injection) automatic lubrication system were all cutting-edge stuff – although the 19in front wheel harked back to the old days of the street scramblers.
The press were reasonably impressed by the big TS’S on-street manners at the time. Cycle World reckoned it was the ideal tool for fast mountain roads when they tested a J model in August 1973. But they were less impressed with the bike off road, where they found that the suspension was lacking and the 19in front wheel had a tendency to wash out when pushed into loose-surfaced turns. Two years later, though, the much revised TS400L was released. Would it change opinions?
Well, it was certainly more than a cosmetic revamp. The frame was new – with double downtubes in place of the single tube of previous models. That meant a new barrel, with the exhaust port positioned centrally at the front to allow the redesigned pipe to exit between the twin downtubes. The cylinder head was another new part, with a smaller combustion chamber boosting compression from 6.8:1 to 7.3:1 and extra finning to aid cooling. There were new forks too, beefed up crankcases and gearbox, and slightly different first and fifth gear ratios. And at last the TS got a 21in front wheel – just like a ‘proper’ dirt bike. Suzuki had made a real effort.
The engine proved just about the perfect unit for trail riding, with a virtually flat torque curve from 2500rpm up to its 6500rpm redline. That gave a luxurious 4000rpm-wide powerband. But if the engine showed signs of evolution, some testers thought the handling and road manners of the new model was a step backwards. Most of the blame was levelled at the suspension – over-damped forks and under-damped rear shocks. Annoying perhaps, but fairly easily sorted.
That was as far as significant development of the TS400 went. The big stroker remained in the catalogue until 1979, but by then the world was changing. Emissions restrictions in some markets meant two-stroke road bikes (and trail bikes) were on the way out. The four-strokes were coming. That makes our test bike (almost) the last of its line. Its specification is little altered from the 1975 L model and, during the remaining three years of production, there were no more major developments for the model. This is as good as the TS400 gets.
Much of Suzuki’s reasoning behind the changes to the TS400 was informed by market research that revealed most trail bikes spent far more time on the road than they ever did on the dirt. Their aim was to make the TS a better street bike and, with a distinct lack of deserts and cow trails in North London, I’m about to get the chance to find out whether a big two-stroke trail bike can handle the urban jungle.
If it was just down to looks, the big TS has it covered. As far as I’ve been able to ascertain, the TS400 was never officially available in Suzuki’s motocross racing livery of yellow and green. That’s a crying shame, because Rick’s bike looks the business in its Tm400-inspired paint scheme. Other than colour and a pair of (hopefully better than original) aftermarket rear shocks, though, the TS looks just as it should.
It sounds just right as well. A swing on the long, cranked kickstart sets it crackling away easily enough. There’s a relief passage from the top of the bore to the exhaust port, which reduces compression by venting
‘SUZUKI MADE CHANGES TO THE TS WITH THE AIM OF MAKING IT A BETTER STREET BIKE’
excess pressure directly into the exhaust. It works in the same way as a conventional compression release valve, but vents any excess fuel from the combustion chamber directly into the exhaust rather than all over the outside of the engine. Clever, eh?
Threading my way through a housing estate, I get to appreciate the torquey nature of the engine – and it really is a big softie. First gear is almost redundant and I can roll the throttle off until the bike is literally crawling in second gear, then roll it on to gently lug up to speed again. It’s a very relaxing engine to ride in traffic.
Grabbing the holeshot at every set of traffic lights is easy, too. There’s nothing quicker on the draw than the TS400 on the Finchley Road today. There’s just so much torque. I can imagine on the dirt there’d be a whole lot of wheelspin if I were to pin the throttle for a fast getaway, but on the road the TS just hurls itself forwards. The power feels seamless at anything over 2500rpm and I have to keep a lid on things in the 30mph zone. A bit further north, the Finchley Road meets Hendon Way and I can make my way into 40 and even 50mph limits. It’s not the same as a flat-out blast on canyon roads in California, but it confirms that the rich vein of torque runs on to higher revs.
If the engine seems well suited to city life, what about the rest of the bike? Again, it feels surprisingly at home. The brakes might be nothing special by road bike standards – but they don’t have to be, when getting up to 50mph is a rare treat. And, while the TS400 is definitely not the smallest and lightest trail bike in the world, in the great scheme of things it’s supermodel-slender and jockey light compared to its road-based contemporaries. Filtering is easy and the generous steering lock makes picking my way through the chaos of London traffic easier than it has any right to be. And, of course, potholes and speed humps mean nothing to the TS.
But the best thing about riding the TS400 in the capital is that it brings the fun back to riding on congested streets. Sure, I’d love to be out in the desert or blasting along some fire roads on it – but then maybe this immaculate example is just too good to use on the trail anyway. I love the way it looks, sounds and feels, although the Deliveroo cyclist behind me as I smoke away from yet another set of red lights might not agree.
It’s a pretty good way of getting around the streets of London – as long as you don’t have to go inside the new Ultra Low Emissions Zone. There are some things about ’70s two-strokes that never change.
‘GRABBING THE HOLESHOT AT EVERY SET OF TRAFFIC LIGHTS IS EASY – THERE’S JUST SO MUCH TORQUE’