Suzuki TM400
The Suzuki TM400 was an enduro motorcycle more commonly known as the Suzuki Cyclone.
Problems
It weighed 242 pounds, dry-weight, and delivered about 40 hp at 6850 rpm. Sometimes it delivered it at 4400 rpm. At other times, it would deliver it just when you least expected it. You see, the Cyclone had a weird ignition that would go from a starting mode to full advance whenever it felt like it. Even a change in temperature would change the power hit.
Picture this: you're exiting a hard-packed turn in second gear and you roll the throttle on. All of a sudden, the engine lurches into the fat part of the power curve and the rear end leaps out about three feet. The chassis shudders and sends you sailing into the clear blue sky in a nice arc. Moments later, you thump into the ground, painfully, and then a microsecond after that, the Cyclone lands on top of you.
Adding to the bizarre powerband was a set of forks that went rigid on square bumps and rear shocks that faded from anything hotter than headlight glare. Many companies produced endless handling and frame modification kits. None of these things seemed to help much, but the bike cost only $995 brand new and people kept buying them, trying to make them work. They all failed, to one degree or another, to tame the Cyclone.
1971 TM400R
- FRAME #: TM400-10001
- ENGINE #: ..... TM400-10001
- ENGINE TYPE: ... 396cc Two-stroke
- MODEL CODE: ... 165
- COLOR: Strip Orange
- Front brake torque link
- White front and side number plates
1972 TM400J
- FRAME #: TM400-16600
- ENGINE #: TM400-16600
- ENGINE TYPE: . . . 396cc Two-stroke
- MODEL CODE: . . . 165
- COLOR: Aspen Yellow
- Front brake torque link
- White front and side number plates
- Black tank stripes
1973 TM400K
- FRAME #: TM400-30001
- ENGINE #: TM400-30006
- ENGINE TYPE: ... 396cc Two-stroke
- MODEL CODE: ... 321
- COLOR: Aspen Yellow
- Black side covers with white number plates
- Green tank stripes
1974 TM400L
- FRAME #: TM400-33482
- ENGINE #: TM400-33500
- ENGINE TYPE: 396cc Two-stroke
- MODEL CODE: 323
- COLOR: Aspen Yellow
- Green tank stripes
- Black side covers with white number plates
1975 TM400M
- FRAME #: TM400-40918
- ENGINE #: TM400-40957
- ENGINE TYPE: 396cc Two-stroke
- MODEL CODE: 323
- COLOR: Aspen Yellow
- Black side covers with yellow number plates
- Green sunburst tank decal