2023 Suzuki GSX-R600 First Look Preview

Suzuki will carry over its GSX-R600 into 2023 unchanged in every way except for three different colorways. These include Metallic Triton Blue and Metallic Mystic Silver, Pear Brilliant White and Metallic Matte Stellar Blue, and Glass Sparkle Black and Glass Matte Mechanical Gray. It will be priced at $11,699, a $200 increase over last year’s MSRP.

As with the GSX-R1000, the 1000R, and the GSX-R750 sportbikes, Suzuki does not have anything else in store for the 599cc middleweight in 2023. The bike is in the same boat as the 750 in that it hasn’t received a major overhaul since 2011.

Despite being long in the tooth, the 600 retains a number of admirable qualities. Its engine provides commendable torque, the Brembo front braking kit offers great braking feel, and the unit as a whole offers a surprisingly stable feel in the saddle. Take a trip down memory lane and check out this comparison from 2018 to see how it fared against other bikes in the segment.

Three-way-adjustable footpegs, an electronically controlled steering damper, and Showa suspension further sweeten the deal.

It is, like its older 750 sibling, still lacking in technological sophistication. There are only two ride modes, no ABS, and no other electronic aids like traction control, launch control, and the like. This is one area where Suzuki will need to step things up in coming years if the 600 is to remain at all appealing to middleweight sportbike riders. Take the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-6R, for example, with its higher-spec Showa fork, quickshifter, ABS, and three-mode traction control for $11,999. The non-ABS version starts at $10,699.

Of course, this GSX-R could also go the way of Yamaha and its YZF-R7. It’s not inconceivable that Suzuki might just replace the GSX-R600 with a lower-spec twin-cylinder GSX-650 adopted from a platform like the SV650 and try its luck with riders who want sportbike looks with more docile performance.