Fresh new patents filed by Suzuki that the new forced induction model from the Japanese brand will be a supercharged one rather than a turbo-charged machine like we all thought until now. The brand showcased the Recursion concept back in 2013 that resembles the ‘Katana’ design cues and its bodyworks seen in 2017.

This mid-weight machine will be Suzuki’s entry into the world of forced induction and might as well carry the ‘Katana’ brand with it. Currently, the industry calls it the GSX-700T, with the ‘T’ playing us deceptive with “turbo-charged”. But these patent images tell us a rather supercharged story.

The GSX-700T has already been displayed to all the dealers in Europe at a dealer meet and will have a 700cc “XE7” engine that will give out close to 150 hp of raw forced-charged power. Eating away the likes of the liter-class performance right off their face. And we had reasons to believe that it did that using a turbocharger.

But quite honestly, Suzuki played us well. It played the clever politician by filing patents for both turbo and supercharged engines on faired and naked versions of the production Recursion/Katana (both names also registered in the US and European markets). These fresh patents filed by the brand clear the story for us.

The drawings showcase the air-flow diagrams and side-on routing of the air box, intercooler and the supercharger clearly laid out for us. “The thermal efficiency and hence the output power of an engine of a saddle-ridden vehicle such as a motorcycle can be increased by equipping the engine with a supercharger and supplying air that has been compressed by the supercharger to the combustion chambers of the engine.” Says in the patent document.

The motorcycle in question is clearly seen as the GSX-700T with the minimal swooping fairing as seen on the bikini-faired sport touring motorcycles that roamed the streets through 1981–2006 under the name ‘Katana’. Suzuki has time and again showed us their interest in getting this design back to the roads of today.

Suzuki Motor Company is in desperate need of a model or two that will give their struggling presence a much-needed lift; especially after their poor show at the 2017 EICMA that just had the Suzuki SVX650 X on display. This GSX-700T might just be the one saving them, both in terms of sales and brand perception.

Knowing that a motorcycle takes at least 4 - 5 years from concept to production, the GSX-700T falls right in line with the unveiling which might happen sometime in 2018 at the EICMA. Until then, stay tuned with us, and we will update you with new light.

Kawasaki better watch their backs.