1978 Suzuki 250 X7, 249cc. registration number KNP 8T. Frame...

Hammer

£3,850

1978 Suzuki 250 X7, 249cc. registration number KNP 8T. Frame number 500201. Engine number GT2502 101185.
Suzuki's GT250 X7 is the ultimate expression of the air-cooled 250 sports bike. Launched in 1978 it instantly became the fastest 250 on the streets. Motorcycle Mechanics' jockey-like test rider Brian Crichton - lying flat on the tank - squeezed 99.5mph out of the first test bike to reach our shores. Removing the mirrors yielded an extra 1mph, making the X7 the first genuine 100mph 250 in the UK.
Mechanically, it was not a radical departure from the late '60s T250 Super Six. The secret of the X7's speed is not a huge leap forward in engine technology, but rather a crash diet. At only 128kg, the X7 is a staggering 18kg less than the GT250B and C models it replaced, and 23.5kg lighter than Yamaha's air-cooled RD250. Adopting a single downtube frame over the older GT's twin downtube layout shaved almost 1.5kg from the X7's chassis, and its ultra-compact engine weighs 7.3kg less than the 'old' GT250B/C mill.
The X7's combination of power and light weight worked brilliantly and the bike was virtually the same from 1978 until it made way for the RG250 Gamma in 1983. In five years all that changed were its colours and graphics, and a switch to rectangular indicators and a one-piece clock housing in 1980.
KNP had been well restored by a previous owner who stripped the engine, overhauled the crank and fitted new pistons, rings, small ends, bearings and seals, the frame was stripped and powder coated, with new bearings, the forks were rebuilt, carb overhauled, new cables, and electrics including a Rexspeed CDI unit, all the bodywork was resprayed, a new seat fitted as well as tyres and battery. Then it was set up on a rolling road for the Higgspeed exhaust system.
Our vendor purchased it in December 2018 but there was a slight oil leak from the gearbox so he rebuild it with new seal, apart from that little has been done with apart from the occasional ride out. MOT's from 1995 at 20,397 and 1996 at 21,633 together with the 2017 one at 27,747, confirm its mileage; today it is 27,775.
Sold with the V5C and old MOTS, the bike started instantly when the cataloguer viewed it and produced the video.