Test ride V Strom 650

[Timmo]

Bruce'y,you test ridden the new 1000 yet ?

[Brucey]

Nope, and not going to either! Just selling a 1000 Varadero due to back operation making it too heavy, so financially my £5k 63 plate Glee has become the perfect solution - basically going to be a neutral monetary change of bike plus the added benefit of the lighter weight and superb riding position is actually helping my back pain. Last thing I want to do is find out that the Veek is just as good and then either try to find another £5k or resign myself to becoming frustrated with the very reasonable ride offered by my Glee (torque and speed). I actually went to the launch event for the Veek at Suzuki HQ in Milton Keynes before it was launched to the press and was really impressed with Suzuki's staff (especially George, the marketing manager) and the amount of thought that's gone into the new bike. Don't understand why people think £10k is a lot for a bike in that class. Bikes like that cost a lot to make! (Or are Honda, Yamaha and BMW just creaming off thousands of pounds profit from their bikes??)

Regarding screens, I'm 5'10" and have the Suzuki excellent touring screen (with the adjustable flip) and can ride at 90 with my visor open and no buffeting.

Absolutely love my Glee, and the finish is beginning to return after a lot of work. (Previous owner wasn't particularly bothered with cleaning over the last 8 months, I suspect).

[Timmo]

We'll the price is hard to justify when the Glee is just so good,I think they have been spoilt. I can buy a pre reg Glee for ££5600  but am keen on the 1000 but is it worth £4400 more for 350 cc.

[Brucey]

More power, acceleration, traction control, that's probably it. It will have the huge shove from the 1000 engine which is very useful if you have to make an overtake 'stick'. However, the Glee is such a good bike I don't think it's worth the £4k difference. In a year the year old second hand bikes will be £8.5k, in two they'll be £7k. That probably makes them worth the wait, plus you'll see if any issues crop up...

[Hilldweller]

can I just say,,, why do folk get hung up about getting both feet flat on the floor.

Because in The Real World there are road junctions way off camber where you need extra inches in your legs to survive.

One I can see to this day is in Grasse heading north on Route Napoleon. Very steep camber at a Y junction with a stop sign. I was wetting myself trying to keep two people, three 50L cases and a Divi 900 upright. I could only touch down my upper foot, if the bike or it's passenger wobbled a fraction and I had to use the other foot, that would have been it, finished, crunch.

[Tusker]

but to use your other foot you had to be able to push the bike back over with your left foot... Don't get me wrong I dropped the Strom a few times when loaded with luggage,, It was cambers .. top heavyiness etc as you say..  but the point I make is that good practice is to only put the left foot down ,,and in doing that the left leg is effectively longer  

[Hilldweller]

but to use your other foot you had to be able to push the bike back over with your left foot...

No I didn't I came to this up hill steeply cambered junction and leant the bike onto the only foot that would reach the ground.

In fact it was worse than first described, I then made a wrong turning and ended up back at the same junction. It was just as scary second time around.

[Brucey]

I'm with Hilldweller. There are times when the ground is lower on one side, and there are times when for whatever reason (usually fidgety pillions or an unexpected bump) that you have to put a foot down on the side with the longer drop. If you're already on tip toes on the flat, the extra lean that happens when you put your foot down can cause a drop. If this happens to throw you into the path of moving traffic then it's dangerous. It's cheap to lower the bike, so it's an easy fix.

[Oop North John]

More power, acceleration, traction control, that's probably it. It will have the huge shove from the 1000 engine which is very useful if you have to make an overtake 'stick'. However, the Glee is such a good bike I don't think it's worth the £4k difference. In a year the year old second hand bikes will be £8.5k, in two they'll be £7k. That probably makes them worth the wait, plus you'll see if any issues crop up...

Already there are litre bikes being advertised for about £9300, which takes the price differential down a bit, and I don't see it going anywhere but closer in the following months. Whether it is "worth" an extra £1k, £2k, £3k or £4k will depend on what you want / need from your bike, and will be clouded by what other bikes sell for. IMO.

[Dave the Dude]

Understand how most lower the bikes but I was wondering if the Suzuki made lower seat is less comfortable than the standard one?
Anyone who is using one on a 650 like to advise me????

[Juvecu]

They have less foam than standard or higher seats, whether that's more uncomfortable is up to the individual, but I'd say most would find it less comfy.

[Dave the Dude]

They have less foam than standard or higher seats, whether that's more uncomfortable is up to the individual, but I'd say most would find it less comfy.

Thank you for the reply and that's the way I was thinking but It would be good to hear from someone first hand (or should I say first bum??)

[user650]

Had my seat lowered when I first got it, after two or three longish rides found it uncomfortable so swopped it back for another original seat with local dealer and drooped the folks through the yokes 10 mm instead, now much better, longer rides OK now