Opinions on V-Stroms

[nhbubba]

Turns out those 40mm cans you linked are "right at 39 inches" across. Not as wide as I had assumed.

[nhbubba]

So after a week or so reading up on cheapo, DIY, fugly case mounts and what not, I just ordered a full Givi setup with the little E21 cases. Found a reasonable price with free shipping and said 'screw-it'.

I like the look. May order some big pelicans eventually and do a DIY mount for those for serious touring. In the meantime I'll have quick release E21's for M-F commuting. (Which is actually 90% of what I use my bike for currently anyway.)

[Stromper]

So get some gear and come to Vermont

[nhbubba]

Gassed up today with 303 miles on the trip since the last fillup. This thing is insane!

[Rossco]

Gassed up today with 303 miles on the trip since the last fillup. This thing is insane!

What you getting MPGwise on that thing?

[nhbubba]

Fuelly says 56-57-ish MPG. I have several tanks in the books >60MPG.

The guys on the Stromtrooper forum all say mileage should fall off like a rock on the highway. But mine haven't. I seem to get ~53-55 MPG doing my slab commute @ ~80 MPH indicated, even with the new side cases mounted up.

I get pretty good mileage in my cage compared to most too.

Overall I'm pleased as hell with this thing so far. Looks like I've laid about 4500 miles on it in just under 3 months now. Really dreading putting it away in the next month or two.

I should have put bags and a windshield on my Bandit 10 years ago!

[dankatz]

[URL="http://www.fuelly.com/driver/nhbubba/vstrom-dl650"]

The guys on the Stromtrooper forum all say mileage should fall off like a rock on the highway. But mine haven't. I seem to get ~53-55 MPG doing my slab commute @ ~80 MPH indicated, even with the new side cases mounted up.

That's excellent! Highway riding make a big difference. My VFR with set of bags and touring windshield gets 52 mpg on the highway, but 35 mpg in the city - a big difference.

[gregp]

nhbubba - Can you tell me if the Wee is a good 2-up machine? Have you carried a passenger for any length of time? Comments from them?

[nhbubba]

Most (many? some?) with the wee claim the opposite. They say revs and aero drag kill the mileage and the 55+ MPG I was seeing early was because I was tooling around at 40-50 MPH at or under 5k RPM. The bike is shaped like a brick with that tall, nearly vertical screen on the front. But it just hasn't worked out that way.

At ~80 MPH indicated I am turning like 6k RPM.

I keep saying 'indicated' btw because the speedo on this thing is notoriously optimistic. I believe it is off to the tune of 10% and so I'm likely doing closer to the low 70's MPH. Which jives with what I see the rest of traffic doing. However, I have not paced it with a GPS yet so I can't be sure.

Supposedly the odometer is pretty accurate though.

Mileage wise, I dunno what I'm doing right, but fuck me is it fun.

[nhbubba]

nhbubba - Can you tell me if the Wee is a good 2-up machine? Have you carried a passenger for any length of time? Comments from them?

I can't tell you anything here. I have never carried a passenger on this thing. The missus has made it pretty clear she's done motorcycling. This thing is exclusively my toy and my toy alone.

I was paranoid as hell that I'd be disappointed with a 650, that it wouldn't have the 'balls' for my kind of riding. I was on a Bandit 1200 before this. All of my (cruiser riding) friends and family said I was an idiot for considering anything under ~900cc.

They were pretty much completely wrong, and I was a fool for being so worried about it.

The 650 has more that enough 'balls' to get you in trouble. In fact I think its more fun than my Bandit was because I can beat the snot out of it with the throttle with less worry that I'll kill myself. I did clutch the front end into the air once by accident, shifting in anger. But otherwise it totally lacks the power to wheelie, unlike the Bandit which would power wheelie in 2nd without issue.

But I'm not sure how it would do 2 up. It will get you there, but it might be a bit slow and obnoxious if you're used to more zip.

Bri (my missus) sat on the pillion for a moment in the garage one day. She said it was okay. She is not a sport-bike fan and objected to the "small" seat on the Bandit a lot. I think the rear seat is bigger with better ergos on the 'strom. But she just shrugged and said 'meh, maybe'.

To be clear, most of the reason she won't ride is because I harbor an inner 14 year old and have previously done exceptionally stupid things, not necessarily because the bike is uncomfortable.

[Garandman]

Like virtually every motorcycle sold in the US, the speedometer is optimistic. Do people still not know this?

80 should be 73 or 74 actual.

MPG on both of mine improved for the first 7,000 miles, then leveled off.

[markbvt]

I keep saying 'indicated' btw because the speedo on this thing is notoriously optimistic. I believe it is off to the tune of 10% and so I'm likely doing closer to the low 70's MPH. Which jives with what I see the rest of traffic doing. However, I have not paced it with a GPS yet so I can't be sure.

It's true. I paced my Wee-Strom with the GPS many times. The speedo is just under 10% optimistic.

Mileage wise, I dunno what I'm doing right, but fuck me is it fun.

How much do you weigh? If you're relatively lightweight, and especially if you're small enough to be fairly well tucked into the slipstream and not presenting a large additional amount of drag, then that could explain why you're getting such good mileage.

I'm 6'4"/250; when I rode on the highway, my mileage definitely dipped down into the low 40s or so. That detuned 650 mill just isn't powerful enough to overcome the drag without burning a lot of extra fuel.

--mark

[nhbubba]

How much do you weigh?

More than I'd like to admit in public. I'm just under 6'. Small and lightweight I am not.

I have yet to have a fillup under 52 MPG with 19 recorded fillups now.

It took me a few weeks (a month?) to figure out how to adjust the windscreen with the aftermarket GPS mount the PO has on this thing. I'm now riding with it in the highest stock position and have seen nearly zero impact on mileage.

[Garandman]

I weigh almost 250 gear. And always ride with Jesse bags, tools, etc. And ride out of Boston so a lot of miles are in heavy traffic.

Logged every gallon of fuel used on both V-stroms (05 and 09). Over the life of the 05 V-Strom I averaged 51mpg. Lowest full tank was 41.8 and highest full tank was 62.3.

The 09 [twin plug] currently has 15,000 miles on it, exactly. Ignoring track days (under 30mpg) I've averaged 50.6mpg. The lowest full tank was 42.4 and the highest full tank was 61.1.

For the 2011 season, I've averaged 51.1, with a low full tank of 42.9 and a high full tank of 56.5.

[Stromper]

The 2 up question can be more than answered at

www.stromtrooper.com


Your friends will snicker if you show up on a competent, efficient, universal and comfortable motorcycle

[RandyO]

Fuelly says 56-57-ish MPG. I have several tanks in the books >60MPG.

The guys on the Stromtrooper forum all say mileage should fall off like a rock on the highway. But mine haven't. I seem to get ~53-55 MPG doing my slab commute @ ~80 MPH indicated, even with the new side cases mounted up.
!

53-55 is less than 56-57 or >60 so you have dropped off some, try a tank on the highway at 80 actual rather than indicated and I'll bet you see a more significant drop


my nekid SV650 got better than 50mpg when speeds were under 65, and less than 40mpg when sustained speeds were over 75, but I don't believe the wee-strom's variation is that dramatic , My Vee gets pretty much the same milage regardless of speed 43-44mpg

[nhbubba]

[TheIglu]

Rode my Wee to work today, it's maiden voyage as with me being the owner.

[nhbubba]

And? ... What was your gas mileage?

Seriously though, 'grats on the purchase.

[TheIglu]

I got a good laugh from the KLR line in that little clip.


Thoughts so far:

Glad I put the .85kg springs and 15w oil in the forks. They feel great. Not too firm, but very composed even over the rough stuff. No KLR when it comes to cushiness, but definitely more composed and solid.

Lighter than it looks. Feels similar in weight to the KLR, but more of it is down low. Feels a lot more solid, less flex.

Brakes are more than this bike will ever need, even with old pads and rubber lines.

Ball bearings in the steering head? Are you kidding me? Swapped those out with some tapered bearings before I rode it. Glad I did, the stock bearings were dry and a little rusty.

She's quiet. REAL quiet. Would be great to let her breath a little with a full system. Maybe next year.

Comfortable, but I still need to adjust the bars a bit. Feel like my arms are way out.

Noisy above 50 due to the wind. Will look into the Madstad.

Motor pulls smooth with no real hit in power anywhere.

Valve adjustments are easy to do on your own. Did mine before riding it. Also put in a new KN air filter and iridium plugs. Oil change took less than 5 minutes.

Things to do:

Front directional isn't working, probably pulled the wire when messing around in the fairing.

Install Scottoiler and dual nozzle.

Scrub the rust off the chain.

Wash it.

[nhbubba]

Never had the pleasure re: the KLR.

Quiet is one complaint I've never had. I dig the sound from the saddle. Must be my crappy hearing. People tell me it sounds goofy from where they sit. Those people tend to be cruiser fans though.

The video I've shot of the bike isn't flattering, so it sounding just fine is probably all in my head.

Wash it?! Bah.

[TheIglu]

My SV sounds really nice with the M4 exhaust. Not overly loud, just throaty and satisfying. Looks like the M4 system may of been discontinued for the Wee though.

[Stromper]

Fork Brace

ZOMBIE THREAD

[Garandman]

Everyone is going to the Akropovic slip on for the 2007 and later models. They ship with a mid-pipe to bolt on. Systems for the 2006 and earlier do not fit.

There are two opinions concerning whether or not the bike runs too lean with that exhaust and nees a PowerCommander and new map: yes it does and no it doesn't. The primary benefit of the AK seems to be weight reduction, not a power increase. There is a vendor on Stromtrooper with good prices on both.

[TheIglu]

The clamp on my front heater - midpipe was rusted apart and fell off. Damn things were welded on. Typical cheap Suzuki engineering. Why weld on something that is bolted on?

I'd like to get a full system if possible.

Wouldn't mind tossing some SV cams in there too and a power commander.

Going to leave it stock for now. Shock first!