Suzuki awakens, updates 12yo DL1000

[KB]

I rode that shit box on knobbies on the Dragon.

KB

I have two bikes that are in the 130hp range, and two that are around half of that. You might even venture to say that I've ridden all of them on the street. It would be a stretch, but it is a possibility I have enough experience to make wild accusations like I did.

Unless you are looking to kill yourself, there is no place a Wee (which is a SLOW adventure bike by comparison) will slouch driving on the street, including on sport rides.


Oh, that's right. You've never been on a sport ride with me when I was on a 36hp KLR650 on knobbies.....

[Paul_E_D]

http://www.mcnews.com.au/2014_Bikes/...000/Intro1.htm


Warming to this thing. They are claiming 228kg (503 lbs) curb weight.. which is only ~15-20 heavier than my 650 is spec'ed at. Radial mount front calipers with ABS. Fully adjustable inverted forks. Traction control. Some sources are suggesting this thing will "get 50 MPG", which I have a hard time believing, but am excited about. Power spec's are being reported as 99 HP @ 8000 RPM x 76 ftlbs @ 4000 RPM. Compare that to my 650 @ something like 65 HP x 45 ftlbs.

This model seems much more interesting, despite the fugly beak. Maybe they will offer it in all black which will hide some of the fuglyness. Not that I am opposed to buying fugly motorcycles. I bought a V-Strom in the first place, after all.


The biggest question left is: whut's da price tag?!

That thing looks like it has a "Day of the Dead" type skull graphic on it's beak. WTF, over.

[dontpanic]

Some sources are suggesting this thing will "get 50 MPG", which I have a hard time believing, but am excited about.

I don't see that figure as unlikely. I used to be able to get 50 mpg on my SV1000S pretty regularly, and I'd bet the 'Strom would get ridden a bit less, er, energetically overall.

[Garandman]

They've already hit some dealers in other countries, not sure about the US yet.

Think it was on Advrider that some BMW GS owner was outraged that Suzuki had copied BMW's beak.

[nhbubba]

If it makes the BMW zealots feel any better, I hate the beak!

[feralchimp]

Put those forks / brakes / wheels on the 650.

[SVRACER01]

Wirelessly posted (GS3)

I'd be interested in the new 1190 adventure. The guys at the local ktm dealer went to Austria earlier this summer and got to ride one for a week. He said it was awesome.

[Garandman]

In what way was the Tiger radically different? Up until the Tiger 1050 came out, it was a standard ADV bike with 19" front wheel, 110/150 tire sizes, etc. The Tiger 1050 was a supermoto-inspired aberration, then the Tiger lineup went back to its ADV roots.

Or, not. The original Tiger in the 30's was a single, then a twin. At one point the Tiger Daytona was what passed for a sport bike.

Much more recently Triumph has used the Tiger name for road oriented twins, cross dressing 800's, the street-oriented 1050 triple, and the giant Tiger Explorer. They still list the 1050 Sport in their "Adventure" range. They seem to use it any which way they want - But the vast majority of Tigers were and are street bikes.

For most of the manufacturers now, "Adventure" seems to mean upright riding position, some weather protection, and availability of hard luggage. At least they're practical instead of fashion statements.

[markbvt]

Or, not. The original Tiger in the 30's was a single, then a twin. At one point the Tiger Daytona was what passed for a sport bike.

Much more recently Triumph has used the Tiger name for road oriented twins, cross dressing 800's, the street-oriented 1050 triple, and the giant Tiger Explorer. They still list the 1050 Sport in their "Adventure" range. They seem to use it any which way they want - But the vast majority of Tigers were and are street bikes.

Sorry, was referring specifically to Hinckley Triumphs. They've used the Tiger name solely for their adventure lineup, and all the models have fit the category except the 1050 (which by the way may still be listed on their website in the UK, but is no longer available in the US). By "fit the category," I mean upright, longer-travel suspension, 150-section rear tire, and 19" or 21" front so a wide variety of dual-sport rubber can be mounted.

--mark

[Garandman]

Official U.S. Price: $12,699.

Compare that price to, say, the 2014 BMW R 1200 GS, which starts at a whopping $16,100 before you start adding the de rigeur options. Like the GS, the V-Strom includes standard ABS and Traction Control. The 2013 Super Tenere is $14,700.

The 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 1000 Adventure, which gains hand guards, engine guards, a skid plate, and hard panniers, will retail for $13,999. That price is competitive to even the smaller, BMW F 800 GS Adventure, which starts at $13,550.

[Stromper]

I think they are too expensive and many will just spring for the BMW

THe 1st beak was 1980 Kayana

[markbvt]

I think they are too expensive and many will just spring for the BMW

???

The BMW is over $4k more expensive (that $16,100 price is for the no-options base model that no one actually carries).

Also, you'd have to be a BMW owner.

--mark

[Garandman]

2014 V-Strom 1000 ABS: MD First Ride

All-in-all, the V-Strom is a very enjoyable bike to ride on a twisty road with its relaxed, comfortable seating position, flexible power delivery and relatively light weight. [Wet weight is 501 lbs in the brochure]

We look forward to doing a more thorough test on the new V-Strom, but we can already tell that Suzuki’s efforts to redesign the bike have paid great dividends.

At a U.S. MSRP of $12,699, the 2014 Suzuki V-Strom 1000 ABS may be all the adventure tourer you ever need.

Wet weight of a Tiger 1050 ABS without bags is supposedly 505 lbs, so this is very competitive for a bike with some wind protection and large fuel tank.

MC News Australia has a lot of details.

I have two free tickets to the NYC show if anyone wants to go see one.

[nhbubba]

First side by side comparo of the DL1000 and DL650 I've seen so far.

http://apairofstroms.wordpress.com/t...014-test-ride/

The drag race videos are especially interesting.

If my 'strom were to vanish into oblivion today.. I am honestly not sure what I would replace it with. Possibly another DL650. Weird.

[nhbubba]

Just test sat the new DL1000. Crawled under it and annoyed the saleswoman with a bunch of questions she couldn't possibly answer. Not as blown away as I expected to be. At present my measure of a motorcycle is how soft the brake lever is. And I found the DL1000 wanting.

Bike is substantially taller than either the brand new DL650 or my 'gen-1' 2011. I needed to tippy toe even in my thick soled boots. It feels light when you toss it side to side. My attention was instantly drawn to the very sexy upside down adjustable front forks and multi-pot radial mount brake calipers. Shame about the rubber lines connected to those. She was going to dig out the "fancy" cases they have for it until someone else wandered in and distracted her.

The olive drab paint is the coolest color I can possibly imagine for a fugly adventure thing.

Speaking of soft brake levers, I also test sat the 'new' style DL650. Utterly underwhelmed. Lever is about as soft as it is on my '11. Running gear feels somehow cheaper than my '11. Although I dig the new seat and windshield.

I think I'm safest keeping what I've got.

[Stromper]

When if the bike isn't on could the ABS not reflect on a lever?

[e30addict]

When if the bike isn't on could the ABS not reflect on a lever?

Shouldn't, not like they're vacuum assist or anything. I feel no difference on my Tiger with ABS engine on/off.

I also sat on a DL650 this past week and my impression was "holy mush" when I squeezed the brakes.

[nhbubba]

Getting to A/B compare my bike to a brand new machine still on the showroom floor re-affirmed that my mushy brakes is mostly a byproduct of the system and components. Not a sign that there is a leak or bulged line or something.

Naturally that leads me to want to just invest in this machine rather than trade it. You can buy a fuck of a lot of braided line kits for the cost of upgrading to a brand new machine.

Even the DL1000 had a somewhat mushy lever. I'm surprised this doesn't get more play with the motorcycle press. They've called DL650 brakes 'wooden' (whatever the hell that means). But never really attacked either models for brake lever feel. After riding the Tiger 800 (which has braided lines and superb lever feel from the factory), this seems like something reviewers could legitimately t-off on.

Saleswoman at the shop rushed out the door as I was thumbing the starter to get home. She volunteered to let me demo one of the 'stroms once they'd got chance to prep them. Naturally I jumped at the offer. But the reality is I just don't think I am a customer. On the way home I basically talked myself out of even bothering with a demo. Ignorance of what I'm missing is bliss.

[nhbubba]

2 y/o new leftover DL1000 is being advertised for $8500-9500 on CL now. That seems like an obscene steal.

[boosten lebaron]

There is a place by my work on long island that's blowing leftover 2014's for $9000. Seemed like a screaming deal. I was really eyeballing the olive drab one. It's pretty sharp. The sales guy said they are expecting the Africa twin to dominate the adv market this summer and they want to get rid of all the old stock while people maybe still interested in them. They are also slowing down taking delivery of new ones to see how the twin does.

[Stromper]

About 3 years ago Japan reduced its currency exchange which should have reduced USA prices by about 30%

Yamaha seemed to be the only company that passed on the savings to the USA customers

I am a Suzi fan and my older Vstrom keeps doing well for me. so I am not anti

They were marketing Aholes with the upgraded Strom. They had delusions of grandeur and thought it should be priced
within $2000 of the big KTM.

There are some quirks which weren't even fixed on the new models and it gets the same shitty fuel mileage as the old

The under 10,000 price is fair, and if you ride up into the mountains around here I recommend it for our bad roads

[nhbubba]

Yamaha seemed to be the only company that passed on the savings to the USA customers

The Super Tenere is even worse. Benchmarks the big BMW shaftie GS. MSRP'ed at $14,700. 2013 leftovers going for $8500. Really wish I liked that motorcycle!

I don't think its out of the goodness of Yamaha's heart or due to any exchange rate thing though. I hear that they overestimated the market. That BMW revamped the 1200GS and made them look foolish. And then they were left with warehouses full of them. Word has it dealers are ordering the leftovers and making money selling them @ $8500.

[markbvt]

I hear that they overestimated the market. That BMW revamped the 1200GS and made them look foolish. And then they were left with warehouses full of them.

I think the Super Tenere also hasn't been as well received as Yamaha was hoping. I get the impression they were hoping for the level of excitement the Honda Africa Twin has generated (which could have been possible given that the original Super Tenere was nearly as legendary as the original Africa Twin), but they failed to achieve it because they didn't design the bike to match up to the original's very offroad-focused nature. They tried to build an R1200GS competitor, and from an objective standpoint they did a good job. But in the final analysis, a great many of the customers who buy a big, heavy ADV tourer are already inclined to go with the BMW because of the image/lifestyle associated with it, regardless of whether the competition is building an equally good but less expensive bike. This is also one of the reasons the Triumph Tiger Explorer has been a lot less successful than the Tiger 800. As designed, the Super Tenere has a reputation for being a bit boring (which V-Stroms can relate to) and too heavy (despite carrying its weight low down and apparently handling quite well).

Yamaha would have been smart to design the Super Tenere to be much more dirt-focused, as Honda did with the Africa Twin. They could have tapped into the growing segment of riders back in 2010 when the bike was launched who were disillusioned with the KTM 950/990 Adventure and BMW F800GS. This was a year before the Tiger 800 XC came out, a bike that wound up capturing quite a few of those riders and selling beyond expectations. And Yamaha would have beat Honda to the punch by 6 years.

Today there are still a lot of people clamoring for a dirt-focused Tenere twin in the 750-1000cc range.

Ah, the fun of what ifs.....

--mark

[nhbubba]

I am very interested to see how deep this "market" is. I remember the Tenere selling with some enthusiasm at first. That fizzled. Was it because the machine sucks? I don't think so. This DL1000 doesn't suck either, yet doesn't sell. Why?

The Africa Twin will have some Achilles heel. Some wart that lets the euro faithful say "see, this is why Japanese bikes suck". Something like whatever infects this DL1000, the Tenere, etc.

[RandyO]

Why?

I think it is because the market for adventure bikes is much more limited than the market for sportbikes or cruisers and adventure bike owners tend to keep their bikes longer