I just picked up my bike from the dealer. GSR 600, lovely bike. And yea, i know you gonna say it is not a good beginners bike. But it has it’s advantages and cons. First things i noticed with the bike:
Great handling and forgives small steering or leaning mistakes, you have enough time to recover get in the lane or the line or whatever.
Awesome low rpm power all the way through.
Clutch is extremely user friendly, i still need time to get used to the clutch/throttle combination for the bike not to kick after i release the clutch. But just a tiny bit of turning the throttle is enough to avoid this. But as i said, i just got the bike and rode it for like half an hour. I didn’t even put the bike into 5th gear yet.
The mirrors are %$@%^ed up. They are just like any other bike mirrors. Good positioned, gives a decent view of the environment behind or on your sides HOWEVER after 90km(it’s like 60mph i guess) they become blurry and you can’t see anything. First thing i’ll do is to search for a fix to this problem. It is not something i’d expect from a suzuki. And considering the bike is a new model, it is not acceptable in my opinion.
Riding position is totally natural. No need to bend over the tank. Relaxed riding all the way through.
I didn’t put much pressure on the brakes so i can’t say they are really good or really bad or any other thing. All i can say is they do the job fine for the speeds i was at(below 110km/ph).
Suspension is at a very good stiffness. Not too hard like a racing bike neither too soft. Just fine. Also suspension is available for personal setup to lower the bike a little bit or harden it a little bit depending on the weight the bike will have to carry. You can change the setting just by turning the knob on the suspension. I didn’t play with it though. And i don’t think i’ll have to.
Wind is slamming quite hard from the sides after 90km/ph. It will take me quite some time to get used to it as well. It doesn’t throw me from lane to lane but i can easily feel the difference in handling. From that perspective, i’d prefer a bike like 250r with fairings(however no dealership has it on stock in Australia and the closest day available is 3 months later(min)). On the other hand, no fairing + oggyknobs = less cry when i drop it. And yes, i think i’ll drop it. Bike has 200kg wet weight. It is quite heavy compared to other bikes around 600cc or lower.
So, in conclusion, my first 30 minutes of ride was quite interesting. I think i felt every possible emotion a human can feel during this time. But in the end, it was a satisfaction overall(apart from the !@%@ed up mirrors).
I am not into speeding but the ability to speed when i need is a good thing in my opinion.
If sv650 is considered a suitable bike for beginners; i suggest to check this bike out.
Please note that this isn’t the first bike i rode in my life. So if you know nothing about bikes, choose a lower cc bike to start with because this bike can throw you over easily if you panic and pull the throttle all the way through… Lower cc bikes will do the same but you will have a couple of extra miliseconds maybe to recover. I used my friends’ bikes on and off but still, this is the first 600 i ever used and i liked it. (Did i mention the mirrors are $%$@ed up?)
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I’m checking if they have fixed the vibration problem on 2008 models but couldn’t find any specific documents for it yet. I don’t have too much hope though… Oh well, where i live only place i can go up to 90-100 km is motorway(highway). I can live with that
I’m checking if they have fixed the vibration problem on 2008 models but couldn’t find any specific documents for it yet. I don’t have too much hope though… Oh well, where i live only place i can go up to 90-100 km is motorway(highway). I can live with that
