Suzuki V-Strom 1050 XT

Built:2020-2420202021202220232024

Photos: Motorradtest.de

A great motorcycle, which few have on the line, is retiring: the Suzuki V-Strom 1000. Great grief worldwide among the few enlightened people who knew them (we are, of course, one of them). But: Great relief, because the successor V-Strom 1050 is in the dealership. Can this really be better?

Late Enlightenment

At that time, it has to be admitted, we did not even have the Suzuki V-Strom 1000 on the line. Accordingly late we planned rare test time for them under the heading "can you do some time". There was no reason for the non-observance, because in the private fleet of the Motorradtest.de team there is one, but the small and slightly older. But Dietmar and I finally went to the Suzuki dealer and wanted to see how the V2-Japanese woman goes like this.

The whole thing has been accelerated by the all-round positive test of the small SV 650, which is the only one with real V2 in its environment.

But now to the 1050 version. So the Japanese can build V2 perfectly. Obviously, the front with the beak is reminiscent of the Big DR from the 80s with its thick single-cylinder. We have chosen the most oblique colour variant, so an adventure bike in yellow is in front of us. But if you count, you will get a total of 12 splashes of colour, which are not always spread over the whole bike. It is definitely different, and you must not forget the safety aspect: if you should overturn on a black spot in the desert, one of the rescue helicopters will find it immediately.

This is how she drives herself

Key upturned and jaaaaaa ... that's how it has to sound. Dumpf-bollernd-subtle-V2 sound creeps into the ear canal and please want to stay in there for the whole test. The videos don't reflect that enough, but if you don't necessarily want the Brutalo sound of Ducati & Co, you'll be well catered for here.

The view of the display is satisfied and well, a little bit this is already a show stopper. You don't have to like the driving Playstation displays a la BMW to find this a little meager. First, it seems to scratch very quickly, because our brand new test bike already had clearly visible micro-scratchers in the display. Secondly, Suzuki makes every effort to appear as a fresh, innovative motorcycle brand. That's why the developers probably thought that a little retro as a contrast couldn't hurt. In the basement there were still displays from five years ago. In order not to spoil the retro impression, the graphic was not changed. Ducati riders from up to a year ago will know what that looks like. Or what the view falls on.

On the other hand: Quickly set Rain or Nonrain and off for it. The start-up function helps. If you let the clutch come (Quickshifter doesn't give it), but don't give enough gas, the V-current electronics automatically serve you a few more revolutions and the vehicle starts moving without choking. This is also a good thing, because tipping over is not only doof for self-confidence, but at 249 kilos fully fuelled bad for the back.

On the other hand, this weight supports two other properties when dealing with the Suzi. Overturning is not done every day (should at least be avoided), but enjoy the good driving comfort. And the stability of the V-current with the unshakeable straight-line and the precise steering behavior is noticeable on the first meters. The windscreen of the eleven-fold adjustable windshield should also fit, our testers were satisfied.

The unknown of the V-current 1050 cannot be traced to the engine either. Sure, it's a V2, among 3,000 tours they don't like to give that up with the performance. The valley of the valleys, the jerking and sprinting, is not nearly nasty and deep at Suzi, but the promised land begins north of it. In the most used average speed range, the 1000 swere was not bad, but there wasn't much left on the top. That has changed: Now the 1050s (the displacement has remained the same by the way) turns cheerfully and linearly towards the speed limiter.