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Info My test ride of the 2017 Suzuki SV650

Discussion in 'The Pub' started by Tim_, Jan 26, 2017.

Simple.... HYO 650 naked or a Sv 650

  1. 2013-15 Hyosung gt 650 naked

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  2. 2008-12 Suzuki SV650

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  1. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    That's right folks it's that time again where Tim tells you a story, so gather round and we shall all hear about the tale of the useless bike salesmen.............(disclaimer: uselessness is a roughly loose term to use for uneducated about the bikes he is selling.)...

    So I have discussed with a few people now about upgrading to a LAMS 650cc bike (then unrestricting it only when I have my full licence, *cough* bullshit*cough*), and after said discussions I decided on 2 very similar but very different bikes, this makes no sense but soon you will see what I am spagetting at... The contenders will be a 2006-2008 Suzuki SV650 aaaannnnndddd the 2013-2015 Hyosung gt 650 naked (pronounced yo-sung so I found out the H is silent)... Now i already know some people are face palming them selves asking " why a ******* hyo??!! they are Korean crap!" Well you see i look at hyo's like i look at all Korean made products, in the beginning people said they sucked, look at Samsung, LG, Hyundai. And now since some RnD has happened they have improved and that has been the same thing with Hyo's, 2013 was the year they really started to pick up their game quality wise... BUT back to my story...

    I decided to test ride these 2 bikes seeing how I have never ridden either one before... So I plodded along down to my local dealer to ask for a "professional" opinion on the 2 bikes my little torque loving heart but my wallet will break buying a Ducatti or a Triumph desired... I opened the line of question with a simple " what is the differences between this bike and a hyo?" to witch no one in the store had a answer..... I then asked "didnt hyo design the engine in the SV?" I was informed "they only made the old engines", I then asked if he meant the the 4 horse power suzuki got out of the engine buy changing the piston rings, fuel maping the throttle body or did they design a entirely new engine, which he couldnt answer.. he then asked me " aint hyo air cooled?" so I replied "Actually no, they are a liquid cooled, DOHC.... etc etc (insert hyo specs here)" I do believe he was shocked to see I had done my research on the SV and the Hyo..... I was then told " well I cant tell you how good this bike is, just ride it", So i signed on the dotted line and took one for a test ride funny enough it was a different salesmen that took over the attempted sale of the SV to me.... the ride was great, foot positioning spot on for me, clutch was great, gears shifted smoothly, breaks were a little spongy for my liking( but i have never ridden with ABS so i dont know if that is a factor) power was there but you can tell its restricted, but in 3rd gear you can feel the torque nicely (nothing like the baby blade where it only truly shines above 10k rpm)... But all in all a good bike.

    It was a longer ride then I though, lasted round about 15 mins.... apon arriving back at the store the young salesman who had been silent throughout the interactions before the ride asked me "so whatcha think?" to which I replied " great midsized bike, up right riding position is comfortable, feet positions is comfortable, digital cluster is great with all the info you need displayed right there for you, the 160 rear wheel felt secure and stuck to the road, its just a great midsized bike" after my rant of all the things i loved and hated about it i asked the price...... wow.... $9,999...... i looked at him and laughed..... the words "its a 2017 mate" came out of his mouth, so I apologized sincerely for laughing as I was not expecting to pay 10k for a 650cc bike because a second had triumph is the same price... So I asked "do you have a hyo so I can have a comparison?" of course he told me "no, we dont deal with Korean stuff here" so I told him until I ride a naked Hyo I wont be making any decisions on a bike yet.... On the next adventure I will take a hyo gt 650 naked out and see what all the habub is about..

    Why did I tell you this story? well you see, if your biggest market is LAMS approved motorcycles and you have no idea about the motorcycles your selling and then bash any other motorcycles just because of their name but have no real facts to back up any claims you have made to sway me into buying the bike you are selling, be honest about it.... Dont try and lie to me about things just because I may possibly be a "woodduck" as they call them in the sales biz and possibly maybe just buy the first thing you suggest to me because you "know" bikes because you work at a store.... and then put a ridiculous price on a bike because it has "LAMS" written on the paperwork... OK that last bit was a rant, BUT but that is my honest opinions of salesmen...



    SIDE NOTE: my spelling, grammar, sentence and paragraph structure is terrible i know..
     
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  2. my67xr

    my67xr Bike Enthusiast Staff Member Premium Member Contributing Member

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    Hmm they don't like the Korean bike's, aren't quite a few of the Suzuki's built in China ?
    I remember reading that the Hayabusa, Intruder and quite a few other Suzuki's are built in china now (to Japanese standard's)
     
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  3. Linkin

    Linkin The Mechanic Premium Member Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    For 10 grand you can buy a new MT-07. Restrictions are throttle stop, carby/airbox boots and finally ECU. Used ones are going cheaper.
     
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  4. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    brand new mt07 is 10,700.. I asked about it while I was there and for 10 grand i can buy 5ish? hyo 650's of the year model i want.. lol..

    rant to follow........ and go......


    I know the resale is not there for Hyo..... But I know me and once I get it, the mods will come thick and fast... In all honesty I dont see a need in getting a Unrestricted licence, with the nanny state that is Australia and the fact police helicopters patrol almost a nightly basis, when are you going to use that 170 hp? this is my same reasoning for keeping the baby blade and why I am looking for a midsized bike with lots of torque. All the roads I choose to ride are winding where torque is put to great use.. my sig under my post says it all for me....
     
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  5. Linkin

    Linkin The Mechanic Premium Member Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    First time I ever saw an MT07 in person, old mate on his red p's had just lost his license on it :lolsign:
     
  6. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    dont get me wrong they are nice looking bikes, lightest and fastest.. and according to the dealer unrestricted (that has to be a fib) but still LAMS approved... sssssooooo I dont know how they got past LAMS also it has a cross plain crank..
     
  7. Frankster

    Frankster Grey Pride...Adventure before Dementia Staff Member Premium Member Ride and Events Crew

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    Wow...10 grand for a LAMS SV650. I bought a brand new unrestricted Suzuki Gladius (SV650) for exactly that much ride-away back in 2009! I thought bike prices were going down?
     
  8. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    its because its is a LAMS bike, i have seen no LAMS sv650's for 2-3 grand 2nd hand BUT but THE MINUTE they say LAMS its a 5k bike second hand..... but the market is LAMS bikes and the demand is there, so if the demand is there and there is a limited supply of 65o's that can be ridden on a LAMS licence they jack the price up because they know people what the higher cc but on a restricted licence.... supply and demand...
     
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  9. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    and harley davidson engine are built in japan, so the "all american" harley is not so uuuuusssa like they think it is..
     
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  10. Joker

    Joker See "about me" for contact details. Contributing Member

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    Dude if your budget is really $10K ish go take the GSF650FA for a ride. They're fantastic bikes.

    As for Hyo... I hate them. They're nice enough to ride, don't get me wrong - but it's all the other BS that totally puts me off. Begin rant...

    1. They think they're comparable quality to japanese bikes so they charge similar. Is a Kia the same quality as a Toyota? Answer that yourself... I know the answer already.
    2. They're poor design in general. As an example, one of our club members came around yesterday - he has a GT250R. What a bitch that was to replace the chain and sprockets. We were surprised to find that they have plastic (yes, plastic) covers over the sprocket area.. talk about built on the cheap. Then they have done this stupid thing with the rear wheel where the caliper sits at around 2 o'clock on the disc and there's this stupid block arrangement to the swingarm that holds the caliper in place. We had the bike on a rear stand but physically had to lift the bike higher to be able to get the rear wheel out. And that struggle was nothing compared to trying to get the damned thing back in... ridiculous.
    3. They have poor quality metal bits. If you look past the pitting rust in the frame, you'll see it on the forks and the clutch cables just snap. It was funny because I told the club mate yesterday about a story that happened about 10 years ago with 2005 NEW hyosung where the clutch cable snapped clean through on me (the bike was basically brand new, had about 2000 kms on it) and guess what message I got from him today... same thing. I have NEVER had a japanese clutch cable snap on me, ever. I reckon all my FZR's probably have the original cables on them still. And that's not to mention that same Hyo from 2005 snapped (yes snapped) the fork springs on my mate while he was riding it. Got it fixed under warranty and flogged it off after that, for a crap resale as usual
    4. Crap resale.
    5. Suzuki and Hyo have an IP/engineering/design sharing arrangement. So the Hyo engines are based on old suzuki engine designs. Does that mean they make the engines well or out of the same quality stuff as suzuki? don't make me laugh. Any Hyo owner who hasn't had something go wrong (the sorta things you never see on Jap bikes) has either just bought the thing or he is lying.

    As I said, they ride well... but I would never touch one just for the maintenance, yuck. Each to their own though, you ride what you like and all that jazz...

    Positive wise I have six things:

    1. Great riding position
    2. Easy to ride engine
    3. Nice note with a howling exhaust.
    4. Dash is pretty functional
    5. Nice big frame
    6. Sharp looks

    plus one more - they're better than megelli LOL

    See I'm not all negative. Just mostly.
     
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  11. Andych

    Andych Moderator Staff Member Premium Member Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    Dont tell Donald..... ;)
     
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  12. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    bahahahahahahahahaha... where is that wall button....
     
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  13. Tim_

    Tim_ resident nutcase Contributing Member Dirty Wheel Club

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    hahaha, this is what i wanted other peoples opinions and experiences because I have never touched one, so I do not know much hands on about them....

    my limit was never 10k it would have been 5k or less, so the other bikes are out..

    I understand perfectly that they are not jap bikes or even come close to jap bikes, all I'm saying is if it rides well enough (the naked version) and has the right power I want, I will spend the time and the resources into making it MY bike... which means i will alter it and try to improve things... I honestly like the bulky look of the hyo 650 nakeds some protaper bars, bar end mirrors, oggy nobs, maybe a headlight, and a nice pipe and (i cant say this for sure as i do not know) it can be a nicer bike to ride... I know the suspension will be shot and I know it will have plastic bits (NOTE: CBR250RR have plastic sprocket covers as well) but I have Japanese USD forks here and I was always going to change it out... A while ago I owned those little Chinese pit bikes and everyone said it would blow up... I spent some time and money and fixed the most common accruing problems and the bike never missed a beat.. I

    I was told buy the guy to take my 5k and buy a Hyo new.. which is half the price of LAMS SV, and as for clutches it all comes down to how you use them, I went through 3 clutch cables on my R6 before my accident and one of those times it was snapped, frayed and snapped but still snapped.. Also the reason I am looking at 2013-2015 Hyo is i have been told(so proof is yet to be found) that the quality has improved drastically, but again I will not know unless I can find one to at least test ride

    My other thing is I know for a fact I will get a SV and do all the same modification to look and styling of the bike as I would the Hyo. And as for resale... I wouldn't sell it if I had customized either the SV or the Hyo to the way I wanted it, then I don't know if anyone else would like what I have done to the bike, so unless the restriction laws change which allows bigger bikes I wouldn't sell it either because its the biggest capacity bike i can ride on my licence..

    This is not a me justifying anything, this is me just putting my thoughts down, I am not saying you are wrong or anything like that.. This is just how I see my bikes now.
     
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  14. Joker

    Joker See "about me" for contact details. Contributing Member

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    Ok well you can buy whatever you like - I think that's the main thing.

    But don't say you weren't warned about that Korean junk. Doesn't really matter if you make it your own and are still pouring money into it just to keep it running heh. But that's just me - there's a reason you pay more for the SV...
     

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