IceCreamMan
Grey Hound
- Joined
- Aug 30, 2006
- Messages
- 9,490
- Reaction score
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My 04 V strom has just clocked 50 000kmâ??s an i thought i would just put this together to celebrate this milestone. The strom is the first bike in 20 years i have put this kind of mileage on and also the longest i have kept a bike since a 750 katana i owned in the 80â??s.
When Suzuki first brought out the strom in2002 i was interested and after reading the glowing reports about the bike in the overseas press ,winning bike of the year awards etc, and Simonâ??s good review of the bike on the desert run in Bike SA i got a demo from Suzuki for a weekend. Really enjoyed the bike but was still on gsxrâ??s and the superbike scenario was mostly where i was at. In early 2004 i went on a long ride on gsxr to cookhouse an back and 2 days after that decided that superbikes no more and traded it in on the strom from Suzuki central. I had been eyeing a DS bike for a while and had done a lot of research on the various models on offer and my rational for buying the strom is as follows:
GS1150 +adv) â?? way to heavy for my liking...(pre gs12)
Varadero â?? Weight and fuel consumption
Capanord â?? still waiting for Aprilia to arrange me a demo
Tiger â?? still waiting for triumph to return my call. Did ride one after buying the strom tough. Sweet motor.
KTM- horrendously expensive in early 04, running at R119k back then.
In 50 000kmâ??s the following consumables have been used:
3 sets rear brake pads
1 set front brake pads
2 sets chain an sprockets
6 oil filters
3 air filters
6 spark plugs
5 rear tyres
3 front tyres
1 battery
Many of the â??specialâ? crappy Suzuki plastic fasterners which run at 20 runt a pop. :
2 clutch slave cylinder seals (O ring)
Bike has been serviced thrice by the agents , 1000km,6000km & 12 000km services. The only other time the bike has been in for a paid visit is when i had the TPS set and the TBâ??s synced. All other services i have performed myself. I have checked the valves at 24000km and 48000kmâ??s and in both cases the valves were in spec. I donâ??t think i will check them again until 100 000 kmâ??s. Warranty claims have included a rear shock(took Suzuki 2 months to bring in replacement though ???) , a clutch basket, an odo/speedo replacement.
Bling i have added:
Oil cooler touratech gaurd
Radiator touratech gaurd
Headlight protectors
Full pannier system an topbox.
Hepco Bekker crash bars
Couple of stickers to hide fall scratches. ;D
Onto the bike itself , lets get to the cons of the strom:
No centre stand â?? Suzuki should incl one an up the price a bit. A DS bike should have one standard.
Clutch slave cylinder â?? terrible design on a DS bike. Dirt an crime gets behind the seal and fluid starts to leak. Newer models from 05 have a modified system which works much better. It is possible to upgrade the earlier models but i have not felt the need to spend the $$$..i have it down to a 10 minute job anyway.
Weak front suspension- needs a re shim an stronger springs.cheap enough to do.
Poor front brakes â?? braided hoses and/or good pads cures this.
Belly pan â?? needs an uprated one for serious offroad work. The oil filter an cooler are vulnerable.
Annoying buzz at 3700 rpm.
Chain drive
Wind buffeting
Throttle bodies need to be kept well syncâ??d/
Pros: Motor is a gem ..pulls strong.
Great long distance tourer. Comfortable.
Can do offroad bits ,more suited to dirt highways but very maneaverable in tighter technical stuff.
Cost of ownership is cheap .
Parts are cheapish an generally available.
Comfortable for pillion an powerful enough to cope with full luggage an passenger.
A genuine overdrive 6th gear
Great fuel consumption
Lots of aftermarket stuff available.
Minimal model changes in 6 years .
Chain drive (both a pro an a con imho)
I have ridden the bike on 8 one thousand kilometre days including a 1700km day and always got to my destination feeling great, able to party etc etc....very comfortable bike. I have done 3 longer tours and have taken the bike into die hel, thru baviaans kloof , up the west coast, and into Mozambique. Bike an rider donâ??t like sand ;-) I have done one trip to gaberone on a business trip .... bike has been used for commuting and numerous short haul days (up to 300kmâ??s) . At 50 000 kmâ??s fuel consumption is brilliant (19km/l at 140-150without panniers) and no oil usage between services . i get on, it starts, i ride, no problem. Being a member of the vstrom forums problems experienced amongst strom owners is low.
All in all the strom has been a brilliant bike, gone wherever i needed it to go with minimal fuss. I especially enjoy the tighter lower speed stuff as the bike is light and maneaverable(comparing to gs11xx range). Where it lacks in offroad ability it more than makes up for it on the road. I estimate that in total about 10% has been spent offroad. For that percentage of offroad riding the strom has suited me fine.
Would i make the same decision back in 2004 with the knowledge i have of the bike now and the answer is a most definite yes. This has been an continues to be an absolute brilliant ride for my needs.
I will be looking seriously at the gs800 on launch and if everything falls into place i will get one to replace the strom , but i will be sad in doing so thats for sure.
Cheers
When Suzuki first brought out the strom in2002 i was interested and after reading the glowing reports about the bike in the overseas press ,winning bike of the year awards etc, and Simonâ??s good review of the bike on the desert run in Bike SA i got a demo from Suzuki for a weekend. Really enjoyed the bike but was still on gsxrâ??s and the superbike scenario was mostly where i was at. In early 2004 i went on a long ride on gsxr to cookhouse an back and 2 days after that decided that superbikes no more and traded it in on the strom from Suzuki central. I had been eyeing a DS bike for a while and had done a lot of research on the various models on offer and my rational for buying the strom is as follows:
GS1150 +adv) â?? way to heavy for my liking...(pre gs12)
Varadero â?? Weight and fuel consumption
Capanord â?? still waiting for Aprilia to arrange me a demo
Tiger â?? still waiting for triumph to return my call. Did ride one after buying the strom tough. Sweet motor.
KTM- horrendously expensive in early 04, running at R119k back then.
In 50 000kmâ??s the following consumables have been used:
3 sets rear brake pads
1 set front brake pads
2 sets chain an sprockets
6 oil filters
3 air filters
6 spark plugs
5 rear tyres
3 front tyres
1 battery
Many of the â??specialâ? crappy Suzuki plastic fasterners which run at 20 runt a pop. :
2 clutch slave cylinder seals (O ring)
Bike has been serviced thrice by the agents , 1000km,6000km & 12 000km services. The only other time the bike has been in for a paid visit is when i had the TPS set and the TBâ??s synced. All other services i have performed myself. I have checked the valves at 24000km and 48000kmâ??s and in both cases the valves were in spec. I donâ??t think i will check them again until 100 000 kmâ??s. Warranty claims have included a rear shock(took Suzuki 2 months to bring in replacement though ???) , a clutch basket, an odo/speedo replacement.
Bling i have added:
Oil cooler touratech gaurd
Radiator touratech gaurd
Headlight protectors
Full pannier system an topbox.
Hepco Bekker crash bars
Couple of stickers to hide fall scratches. ;D
Onto the bike itself , lets get to the cons of the strom:
No centre stand â?? Suzuki should incl one an up the price a bit. A DS bike should have one standard.
Clutch slave cylinder â?? terrible design on a DS bike. Dirt an crime gets behind the seal and fluid starts to leak. Newer models from 05 have a modified system which works much better. It is possible to upgrade the earlier models but i have not felt the need to spend the $$$..i have it down to a 10 minute job anyway.
Weak front suspension- needs a re shim an stronger springs.cheap enough to do.
Poor front brakes â?? braided hoses and/or good pads cures this.
Belly pan â?? needs an uprated one for serious offroad work. The oil filter an cooler are vulnerable.
Annoying buzz at 3700 rpm.
Chain drive
Wind buffeting
Throttle bodies need to be kept well syncâ??d/
Pros: Motor is a gem ..pulls strong.
Great long distance tourer. Comfortable.
Can do offroad bits ,more suited to dirt highways but very maneaverable in tighter technical stuff.
Cost of ownership is cheap .
Parts are cheapish an generally available.
Comfortable for pillion an powerful enough to cope with full luggage an passenger.
A genuine overdrive 6th gear
Great fuel consumption
Lots of aftermarket stuff available.
Minimal model changes in 6 years .
Chain drive (both a pro an a con imho)
I have ridden the bike on 8 one thousand kilometre days including a 1700km day and always got to my destination feeling great, able to party etc etc....very comfortable bike. I have done 3 longer tours and have taken the bike into die hel, thru baviaans kloof , up the west coast, and into Mozambique. Bike an rider donâ??t like sand ;-) I have done one trip to gaberone on a business trip .... bike has been used for commuting and numerous short haul days (up to 300kmâ??s) . At 50 000 kmâ??s fuel consumption is brilliant (19km/l at 140-150without panniers) and no oil usage between services . i get on, it starts, i ride, no problem. Being a member of the vstrom forums problems experienced amongst strom owners is low.
All in all the strom has been a brilliant bike, gone wherever i needed it to go with minimal fuss. I especially enjoy the tighter lower speed stuff as the bike is light and maneaverable(comparing to gs11xx range). Where it lacks in offroad ability it more than makes up for it on the road. I estimate that in total about 10% has been spent offroad. For that percentage of offroad riding the strom has suited me fine.
Would i make the same decision back in 2004 with the knowledge i have of the bike now and the answer is a most definite yes. This has been an continues to be an absolute brilliant ride for my needs.
I will be looking seriously at the gs800 on launch and if everything falls into place i will get one to replace the strom , but i will be sad in doing so thats for sure.
Cheers
