Brand-new Suzuko V-strom 800 DE

The factory’s decided it’s time to update its much-loved adventure bike

Did you really think Suzuki was quitting the motorbike business? Well, it didn’t seem so outlandish earlier this year to be honest, dumping its MotoGP team; quitting world endurance; little in the way of future-proofed machinery; rehashing old engines seemingly ad infinitum. But Suzuki fans who kept the faith will be rewarded here, with not one, but two, brand-new middleweight bikes, using a completely fresh engine design.

First up is this – the V-Strom 800 DE. An allnew adventure bike to slot in-between the 650 and 1000 V-Stroms, it has the same powerplant as the new GSX-8S naked roadster (see pages 1617). That means a parallel twin DOHV 776cc design, with a patented new dual-balancer shaft set up, 270° firing order, ride-by-wire throttle and a decent 81bhp peak power output. It’s a little down on the likes of a Triumph Tiger 800, but well up for taking on the likes of a Ténéré 700 or Versys 650, on the power front at least.

As it deserves, the new motor gets a new chassis, but there’s little in the way of surprises. It’s fairly standard V-Strom fare: steel tube frame; aluminium swingarm; family-style bodywork with big beak and a 20-litre fuel tank; and upright adventure-touring riding position. The Showa suspension set up looks good: 220mm travel and fully adjustable both ends, with 43mm USD forks and a piggyback rear shock, while the brakes have dirt-style twin-piston sliding callipers and 310mm dual discs up front. Wire-spoked alloy rims have a premium gold or black anodised finish, and carry semi-dirt tyres in 90/90 21-front and 150/70 17rear sizes, with tube-type rubber.

The electronics package is solid, if a little steady. There’s no fancy IMU assistance for the rider aids, but you have switchable ABS and traction control, with Suzuki’s ‘G’, or Gravel offroad, mode, which softens the power delivery. You can also turn off the rear wheel ABS channel for dirt use. It’s all controlled via a neat 5-inch full colour TFT LCD dash, and there’s a standard up/down autoblipping quickshifter, too.

No price as we went to press, but the new V-Strom 800 will be on sale in the spring.