2007–2011 · Adventure · Buyer's Guide
Quietly Bulletproof Mile Eater
Suzuki built this one around a 645 cc, 90-degree V-twin and then resisted every urge to complicate it. The claimed 67 hp arrives at 8,800 rpm and 44 lb-ft at 6,400 rpm, which reads modest, and is, but the spread underneath those peaks is wide enough that you stop caring which of the six gears you are in. No ride modes, no traction control, nothing to configure. What you get instead is a 19-inch front wheel, suspension you can adjust at both ends, a 5.8-gallon (22 L) tank, and a middleweight adventure bike with almost nothing on it to go wrong.
It ages the way good tools age. Reliability is the strongest thing about this generation, running costs stay low, and the aftermarket is deep enough that you can finish the bike the way you want it, which matters, because Suzuki sent this one out lightly equipped. If long days, big routes and ten years of ownership without drama are the goal, you are the buyer. The honest caveat is dirt. With 6.3 inches (160 mm) of front travel and 6.7 inches (170 mm) of ground clearance, it is a road-first traveler that likes graded gravel and wants riding around anything rougher.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 67 hp (49 kW) @ 8,800 rpm |
|---|---|
| Torque | 44 lb-ft (60 Nm) @ 6,400 rpm |
| Displacement | 645 cc |
| Engine | 90° V-twin |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Final drive | Chain |
| Front tire | 110/80-19 |
| Rear tire | 150/70-17 |
| Ground clearance | 6.7 in (170 mm) |
| Front travel | 6.3 in (160 mm) |
| Seat height | 32.9 in (835 mm) |
| Wet weight | 485 lb (220 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 5.8 gal (22 L) |
| Fuel economy | 42 mpg (US) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Safety
This isn't my riding impression. It's what has reached me over the years: paddock talk, club nights, owner conversations, and the mail riders send me directly. On this V-Strom the picture is unusually consistent, broad agreement on what it does for people, and a short list of gripes that keeps repeating.
The praise starts in the same place: the bike rarely says no. Owners describe commuting on it, loading it two-up for a tour, then pointing it down a light trail, and it takes all of it in stride. Comfort gets the same billing, all-day saddle time treated as the normal case. The V-twin draws steady praise too, smooth and torquey and easy to live with. On tour, owners report around 42 mpg (5.6 L/100km) out of a 5.8 gal (22 L) tank.
The looks draw the most repeated complaint, and few owners defend them. A bit ugly is the usual word, function ahead of form, the tall front beak taking the blame. Two mechanical notes follow: the soft, comfort-tuned suspension goes vague and underdamped when the road gets bumpy or the bike is loaded, and some riders find the front brake short on initial bite and stopping power, especially two-up or with luggage.
Where this Suzuki V-Strom 650 pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the V-Strom 650 is actually built for.
Trail Ridge and Beartooth are exactly this bike's terrain, and the tank and seat outlast most riders. Two-up and fully loaded, 67 hp is enough rather than generous, and the luggage is on your tab.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
For 200 to 400-mile days on the Blue Ridge or Highway 1, this is a lot of comfort and stability for very little money. It will not excite you. It will get you there relaxed and do it again tomorrow.
Made for Black Hills · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
If you're cross-shopping the older generation, here's what changed.
Previous generation · 2004–2006
The SV Heart That Roams
Compare to the previous model →If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
