The power delivery
feels so much better
thanks to a myriad of
internal and engine
management changes
across both versions of
the bike that really have
improved the breed
In that model’s defence, it was punchy off
the bottom and could best all other LAMS
bikes when it came to upper gear roll-ons,
but in any through the gears acceleration
tests the competitors walked away from the
2016 LAMS SV650 quite easily. Any of the
500cc Honda range ate it for breakfast.
The new SV650X LAMS does not hit that
same sort of virtual brick wall and thus it
proved a great deal more enjoyable than the
last LAMS eligible SV650 I rode. Suzuki rates
the learner approved model with a peak of
47hp at 8500rpm, while the impressive peak
twist of 56.5Nm of torque is registered at
4000rpm.
It’s not just the numbers though, the power
delivery feels so much better thanks to a
myriad of internal and engine management
changes across both versions of the bike
that really have improved the breed. The
base model SV650 has also benefited from
all those changes. Other markets got the
improved Euro4 spec’ engine in 2017 across
the SV range but we missed out, and are
only now reaping the benefits the updated
38 KIWI RIDER
package brings to market. If looking to buy
any SV variant make sure you check closely to
ensure you are getting the latest Euro4 spec’
engine.
I did spend the majority of my time on the
full power bike. However, the machines had
very few kilometres on them and felt very
tight, thus I must admit it did not really feel
like the test bikes were punching out 75
horsepower at the top end.
These engines are traditionally built to close
tolerances and can take many thousands
of kilometres to loosen up, so this was no
great surprise. Suzuki is not prone to fiddling
figures thus I have no doubt that down the
track the machine would pull a lot harder
up top. Claimed figures for the full power
SV650X are 75hp at 8500rpm with 64Nm of
torque.
Off the bottom the engine is punchy, a fact
accentuated by the fact that Suzuki has not
dumbed down the throttle response to infant
level via fly-by-wire. When you twist the grip,
the 39mm throttle bodies and 645cc engine
responds as it should.