Although Suzuki has been very quiet in the North American market for the last few years, they made a couple interesting announcements at AIMExpo yesterday.
Although people probably aren’t as excited over this news, the surprise announcement was that Suzuki is bringing their Burgman 200 to North America. They’ve been selling their 400 and 650 Burgman scooters here for years, but they haven’t really indicated any interest in a more budget-oriented step-through. That’s changed, though, and we can expect to see the 200 hit North America next year, although we’re not 100 per cent sure if it’s coming to Canada.
The 200 is obviously lower-spec than the bigger scoots in their lineup, but it still sports disc brakes front and rear (with ABS). The four-stroke single-cylinder motor (SOHC, liquid-cooled) puts out 18 hp and 12.5 lbs.-ft. of torque – respectable for a single-cylinder scoot. The 200 has a CVT transmission, and of course it has EFI.
The dash will be full of electronic gimmickry, with dummy lights telling you such useful information as when to change you’re oil, and when you’re driving at a fuel efficient speed. We’re guessing it can’t tell when you’re drafting a semi on the freeway, but with today’s technology, who knows?
There’s 41 litres of under-seat storage, 5.5 litres of storage in the dash, and fuel capacity is 11 litres. Supposedly, users can expect around 85 mpg (Imperial) from the new Burgman. Seat height is 735 mm. The wheels are 13-inchers.
There will also be several accessories available for the Burgman 200, including top case and rack. You can see Suzuki’s official promo video below.
But what about Suzuki’s other big announcement, the V-Strom 1000? Really, this one comes as no surprise, as Suzuki’s been teasing this bike for months now and has pretty much spilled the beans on just about all of the bike’s features. But in case you missed that, here goes.
Suzuki’s new V-Strom is lighter and more powerful than the original litre-Strom, and is the first Suzuki motorcycle to come with traction control. It’s 1037 cc motor puts out 99.2 hp at 8000 rpm (the old motor made 95.5 hp at 7600 rpm). It has a brand-new aluminum twin-spar frame, fully-adjustable 43mm inverted KYB forks, and a rear shock from KYB shock that has a remote adjuster knob that lets you tweak your rebound damping and spring preload settings.
You can find out more about the new V-Strom 1000 here.
My Varadero has no beak. Nobody bought them here. Sheep flock to Baaa MW styling.
Why oh why does every ADV type Bike have to have that god-awful Beak?? Also, c’mon Suzuki! … It’s time for a worthy replacement for the long-in-the-tooth LS650/VS800 models!! Yamahog has a winner with the new XS950 Bolt … certainly it wouldn’t be a stretch for you guys to launch a compeditor into this Class?
Gulp … I agree with gpfan.
Imagine a V-Strom build with a minimalist vision ? Only what you need, with none of the swoopy body work that somehow is supposed to make the tank blend into the front “beak” … I still think the bike looks grossly top heavy. I say ..Chop It ! Same thing I say about the Diavel !
Whilst I’m certain the 1K V-Strom is a great bike,
it is still soo ugly. I say this with an understanding
of the ‘dual-sport’ requirements of a bike in this
class.
A KLR is ‘plain-jane’. At least it is not visually
offensive.