New MCN August 10: New Suzuki V-Strom takes on rivals

I take your point regarding servicing, but most of mine has been done after the warranty expired and I'm sure that if you are an engineer, you can adjust and clean a chain, swap brake pads etc and not expect it to fall to bits. I've never had to take any bike back for a warranty claim, whatever make, in nearly 40 years of riding. Maybe I'm lucky but a bit of home maintenance can help avoid breakdowns such as checking oil levels, coolant, chain tension etc something a lot of younger riders could do with. I'm not planning on getting the adjustable height screen when I get the Tiger coz I havn't got a telescopic torso! LOL. Hope you enjoy your new Aprilia.

ABS is £600 and the handguards are around £70 so not taking the price over £8K! I'm planning on buying one so I'm up to speed on the extra prices. I have to admit though that Triumph spares and accessories are very expensive and servicing is also very expensive in my experience. I currently have a Sprint ST 1050 and a major service is £500 to £600 minimum. But my saving grace is I like doing my own servicing as I work in engineering anyway so I do what I can and stuff like engine management and shimmed tappets are done by my dealer as they have the specialist tools, so the bits I can't do cost about £200!

The Vstrom might push the Tiger close in this test but I'll bet I know which will have the best resale value in 2 or 3 years and I'm willing to bet that the Vstrom (who gave it that silly name in the first place! Someone with dislexia?) is a pile of rust in a couple of winters like all the other Suzukis. And thats fact, not just prejudiced name calling! Suzuki have always had the worst finish of any bike I have seen other than Chinese bikes and some east European.