SUZUKI V-STROM 1050XT review (2020-on)

It’s so smooth and powerful

Never missed a beat totally underestimated.

The crash bars that are so good you can rest your feet on them when touring.

The Vstrom has an invitingly comfortable seat. It is wide and long enough for me to shift position making 3 hour rides a pleasure. After that the tank needs a top up anyway and I find it becomes necessary to stretch my legs. The rear preload is easily adjusted with a large knob on the side of the bike so the ride is comfortable for passengers too. As an allrounder it excels in being immediately ready for whatever is to be thrown at it. Moving from sitting to standing when tackling offroad sections is easy with a natural on the pegs stance automatically achieved as you rise. Intelligent braking, distributing force between the front and rear brakes according to weight, ensures stopping is as much fun as hard accelerating.

I think the engine is the Vstrom's stand out feature. It is the fluid yet punchy V Twin engine which makes the bike so much fun to ride, whether heading West, playing along winding lanes or blipping to Sainsburys. It has effortless torque through the revs and is brisk enough to be fun when you need a biking thrill. Any vibration from engine, frame, bars or pegs is unobtrusive if apparent at all. Fuelling is accurate and a snap of the throttle provides a forward lunge as pleasing as the growl from the exhaust and airbox. The TL1000 roots are not buried too deep within the soul of the Vstrom.

I settled on the Suzuki as it was a cheaper than rivals and expected this to be evident in build quality. 2 years in and despite all weather riding the shiny bits still shine and the bike operates with confidence assuring ease. That said, I do treat it to regular oiling and protective product. To date nothing has come loose.

The dependable engine is a delight and impressively frugal. Expect to cover in excess of 55mpg.

The easy to set cruise control has proved a wonderful feature on motorway rides. I had never experienced it before getting the Vstrom but it ensures relaxed hands and extended ride times. Hill hold control is also surprisingly useful when panniers are full and pillion is large. I change modes only when riding off road, basically setting everything to the opposite extreme, but in reality, more use of the light precise clutch would do the same job.

It rides like the bike was built personally for me. I cannot fault it

Power across the rev range regardless of gear selection

Suzuki bolt heads rust a bit so apply a dab of XCP or ACF50 to keep the rust at bay. Otherwise a solidly built bike

Great on fuel for a big bike. 10mpg more than my old K3 Vstrom

Heated grips would have made it a 5

I've been really impressed with this big bike. Very smooth ride over varied surfaces. Took a while to adapt to the bigger front wheel feel in the bends, but now that I have faith in what it is doing, it handles very well.

Grunty, smooth, nice-sounding motor. Love the v-twin sound, thumping vibe and the spread of torque. Yes, my GSX was clearly much more powerful, but it needed to build the revs to get there. The difference here is that the v-twin is already in the power when you twist to overtake. Nice.

Too early to say about reliability as only just purchased, but the quality is really sound. I have just traded in a 19-plate GSX S1000F which was also a solid machine, so I have no doubts this is going to be reliable too. My fifth Suzi, so far having covered 250000 miles on them, so that says a lot about my level of luck/satisfaction with them brand.

Great value - much much cheaper than the competition per litre/kit, and built in Japan. Bought online from dealer - pre-reg, with Explorer kit. saved £2000 and got £500 more on trade in than local dealer offered.

For my tastes this is spot on. Not too much stuff, and what is there is intuitive to operate. Cruise is a wrist-saver on my long commutes.

Riding time is endless . The seats , rider and pillion are cracking . The bike performs well , deep quick power delivery and when you get your suspenziom set to your liking , it sits happily in a tight quick bend . The tyres are not the best . Their is some vaigness from the front wheel and an upgrade of tyres is required to correct this and give the bike much more stick .

Good solid V Twin , no issues , does as advertised

No issues to date , at all . Suzuki build quality machines with a solid 3 year warrenty to go with it

Its a fair price and if anything minor needs tweeking , they get on and do it , including a test ride before handing it back to you , with a full tank of fuel

Standard fitted tyres leave a little to desire , an upgrade is a must . You will feel a little vaigness from the front which is purly down to grip and the front forks , weight reacting . A decent suspension set up and a slight upgrade in tyres will resolve this . The bike is no way designed for off roading performance wise , despite the sales pitch , it is a cracking road bike Suzuki should be proud of , so get some good solid road tyres like a pair of Dunlops . Heated grips are a must , get them in a deal if you can . I got some Oxford heated grips fitted and thrown in with the sale . Avoid the Suzuki offical ones if you can and get something better . Hill hold is really good and the standard fitted tyko breaks are punchy

Great tourer, stable and well planted. Decent brakes and well behaved suspension as stock

Great engine not an absolute fan of the sound but probably down to stock exhaust

No corrosion but the style of the spoked wheels makes cleaning them a nightmare!

Electronics are superb and perform way above the price range of the bike, which is why I think it’s good value.Heated grips are not standard but on reflection I’d have forked out for the oem heated grips. I had Oxford grips fitted by dealer but they don’t look that great to he honest. They restrict hand grip size poor for Oxford they’re normally better than that

Usually 2up with full panniers and top box. Need a brief stop 80-100 miles.

Lovely engine, but needs revving.

Should have heated grips. Otherwise we'll equipped.

Comfortable for 3hrs plus in the saddle, handles well with ABS, HILL START, TRACTION CONTROL.

Power delivery and torque adequate for everything that you would need, smoother than the old 1000 cc engine

For the money an excellent comfortable touring bike, decent build and finish not to everyone's style but had three now. 60 yes old so comfort better than sports riding is a must.

Main service 200

Like the styling and colours in the yellow, got luggage, heated grips and usb port to connect accessories under seat and near speedo

Very comfortable ride - excellent brakes.

Flexible, sounds great, more than enough power for the real world and economical. Some reviewers feel its over geared-rubbish just change down and leave it in a lower gear, fourth works really well on the twisties and sixth great on the motorway.

Very solid and feels as well built as my last Honda

A lot of bike for the money

More than enough for me, after all it’s a motorbike what more do you need? Some might miss a tft screen but how much time do you spend looking at your screen if you are riding properly?

Good strong brakes, would have like Suzuki to put an off road option on the brakes but I doubt these bikes will ever be put through any extreme off road. The down hill descent is a strange sensation the first couple of times I used it but it works so no complaints. Seat is ultra comfy compared to other makes and can spend plenty of time in it without getting sore.

Suzuki's TL engine is possibly the best version of a V Twin ever, nothing complicated, pure pleasure. Just the sheer fun of this thing brings a massive smile every time I open it up. Open road A mode but when you want to chill out B mode is so smooth.

I had a TL1000 back in 2000, that thing was abused for the 7 years I owned it and it never let me down once, so expecting something similar with this one. It feels tough and sturdy and witha warranty of 3 years for peace of mind.

Decent price to purchase 7500 mile servicing but looking at the service book it wont need much doing to it. Averaging 48 mpg at the moment which is good enough for this size bike.

Do we need TFT? All of the info is there that you need. I ride with a Cardo system and bluetooth GPS so never need the bike to pick up the call or tell me where I'm going. GPS mount is handy, More factory screen options would be nice, as for adjusting on the go have you ever tried to adjust a GS screen whilst moving! Seat adjust is a bit annoying but all the tools are on the bike just need 5 minutes to do it. Suspension is perfect and after riding GSA's for several years I'm now questioning why we need electronic suspension.