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Handling
the SV is a very agile little bike and is as happy being chucked between traffic on the way to work as it is being caned down the back road on the way home. the only fault I can really give the bike is the front forks are a bit soft and lack any adjustment, but hey you cant have everything for the sort of money you pay for an SV and after all if it really bothers you there are plenty of reasonably priced aftermarket products. the only other factor is the stock tyres (metzler MEZ4), Im not saying there total crap, as take them along back roads on hot days they seem to stick with confidence but on a wet days phew hang on it can get a bit hairy and unpredictable. at present I am looking at the Avon range of tyres as these have had good write ups in both the MCN tests 98% on an SV and from www.sv650.org . , the only decision is if I can afford to run the super stickies or if I need to get more miles out of a quid, still not sure but I will update the page on what ever I decide to get.
what can I say, wheelies, torque, predictable and nimble handling, in essence FUN FUN FUN FUN
Problems
The only real problem I have had with the SV (mechanically) was the forks. this manifested itself as a strange knocking sound going over small potholes and the like. at first this was very discreet and didn't bother me in the slightest but as the mileometer went up the knocking got louder and I found the forks were becoming much softer than they were when I first purchased the bike. This caused the bike to be unstable and frankly a bit scary entering and mid corner, I could bottom out the forks easily solo riding and I am only around 12.5 stone. Determined to get too the bottom of it, I took the bike to my dealer to have it looked at, this involved one of their sales team coming out having a wee peek at it pushing it up and down then announcing it was fine and nothing to worry about. hhmm I don't think so, so after a bit of explaining to the gentleman that the bike had only done around 1700 miles at this point and even lifting the bike off the stand you could see how far the bike dropped down on the front he agreed to replace the fork springs etc, and the bike was booked in for it first bit of repair work. the forks have definitely got better but im not sure they are what they were when I bought it, although I may now be looking for any knocks etc abit more than any normal non paranoid person would.
Value for Money
For a little over £4000 this is the most fun you could have with your clothes on. whether you want it for commuting, back road thrashing or thumping your way around the loch side this bike does all. I still find myself chuckling away to myself inside my helmet like an insane person almost every time I take it out for a run, the bike is not flawless and I wont say the finish is what you might get from Honda but the overall performance, sound, looks, and fun of owning this motorcycle compels me to advise anyone looking for a bike in this price range to drop into your nearest dealer and give it a try, you wont be disappointed honest.
TYRES
Avon Calling
But I didn't answer,
after speaking to a friend with a CBR600, (who praised there stick like shite to
a blanket ability) informed me he got just over 800 miles out of his back tyre
(Avon supersport 2). my pocket isn't deep enough for that so I went for the
Bridgestone Batlax BT010.
Bridgestone BT010:
moocho improvement to the bike, and my confidence in it with these tyres on. drops into turns quicker than before and feels better right through the bends inspiring you to get on the throttle earlier and harder than the bygone metzlers ever did. I have just fitted my second battlax to the rear (I got around 2300 miles of hard riding out of it which is within a couple of hundred miles of the metzlers and with much more stick). the Bridgestones are much better at holding their original shape, I assume this must be the dual compound working (as it should) with the centre strip- the most used part of the tyre, being a harder compound and therefore taking longer to wear down. unlike the metzler which by the end of there life had a fairly flattened top making cornering slow initially then dropping in too quick . The Bridgestones get warmer than the metzlers and they get there quickly (trip down to the shops for the morning paper and you could light you're ciggy on the tyre when you get off) Even with the batlax I have had the rear end slide away a few times coming out of corners but it aways feels like it will sort itself out if you hold the throttle. the noticeable down side to this tyre is its stability at high speeds, going over rises on the back roads it tends to tank slap a bit, I don't know why this is but its not too serious. i guess you have to give something up when you gain so much more its a small niggle and doesnae put me off the tyre a bit (hence the replacement).