Clearly, in a surprising move, Suzuki Motorcycle India has launched the V-Strom SX 250 at INR 2,11,600 ex-showroom. No spy shots or rumors were seen or heard about this motorcycle. Nevertheless, a new motorcycle should only be a good thing. Here's hoping for the best.
The V-Strom SX is based on the Gixxer 250 platform, which means the motorcycle, at least, shares the 250cc engine. It is a 249cc, single-cylinder, oil-cooled, 4-valve unit churning out the same 26.5 PS of power at 9,300 RPM and 22.2 NM of torque at 7,300 RPM.
Now, oil-cooled engines are usually, and largely, air-cooled too. But this Suzuki 250cc engine is completely oil-cooled. It doesn't have air-cooling fins, and the engine casing is "flat" as if it is liquid-cooled. And that's enough.
Suzuki employs SOCS (Suzuki Oil Cooling System) which makes the whole system compact and provides combustion efficiency. The greater functional benefit is that the system allows the engine to reach the optimum operating temperature quickly and then works on maintaining it.
And though the competition has adventure (and other) motorcycles up to 400cc, Suzuki is widening its 250cc motorcycle club with the V-Strom SX. Perhaps this is the reason that the Suzuki 250cc motorcycles are not talked about enough. That's how I feel. But those are actually good motorcycles with impressive handling dynamics and good performance to boot but with probably questionable looks.
Coming to the design, Suzuki has successfully implemented its V-Strom profile to create the SX, and it's a smart-looking motorcycle. I feel the front is closer to the V-Strom 1050, as both the SX and the 1050 look a touch sharper than the V-Strom 650. The tagline "The Master of Adventure" is also common between the SX and the 1050. Suzuki seemingly intends to associate the newest and the smallest V-Strom with the flagship adventure tourer. Overall, I like the way it looks.
That said, the LED headlight in the V-Strom SX is directly lifted from the naked Gixxer 250 as well, and it mixes quite nicely with the overall front design.
Additionally, the front tyre is expectedly larger at 19 inches while the rear remains at 17 inches. However, Suzuki has kept the front fork travel at 120 mm, and that is confusing because this can't be an oversight by Suzuki. This is a typical fork travel on road bikes which is considered far from appropriate even for soft off-roading. It would be interesting to see how good the overall damping characteristics are of the front forks.
The V-Strom SX is available in three colors - yellow, orange, and black. We will be bringing a thorough road test of the brand new Suzuki to share our riding experience with you. Please give us a follow and subscribe to our YouTube channel.
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