Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/1096603
2019 SWM RS 500 R FIRST REVIEW P102 gine makes tons of power and torque. It doesn't necessar- ily hit hard off the bottom; in fact, quite the contrary. It pulls smoothly down low, revs up slowly (compared to a modern- day Husky) and then hits with significant authority in the middle of the powerband. And it doesn't let up any time soon afterward; you'll do that way before the engine does. Our test bike had some stalling tendencies but rarely did it while moving, only when the throttle was close to idle, and the wheels weren't turn- ing. Luckily, the electric starter means we didn't have to kick. It doesn't have one, anyway. The hydraulic clutch has a light pull and held up well during our testing. We didn't have any issues with fading. Brakes are excellent in both performance and feel. No sur- prises here. To save us some grief, SWM was kind enough to give us our test bike with a four-tooth larger rear sprocket already installed, admitting that stock gearing is way too tall for anything tighter than the 405 freeway on a Sun- day morning. Fuel capacity is a little stingy at 1.98 gallons. While on the trail, I often thanked SWM inside my helmet for fitting the bike with a nice set of handguards and giving it a pair of handy grab handles. SWM also gave the RS 500 a beefy rear tail section that didn't fall off and probably won't any- time soon. The blinkers aren't going anywhere, either. They too are well built and compact. The kickstand, however, is the evil spring-loaded type that retracts automatically. Everywhere you look, you see high-end components on the SWM. You might not be familiar with the bike's name, but you will be with 90-percent of the bike's components. In case you're wondering, yes, SWM does have an RS 300 R version of the TE310 coming soon. I've seen it. Motoman Distributing is the exclusive U.S. distributor of SWM motorcycles, and it says the bikes can already be found in more than 80 dealerships across the country. Overall, I'm pretty excited about the RS 500 R. Perfor- mance-wise, it can hang on the trail with the more modern hard-core group of dual sport bikes from KTM, Husqvarna and Betas of similar displace- ment. When it comes to price, however, they can't touch the SWM's $7795 MSRP which is more in line with older-school dual sport bikes, like the Suzuki DR-Z400 and Yamaha WR250R. The SWM RS 500 R does an excellent job of bridg- ing the gap between the two ranges of dual-sport motor- cycles. Hopefully, I run into my friend again so I can tell him about the SWM RS 500 R. Maybe we'll get that ride in, after all. CN S P E C I F I C A T I O N S 2019 SWM RS 500 R ($7795) COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: ....................... Italy ENGINE: ................Liquid-cooled, DOHC, 4-stroke, single DISPLACEMENT: ............................ 501cc BORE/STROKE: ..................97 x 67.5mm STARTING SYSTEM: ....................Electric FUELING SYSTEM: ................ EFI, Mikuni IGNITION: ................................ Electronic CLUTCH: ...............Hydraulic, multi-plate TRANSMISSION: .........................6-speed FRAME: ........ Chromoly steel, perimeter FRONT SUSPENSION: .................Kayaba, USD fork, fully adjustable REAR SUSPENSION: .......Kayaba shock, fully adjustable FRONT WHEEL TRAVEL: ................11.6 in. REAR WHEEL TRAVEL: .................. 11.7 in. FRONT BRAKE: ............... Brembo, single 260mm disc REAR BRAKE: ................. Brembo, single 240mm disc FRONT TIRE: .................. 90/90 x 21 in., Michelin Enduro REAR TIRE: .................... 140/80 x 18 in., Michelin Enduro SEAT HEIGHT: .............................. 37.6 in. GROUND CLEARANCE: ..................11.8 in. DRY WEIGHT (CLAIMED): ....... 255.7 lbs. FUEL CAPACITY: .......................... 1.9 gal.