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/127541
A w id e. yet. fa irl y th ickly padde d sea t p rovides decent co m fo rt. but th e fo otpegs a re posi tio ne d a little bit too hi gh and far back . After a bo u t a n hour o n th e VX. , o ur legs requi red so me stre tc h ing. O ver all, the VX feel s lo w a nd long. a nd its cla imed 170 p ound wei ght ca n be fe l t w he n m aneu verin g through ti g h t areas a t a wa lking pace. T he hi gh -m ounted rear-view mi rrors do a fin e job o f letting yo u kn ow wha t's go ing o n beh ind you. Once adj ~sted . you get a clear view di rect ly be hi nd you, as well as besid e you. Th e view is o nly bl ocked sligh tly by the rider 's shou lders. Si nce th ere is very little vi b ra tio n ra d iating fro m th e motor. th e mirrors p rov id e a good clear image. ' In stru mentat ion is basic a nd si mple to read. Two separa te and circula r spee d a nd tac hometers are used. a nd both feature bl ack num bers o n a white background. Plus all th e usu al informati on is p ro vided. how ever , th ere is no fuel indicator. A push-to- cancel tu rn-indi cator sw itch is prov ided , and a large circ ular headlight does a co m me nda ble jo b lighting th e way a t ni gh t. The VX provides a ni ce ride. The gas /oi l twin-sh ock rea r 'suspens ion , a r:d th e 4 1mm telesco pi c, co il spring, OIl-da m pe d fo rk. work wel l. Very smooth. to say th e least. T he VX also significantly when th e front bra ke is hea vily appl ied . b ut the lon g wh eel base keep s th e machine feeli ng sta ble. Overa ll , the VX800 stops well. T he 5.0 gallon (incl udi ng reserve) gas tank us ually carried us around 200 miles - usu all y a littl e less - between fill- ups, which figur es o u t to a p proximately 40 m pg. A big a nd easy -torea ch fuel on /off/reserve swi tch is mou n ted o n th e left-side of the motorcycle, making th e switch from "on" to " reserve" a br eeze in the fast lane o n a b usy freeway . A fl ush-mou nt flip u p gas cap allows easy access a t th e fuel pump s. T he VX800 isn' t wh at we wo uld ca ll an attent io n getter. Its conservative, yet clea n li nes a nd purple colo r don't draw a cro wd. Most peopl e who voiced a n o pi nio n a bo u t th e bike sa id th ey thought it looked " nice" b ut ad ded they d id n' t like th e color. In fact, so me thought th e p urple co lor made th e bi ke look ugl y, But a few d id say th ey liked th e color " . . . a lot. " To eac h his ow n . To sum it u p . the Suzuki VX800 is an a ll-arou nd, sol id an d prob abl y very rel ia ble mo torcycle that m ak es day-to day co m m uti ng si mple, enjoyable a nd - pe rha ps most im portan t th ese days - economical. ' Its ge nt le powerba n d, exce llent tra ns m issio n , smooth ride a nd com for tabl e riding position o ffers p ro spective own~rs <;1 pl easin g motorcycle. And th e quali ty of craftsma nsh ip . low main tenance design , reasonab le price tag a nd excelle n t warranty will certainly please those who bu y it. Whatever it is! (Abo~e) The la rge circular headlight and sem i-kicked out front end gi ves the VX800 a " chop p er" bik e look . (Left) Instru m en ta tion is simp le, and the wide gas tank ho ld s 4.8 gallons. The swep tback handlebar greets th e rider halfway. ' feels very sta ble a t spee d, wh ich co uld be attributed to th e fairly wide 110/ 80-18 58H (fro nt) a nd 150170-17 69H Dunlop ti res a n d long 6 1. 6- i nch wh eelbase. The VX800 is not wh at we would ca ll a turner but th at does not co me a.s a su rp ris e. It has a modest "chop perlike" front end, which makes it turn slower a nd gives it a heavy feeling in th e corners. It reall y doesn't ta ke much effort to initiate the tu rn. bu t th e more it's leaned over, th e m ore stre ngt h is ' req u ired of the rider. A ca nyon racer it's not. but if you 're not in a hurry and want to enj oy th e scenery. th e VX will do just fine. . Slow in g th e VX for th e sto p signs impressed us. The front 3 lOm m single hydraulic disc bra ke is strong b u t a tad on the m ushy side. T he 250m m single disc in th e rea r is also stro ng a nd progressive but wou ld ta ke noticea ble effort to ge t the ba ck end to lock up, wh ic h is a sign o f good brakes. Slamming o n the binders a t freeway sp eeds isn ' t sca ry at a ll ; in fact, it feels perfectl y safe. T he front end d ives ' (Abo ve) A shaftdrive provides a vibration-free and quiet ride without the torque effect, and a dual-shock rear suspension system does a .Iine job soaking up th e bumps. (Below) Strong dis c brakes ar e found at both ends. Specifications Suzuki VX800N Engi ne type Liquid-cooled, SO HC. TSCC, four -strok e, 450 V-twin Bore x stro ke '. .83.0 x 74.4mm Displacement 805cc Compression ratio 10.0: I ' Car bure tion Front BDS36SS Mikuni Rear BS36SS Mikuni Horsepower N/A Torque N/A Valves per cylinder Four Starting system Electric Ignition Digital transi storized Lubr icati on • . . . .. . . . Oil. wet sump Redline ' 8500 rpm Transmi ssion Five-speed Clu tch Wet mu lti-pla te Battery 12V Final drive Shaft drive Cha ssis Steel dou ble-crad le Trail. 5,08 in. Turning radius 10,5 ft. Front suspe nsion . . "Telesco pic fork, coil spri ng. oil da mped Fork tube diameter .4 1mm Front wheel travel 5.9 in. Rear suspension Dual shock, coil spring , gas/oil damped, with 5posi tion p reload a nd 1-way da mp in g adjustments Rear wheel travel 4.6 in. Front brake :3 lOmm disc Rear brake 250mm disc Front tire 110/ 80-18 58H Bridgestone Rear tire 150/ 70-17 69H Bridgestone Claim ed dry weight 170 Ibs Overall leng th 89.2 in. Overall width 3 I.7 in, Overall height 13.9 in. Wheelbase 6\.6 in. Seat height 3\.5 in. Ground clearan ce 5.7 in. Fuel capacity (incl. reserve) .. .4.8 gal. Colors Purple Warranty 12-month unlimited m ileage Suggested retail price $1799 23