welcome reassurance. An experi-
enced rider can sharpen things up
when the road gets interesting.
The electronics remain delib-
erately straightforward. There
are three traction-control set-
tings plus an off position, along
with ABS and an up-and-down
quickshifter.
The quickshifter works par-
ticularly well on upshifts, where
it adds a degree of sportiness
to the otherwise relaxed nature
of the motorcycle. However,
downshifts require a deal more
finesse to get right. Technically,
there is an auto-blip to match
the revs, but it doesn't work very
well (if at all), and sometimes I
found it difficult to get the gear
to engage. In the end, I went
back to using the clutch for
downshifts, and everything was
peachy, but given the 7GX has a
quickshifter, it should work bet-
ter than it does.
The chassis remains con-
ventional. A tubular steel trel-
lis frame forms the backbone
of the SV-7GX, with a 41mm
upright fork up front and a
linkage-mounted rear shock out
back. The fork offers 4.9 inches
of travel but has no adjustment,
while the rear shock provides
5.1 inches of travel and seven-
step spring-preload adjustment.
For riders who demand the
ability to fine-tune suspension
settings for different roads, lug-
gage loads or riding styles, the
(Above left) Medium-speed
handling is great. Put some bags
on it and the 7GX would make an
excellent touring machine for the
money. (Right) The modes are
simple to adjust, but if there were a
cruise-control switch here, it
would top the bike right off.
O O O
The overall look is
of a sharp, neat street
bike. Suzuki did well
with this one.
VOLUME ISSUE OCTOBER , P89
A basic front end with
old-school brakes
works well enough,
but the brakes aren't
very powerful.
Conventional
forks provide a
soft but mostly
smooth ride.
