Bike reviews

I didn’t know that Yamaha was about to launch an instant classic, for £5,200. I picked up my MT-07 long-term test bike a week ago, and got as far as the first set of lights before wondering whether I perhaps shouldn’t have bought the SV. The lights turned green, the MT-07 did a torque wheelie and the seed of doubt was sown Not since two-strokes has a bike offered a higher ratio of fun to pound sterling.

I’m probably not the first to say it but that’s why, in many ways, the MT-07 feels like the natural descendent of the RD350LC.

It’s compact and uncomplicated. It’s accessible to young riders looking for a step-up from a 125, especially as Yamaha is throwing in restrictor kits for A2 licence holders. But also, it captures some of the attitude of 1980s two-strokes that appealed so much to me as a teenager. It feels subversive. That’s something I haven’t thought about a Japanese bike for a while.

Triumph Street Triple

One of the major factors that attracts me so much to the Triumph is its sweet handling, a trait that the R with its upgraded suspension only improves on. Get a series of bends and you can bung the Street Triple around as what little there is of its weight disappears. For more experience riders this makes it a bike you can go ballistic on, charging into corners and generally playing the fool, while for newer riders it’s very reassuring and nimble. But the new R might not appeal as much as the current bike to the newer rider.

Although I’ve never found need to complain about the stock bike’s brakes the R’s new radial units (taken directly from the Daytona with a radial master cylinder) are certainly far sharper, but still offer loads of feel. The beauty of the Street Triple is its easy of use, nothing feels like it will bite you, it’s very pleasant to get on with and has a feeling of working with you, faltering your riding. While the brakes on the R might have slightly lost this comforting feel, which isn’t ideal for new riders, I prefer them as they are more powerful and direct. It’s just a slightly more focused feeling bike, and one that I reckon could hold its own on track.

Suzuki SV650

Following its release in 1999, it didn’t take long for the SV650 to become one of the pillars of Suzuki’s range and in 2000 it was the second biggest selling bike in Europe (behind the Bandit, no less). People loved the SV for its versatile and capable character; from touring to back lane scratching to commuting and even racing, the SV lapped it up.

Over time, the naked SV became the Gladius (or SFV650 as it’s now called), sprouting a headlight that always makes me think of a bulbous hooter and gaining softer lines. Now it’s being put out to pasture because Suzuki is replacing it with this new SV650. The only thing separating the SFV and SV is the absence of one letter, so we went to Barcelona to see if this new bike is just an updated Gladius or a new SV, and whether it matters.

Take a walk round the new SV and there’s no mistaking that it’s a basic bike, but thanks to its 645cc liquid-cooled DOHC V-twin engine, within a few minutes of thumbing the one-press start button, I was pleased to find out that I was in for an experience that was more than the sum of the SV’s parts.

The engine, with its new airbox, coated pistons, 10-hole injectors and new exhaust system is undoubtedly the bike’s centrepiece. The configuration makes the SV unique among its competitors, where two of the popular players from Yamaha (in the MT-07) and Kawasaki (in the ER-6n) use parallel twins instead of the inline-four found in Honda’s CB650F. With a claimed 75hp (5hp more than the SFV) and 47 lb/ft torque on tap, there's fun to be had, even though the SV tips the scales at 197kg compared to the MT’s 182kg. The engine is a great balance of smoothness and character, and more memorable than the motor in the MT.