With Suzuki teasing V-Strom 650 XT, the adventure tourer might launch sooner than expected
Suzuki Motorcycles India has teased its upcoming V-Strom 650 XT yet again just ahead of its launch in the country. The adventure bike was recently launched in Australia a couple of weeks ago. The ADV has been able to carve a niche for itself in the Indian biking fraternity ever since its launch and its absence in the market has surely been felt by many.
The updated V-Strom 650 was showcased at the last edition of AutoExpo held in February this year. This was followed by a teaser image of the Japanese bikemaker’s official India website. Now, the brand has released another short teaser video on its social media handles suggesting its launch is around corners.
The teaser doesn’t mention the bike, however, it gives away in its caption by stating, ‘A New Strom Is Brewing’. The India-spec model will be similar to the one which went on sale in Australia earlier this month. The adventure motorcycle was expected to hit showrooms in April itself, however, Covid-19 had some other plans which forced the makers to alter theirs.
Updates on 2021 V-Strom 650 XT
2021 iteration of the middleweight adv-tourer gets an updated engine which now complies with the latest Euro-5/BS6 emission standards. Visually the bike remains identical to its predecessor. It, however, gets three new colour options to choose from. These include a full-black paint with a red beak, white colour with gold rims on wheels and silver paint with blue rims and highlights.
Even design-wise, V-Strom 650 XT is similar to its predecessor that features a stepped-up seat, a sloping fuel tank with extensions, a raised transparent windscreen and an upswept windscreen. With regards to features, it gets a smartphone charger, handguards, a semi-digital instrument cluster, a 12-V accessory power outlet and a plastic sump guard. In addition to this, it receives a bunch of electronics including a dual-channel ABS, three-stage switchable traction control as standard and more.
Mechanical Details
Coming to its powertrain, it continues to draw its power from a 645cc, liquid-cooled, V-Twin motor that churns out 70 bhp at 8,800 rpm and 62Nm of peak torque at 6,500rpm. These figures are almost identical to the outgoing model. This unit is linked to a six-speed transmission. The upcoming model also features Suzuki’s Low RPM to assist the system in order to minimise engine stalling by automatically tuning the idle speed at low revs.
Nothing is different when it comes to the dynamics of the adventure bike. V-Strom 650 XT rides on 19-inch front and 17-inch rear spoke wheels wrapped in tubeless Bridgestone Battlax Adventure A40 tyres. suspension duties are handled by 43mm telescopic forks at front and link-type preload adjustable mono-shock at rear. Anchorage is taken care of by twin 320mm discs at front with twin-piston calipers and a single 260mm disc at rear with a single-piston caliper. It tips the weighing scale at 216 kg.
Expected Price
The Australian-spec model has been priced at AUD 13,490 which is equivalent to INR 7.32 lakh. Upon its launch in India, it is expected to carry a price tag of Rs 7.60 lakh (ex-showroom, India) which is Rs 25,000 dearer than the outgoing model. In India, it will directly lock horns with Kawasaki Versys 650. Earlier we had expected a launch in early next year, however, it seems Suzuki might bring the V-Strom 650 earlier than expected.
