Of course the natural enemy of a large capacity dual-sport is weight. The V-Strom 1000 weighed in at 207kg, which while at the lighter end of the scale for machines in this class, is still far from being a featherweight.  Nevertheless it is a capable machine that has a lot to offer and can be hustled very quickly in twisty mountain country.

But perhaps a lighter but still reasonably powerful version could prove an even better machine? Step in the V-Strom 650.

Anybody who has read my ramblings for any length of time will know how highly I rate the ripper engine in the SV650 street bike. Suzuki has been wise to slot this engine in to a dual-sport machine. Most of the dual sport bikes under 200 kilograms offer only fairly asthmatic performance from single cylinder engines. They do not offer anything approaching the level of refinement and power provided by the little v-twin Suzuki engine.

In V-Strom guise the cams have been made a little less aggressive than those found in the SV road machine.  This should help to boost low end performance, while a slightly heavier crankshaft will make the machine more pleasant to ride on the road.

Suzuki’s excellent SDTV fuel injection technology also features on the 650 V-Strom. Each throttle body has a secondary butterfly valve to maximise intake velocity and help make response smooth and easy to modulate. It works.

The 650 V-Strom shares similar styling to its larger cousin and thankfully it also shares the bigger machines 22 litre fuel tank. Thanks to the smaller engine and other changes the 650 weighs in a full 18 kilograms lighter than the 1,000cc machine. For me this makes the choice between the two machines a no brainer. An extra 350cc? Or 18 kilograms less weight? In a dual-sport machine I will take the weight saving every time thank you.

An adjustable windscreen is also fitted to the V-Strom which should make highway touring a pleasant experience, especially when combined with the sizeable and supportive seat. The screen adjustments are made manually with a choice of three settings through a range of 50mm.

Instrumentation is comprehensive with the conventional speedo and tacho flanking an LED which displays time, odometer, trip meters, coolant temperature and fuel level.

Suspending the machine are a pair of preload adjustable 43mm forks up front while a hydraulically adjustable rear shock looks after the rear of the machine. The shock also offers rebound damping adjustment.

A pair of dual piston calipers clamp on a pair of 310mm discs up front while a larger than average 260mm rear disc will aid the machine in the dirt.

Is this a case of less is more? That may just prove to be the case with the 650 V-Strom.

The machine is expected to be available in Australia around February next year. I would expect the 650 to come in at a reasonable margin under the larger capacity model which currently retails for $15,490. If that does turn out to be the case it should make the 650 V-Strom the best value for money machine in this class, especially if Suzuki can land and retail the machine for under the $12,000 mark.

NB: (That they did, upon release Suzuki announced an extremely attractive $9,990 RRP for the 650 V-Strom.  And you know what, I sort of want one...)