Suzuki V-Strom 650 to be soon launched in India; bookings begin

Suzuki Motorcycle India showcased the V-Strom 650 sport touring motorcycle at the Auto Expo 2018 in February and recently confirmed the launch. Emerging reports claim Suzuki has now decided to launch the V-Storm 650 in September to increase sales during the festive season.

Ahead of the launch, some of the Suzuki dealers have started accepting bookings for the V-Storm 650. The booking amount for the adventure bike has been set at Rs 50,000 and it is expected to be priced between Rs 7 and Rs 8 lakh, reports Zigwheels. In that case, the Suzuki bike will be slightly expensive than the prime rival Kawasaki Versys 650 which is retailed at Rs 6.7 lakh (ex-showroom).

Suzuki offers the V-Strom 650 in two versions on the global markets. The standard version comes with more road biased nature while the V-Strom 650 XT version flaunts off-road-specific attributes. The previous reports were claiming India will get only the XT version while new reports say both variants are India bound.

The V-Strom 650 gets an edgy design in line with the elder sibling, the V-Strom 1000, which is also on sale in India. The motorcycle has a purposeful stance with a front beak that neatly integrated below the headlamp. The large windscreen is manually adjustable. The motorcycle has more plastic panels upfront while the rear gets only minimalistic body panels.

The V-Storm 650 gets a multifunction instrument cluster with an analogue tachometer and two digital screens that display an array of information. Based on the twin spar frame, the motorcycle is powered by a twin-cylinder, liquid-cooled, DOHC 645cc engine that develops 71 hp of power at 8,800 rpm and 62Nm of torque at 6,500rpm, mated to a six-speed transmission.

Suspension duties are handled by preload-adjustable 43mm front forks and rear monoshock adjustable for preload and damping. In addition to the ABS, 310mm discs at front and a single 260mm rear disc tame the bike. The off-road focused XT version also gets spoked wheels, dual-purpose tires, knuckle guards, engine guards and others.

Suzuki is expected to locally assemble the adventure bike and in that case, it will be the third big bike that Suzuki Motorcycle India will be assembling after the Hayabusa and GSX-S750.