The Suzuki VX1990 produced between 1996-800 was a strange machine with a great idea behind it. Its engine came from the only beautiful custom bike to ever come out of Japan: the VS750 Intruder. The engine was given a three mm larger bore, the diameter of the carburettors was increased by 2 mm, the crank pin was moved from 45 to 75° and the clutch was converted back to cable control. The block therefore ran very nicely and delivered enough power – 63 hp – to be pleasant on the road. The final drive was done with a cardan shaft.
The first naked
Suzuki brought the 'naked' motorcycle back to the nineties with the VX800. The appearance of the machine did not appeal to everyone, but the beautiful V-twin block ensured that there was not much grumbling. In the beginning, the grumbling was therefore only about the single front brake and the slack front suspension. There was also some discussion about the design of the wheels.
Meanwhile classic?
In the meantime, quite a few surviving Suzuki VX800's 25+ have become, so classic. The comment about the survivors deserves some explanation. The Suzukis had a few points of interest. For example, the floats tended not to close. Quite a few VXs died that way because the contents of the gas tank ran into the block. And compressing a liquid, that is not possible. The fuel tap must therefore be firmly closed after every ride. Oh, yes: the timing chain often gave up after about 20.000 km. We have now reached the point where the rust, which the Suzuki was not immune to, could have caused serious damage to the frame. Loose inner baffles in the dampers are also a thing. Add to that the fact that the quality of the plug connections and the wiring used in the early XNUMXs were also not thought of for eternity.
Key unfriendly
The VX wasn't very key-friendly either. To replace the spark plugs you needed fingers like Tubifex, or extensive experience as a gynaecologist. And set valves? That was often forgotten due to the same shortcoming. In order to remove the chrome cover above the starter motor, the rear cylinder had to be released.
Only malheur?
Is it all doom and gloom with the Suzuki VX800? No, it is not. Because when the thing drives, it does it very nicely. The Suzuki VX800 doesn't look bad, it steers better and better the more you drive it, and the only thing we absolutely recommend is to put better springs in the front fork. The Suzuki VX800s are now rock bottom in terms of price.
Costs little
The one that we used here as a service bicycle for a while was one that was just under 15 years old at the time. The machine had belonged to an 82 year old and had done about 15 km in 8000 years. 1.200 euros was deposited for that copy. The VXs now cost between 500/1.750 euros at the asking price and the parts supply via donor bikes is reasonable to good. New parts are, as far as they can still be obtained, of course very expensive.
So go crazy this spring: Get a Suzuki VX800. Such a V-twin is a nice thing, and you don't have to write it off anymore. And after a beautiful summer you have a great brine bike 🙂
From 1995 to 2015 almost 100000 trouble-free kilometers driven. From Sweden to Corsica. Regular maintenance was easy to do yourself. The fact that you had to 'demolish' half the engine to adjust the valves is also part of our hobby..
A floating EBC brake disc and 'steel' brake line ensured a better braking deceleration. Especially in combination with better springs and thicker fork oil.
The road to perfection is long. But who is in a hurry. What struck me: the more clumsy you drove it, the better it went. And they are still dirt cheap
I once rented one for a day. In terms of steering I thought it was a bitch, much worse than, for example, the BMW boxers I drove with at the time and still do now, by the way.
In itself a nice thing, but in your comparison I understand the outcome!
I have ridden such a thing, I can confirm that front fork, also eating away at the brake pads at a very high pace…
Indeed, the E was a bit mediocre, but driving did the rabbit…
Here at Gekra Motors in Dieren, Gerrit had brake pads that were actually intended for one or another scooter. Two sets for 18th. They wore out better than they braked. But for that price I would have just stocked them up. Had a couple of megaton mufflers under mine. What an unbelievable mess!
That key unfriendliness have more engines recently replaced the spark plugs of my kawasaki gpx 600 from 1988, only after removing the cooling hoses from the cylinder head I could hardly find spark plugs loose.