First ride of new Suzuki DL1050XT V-Strom

Ask Paul Macaree, our Suzuki ambassador, to sum up the new DL 1050XT V-Strom in one word and he’ll say “fantastic”.

He’s just come back from Spain where he gave this highly-anticipated new sports adventure tourer a thorough test. And it clearly lives up to the promise.

“I thought the bike was fantastic,” he enthused after a couple of days at Aranjuez, near Madrid.

He then reeled off some of the things that he felt made this bike so different from the DL 1000. It’s more than just boosting the engine to 1,037cc.

• The throttle bodies have been enlarged from 47 to 49mm.
• Maximum torque is now delivered higher up the rev range at 6,000rpm.
• A host of electronics includes cruise control, hill-start assist, three-stage traction control, three-stage power modes, load-bearing ABS and fly-by-wire throttle.
• The height-adjustable screen has been moved back for less buffeting.

“The button to arm the cruise control is on the right-hand switch cluster but you adjust the speed on the left-hand one so there’s no confusion,” he explained. “Cruise control works only in fourth, fifth and sixth gears between about 40mph and 100mph.

“There’s a lot happening on the dash but it’s easy to see and very intuitive.

“The brakes are very good. They’re interlinked, front and rear, and understand what you are doing. The new model is a big step forward electronically.”

The updated engine develops 107PS – 7PS more – and has a pleasant induction roar.

“The bike looks fantastic and is more involving to ride, with torque coming in higher up the rev range,” he said.

“We did town work, motorways, cobbled streets, mountain passes and some off-road trails and it coped with all of it very well.”

And, after 140 miles of hard riding, he still had half a tank of fuel left.

If you want to find out more about the new Suzuki DL 1050 V-Strom, Paul’s the man to ask.