You may have seen that we recently collected two brand new, red V-STROM 250SXs (DL250 SX) from World Of Motorcycles in Centurion. For those who followed our journey with Big Blue, a Suzuki GSX-S1000GX, last year, you’ll remember that we had the bike for a period of 6 months. During that time, the entire team enjoyed the aspect of sports touring, and Big Blue underwent some tasteful changes to enhance the riding experience. Just like Big Blue, these two Stroms will be part of our team for an extended period, and we received them just in time for this year’s Suzuki Weekend Away.
I have been a pillion on both occasions, and it is one of the most enjoyable events to attend, from exceptional riding to challenging games and, most of all, the memorable conversations with like-minded people. Based on what I’ve heard from fellow attendees, there is, however, a whole different element to it when riding yourself. So, I am incredibly excited that this year, not only will I be attending the event on my own bike, but I’ll also be attempting the off-road loop.
Now, this will be a few firsts for me… I’ve had some basic training from ADA in off-road riding in the past, but this will be my first “proper” dirt outride. I am looking forward to putting my skills to the test, especially on the V-STROM 250SX. It will also be my first “touring” trip, riding from PTA to Mpumalanga, as I’ve only ever been a pillion on our longer trips. I think I’m definitely challenging myself, but in a good way, and having the opportunity to experience it on the 250SX is going to be great fun. I am interested in testing the 250’s capabilities on the open road and to see how I fare on the adventure loop with this entry-level adventure pony.
You may think the 250 is simply a commuter, but allow me to highlight what makes it an attractive entry point into adventure riding. It’s equipped with tubeless semi-adventure tyres, making it great for tar roads but also handy when hitting those dirt trails—the tubless aspect also makes puncture repairs a simple plug and play. It’s equipped with decent protection, including hand guards, a metal bash plate, a touring screen and a radiator protector. A feature that stands out is the wider adventure foot pegs—not only are they wider and longer to accommodate various boot options, they also have removable rubber inserts. With a simple twist of an Allen key, remove the rubber, and you’re on the metal for trails that require more grip. The baby Strom is certainly a great kick starter for the adventure-riding world.
In a more touring-based view, it is equipped with a carry rack and strap points on both passenger foot pegs, as well as a ready-to-use USB charging port to keep your phone charged on trips—this will be very handy on the Suzuki Weekend Away, especially since our phones are needed for logging challenges and finding various marked locations.
As you can tell, the V-Strom 250SX is pretty much adventure-ready straight off the dealership floor, so we don’t have to make any upgrades before we head out towards the stunning Mpumalanga region.
Having a handicap of barely passing the theme park height restriction (154cm), we will be dropping the suspension on mine slightly to give me better footing. After riding in and around town, as well as on a light dirt road, I noticed that I barely use the available 150 mm travel on the forks and with a 205 mm ground clearance, it makes sense to sacrifice a few millimetres. With this adjustment, I’ll avoid slipping my bum off the seat when needing better foot control off-road. This is, of course, unique to my stature and wouldn’t be a problem for the average rider.
The baby Strom has a BYBRE ABS braking system, instilling a higher level of confidence when hitting the dirt. It certainly helps eliminate mistakes that a first-timer like myself is bound to make in the tougher sections.
Should you be hitting the road at night, the LED headlight will provide sufficient light where needed—love it or hate it, the headlight has that iconic “Strom” design. It has a 12L fuel tank and a fuel consumption of 3.0L/100km; I’m curious to see what the fuel consumption will be on the open road vs that of the off-road loop. The rider ergonomics are comfortable with an upright riding position and plush seat, and the additional 6th gear relieves a few RPMs to make highway riding durable, delivering a top speed of 150km/h plus.
Although Bjorn and I will be taking both V-Strom 250s to the Suzuki Weekend Away, the rest of the team will also spend quality time with the two. There are a few exciting things in store for them, so keep an eye out over the next few months to stay updated on what it’s like to own one of these super affordable entry-level adventure bikes.
Suzuki V-Strom 250SX
For more information on the bike that we tested in this article, click on the link below…
