If you were going to Alaska, you’d want the V-Strom. Its torquey V-Twin runs dead-smooth at 5500 rpm and 80 mph. Its reasonably quiet windscreen provides the most protection, its seat is the most comfy. And judging from its stately highway ride, you’d never guess it’s the next-to-lightest bike here, at just 442 pounds. That’ll come in handy when you’re axle deep in the spring thaw in Moose Jaw or wherever.
ups • Feels most substantial under way
• Smooth, revvable powerplant
• A few battle scars will only improve its looks
downs
• It doesn’t feel cheap, but it looks it
• ABS is great; bummer you can’t switch it off
• Why do I have to pay for the lower seat?
At 48 mpg, the V-Strom comes closest to the Honda at squeezing out miles, and its 5.3-gallon tank gives it true 250-mile range. Its trick instrumentation serves up all kinds of useful information including air temp, rate of fuel burn, freeze warning—also a big digital gear indicator. What’s wrong with the V-Strom is almost nothing at all. Two items, though: If you do wind up in the dirt, you can’t switch off the ABS (not on the Honda, either), and if you’re short, its seat is the tallest (optional taller and shorter seats are available for around $200).
Other than that, it’s really against our code to disrespect motorcycles for aesthetic reasons, but we don’t picture Peter Egan lovingly contemplating the graceful countours of any of these bikes while sipping a beer in his garage. Like the other machines here, the poor Strom looks like it’s designed to travel in space, where there is no atmosphere, and its Sputnik interior and cheap black heat-tile plastics make it impossible to escape the fact that you married for convenience. Then again, if you’re already equipped with a happy spouse who likes to ride on back, the V-Strom is most likely to keep the peace, with the most comfortable back seat.
It’s easy to see how guys who pile on tons of miles and wear socks with sandals love this bike.
Kawasaki Versys
The Versys is the yapping lap dog of the group. It’s the lightest bike here and serves up the tautest ride. Its 55.8-inch wheelbase is 4.7 inches shorter than the next-shortest Honda’s, and its tallish seat, long-travel suspension and 17-inch tires make it the preferred mount for wheelies, stoppies and late-night yard crossings—things its ABS and traction control won’t interfere with, since it doesn’t have them.
ups
• It’s the most “exciting” bike here
• Lightest and most nimbleous
• 5.0-gallon fuel tank
downs
• Not the slickest gearbox
• Not the smoothest running
• There’s nothing else not to like
As for power, it’s slightly down vs. the V-Strom and the BMW, with a peakier, buzzier and more rambunctious feel that’ll have you shifting more and giving the tachometer needle a bigger workout. For all those reasons, the Versys is the best sportbike of the group—but those characteristics render it slightly hyperactive for everyday and long-haul use.
Having said that, any of the four bikes here are so superior in such a wide range of environments and usages—compared to a Panigale or a Tuono or a V-Rod—that it’s sometimes hard to remember they all fall under the genus “motorcycle.” The Versys is just as capable of a late-night high-speed San Diego-to-L.A. freeway run as it is wheelying through Forest Lawn or dropping off your mom at yoga.
If you’re young enough at heart to like its bike-of-the-future looks, chances are you’ll like how the Versys rides. A 5.0- gallon fuel tank and mileage in the low 40s is pretty dang good. And Kawasaki is, of course, standing by with all sorts of accessories for its bike also. (Grip Heater Kit: $229.95. Always our first stop.)
BMW F700GS
With this one, BMW does its best to provide access to the GS line for short people and, dare we say, chicks. Replacing the front 21-inch wheel with a 19-incher and shortening the suspension gets the seat down to 33.4 in., and it’s possible to go all the way down to 30.1. The seat in question is hewn from BMW’s excellent, fleshy-feeling foam and provides superb long-range support for riders on the shorter side of 5-foot-8. Some, not all, on the taller side complain that the bolster the short folks love restricts them and pushes them forward into the gas tank. You can’t please everybody, especially Don Canet.
ups• Most powerful
• Sweetest gearbox
• Short people love its ergos and seat
downs
• Kind of appliance-like
• Loses a lot of the 800’s rugged adventurey look
• Are we really seeing so many BMWs on the road?!
The ESA option allows toggling among Comfort, Normal or Sport settings on the fly via a handlebar switch. This adjusts only the rear rebound damping, and there’s a notable difference between Comfort and Sport. Overall, the GS combines light steering with good stability and a generally well-planted feel.
That short flyscreen means there’s no turbulence at all, since your head is above its shadow. On a hot day, that’s a good thing. On a cold day, shut up and enjoy your heated grips. This engine may have “reduced” peak horsepower that’s left it neck and neck with a 650, but that displacement advantage results in the torquiest motor of the group and an engine that’s already making 45 foot-pounds at just over 2000 rpm and 52 ft.-lb. at peak; none of the other three engines here ever even gets to 45 ft.-lb.
The six-speed gearbox and clutch are likewise low-effort and silky-smooth. Speaking of smooth, there’s still a bit of handlebar buzz, but it’s much more subdued than on some BMWs that use this engine (F800R, for example). Brakes are powerful and tactile (the second front disc was added this year), and, as on all BMWs, ABS is standard.
Everything’s nicely finished, buttoned-down and bolted together. The clocks and dash are comprehensive and modern. Too bad the parallel-Twin looks so industrial down there. Makes us pine for the smaller Boxers of yore.
Overall, you’re left with the impression that even though the BMW’s the most expensive bike here, it’s worth it.
Honda NC700X DCT ABS
The Honda NC700X DCT ABS is not perfect; it won’t wheelie. But it will do tremendous smoky burnouts, so it is a legit motorcycle you could ride to Sturgis or Daytona, turning over a steady 4000 rpm and easily getting 60-plus mpg the whole way. It’s way down on horsepower: We can’t run our DCT on the dyno (the bike’s ECU won’t let it), but the manual NC we tested for the November issue made just 48 horsepower at 6140 rpm.
What makes the NC so rideable anyway is the area under the torque curve. Like the BMW, the NC is already up and working hard producing torque at just above 2500 rpm. Unlike the BMW, it doesn’t rev on to make 62 hp on top. Strangely enough, though, it hardly seems to matter. That’s because in everyday use, you almost never rev the BMW to its 8500-rpm redline. Or the V-Strom to its 10,000-rpm max. Or the Versys to its 10,500 max.
ups
• Built-in stowage
• Eager beaver tree-chewer fuel-efficient engine
• Clean, crisp styling that doesn’t look cheap
downs
• Maybe hold off on DCT ’til next year
• 1000 more rpm wouldn’t be a bad thing
• ABS should be its own option
In the real world, it’s all about grunting away from stops and right-now midrange—and the Honda has that covered. Accelerating from zero is a hoot; whether you’re in Drive or Sport (the right-thumb switch lets you toggle between them instantly), DCT knows you’re in a hurry if you whack the throttle open and spits you away like Shirley Muldowney in slow-mo, grabbing instant upshifts at the perfect time every time.
What DCT is less good at is deceleration; once below about 20 mph and coming to a stop, there’s enough jerkiness to induce helmet tapping with your passenger as the gearbox shifts to second then first and you wish there were a clutch to pull in. And you don’t want to be going balls-out around big, fast sweepers in Sport mode: Halfway round, you will get an unwanted upshift that will widen your trajectory. (No worries: Use the other right-bar button to go from “AT” to “MT.” Then use the thumb/trigger shift paddles on the left bar.) It all works great, but with the brain cell you use to master all that, you could learn to use a clutch and save yourself $2000. On top of that, the DCT ABS model (replete with our added long-term gear) gains 51 lb. compared to the base model. At 502 lb., it’s the porkiest bike here by a big margin.
Just as with the base model, though, the NC doesn’t feel that heavy when you need to push it around or zip through a gap in traffic. At the same time, it has a nice hefty stability when you’re cruising at 80, on suspension that’s soft enough for a smooth ride while being stiff enough for reasonably serious sport riding under a wide size range of riders. All four of the bikes here provide stellar ergonomics; the Honda’s firmish seat and slightly more rearset pegs move it just a smidge to the sportier side of the dial, but it’s still a motorcycle you can do long days on, provided you stand up once in a while.
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Source: Cycle World (Allen, 12/31)
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