In 2019 at age 68, I rode my 2007 S40 non stop from Middletown, CT to West Union, OHIO traveling 798 miles stopping only for gas and food. Went to see a buddy I use to work with for a day and a half then came right back to CT. 3 days later, I headed for Orange Beach, Alabama. Arrived 2 days later and spent 4 days with my youngest sister, then headed back up route 65 into TN and then down into Racaca!,Ga and stayed with another sister for 4 days before heading back home. Total milage was 4,794 miles. Loved every minute of the trip. Wouldn't trade this bike for anything on the market even if it was given to me!
ha! "non-stop" ? my calculations are thats 8 stops at 100 mi. to a tank? my hats off to you for going 4+hrs. on the most uncomfortable seat I'v ever rode on in my 50yrs. of riding, I love my SAVAGE ;-)
The beauty of this bike is the pure simplicitey of it. Single cylinder with ZERO FRILLS...Might just be a 650 single...but it makes up for it in usuable torque. It pulls hard at low RPM. I want to get another one just because its soooo basic, just a bare bone bike with ZERO frills. That is what bikes SHOULD be all about.
I have a 2014 s40. love it. I'm 5'8" 31" inseam, perfect fit for me. I'm 56 yr. older rider, the ease of handling and light weight are upsides for me, and, I actually enjoy the backfire. the "drag" style bars on the newer bikes are a little less comfortable than the savage setup, but IS stylish and functional for sure. I like open face helmet, and "brain bucket" skid-lids, so the speedometer location is of no concern to me. I ride till the bike sputters, that means "switch to reserve" which I do easily while rolling.
I had an S40 for 3 years. The backfire is from the lean idle mixture which can be fixed. Drill out the brass plug on the carburetor & behind it you'll see the head of a screw. Turn the screw out 1/2 to 3/4 turn. At idle it will now run richer & won't backfire when you turn off the engine. I loved the low-end torque of this engine. This was my first & last cruiser. I never got used to the position of the foot pegs which placed my knees above my pelvis & felt weird & uncomfortable, like sitting in a car with no backrest. For someone with a 26-27 inseam this might be worth looking at if the Honda Rebels aren't an option.
They are fun reliable easy to maintain bikes. I've had tons of bikes from supersports to super motos and just sold my S83 Boulevard a few weeks ago. My son wants to learn to ride and one of these is what i want to get him...light enough to easily handle and still not get blown all over the road by trucks. heck maybe i will just get 2 of them for cheap and have some fun together. I dont care about high speed and super acceleration anymore..Im in my 50's now..just like to ride for the fun of it and see some sights too..not to mention cheap transportation....Lean backfires is normal for emission reasons from the factory...very simple to remedy...its a CV carburetor...there is more than likely a cap covering the idle mixture screw on the bottom of the carb...you take a very small drill bit and just poke through the cap careful not to hit the adjustment screw under the cap...screw in a self tapping screw and rock it out with a pair of vise grips on the self tapping screw....fire the bike up to full temp and back the idle mixture screw out a little at a time until it goes away for the most part...there is more you can do with shimming the needle and opening the airbox and rejetting for more power as well but not needed for this bike...i would just adjust the idle mixture screw..not the idle speed screw that you see....have fun with your bike......I bet i could fit a pumper carb on that bike pretty easily..that would wake it up alot..lol
I like mine, Lots of torque, and Unique sound, especially with an exhaust! I've been riding sport bikes for 10 years, and this bike STILL had enough Grunt to impress...
Excellent review, easily the most informative I've seen. I have a lot of experience riding, but I'm looking for a change, something simple and easy to work on. I think the Savage would make an ideal bike for me to tinker on. I'm 6'-2", 270lbs, but I've heard it'll pull my big ass up to highway speed, which is all I need. I've owned sportbikes, standards, and dirt bikes, so I know a decent amount about bikes, and reading your review really helped confirm that this bike will work well for me. Thanks!
I just picked up a 98 savage this week for $750 cash out the door. im an extremely tall rider at 6ft4in but bike seems to fit me well too. basically what I'm saying is short or tall this is a nice little basic cruiser that can give you many years of happiness.
@@Korman2u ok great thanks for the reply...didn't pick up a bike this summer but next spring I'll be looking again and I'll keep the savage on my list...seems they can be had for a very reasonable price
You’ll love it. I intended on selling it in the spring after i had bought it the fall before to teach someone to ride, but i had to keep it because it’s so much fun
Thanks !!! I totally agree with you: I had not 1 but 2 Savage, in late '80 & early '90. I love every minute of riding them 😃😃😃 For info, I replace the last one with a BMW Scarver also single cylinder 650 cc with a most reliable Rotax engine & a belt instead of a chain like the Savage.
I seen the yellow one and wanted it but had just bough another bike, that was years ago, now just got a 2019 black with a grey tank It is to go with my Versys X 300 which I have set up as a ADV bike with 33 liter bags, so one for long trips and shopping and one for 100 + afternoon rides. It is great getting 2 bikes for the price of 1. If they come out with the CT 125 Honda I will get on for off road riding. That is one nice thing about being retired and single. Time to ride and no one saying how many bikes you can have.
@@1badombre82 Between this and a Ninja EX500, which should a beginner get for mostly moderate commuting? Which is more reliable? Comfortable? Thank you.
@@cesartapia610 they would both be great I think. You will sit higher on the ninja if that makes a difference. Might be slightly easier to work on the suzuki. The Suzuki 650 is basically a bigger version of what they have you use in the safely coarse wich I would very much recommend taking. Hope that helps
Old Magna or a Vmax combines speed with cruiser comfort. I'm looking into a S40 for simple around town rides. Lots of aftermarket parts available which is fun.
I just got a gray black one love it but, I wish they still made the yellow it suits that bike. Mine is a 2019, and glad I got it as I do not see them listed for 2020, hear in Canada. I am 5' 9" and can rid it all day no problem. but do wish it had a bigger gas tank, as for speed I can tell just by the sound, that is one thing about the singles. My Versys x 300 still need to look to check my speed. they are 2 different bikes and love riding bough of them.
Sometimes they skip a year when they have excess stock at the warehouse. I am going to buy this or the Royal Enfield which is also a thumper but has fuel injection and is a little cheaper.
Great review, thanks. I had an 88 Savage. It was a lot of fun to ride but felt underpowered at higher speeds (4 gears back then if I recall). I used it mostly for year round commuting and also did some longer trips, including on the N.A. West Coast (3000 km trips), twice. Loved the belt drive and sound. Very light and nimble. I agree with you that this is a great bike, especially for new(er) and lighter riders. It handles a passenger but can struggle on hills at when accelerating. Great bike. I almost bought the Suz. Boulevard recently but went instead with the Indian Scout 60 (999 cc). Thanks again.
I have been riding since late 70 s schoolboy MX and have a 04 ls650 which can be a lot of fun ( loads of Grunt Gr8 sounds with a cobra exhaust) as long as you don't ride out too far away!! 🕉🍄👀⚡️🌙🇬🇧👽💀🏍🥋👌😳🥋👌😳🏍👽💀🇬🇧⚡️🌙👀🍄🕉
I like your review it's good and accurate my first bike before I joined the military was a savage great learning bike and my first bike after might be a savage 650 Vulcan 500 or honda shadow 500 series
I had a 1996 Savage and it was red. It didn't have the odometer on the tank🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔 had it for 11yrs. Loved that bike, put a lot of miles on it too. I upgraded for more power and larger tank. I did get mine over 100mph. It's so hard to hold on, on it, once you're over 80. Only did it once just to see if I could bury the needle. I would never do it if the tires weren't new. Mine would back fire too, mainly if I just used the kill switch. So to avoid that, I would kill the fuel while it was idling a bit, remove my helmet and gloves and then use the key to kill it and by that time the fuel in the carb was gone and it wouldn't backfire. Cause I rode it so much, it would be annoying backfiring all the time, at home and wherever I went. Now I ride a Honda Sabre VT1100C2 l. Love it even more. Not fond of the forward controls, but they're growing on me. Lol
8:22 i seem to have that same issue when im on my S40 or my Ninja 240R .... Getting to a light and it never goes green and i end up sitting thru there for well over 5 min ... i was told the weight of the bike was not heavy enough to trip the sensor to let the light know a "car" is there waiting. So i do the same and just run it.
Yeah had that problem at times it seems to usually occurs at the same sets of lights not all of them I will just go through the red light after sitting there and realising it's not changing but have gotten off and pushed the pedestrian button to make it change I saw a video on here and the fella filming it glued small powerful magnets under his bike and reckoned that cured it They must operate magnetically and not by the weight of the bike
Man I am a new rider I most likely would have gotten this bike but my wife is a rider and has a Suzuki Boulevard Ct50 and that's what I have riding and now I am hooked....LOL
it is a single so not going to be built for speed. they sell them as cruisers but it is more of a bobber. It is one of the most fun bikes i have ever ridden or owned witch is around 20 over 55 yr. I also have a Versys X witch is also a great bike. You get 2 bikes for the price of 1. The versys x put 33 liter side bags on for touring and shopping, take the bags off for doing some tight turns and light off road. the S 40 for just plane fun and the feel of the wind on my chest. The only draw back the S 40 has is the small gas tank. If they would put a 15 liter tank on it but keep it the same shape, you would have a great all round ride, I hat having to look for gas stations. In the 60's and 70's gas stations were all over but most of the mom and pop ones have closed up so need a bigger gas tank for the back roads. The s 40 will do highway no problems but it built for the back roads, and that is where I like to ride. I did put a back rest on mine so I can carry extra gas if I want to hit some rides where there are no stations. That is one thing the Versy X has over the S 40 is the Versys X has a 17 liter gas tank and can do around 450 Km per tank. even 500 if you take it easy, witch I don't. I like the feel of running through the gears, witch you can do with out breaking the speed limits. That is where these smaller bikes excell over the larger ones.
I’m 61, most of my bikes have been 1300 to 1800 cc. My main concern is me just looking too big for the bike. I love the look and how well it handles. Help me with some pics of how y’all look while riding. Thanks
I fixed mine. All you must do is pull the valvecover, which you can do with the engine still on the bike and replace the plug with sealant underneath. Check out suzuki forums for more info.
Did mine last year and was a bit of a pain but I lucked out because two of the long bolts broke when removing them, but the broken tips were literally hanging by a thread when they came out fully, phewf! Hated that leaky plug!@@randomzeldafan
about the speedometer, don't worry about seeing it you will never get a ticket for speeding, I call mine my delorian, because it will eventually get up to 85mph, thats WFO, and 30-45 seconds tucked in, but ya, I love my 650 SAVAGE, 2003, after a 3hr. ride my butt is screaming for mercy, if someone wanted to make an aftermarket seat designed specifically for this bike, the millions of people who own them would buy them, thats why you can pick these up with less then 10k mi. your ass can't ride that long, thats also why you get 100mi. and need to stop for gas, cause your ass needs the break, happy riding ;-)
Backfiring is a common thing with these adorable little Savages, (that are not quite as Savage as the name suggests). Tip... Find a good Suzuki mechanic who understands these "Thumpers" well, and he should be able to tune up that Carb. to elimiate that Backfiring.
Good review, Im looking to get one of these, I hear all different things about this one,,,,,is it smooth at higher speeds? Does it vibrate alot? IM 180lbs,,,,TY
It’s been very reliable so far! I can’t tell you how much parts are because I haven’t bought any but it has to be cheap to maintain being a single cylinder and very simple.
Thanks for the review. I've been thinking of getting one of these for a get-around-town bike. They look really easy to maintain. Currently riding a Suzuki vs800 Intruder and a Yamaha xv1100. I'm a big guy, so wondering how it feels. But really want something easy to maintain.
I know the dealerships and factory reps always use keeping the price low as a reason they do "not" install a trip odometer but come on folks, with today's microchips, what would it really cost to add one? Sure comes in handy at a quick glance for monitoring when to fuel up. That was the one and only reason my wife never wanted this bike. No, she didn't want to start adding aftermarket gadgets for something that's been standard on bikes for decades.
You could take a small 3/8"wooden dowel rod and fill up the tank. Cut it to size and just stick the tank once in awhile. If you ride it real easy it should get 55-60 mpg.
one is a dual sport with a lot of clearance in the suspension. the other is a street bike with almost none. apples and oranges, but hey if you decide to ride a cruiser off road, please video it! haha
I don’t understand the question. What’s the cruising speed of one of these 70 mph? I said in the review it does fine on the freeway. Even took it on the freeway for a demonstration
Hey, I’m sorry I just saw this comment. I’m blanking on the technical term for it, but it’s located inside the cylinder head. It leaks oil out the cylinder head once the bike gets hot or sits on the side stand for awhile. A dealer can fix it....I assume with a bigger plug. It’s a minor inconvenience...I’ve just got into the habit of whiping the oil off after every ride
@@paddow101 that was awesome to find out. Must be a common problem. If it isn't going to hurt anything i will stop worrying about it. Thought it was the pipe at the jug.
Sure's beautifu,l even if it's only a Honda. LS whatever, I'd choose a D. 🧐Is it a Harley? Partial to the color. It's like Corvette Yellow, yes 😬🔪I'd kill for a carborator.🙈🙉🙊
Have one of these...vibrates enough that my hands fall asleep, the rear license plate craked, mirrors come loose, and if you exceed 65 MPH very much check the oil at each fuel stop...MPG was always around 60 and best was 72...
Stupid simple and very 50s look. 60mpg and only 1 hp for every 20cc makes it pretty low HP/KW. More torque than HP. Vibrates too much at 70 for a true "cruiser", so it is a beefier town commuter than a Rebel 250/300, CB250/350 which has the same limitations. Weight is similar under 400lbs.
