I couldn't agree more, I have been a rider for over 20 years, always been a supersport rider of new models. I decided on a 2005 SV1000 and was amazed, super comfy, super fast, so cheap and easy to work on and big plus, it sounds amazing with an aftermarket exhaust !!!
Nice video & totally agree. I bought one of these new back in 2003 in silver with a pair of Viper cans on it. (Traded it for a GSXR750K6 3 years later) The SV1000 is a great, fantastic value & really underrated bike. It suffered in a marketing sense because the media wanted a new TL1000 beast but it was far more civilised than that so it got labelled as boring in reviews & didn't sell well. Currently riding a GSX8R which is the SV1000's spiritual successor in many ways imo.
Yes it was no TL, which is both good and bad. The SV is easier going and much more forgiving than the unpredictable TL1000S, but it's lacking the one thing the TL motor had in spades: character.
I've owned my 2005 SV1000S for 3 years. My girl is a black varient . Mine came with the Yosh triangle slip on. I installed a Speigler handlebar modification. This brought the bars up and back 5 in. I love my SV1000S and named her Habu. Being a veteran I served on Kadena AFB on Okinawa. There Habu is the Black Mamba. This bike is so flickable, especially when compared to my 2011 Hayabusa. Sold the busa after 10 years. I figured I cheated death for a decade. The Busa was tuned by England speed shop here in Modesto. Stupid fast looked great in the limited edition maroon. Recently had knee replacement and just getting back to reducing my chicken strip. The SV is one of the best handling bikes I've ever owned. In conclusion, yippie what a fun bike with awesome exhaust tone.
I 've had my British racing green 97 TL1000S with TLR swingarm , full Yosh exhaust , forks done and hyperpro rear shock,Corbin seat, window clutch cover etc , for 23 years now .Way too much fun . Doubt I'll ever sell it .
This engine was also used in Kawasaki KLV 1000. And others listed by DrSmile81. Interestingly, after my clutch basket replacement I can easily ride with 2.000 rpm. And it pulls like a train all the way to the rev limiter. Awesome engine with 2 disadvantages. Magnets on flywheel get unglued and this can end with destroyed engine. Not difficult to address that and I would recommend doing this because it is not IF, but WHEN. The other is clutch chudder. The best fix is to go with Werks clutch basket, but owner retired so they will be difficult to get. Other than that, very durable engine, guy from Australia did 350.000 km with it without overhaul. I hope I will see more SV1000 videos from you. 👍👌
Great video ! I own a SV1000S. Really enjoy it, also love how much aftermarket support there is for these bikes compared to something similar like my dads VTR 1000.
Been riding an sv650 for 16 years. 2 years of sv1000s, now a 2019 katana. I'm thinking about buying again an SV 1000 as a second bike. I totally miss that underrated wonderful torque factory. ❤
@@pegasusmotorcycletours it is a forever motorbike, I guarantee. There's something special about it, I saw it ever since the first moment I saw my first sv650 in the store. First motorbike and I know for sure I'll get one again. Same second generation model, always yellow as I used to have it.
Had three vstroms myself amd couldn't agree more. Actually I started this channel a few years ago with a review of my 1000dl. Excellent bike. You moght enjoy that review and scenery from Moab and Utah. You can find it in the playlist. Cheers Thanks for watching.
Thanks for great review. Totally agreed. Red, blue, silver and orange are best colours i have ever seen on any bikes. I have black naked. Now 32000 km. Had magneto completely repaired for free. I Love my bike. The faired version is very beautiful and timeless I reccon. Love the sounds and there is enough power too. It is the right side and easy to handle
I've owned triples and inline 4s but for me the vtwin is the ultimate motorcycle engine. Can't beat the sound and feel when you are riding one. Personally my favorite is Ducati L-twin boom with a set of open termignonis.
I had 2 silver 2003 sv1000s ..racked up about 60k between the two. Great old school torquey,stable and fairly comfortable bike . Btw, been riding 30 , on my 40th bike .. all types of engines( triples, v4, crossplane, parallel twins, traditional inline 4) and the classic vtwin probably still my fav vibe !
I had 2003 naked version - it was a great bike. Reviews were mixed at the time, the market was more oriented towards super sports. I sold it to some dude that brought it to Africa as he was moving there. I’ve got my eye on a Vstrom 1050 which has the same engine.
I currently own one for 5 years now. It just doesn't get boring, unfortunately I get power delivery issues after it sits too long, but other than that, it's bulletproof
The perfect street liter bike. Low down torque and a high revving engine. No abs so you can slide the rear end out for fun. What's not to love? Great review 👏
Brakes. That's what's not to love with these. The SV thou is a lovely road bike thats easy to ride and has just about enough motor for every situation. But the amount of times the brembo brakes on the old aprilia RSV and the couple of KTMs I've owned are responsible for me being able to type this response.
I have in my garage an ultra rare garage find - a 2007 S with just over 200 miles on the odometer. I'm currently doing a video on it, out in a few weeks. This is going to be a something truly special.
@@pegasusmotorcycletours for sure! It also has the ORIGINAL tires on - so I'm not going to risk riding it 😆 - but it's a flawless time capsule of a bike
Amazing video, great job very well informed and agree with pretty much everything you've mentioned, have owned my blue '03 sv1000s since 2010 (7,000 km's) when purchased now sits at 98,000 it's been virtually bullet proof since owning and I beat the living shit out of it, only thing that has failed other than standard consumables was the fuel pump. Have you ever de-snorkeled the SV1000 before? the intake growl is outer worldly!! also to add my only real complaint which you didn't touch on was that the stock bars on the S version are about 1-2" too low! or maybe even more depending on your individual wing span Yours seemed to be slightly raised?
I have a brand new SV650, I LOVE it and I love twin engine power delivery and torque versus an inline 4, in the real world, on the street. I wish they still made the 1000, would have bought that.
@pegasusmotorcycletours thanks. Getting Modesto coating on the wheels and tank next Thursday, then have a full M4 exhaust with a tune. Corbin saddle, Renthal handlebars, then she's perfect.
I had the 3rd gen SV650. I was more than satisfied, but I needed a more touring orientated bike. :) Can check my content bro, just look for the SV650 playlist. Cheers.
Beautiful bike. I will have to try one... Not many reviews with long term ownership like this. As an owner of a 05 sv 650 and a 17 gsxs-1000 I have a little of both worlds, just a different flavour. I find that both are much better machines with suspension and brake upgrades. Got to love right side up forks if you work on your own bike though, easier to service.
Thanks for watching. And you are correct about servicing the regular style forks. Bikes are becoming too complicated with unnecessary tech - something I speak about when I review my Versys. Cheers. Nik
@@pegasusmotorcycletours Costa Rica, we usally only sv650s from 2002-2010 atleast have seen 8 in the whole country. And a lot of them are without fairings, cause they have crashed them. They are kinda rare. And the 1000 have't seen one. The model that really sold here was the vstrom. There are lots 650's and 1000's. I actually own a vstrom 650 which i really like. But would love to get a sv1000s imported someday. That's usually how it goes here but theres a big bike comunnity here to be honest at least for the size of the country.
Yes, there're a lot of VFR's of many sizes & like 5-7 generations of it. I would argue that if there was some really good mechanics that one could pick up these 20+ yr old bikes at a good price & have them checked out/repaired to have a long life afterwards? And you'd LQQK really good going there..... thanks for this, as I look for my 1st bike in a long long time, seeing this gives me other options in what I decide to buy & I do like the look of this & the VFR's out there. be safe >> > peace
I'll need it but if I do go with a street bike, the SV650 is one of my favorites but IDKnow jack-cH!T...... That is why I visit & subb'd up >> > to learn !
I figured you'd see the review sooner rather than later. It is a fantastic looker to be sure. We got to organize another trip around desert and mountains. Thanks for reaching out and thanks for the support, and I'm really glad you're enjoying the SV
I own a 2005 sv1000s. Came from a gsxr600 2017’ to sv1000. What I enjoy is the gearing. The sv1000 has more power from 0-120 and the gsxr600 would win from 125-170.
Funny comment, phone mount. Who needs a phone mount on their bike? I have the N model with some visual and tech mods and I really love it. Nakeds are just more for me. Love the red S looks tho!
While my bike was awaiting spares, the dealership lent me one of these for a mountain trip that had been planned. Sorry but I rode it to the stops, it ran out of breath, then in the mountain twisties it ran out of ground clearence....sparks everywhere so I was a bit put off with that experience. My Triumph was/is superior.
@@pegasusmotorcycletours my Triumph Sprint 1050ST, tuned to me & my style of riding. When your machine is properly set-up, it can embarrass many a rider
Zdravo ja iz Beograda ali sam živeo u Kanadi 27 godina. Vozim Hondu/Vespu/BMW vratio se u Beograd. Hteo da kupim SV 1K ali zbog discuss hernia odustao. Sweet sounding machine 😎👍
I don't know for certain what the major issues with the tl were. The SV is known for one major fault with the flywheel magnets coming unglued and bouncing around which can be detrimental.
I bought my Blue 2003 SV1000N with 3942 miles from the original owner and still own it to this day at ~21K miles. Don't ride it as often as l did before but still do. Besides D&D cans, it's completely stock. It could probably use a little bit of tuning as the fueling at low RPM it's HOT TRASH and VERY LUMPY and CHOPPY at anything under 3K RPM. EDIT: Another weak spot on this beast it's the POORLY SEALED instrument cluster. I got caught in a summer shower and after that the digital display part got wet and the LCD never looked clear like before. It works fine and you can still see it but just not as easily at a glance as before. The Naked was ONLY exported to the USA market in 2003 and never again after. Another downside it's the age, the low production numbers and the lack of aftermarket support and OEM replacement parts are starting to be felt after 20 years. But hey, nothing lasts forever ! 🤷♂️
Thanks for sharing those details. All great information. Others here talked about te low rpm choppiness as well. Gains from California and thanks for watching. Nik
650 is lighter but lacks power (in my humbe opinion), 1000 leaves nothing to be desired. I always opt out for the bigger engine if it's available. The 1000 is rarer.
I currently own one, they are great in it's own way, but not as sporty as one would expect. But it handles far forse than comparabl3 bikes, breaks and suspenssion are not up to par. And it weights alot when compared to a proper sports bike. Overall not soo sporty, LOTS of torque ,AWESOME sound, poor breaks and suspenssion and do not forger it's not as reliable as one would assume from suzuki. Overall in same budget you can have 06+ tuono wich is much better bike overall, also from my experience more reliable.
Thanks for that suggestions. I would not have thought that an Aprilia from that era was more reliable but I know these have issues with the flywheel magnets coming loose and bouncing around.
you are correct i've always called this bike (Which i own) a whale pig, but it's just so much damn fun, power sliding into a wheeling from a stop sign.. who doesn't love that??
BIG twin... She's a beaut .. looks very much like my 2005 Daytona 955i, triple ... which is a shockingly great sportbike... same era as the SV1000.. I bought my Daytona off Ebay back in 2011.. still own it.. it's just different like the SV
The engine was used also in the V-Strom 1000. If wanna go exgravanca you cant go past a cagiva raptor 1000 or Navigator (in which i cruise around) 🤌 Only downside of the engine is the poor powerdelivery under 3k umin which makes it a pain in the ass to drive in some situations to the point of almost undrivable🤐
Thanks for sharing. I mention the vstrom detail around minute 17. I also mention and agree about the 3k rom detail. Ps, is the Navigator the same as the grand canyon model in the US?
@@pegasusmotorcycletours Ok, then it was my attention lacking after 10min cause you always do mention almost every slight details (good&bad) in your reviews which i do much appreciate and your vfr videos almost got me to get one and if i didnt stumble over the navigator i would drive one right now 🙂 Navigator is a Gran Canyon but with the suzuki engine and not a ducati and comes stock with a 18" front wheel where the canyon comes with 19". Suzuki engine is tuned to 99hp where the ducati was ~75hp. As far as i know, other then that they are similar beside the needed adaptations for going from air/oil to liquid cooled. Both are hard to maintain cause ex just to change a faulty light bulb you need to disasemble half of the bike....italian design at its best😁 Oh and dont get mislead by all the old reviews of these bikes - compared to a modern sport touring bike like a 890smt they handle like a tank.