1) KATANA OR VX800 ?

So why did I change from a bike which at first glance appears so different to the VX?

Besides being a complete fan of T.E.Lawrence, and if a vee twin was good enough for him it certainly is good enough for me, I decided to change the Katana for a bike I perceived would slow my riding down! And until it was run in it did. For some fifteen years I have been riding along the B526 which used to be the A50 Leicester to London road in the days before the M1. It is now a quiet country lane, wide with interesting bends. The Katana succeeded in its journey along this road each day amidst howling exhausts and worn out footpegs. Ask Steve Frost of the Shutlanger Owls how quick a Katana can go on wiggly bits at speeds which feel like 125 even though the speedo only reads 60!

Besides being lots of fun the Katana also had a huge fuel range with 50mpg and a 23 litre tank, the seat was comfortable and when not loaded with luggage and the regional secretary (Cherie for those who don't know)could scratch it with the best. trouble was the aggressive looks and very cammy powerband meant I travelled everywhere in a fashion which only makes me wonder how I survived for so long. And as the years pile on my reactions are most defiantly not getting any quicker. The thought of lazily plodding along on a vee twin became very attractive and therefor when Cherie said buy a new bike a went for it. It transpires that Cherie was becoming embarrassed turning up to meetings with MEPs and the like on my decidedly scruffy looking Katana.

So how is the VX now? Well now its run in I find at sub three figure speeds it just as quick as the Katana but in a much more relaxed way. I am now playing computer games to speed up my reactions!

2) SUZUKI VX800-After 17,000 Miles of Abuse?

As standard, the VX comes fitted with Metzeller tyres. ME33 at the front and ME55 at the back. It seems to grip the road OK though the level of feedback does not inspire confidence. It does not like white lines or road surface imperfections and in the wet it frightens. The steering is vague, the brakes make a disconcerting noise that sounds like you have run out of friction materiel and it runs out of steam around 110 mph.

Enter Bridgstone BT35 tyres. These are the new ones with the harder compound in the centre. Firm, stable handling and no problems with white lines. Drop the yokes on the fork stanchions about an inch to speed up the steering. Pegs down in the dry and lots of confidence in the wet. Totally different bike! Change the brake pads, no more noise and better brakes. Play with the suspension settings (despite what you may have read in other magazines the VX has adjustable pre-load and damping-is adjustable for rebound and pre-load) no problems with shaft reaction and its going round the corners even better. Now the naughty bit. Take one metal rod, about two feet long and half inch in diameter (no I am not metric yet) place inside exit pipe of exhaust and hit with heavy hammer! Not forgetting to remove metal rod, start engine. Sounds exactly the same! Try out on road-bless me! 120 and still pulling, 125 and think of license before throttling back. And fuel consumption? Slightly better when 'taking it easy' at around 50 mpg dropping to 45mpg if full power and performance used (that means 100 non stop 'up north' on motorway) which is the same as before exhaust mod.

The VX is getting better. Chuck off the whacking great lumps of steel pretending to be aluminium footrest guards, chuck off lots of cosmetic plastic which make it impossible to clean behind and it is a totally different bike. Handles nice, reasonable performance and fuel consumption, great fun on back lanes and enough grunt for motorway stuff. Except? No fairing for motorway stuff. Look at prices for small fly screens and see they want fifty odd quid for a bit of clear plastic. Go down to breakers and get a slightly scratched screen off a sports fairing. Attach it to polished aluminium brackets cut out of a Volvo bumper and to bike. Total cost £4. Keeps the wind off the chest just fine at high speed and not heavy enough to raise the weight around the axis of the steering and affect handling.

Should you have to do all these mods to a bike? Most bikes do get modified and if it costs little then why not. Others have modified VX800 to make them more 'Touring'- fairings, panniers etc. Nice soft suspension. This one has had the balance shifted to sporting thought the term is relative.

So what is the end package? Shaft drive because I either am to busy or too tired to worry about chains. 200 Mile fuel range when being sensible. Handling that is good enough for three figure back lane work. Pads seem to last about 8,000 miles at the front and 17,000 miles so far at the back but-that is with the tick-over wound down to 800 rpm to get more engine braking. Metzeller tyres lasted 4,000 at the back and 6,000 at the front. So far the BT35's look like they will outlast the Metzellers (because they don't go square).

Two problems that can't easily be solved. First is the odd looks which say to you 'where is my fairing?' and second is the seat. When new it will send your bottom to sleep in 50 miles. After a bit of use it improves and 200 miles to coincide with fuel stops is a relief (to your bottom). It is a plank, or at least thinks it is. I have sat on more comfortable fences. It does seem to be getting softer with age and use (or my bottom is getting harder). As the VX is not very common I cannot run of to someone and get an off the shelf replacement. If I think of something I'll let you know!

Stephen Bergman.

3) SUZUKI VX800 50,000 miles.

So it was 1994 and I took the plunge and purchased a new bike. For value, this is not really a good idea, one year olds are much better value, but I told myself we should all do something daft occasionally. At least I didn’t pay list price. Can’t think of any other excuses.

I had previously used an assortment of Suzuki’s, mostly Katanas, and after a ‘few’ near misses decided to get a different sort of bike and slow down a bit. I had for many years travelled the same ‘B’ class road to and from work and was amazed how much interesting stuff was over the other side of the hedges. Sitting upright on the VX800 and riding slower suddenly changed my journey. So after many years of charging around on faster bikes and after owning the VX for a year I then fell off a slower one!

Not going slow though. So there I was sliding down the road on my stomach watching my pride and joy throw arcs of sparks in its wake. Quickly changing from palms to arms as my leathers wore through I watched the VX hit the roadside verge and plastic fly into the air. Fifty foot later I came to a stop behind the bike and gingerly got up and lifted the VX up to survey the damage.

Dented tank, broken plastic seat surround, smashed indicators and headlamp lens, footrest ripped off and bent gear change. And, exhaust silencer dented and pushed into rear swing arm. Sod it. Leathers trashed, Rukka waterproofs trashed, gloves trashed. Cuts and abrasions to self.

I walked around and picked all the bits up then pulled the exhaust off of the suspension. The bike started ok and I kicked it into third and rode it back home. And here’s the crunch. My new bike was only insured third, fire and theft! I had been insured ok with various companies in the past, Norwich Union, Eagle Star etc but had been refused insurance for the VX by Eagle Star as they considered it a greater risk than the Katana. I did think that was weird. Other quotes for fully comprehensive were silly so it was third fire and theft. Perhaps Eagle Star did know their onions after all?

My ‘cuts and abrasions’ were sufficient to keep me off work for a while so I got on with sorting the VX out. I had the footrest welded back together, headlamp was replaced by a standard round car jobby from a scrappy (£5). Indicators were replaced with aftermarkets and the seat plastic surround repaired using soldering iron and fibreglass resin. Petrol tank filled with Plastic Padding and exhaust filled with a laminate of aluminium foil and Araldite. Exhaust was painted silver and the tank and plastic gloss black. It looked a heap of s**t but was sound, wouldn’t deteriorate any more and importantly could continue to get me the forty miles to and from work all year round. Oh, and the clothing was treated to copious amounts of gaffer tape!

Thus it stayed for many a year. Then we get to 2000 and I no longer needed the bike for work and entered the ranks of ‘leisure biker’. Proper rebuild time! After all, although the VX had no rust and was reliable it had a good 50,000 miles on the clock and was worth next to nothing if it was sold but given a bit of care would continue to serve my purposes very well.

The VX had, by this time, been fitted with a rack and panniers -dead useful. The broken silencer had given up the ghost and the exhaust system had been cunningly converted to a two into one. This had been achieved easily, as there was a crossover pipe between the engine and the rear wheel. Cut off the damaged silencer and block the hole up. A long spike banged up the remaining silencer kept the gas flowing and it worked a treat! I had taken a chance on the soft tuned VX having little valve overlap and being tolerant of its exhausts. Got away with it too. Mind you by then the bike looked as doggy as a doggy thing.

There was only three non-self inflicted troubles with the bike during its 50,000 miles and all happened after 30,000 miles. First was the bearing seal in the shaft drive giving out and sprinkling the shaft drive oil onto the back of the bike whilst heading north along the M1. Easily fixed in less than an hour. Second was the rear carburettor flooding occasionally cured by a new needle valve and seating. The carb was twisted around in it’s housing and the parts replaced in situ. Easy enough. Third was clutch slip. Replaced with aftermarket parts. Non of the faults caused complete failure to achieve journeys end so I am rightly pleased with reliability.

The rebuild was mostly paint, as although the bike was scruffy it had never been allowed to rust. The principle used being if the paint gives way slap anything on rather than nothing. It did take some time, as you would expect, preparation is the keyword here. However, all the stripping down was easier than normal as practically everything had been off and greased with copperslip quite early in the bikes life. This was as a result of dire warnings from friends within the trade of the quaint Japanese custom of dry construction.

The opportunity was taken to do something about the seat. I used to think it was me getting older that caused my arse to go to sleep after a hundred miles or so. It never used to; I could ride 250 – 300 miles in comfort on earlier bikes. However, talking to ‘young uns’ found that they suffered the same problem. I now reckon that it must be due to a change of foam by the manufacturers. A friend added some sleeping mat foam to the original and then recovered the seat with black leather. It’s not up to what I remember but is better than the previous lack of comfort. The practicality of leather, or not, is tempered by my leisure use and a good quality leather feed and waterproofed.

The exhaust system was still the bodged original. Yes really! This is despite its trip along the road early in its life. It was less one silencer and converted two into one. The remaining silencer was sheathed in copper and the system was painted up but, non-the less, it had not rotted through. This was achieved by the addition of two stoke or engine oil every month to the petrol. Half a pint to the petrol tank full did the trick and it didn’t appear to smoke noticeably or dirty the plugs etc. Did the trick though. So it is now treated with a new replacement. Not a Suzuki original. That would be silly. It would cost a fortune, would weigh a ton and it isn’t very practical being constructed with the downpipes and silencer as one. It was replaced by a Jama aftermarket system. Separate downpipes and silencers allowing silencers only to be changed. Much lighter than original too. In addition it is stamped up with the appropriate BS No and legal. Doesn't stop it from sounding nice though. It is also being treated to the occasional dose of oil in an attempt to lengthen its silencer life.

Other modifications were - to the rear brake. This is the usual Suzuki opposed piston calliper as used on loads of in house bikes. The standard set up is mounted above the swing arm with a torque arm mounted from a lug on the calliper to a welded on bracket on top of the swinging arm almost at the bearing. New, it works fine. Otherwise it’s main attribute is to seize up double quick and, being opposed pistons it will be one piston only seized and a b*******d to release. So now the lug on the calliper has been removed and the calliper allowed to swing down below the swinging arm. Torque arm is replaced by mounting from one of the calliper mount bolts using a handlebar bracing rod fixed to a new bracket underneath the swinging arm. So now I suppose your wondering what purpose this modification achieves besides lowering the centre of gravity? Well lowering the C of G was not the purpose of the exercise the difference being meaningless on this type of bike. The purpose was to stop the brake from seizing. Ok, so it now hangs even closer to all the road muck. However, the brake pads are fixed in the callipers by two pins through their top edge normally thus allowing them to hang between the pistons. Now they are fixed at the bottom edge and, in practice, they rattle around when the brake isn’t applied and never get clogged up!

In addition, the strange water coolant thingy fixed on the right under the petrol tank has been removed. I used to think it was some sort of expansion tank for the coolant but it seems no. It just seems to stop coolant from falling on the floor when overfilled and expanded. So it gone and the vent pipe now travels down the front frame downtube to free air. In the thousands of miles since this conversion the coolant has never needed topping up. And finally the seized rear shocks were replaced with Hagon aftermarket jobbies. These were made up with a slightly heavier spring rate than standard to assist in load carrying.

The standard Japanese ‘bee in a tin’ hooter was thrown over the nearest hedge and replaced with one from a car. Obtained free from a wreck. It’s loud and it works. If you want to do this just make sure that if your hooter has two connections you replace it with one with two connections. Seems obvious but a lot of car ones work different. Most bikes supply power to the hooter then your switch earth’s it. A lot of cars simply supply power via a switch and the hooter is earthed permanent - hence only one connection.

The whole package was finished off with a small adjustable screen. Us oldies like our comfort.

The performance of the VX has been pretty consistent. The 19 litre fuel tank should give you between 120 and 190 miles before reserve and at least 20 safe miles before you start pushing. In reality there is dead areas in the tank and you can expect around 150 miles with another 10 in reserve – unless you’re stupid or brave!

The tyres are worth careful consideration. As standard the VX comes equipped with a Metzeler ME33, 110/80 x 18, at the front end and a Metzeller ME55, 150/70 x 17 at the back end. In its life my VX has also used Super Venom’s from Avon at 100/90 and 110/90 on the front, Bridgestone’s BT35 goes very nice at the back. A Bridgestone Exedra 110/70 x 18 was tried at the front and Avon Azaro radials both ends in standard sizes.

And here are the tyre championships with points being awarded from one to ten.

Front, Metzeller gets three out of ten. Avon Super venom 100/90 gets five out of ten and the 110/90 six out of ten. The Bridgetsones get seven out of ten with the Azaros at least nine out of ten.

At the back the Metzeller scares us rigid with two out of ten, Bridgestone comes in at six out of ten and the Azaro flies through at nine out of ten. Funny thing is the Azaros win on all counts, they grip more, they feel better, and they also last longer. The super Venom/Bridgestones are acceptable but the Metzeller’s are comparably scary. Why Suzuki fitted them as standard is anybody’s guess. If they had fitted better tyres perhaps the bike would have got better reviews?

Air cleaners are paper disposable and expensive with the rear cylinder cleaner down near the front of the back wheel. Suzuki recommends cleaning them at 4,000 miles and replacement at 7,500 miles. Usually the rear one needs changing and the front one doesn't. So swap them over at 4,000 miles and then again at 8,000 miles replacing them at 12,000 miles to make the filters last longer.

Valve clearances are regular screw and locknut adjustment. Access is limited but with the correct spanner adjuster, which is available quite cheaply, adjustment is very easy. Not that it seems to need adjusting much. I’ve had to adjust them three times in 50,000 miles – and I’m fussy.

Oil filter is your usual screw on job located at the front of the engine. You can even get chrome plated ones! Some people have suggested that using only mineral oil will help to reduce clutch slip. In practice, I have found good oil quality is the key. The least problems I had with clutch slip when the clutch was worn were with synthetic oil. The oil always looks dirty though, even from new. Dunno why.

The electronic ignition timing shouldn’t need adjusting unless you’ve been playing with it. The two spark plugs do need replacing on the full service, as they seem to have a hard life. I have tried different brands without any appreciable difference in wear or performance. The only noticeable thing is that Champion plugs have a different hexagon drive size so the standard plug spanner doesn’t fit! Not that the plugs are that easy to access. Theres no bodywork in the way there just recessed miles down into the Ali’ work on the head.

Riding the VX800 is easy and simple. Theres nothing to frighten you, no power bands. Lots of low down torque, easy clutch and brakes and low seat height. The single back and front discs are up to the job though not up to sports bike standards and the suspension is adequate. Standard rear dampers are adjustable for load, compression and rebound damping. But adjust them early in their life as the adjustment knobs soon seize.

If your looking for a reliable, if unexciting commuter or tourer, the VX800 should be OK for you. Not that many about - and they were never very popular. So don’t pay a lot and you won’t have to sell it for a lot. Just remember the tyre thing when you test it!

Steve Bergman

4) LIVING WITH A VX800 - Stephen Bergman

The VX has been around for some time now. Ugly but loved. You do not see many about but it is interesting to note that those who do get them usually hang on to them. Perhaps it is too sensible? In buying a VX I did not make the choice on looks. Suzuki could have made minor changes to improve the appearance but seemed to choose a 'corporate style' which does not sit well with other aspects of the design. However, more on this later.

The VX can return as much as 70 mpg ridden 'sensibly' but in 'normal' use returns around 50 mpg giving a range of 160 miles before reserve with a gallon left. This is just about right for the new VX as the seat becomes unbearable after 150 miles. Fortunately, after time the seat does give and then is much more comfortable. Or has my rear end become harder! As with any modern bike oil consumption is zero. The riding position is good and can be changed given the VX comes with normal handlebars allowing changes to facilitate rider size.

Brakes are adequate but will get hot and bothered with repeated high speed use. The fork legs and wheel have no provision for fitting of an extra disc, which is a shame. I am told that the front end from a Kawasaki ZX10 will fit but it would probably only be of benefit if you ride hard all of the time in which case you have got the wrong bike!

The VX is well at home on all road types. Handling is good once the standard Metzeller tyres have been replaced with Bridgstone BT35 or Perrelli Dragon GT. In fact the improvement is enormous. This is allied with longer tyre life. I must admit to being surprised at the choice of Metzeller tyres on the VX. I have owned a number of Suzuki's and they all benefitted by NOT having Metzellers.

The front suspension is not adjustable but seems to be about right. Twin rear shocks are adjustable for pre-load, compression and rebound damping and are very good. Other than not being invisible the shaft drive is up to the usual Suzuki standard being totally unobtrusive. Doing naughty things like braking late half way round a corner or opening the throttle appears to have no affect.

Performance is also better than expected. The vee twin motor turns out a respectable amount of torque through the rev range making lazy gear changes possible and leading to a relaxed riding style. Top whack is around 115 mph but I am told that a minor modification to the exhaust, without noticeable increase in sound levels, will put another 10 mph on this and improve fuel consumption!

How about repair costs? In an unplanned experiment, a VX800 was low sided at high speed. What damage occurred? Most importantly the slim engine design meant it never touched the ground. The silencer was scrapped, but is still usable. Some damage to the tail and side panel plastic and the usual broken indicators. The bike was picked up, checked over and ridden home. The plastic and other items can be repaired locally to 'as new' for around £200. The exhaust is more of a problem given the one piece nature of modern bike exhausts. Fortunately JAMA now make a replacement system for about £200 with the option of stainless steel.

Whilst repairs were being carried out I tried out a fairing on the VX to help those long boring motorway journeys. The fairing was from an early, twin shock, GSX750 and was previously fitted to one of my Katana's. It looked good and worked well. Too well, and for the sake of my license has now been removed. Arm and neck ache on the motorway does wonders towards the cleanliness of driving licenses! The surprise was that there was more than adequate slack on the wiring loom to fit the fairing which made me wonder if Suzuki were planning to bring out a faired model in a similar way to the Bandit range. Secondly, upon fitting rigid panniers I find that Suzuki have built in mounting points. Strange. I would say that given a half fairing and optional panniers, Suzuki would have sold more and had competition against the XJ 900 Yamaha, an excellent budget tourer.

To conclude, an excellent bike that makes a superb low maintenance all rounder. Do not be put off by the strange tank styling - you can't see it when sat astride so it is no problem.

Unless, of course, you worry what others see more than you do!

5) SUZUKI VX800 The Unsung Workhorse?

Steve Bergman

Approach the Suzuki VX800 from behind and the shape of the seat/tail fairing blending in to the large tank appears swoopy and stylish. Approach from the front and the tank shape looks completely wrong. The bike looks ungainly and you go on to wonder where the fairing is. More of that later. But from either direction your eyes are eventually taken to very imposing engine. Large, silver and a V-twin. First comments are usually, 'Nice engine'. Water cooled over head cam 45 degree V-twin. At first sight the engine looks air cooled, Fins have been added to the outside of the cylinders over the water jacket making the engine appear larger than otherwise and the radiator has been carefully tucked away at the front. Enough power and loads of low down torque. The appearance of the engine is only half of it. It delivers too. So what else is there to know about a Suzuki VX800?

Well there is the 19 litre fuel tank. Or to put it into perspective between 120 and 190 miles before reserve and at least 20 safe miles before you start pushing. A big difference that reflects how radically the fuel consumption can change with type of use (or abuse). At a steady (yawn) 60 mph you may reach the dizzy heights of 70 mpg whereas at speeds which will lose you your license and make your arms and neck ache, lets say at over 100 mph officer, you may only achieve 35 mpg. Realistic (non-neck ache) everyday use of 80 mph on the motorway and 70 mph on single carriageways will give you 45-55 mpg. All on unleaded of course and via old fashioned off/on/reserve fuel tap. Well that's the fuel sorted out how does the VX deliver the resulting energy.

A nice clean shaft drive. I know a chain is supposed to be better but only if you look after it and have you seen the price of replacement chains? Yes, I know that a bike can have better handling with chain drive, but honestly, only really at extreme limits and Suzuki seem not to have that BMW problem. In normal use you wouldn't know there was a shaft drive all those strange reactions which the likes of BMW revel in seem to have left the Suzuki designers alone. Besides who wants to mess about adjusting a chain on a cold, wet February evening after work? Gearbox is fine. It works without effort and just gets on with its job. I can't think of anything to say about it at all which means I don't even remember using it. Just like controls should be - trouble free and allow you to enjoy the journey.

What else? Rear suspension is adjustable for spring pre-load, compression and rebound damping. If it isn't working properly then your well overweight, skinny as hell or havn't adjusted it properly. Just remember to take them off and oil or grease the adjusting controls as they are a bit exposed and may seize although this wouldn't be a problem if you had them adjusted to your weight and riding style first! Front end is not adjustable and you may suffer some dive problems riding fast or two up. This can be partially alleviated by changing the grade of fork oil or using a mixture of grades.

Back brake is the usual Suzuki opposed piston job looking different but just the same as fitted to a long line of GS Suzuki across the frame fours. Clean it out regular and it will work fine. Taking the shims out so the pads rattle in the callipers and putting copper slip onto the pins that hold the pads should guarantee they don't seize on you. At the front we feature a twin pot job fitted as standard with the amazing Suzuki singing pads. The front brake works just fine under normal use though it can get hot and bothered under repeated hard application. The brake continues to work but the disc will turn a nice shade of blue which may not match the colour scheme on the rest of the bike. You will find that after market pads work just as well and don't sing the fact to all and sundry that you have just applied your front brake. Again, proper and regular maintenance will stop any problems occurring with the front brake.

The tyres are worth careful consideration upon replacement. As standard the VX comes equipped with a Metzeler ME33, 110/80 x 18, at the front end and a Metzeller ME55, 150/70 x 17 at the back end. The ME33/55 have been around for some time now. The expression Jurassic springs to mind. I know they seem to work well on some bikes and I expect Suzuki or Metzeler have done 'Exhaustive Testing'. Yeah, right! You probably will have no idea exactly what is happening beneath you and will become very familiar with all the white lines and road marking on your journeys. Alternatively change the tyres for just about anything else and get an improvement. Super Venom from Avon 100/90 and 110/90 work better than the ME33 at the front which says a lot about ME33 as the Super Venom are the wrong sizes! They are also cheaper. Bridgstone BT35 goes very nice at the back, is cheaper than a ME55 and lasts longer. It also grips the road better! Use a Bridgestone Exedra at the front and you will certainly be a happy chappy. Use of a Bridgestone Exedra 110/70 x 18 at the front will speed up the turning considerably over a 80 or 90 aspect ratio without any high speed straight line worries. Another alternative for those with a little more disposable income is to fit Pirelli Dragon GT radials. Even better. I think you get the message that you can make vast improvements on the standard handling by experimenting with tyre choice.

Air cleaners are separate paper disposable types for each cylinder and the one for the rear cylinder is down near the swinging arm bearing just in front of the back wheel. Suzuki recommend cleaning them at 4,000 miles and replacement at 7,500 miles. When you go to change them at the recommended

interval you will find that this rear one does need changing and the front one doesn't. So instead of changing them at the recommended interval clean them and swap them over at 4,000 miles and then again at 8,000 miles replacing them at 12,000 miles to make the filters last longer.

Valve clearances are by locknut and screw and seem to stay within tolerance. They should be checked every 4,000 miles and though they can be a bit tricky to get at but it becomes easier with practise. Oil and oil filter are changed at 8,000 miles.

One thing that always seems worthwhile these days is to spend a little time each weekend taking the odd component off or undoing the odd nut and bolt and applying copper slip. It will help you to remove the part in later years and also show you that some of the Japanese manufacturers don't like lubricating components upon assembly. If you don't do this you may find, for instance, that the back shocks have rusted themselves to the frame. Whilst your at it undo the block connecters on the wring and put some silicon or something in as they corrode like Billy-O and you will soon end up with a dead bike.

All this knowledge will help you to make sure the bike you are buying is a good one or negotiate the price accordingly!

So what is the 'more later' with regard to why the VX800 has a tank shape that looks like it ought to have a fairing?

If you remove the headlamp from its shell the first thing you will notice is the unusually long wiring loom. Quite enough in fact to fit an after market fairing without an extension being needed for the loom. Then of course there is the 'corporate image' that Suzuki have with their Bandit range of bikes which also have the plastic bits to fill in the front of the frame. Except the ones that have a fairing! Did Suzuki originally intend to bring out a VX800 with a fairing later? Its a shame they didn't do it in the first place. Re-enforcing the previous statement we find that behind the passenger footrests there is mounting point for pannier frames already drilled and tapped. It would be easy to take the view that Suzuki saw the VX800 as a budget tourer with half fairing and optional panniers. In fact, those that have fitted these from after market suppliers will tell you that this is a role that the VX800 fills very well indeed. It will cruise quite happily at 100 mph two up with a fairing fitted to improve comfort. It is reliable and will go on for high mileage. You could have had a good one here Suzuki but got it wrong enough so no-one knows quite how to categorize it. But never mind. To us who are looking for a bike that performs reasonably, will tour and commute and is reasonable on the pocket to run all this is good news because we can buy one of these bikes

for fair money and be very happy chappies!

Unless your are wanting the thrills, and spills, of an all out sports bike or the absolute top speed that only comes with power then you are likely to be very happy with your VX800 V-twin Suzuki.