I bought a Suzuki TU250X and I like it

So I bought this bike in Red Deer, Alberta which is just under 400kms from home. It had only 16xx kms on it but was priced about $1500 less than new ... a significant savings percentage wise. After arranging with the seller we made the drive up north.

Still some snow about in places. The three grain elevators of Mossleigh, Alberta. A rare sight these days as more elevators seem to be getting pulled down every year.

Farming industrial plant just outside Calgary.

On the way to retrieve the bike we stopped at the dreaded Ikea but managed to make it a short visit.

An air cooled classic Volkswagen Beetle mildly customized.

After messing around with the battery before realizing one has to hold the clutch handle in to start the bike (d'oh) it was purchased. Now we were off for the ride home. The first stop was the Donut Mill. I saw a lady take a photo of my bike as we were standing in line. She probably thought it was a restored classic.

They have a large selection of donuts and most have a real cream filling. Better than Tim's frozen and thawed stuff.

So we bought some ... err ... for the kids ...

Unfortunately it was very windy near Red Deer and the temperature was only 8C, far off from the promised high of 15C. I had stop and put on another layer of clothes. I also remembered that I had never checked the tire pressure. Added a few PSI with a bicycle pump at the side of the road.

There is still snow around in many spots. It was a little bit cold as the temperature dropped to only 6C (around 42F for those that don't speak metric temperature). One thing is for sure - my gloves are not good enough for this weather.

I had to stop a couple times to warm the hands up. Brrr. Ate a donut so one less for the kids.

So it goes about 250kms per tank at highway speeds ...

I thought the license plate screws looked a little suspect. The license plate had fallen off sometime in the last hundred kilometers.

The Enterprise of Vulcan, Alberta. My hands were too cold to properly stop so you get a crappy photo from the gas station.

The temperature was dropping as we were losing the sun so a straight shot home for the last hundred kilometers. Safe at home in the garage.

That looks like a fun little bike. I like that the handlebars aren't overly wide. 

Plan to do anything to it or just ride it?

I wouldn't mind a seat like above but it would be strictly for looks. The factory seat is pretty comfy so not sure if I will change it.

Maybe some bags and I plan to road trip it quite a bit this summer. Everyone thinks I'm nuts for buying such a small engined bike but I like it.

I dig those little guys. Probably a lot more fun than the poorly running Honda Rebel I rode home for a friend last year. 

Those bikes always appealed to me. If one pops up on craigslist and I've got cash might just end up with one one day.

My previous bike was a Honda Nighthawk - like a Rebel but in more standard form. The brakes are so much better on the Suzuki (they were drum on the Honda). Seems more stable at speed - might not be a fair comparison as the Suzuki is almost new but the Honda likely had many, many first time owners.

The TwinStar I ride is jealous. I have neve seen one of them come up for sale locally. 

Rode one of those for my MSF course years ago.  Really, really liked it.  Always thought about picking up a secondhand one to keep as a runabout for in town fun.  

Congrats on the purchase!  And my sympathies on the ride home. I delivered a TT600 to the new owner in 2-3C weather.  After a ride of around 2 hours, I was a bit chilly.  I think I spent an hour in the hot tub when I got home.  

I honestly mean this in the most sincere way.  What's the appeal of a slow motorcycle?  Educate me please.

And what is the upper end of "comfortable" cruising speed on these bikes?

doc_speeder said:

I honestly mean this in the most sincere way.  What's the appeal of a slow motorcycle?  Educate me please.

You know how you can drive a slow but nimble car (like, for example, a Miata) as if satan himself is on your tail and barely break any laws while laughing your head off?  That, but two wheels.

With a slow bike, it's your own personal Isle of Man every ride. You use all your gears and never reachieve go to jail velocity. 

It is a nice and light, capable of legal highway speeds and looks like an old school UJM. I like that but could see how others wouldn't.

Dave said:

It is a nice and light, capable of legal highway speeds and looks like an old school UJM. I like that but could see how others wouldn't.

Don't get me wrong...it's not that I don't like it.  I think it's a neat little bike.  I just don't get it...and that's on me, not on you!

Any idea what kind of revs it spins at on the highway?  Like say 100 km/h? 

I understand the whole "slow car fast" analogy, but I don't really see how that applies to motorcycles.

I have a YZ250, and that's close I guess, but still, it makes close to 50hp and weighs under 220 lbs, so not exactly slow.  Nimble yes, slow no.  I had a Yamaha Vino 50 2 stroke scooter, and it was fun for a bit, like a couple weeks, but then it just got boring.  Although it wouldn't do more than 65 km/h.  So maybe it was TOO slow haha.

Anyway, nice to see another Alberta rider.  Have fun with your little Zuk.

There are 250cc road bikes, and then there is the TU250X.

Those are truly better than the sum of their parts. It provides performance that is probably not far off from a 500cc Royal Enfield. Classic good looks. Super low weight. Can go 70 if you need it to.

My Bonneville has plenty more power but is no more useable on the highway at 70 due to the wind blast you get on a totally naked bike. My Bonnie is heavy...unnecessarily so, IMO. But I like it and the British-ness of it. If I lived in a more urban environment though I'd rock the Suzuki and smile the entire time.

Love the look of these bikes. If I were looking at a used 80's 450 vs spending another couple grand for a brand new TU250, I'm sure I'd end up with the Suzuki. Also really love the paint on the 2018s. 

Edit: this thread threw me down the rabbit hole. I really miss my old Pacific Coast but haven't kept up with what's new in the moto world. I stumbled upon the Honda NM4. Can't decide if I love it or hate it!

I’ve been waiting on these to get cheap enough.  Look like the time is arriving.