Photo: MCN
"Is that a new Norton?" was the first thing that came to mind when we laid eyes on Suzuki's newest concept, the SV650 Rally. Introduced recently to the public at the Osaka Motorcycle Show, SV650 Rally builds, obviously, on the new SV650 platform revealed last fall at EICMA in Milan.
Sadly, Suzuki has been quite secretive as to what the future hides for the SV650 Rally, so it's impossible to estimate whether Hamamatsu has any serious plans with this neo-retro racer or it was all just playing with aftermarket parts and some extra fabrications.
However, taking a closer look at the SV650 Rally, it appears that all the modifications are on the aesthetic side, without any hacking, sawing, or welding involved. In fewer words, an SV650 Rally could be built using bolt-on parts; and this means that a modding kit is not such a far-fetched idea!
Suzuki refrained from saying yay or nay, but looking in the industry and seeing how manufacturers expand their product range in this simple and efficient way, we'd rather put our money on "yay."
Such a retro rally kit could effortlessly include a new seat with an accompanying pillion seat cover, an easy-to-install plug and play Yoshimura silencer, a handful of bolt-on billet parts in contrasting colors, the clip-on bars with bar-end mirrors, and new fenders.
The mini front cowl and the round headlight introduce a strong '70s vibe, while the side quarter-fairings extending towards the tank are also consistent with the evoked era.
Still, the fuel tank remains, at least in our books, a part that clashes with the rest. Still, designing a retro-racy bolt-on unit is clearly not enough to give up on such an interesting project, is it? Yamaha seems to fare pretty well with its line-up of neo-retro motorcycles and their example is well-worth following.
However, taking a closer look at the SV650 Rally, it appears that all the modifications are on the aesthetic side, without any hacking, sawing, or welding involved. In fewer words, an SV650 Rally could be built using bolt-on parts; and this means that a modding kit is not such a far-fetched idea!
Suzuki refrained from saying yay or nay, but looking in the industry and seeing how manufacturers expand their product range in this simple and efficient way, we'd rather put our money on "yay."
Such a retro rally kit could effortlessly include a new seat with an accompanying pillion seat cover, an easy-to-install plug and play Yoshimura silencer, a handful of bolt-on billet parts in contrasting colors, the clip-on bars with bar-end mirrors, and new fenders.
The mini front cowl and the round headlight introduce a strong '70s vibe, while the side quarter-fairings extending towards the tank are also consistent with the evoked era.
Still, the fuel tank remains, at least in our books, a part that clashes with the rest. Still, designing a retro-racy bolt-on unit is clearly not enough to give up on such an interesting project, is it? Yamaha seems to fare pretty well with its line-up of neo-retro motorcycles and their example is well-worth following.
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