by "Nonster" (noahnic)
Published 02/17/2017 at 08:49
by "Nonster" (noahnic)
Published 02/17/2017 at 08:49
Tags: Two Wheels Good
; Motorcycle
; SV650
; 2wheelsgood
STARS: 6
It ain’t Folgers that’s for sure.
Side note: WTF!? this weather is waaaaaay to nice for February in Ohio.
"Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer" (smallbear94)
02/17/2017 at 09:03, STARS: 0
Nah, four wheels better.
"The Ghost of Oppo" (gohstoklasa)
02/17/2017 at 09:06, STARS: 0
It going to be really warm this weekend in Western PA too, but it just snowed yesterday and the roads are still covered in salt, so I think the Buell is going to stay in the garage :(
"FTTOHG Has Moved to https://opposite-lock.com" (alphaass)
02/17/2017 at 09:09, STARS: 0
Shitsnacks is this a cell phone picture?!
"Nonster" (noahnic)
02/17/2017 at 09:15, STARS: 1
Yup, I’m frequently surprised at how good my phone’s camera is
"Nonster" (noahnic)
02/17/2017 at 09:18, STARS: 0
off topic, but how do you like the first gen Colorado/Canyon’s? I’m shopping for a small truck to use as a DD and bike hauler and the Toyota tax is pretty brutal.
"TechBro" (techbro88)
02/17/2017 at 09:26, STARS: 2
Too soon?
"carzcarzcarz" (carzcarzcarz)
02/17/2017 at 09:49, STARS: 0
Ahh the feels, I just sold my SV yesterday and already miss it. Nice picture btw
"Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer" (smallbear94)
02/17/2017 at 09:59, STARS: 0
Be prepared for a love-hate relationship. All I can say is, try one... if you can put up with it’s failings straight off the lot, the love will probably balance out the hate. And I do mean that literally, there’s not much middle ground (like) to be had here. I’ll attempt to quantify it a bit, but it’s more intangible than not so this isn’t the be-all and end-all:
Mechanicals: Solid. Engines—good. Earlier ones had some gasket issues, not exactly unheard of in brand new engines, but personally I’d steer clear of the 2.8 and 3.5 for that reason and go for the later 2.9 and 3.7 engines. The 3.7 in particular is only a tune away from being an awesome engine, the factory tune get some complaints. (I’ll leave a dyno sheet from a tuned 3.7 at the bottom when I’m done.) The 2.9 gets some awesome MPG’s, the 3.7 drinks like it has 3 more cylinders. Transmission—OK, not great, but cheap to fix if stuff does go wrong, and easy to fix in such a way that it won’t go wrong again. Frame is rock solid, it’s fully boxed front to back and braced internally. Strongest frame in a mid-size (until the new one, anyway.) You will hear rattling. If you can ignore it it’ll do you no harm. It’s a noisy truck in that department. So far nothing’s happened to me. The G80 locker is a weak point if you’re into off-roading.
Aesthetics: Hit or miss. Love it or hate it. I love it.
Reliability: Any issues I’ve had in 2 and a bit years/35000km have been my fault. That said remember I’m packing an LS rather than an Atlas and that’s kind of a small sample size as far as km’s go, but still should be pretty reliable. The most common CEL in the Atlas trucks seems to be emissions related, fwiw.
Interior: Hard plastic, unsupportive bucket seats (cloth are better than “leather” for support), squeaks and rattles, less equipment than a cave etc. Counterpoint: I don’t care as long as it stays together, and since it’s just GM plastic on GM plastic squeaks for the most part I’d say my odds are pretty good. After all it’s a truck, and hard plastic is durable even if it looks and sounds like shit. If it was a car interior... I’d have some choice words for the
designer
accountant. Instrumentation is very clear and easy to read. Full marks on that. Rear seats in the crew cab are ok as long as you don’t have anyone too big for too long. They sit up very straight to maximize legroom. Fogs up very easily in winter. Rear cupholder is shit.
Driving: Rides either like glass or terribly. You will feel bumps/holes that other vehicles will glide over, conversely you will transverse big bumps/holes with minimal discomfort compared to other vehicles. Holds onto it’s alignment like its life depends on it. I’ve run it hard through some pretty big holes, and hammered it through logging roads for hours on end last summer, when I took it in for service in the fall it was still dead on where it was originally. You know that person who does 50mph on the highway, 50 mph through the city and 50 mph through stop signs? That’s basically this truck with bumps. You will feel it, but it’ll usually feel the same. As far as handling goes it wobbles around a bit, but it’ll usually do what you ask. If you let it do it’s thing it can feel horrible. If you show it who’s boss it can feel very good. In snow, it’s awesome. No two ways about it. Of course, snow tires are a must, but I’d say that anyway. Worst thing about the drive I’d say is the excessive driveline lash in the 4wd version. There’s probably something that can be done about it but the dealer keeps saying it’s normal... they would, of course.
TL;DR: Everything you have ever read about them is true. Good, bad, it’s all true. But it honestly feels like it has character. See what I said about the handling. I mean that, and it applies in many other places. If I’m driving tired, it feels tired and lazy too. If I want to have fun, suddenly it’s up for it. Funny way of putting it but that’s the best I can do. I wrote
this
a while ago if you want.
"Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer" (smallbear94)
02/17/2017 at 10:09, STARS: 0
+1 for Rob Ford
RIP :(
"Nonster" (noahnic)
02/17/2017 at 10:35, STARS: 1
Thanks for the honest review! I had heard of most of the shortcomings that you listed but what I didn’t know was if that came with character and it sounds like that might be the case.
I don’t think the plastic interior would bother me too much. My last truck was a 1994 2.3L Ranger with an automatic. Calling that thing slow would be a huge compliment. And my current DD/track toy/project car is a 1985 Toyota MR2. So yeah I’m not exactly used to luxury haha.
"Smallbear wants a modern Syclone, local Maple Leafs spammer" (smallbear94)
02/17/2017 at 10:41, STARS: 0
No problem. Gotta face the facts, it’s got a shitton of flaws. For me that’s balanced out, but it’s case by case and just because I like it doesn’t make it unreasonable for someone else to loath it.
"bob and john" (bobandjohn)
02/17/2017 at 12:09, STARS: 0
still needs GSX-R forks
"Nonster" (noahnic)
02/17/2017 at 12:33, STARS: 0
Yeah it does, or at least some racetech springs, emulators, and heavier fork oil....and I’m thinking a ZX-10R shock too.
"GS400SV650CB350-4" (gs400sv650cb350-4)
02/21/2017 at 20:46, STARS: 1
Bro! Sonoma Red FTW. Racetech springs, ZX10 shock, R6 throttle tube. Other crap.
