Good news for Kawasaki owners, potential or current ones as Kawasaki Motors Malaysia (KMM) had just signed an MOU with insurance company, Tokio Marine for the first ever bike company backed road side assistance service.
The program, Kawasaki RoadAssist will be able to aid riders to get back on the road from simple inconveniences such as aflat tyre, ran out of fuel or flat battery to major problems such as mechanical failures or even an accident.
According to KMM Director and GM, Jeffrey Lim, the service will be available to the rider or whoever is riding the covered bike, 24hours a day, seven days a week and 365 days a year in West Malaysia and certain parts of Sabah and Sarawak.
“All the rider needs to do is call the Kawasaki RoadAssist toll free number and the situation will be assessed and assistance is dispatched to the rider immediately,” explained Jeffrey.
The program is targeted to start on the 20th of April and interested owners can get more information about it at any Kawasaki authorised dealers.
After the launch of the Suzuki V-Strom, V-Strom XT and Gladius yesterday we were given a chance to sample the three bikes on the Shah Alam Go-kart circuit.
Not the best circuit to test a big bike as it was designed for more agile go-karts but it did give us a sneak peek to what the bikes are all about.
First up was the V-Strom, the seat doesn’t feel too tall for an adventure style bike, at least for this 176cm tall rider.
Handle bar reach is just nice, not too far forward nor too close to the rider with a straight up seating position. At first the bike did feel a bit on the heavy side but generally ok as soon as you get going.
The Europeans with their bigger build love this bike as they throw it around the corners but being smaller, us Asians will find the V-Strom a bit bulky on slow speeds.
As mentioned the track was made for go-karts thus it was only possible to get more than second gear,, but for the shifting that we managed it was smooth with a nice clutch operation.
Power wise the 650 V is lovely, with good low end and mid range torque, just a bit of throttle input and the V-Strom jumps into action and its an easy engine to regulate between slow and medium speeds.
The brakes feels ample for the speeds we were riding it, very grabby but still linear brake feel.
Next was the V-Strom XT, biggest difference was the spoke-wheels with 19” up front and 17” on the rear. Generally this would usually meant sluggish turn ins, it was there, almost unnoticeable but very liveable.
A good compromise between a smaller and more agile 17” wheel or roll over anything but sluggish to turn 21”.
Something did irk us though and it was the ABS, having a 19”spoke wheel meant the V-Strom XT have a more off-road orientation, however it was not possible to switch the ABS off nor did Suzuki say that the ABS is off-road friendly. A question we will answer as soon as Suzuki lend us a unit to be ridden on more familiar roads.
Moving on it was the Gladius’s turn, close one eye and you might be forgiven to think its and Italian bike with those Trellis frame and V configuration engine, just with a bit more organic lines.
Low seat means this bike feels a bit more manageable for smaller riders, slightly forward riding position suits the bike’s characteristics.
It was small and nimble enough that we were able to get a bit more speed into the corners as compared to its to larger brothers, the V-Strom and V-Strom XT.
While it was too soon to tell there was a definite deference in engine response or was it just because it’s a lighter bike.
Quality with material and fitment feels and looks good on all three models, the only thing that we did feel was a bit off was the side mirrors on the V-Strom being slightly shorter to the handlebar.
The three bikes are definitely something you should check out if you are going for that class.
Suzuki Assemblers Malaysia Sdn Bhd further broadens their product line up with three mid-range models this morning with the Gladius 650 ABS, the V-Strom 650 ABS and the V-Strom 650XT ABS.
While all three are 650cc models, each caters to a different segment with its own unique appeal based on the rider’s desires.
Starting with the V-Strom 650, its powered by a liquid-cooled 645cc V-Twin engine said to feature a good low and mid-range power with the dual throttle valve giving quick and linear throttle response.
It is coupled to a 6-speed transmission that have been tailored for active sporty rides with 1st through 5th gear ratios, while keeping highway cruises comfortable with a tall top gear.
Holding things together is a lightweight and rigid twin-spar aluminum-alloy frame and swingarm and suspension wise its equipped with spring-preload-adjustable 43mm-stanchion-tube front forks and link-type rear suspension with rebound stepless damping adjuster as well as a spring preload adjuster.
Stopping power comes from dual 310mm-disc brakes for the front and on the back its 260mm-disc brakes complete with ABS system.
While sharing the same configuration and engine there are enough differences between the two V-Strom versions that it caters to a slightly different type of riders.
The V-Strom 650 ABS can be said to excel at being the “Sport Tourer” while the V-Strom 650XT ABS is the “Sport Adventure” machine.
The V-Strom 650XT ABS has more adventurous styling with a distinctive front beak with integrated air ducts and wire-spoke wheels, 19” up front and 17 on the rear and it takes tubeless tyres.
And then you can make it look more adventure ready with a long list of original accessories starting with top and side cases which are available in plastic and in aluminum. The side cases fit close to the bike’s centre of gravity for rider-friendly handling.
The plastic top and left side cases are each big enough for a full-face helmet. The side-case carriers can be detached using quick-release screws to keep the bike slim.
And thats not all, you also have the accessory bar, an aluminium under guard, a chain guard, LED fog lamps, touring windscreen, knuckle covers and low and high seats, centre stand, a 12-volt accessory socket, an alarm kit, and a handlebar satnav bracket.
Last and not least of the three is the Gladius, the engine is about the same, a liquid-cooled 645cc V-Twin but with slightly different tuning for a more spirited riding experience.
While the V-Strom sits high and mighty, the Gladius seat is just 785mm off the ground but for taller riders they can opt for an optional higher seat that adds 20mm to the seat height.
Front and rear suspension feature adjustable spring pre-load, allowing the rider to adapt the bike to suit them.
The Gladius comes in gray, blue and mat black options, while the V-Strom variants come in white, gray, red and blue.
Basic Sales Price for V-Strom 650XT ABS is RM43,900, V-Strom 650 ABS is RM41,900 and Gladius 650 ABS is RM39,900.
Other bikes already in the Suzuki showroom are the HAYABUSA 1300, GSX1250FA, GSX-R1000 ABS, V-STROM 1000 ABS and the GSR750.
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Bragging about going on along distance ride is kind of cliché these days, a lot of Malaysians have actually done it. Its like the must do thing for almost every biker, an epic ride to somewhere.
I’m not saying riding to a distant destination is boring or over done or not cool anymore but it all depends on the reason for the ride. If its to show off then too bad as not many will be impressed with so may world travellers going around. But if its to see the world then go forth and roam the earth.
And that what Hadi Hussein went for, it is was the thrill of seeing the world before its gone forever, before it “ends”. You wont be blamed if you never heard of this rider.
Hes humble about his adventures, usually the quiet one sitting at the end of the table at the mamak listening to bikers telling about their gruelling overlander ride to Melaka.
He’ll grin and he’ll nod but thats about it. Just like you, most bikers don’t know, behind all that humbleness is a nutter who actually rode a cubcai alone from Kuala Lumpur to London in 2010. Yes all alone without any help or support crew on tow.
But this is not a story about his epic ride, which has been told many times in various places by various people. This is a story on what led to the ride and how now Hadi is enriching the local riding scene with his know how after that.
According to Hadi, his passion for travel started when he was young and so was his passion for motorcycles but the two never really come together until a long time after.
After completing his studies here Hadi went for further studies abroad, in Florida, USA in aeronautics. He had big dreams but the 9-11 incident killed that dream and Hadi had to make some changes.
Back in Malaysia he settled as a humanitarian worker, going to disaster zones and helping the needy. At the same time he was testing bikes whenever he could, most sports bike as most of the people his age would do as he explained.
But one day while he was about to purchase a Kawasaki Ninja 600 with trading in his ZXR 250 at Sunny Cycle, Uncle Sunny made him a an offer that made him think.
“He asked me if I was not bored already with Awana or Genting? He then offered me a BMW F650 GS and said he will show me the world if I get that bike. So he showed me pictures of him riding in exotic places on it. WOW!”
But it was out of his budget so Uncle Sunny offered him a Kawasaki Versys instead and he took it. Not for the London trip though as he thought if he made it to London it was mainly tanks to the bike and not him. It was already too common to hom for bikers to do such journey on a big DP.
“My first actual wake up call was when I was in Iran, I realised that iran was such a beautiful country.then I was off to Pakistan, Aceh and then Gaza. Beautiful place but very torn from the war, that was the point when I realised if I don’t go now these places will not be there anymore after this.
I knew I want to travel the world and take all the pictures as I can so that when the end comes and it gets destroyed, I can say I’ve seen and done it.
Told my boss the plan, quit my job and somehow from that point things started to snowball and I got an interview with a newspaper and thats how my mum found out abut my trip.
I went to her place the day before I was flagged off in TV3, and she greeted me by asking where I’m going, I said nowhere but she said she already know. The look on her face was priceless.
Luckily shes not too worried about my survivability as I had been to the worst places imagines, war torn or disaster areas. “
So from there he went off for the ride to London, got there came back in six month, but he still don’t call himself an expert on overland adventure trips with a bike yet.
“I only had two weeks to prepare and I was not really ready until I reached Bangkok where I took some time to rest and reset things according to what I have learned so far.” Though Hadi had gone backpacking before but he never really combined backpacking and biking.
“The bike is your medium, going backpacking you just pick up your bag and go, with a bike you need to take care of your bike.
However you are limited in backpacking in a sense that you are at the mercy of the transportation around you, while as with a bike you can always make that detour if something comes up along the way like a concert or a show that you want to see and somehow its much cheaper.”
The two weeks of prep work Hadi went through was too much of a blur for Hadi to register things and it only hit him with a moment of clarity and the scale of his adventure in Surat Thani, Thailand.
Being a seasoned rider by that time, even to the point of running in his Versys with a ride to Bangkok, he was already accustomed to the comfort, power and speed of that machine. The cubchai was starting to feel too small and too slow.
“So here I am, sitting on my cubchai, about to ride out of Surat Thani, in the rain, and thinking what the freak have I got myself into.”
Luckily all went well, even with the red tapes one had to go through at border crossings. “I did logistics before and I know what needs o be done, who to see and what not at border crossings so that part was easy for me.”
While he went on to a few other adventures after that, currently Hadi is scheming for a way to ride the original Paris Dakkar route. Not in the race but the route, the toughest in the world.
And while waiting for that he, will either be at his bike shop, V Care Centre in Petaling Jaya or giving tour guides for riders or even teaching them in the “art” of exploring the world on two wheels.
So approachable with his knowledge that he will just tell you what he knows, so if you want to learn from a proper adventurer, you know who to disturb.
One of the most common things he preaches is the the five things to consider when choosing a round the world bike, first you have to be able to pick it up if you tip over, able to change the headlight bulb, adjust the chain, service the bike and the most important bit, able to do all of that by yourself.
While the help is still pouring in into the affected flood locations on the east side of the country, lets not forget others that also needs a helping hand.
For that a small troop of 11 bikers and some with their pillions, from the Honda CB500 group gave up part of their long weekend to lend some help at the Mesra Home, Ampang.
The bikers helped clean up parts of the house including the storage room, trim the lawn and some gardening work, made sure the drains surrounding the house was clear and even did some plumbing work.
The newly established Mesra Home is home to five female senior citizens from 60-years-old and older and they are taken care by a husband and wife team.
On top of the work, the group also handed over RM345.00 which they had collected amongst themselves and also pass on some daily sanitary needs such as soaps and toothpaste for residences.
The Honda CB500 group is a collection of owners of the Honda CB500 series, CBR500, CB500F and CB500X bike.
If you have a story to tell then we are happy to hear about it, email us the details and contact and we’ll get back to you.
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