Tanshanomi
06-03-2013, 11:45 PM
Last Thursday afternoon, I traded in my Suzuki S50 on a brand-new new RS-S SM5. I took it on a 750 mile trip over the weekend, and it left me with a couple of impressions:
1) I love the seat. It was comfortable for a full tank of gas. Roomy enough that I could move forward and back enough to keep from getting saddle-numb, and it seems just the right density.
2) The slightly higher 2013 bars are just about perfect for me. (I'm 6' / 165 lbs.) The bar-peg-seat relationship works well even for longer distances. At higher speeds the wind over the low shield buoys your torso somewhat, keeping the weight off your arms, so a taller windshield would probably be a detriment. I am glad I didn't go with the ST's higher bars and windshield.
3) I loved the handling. It was very crisp and flat compared to my wife's '12 RT w/ Baja Ron sway bar.
4) Build quality and refinement are disappointing for an 18K+ vehicle. The engine feels like an old tractor, coarse and rough. There's significant vibration between 4000-5000 RPM, and giving it more than half throttle below 4K felt like it was detonating and/or "lugging" like a jackhammer. That being said, it smoothed out nicely above 5000 RPM. Also, there was a strange intermittent chatter at highway speeds, the way I imagine a sloppy drive belt or an unbalanced wheel would feel. My wife's RT SM5 doesn't exhibit any of these rough symptoms.
5) The suspension soaks up bumps admirably well. Rough roads that would jar my spine on the S50 are hardly noticeable on the RSS.
6) I feel so much more secure on 3 wheels. I've already ridden serenely and calmly through pouring rain, 30MPH gusty crosswinds and broken pavement that would have had me gritting my teeth on a bike.
7) If you don't want strangers to come up and talk to you, don't pull up as a couple riding both an RT and RS-S.
1) I love the seat. It was comfortable for a full tank of gas. Roomy enough that I could move forward and back enough to keep from getting saddle-numb, and it seems just the right density.
2) The slightly higher 2013 bars are just about perfect for me. (I'm 6' / 165 lbs.) The bar-peg-seat relationship works well even for longer distances. At higher speeds the wind over the low shield buoys your torso somewhat, keeping the weight off your arms, so a taller windshield would probably be a detriment. I am glad I didn't go with the ST's higher bars and windshield.
3) I loved the handling. It was very crisp and flat compared to my wife's '12 RT w/ Baja Ron sway bar.
4) Build quality and refinement are disappointing for an 18K+ vehicle. The engine feels like an old tractor, coarse and rough. There's significant vibration between 4000-5000 RPM, and giving it more than half throttle below 4K felt like it was detonating and/or "lugging" like a jackhammer. That being said, it smoothed out nicely above 5000 RPM. Also, there was a strange intermittent chatter at highway speeds, the way I imagine a sloppy drive belt or an unbalanced wheel would feel. My wife's RT SM5 doesn't exhibit any of these rough symptoms.
5) The suspension soaks up bumps admirably well. Rough roads that would jar my spine on the S50 are hardly noticeable on the RSS.
6) I feel so much more secure on 3 wheels. I've already ridden serenely and calmly through pouring rain, 30MPH gusty crosswinds and broken pavement that would have had me gritting my teeth on a bike.
7) If you don't want strangers to come up and talk to you, don't pull up as a couple riding both an RT and RS-S.