HYOSUNG GT650R
A long time ago, the established European and American bike brands came under threat from the upstart Japanese manufacturers who flooded market with inexpensive bikes. Today, those upstarts have become the world’s Big Four, and they are in turn under threat from the likes of Korean manufacturer Hyosung.
Hyosung first came to the attention of the South African bike community when they introduced the original GT650, a bike that was remarkably similar in concept to the Suzuki SV650. Reviewers at the time generally felt that the GT650 had potential, but it needed attention to details. Hyosung listened and responded with the 2nd generation versions, the GT650S and GT650R. Although I had planned to review a litre-class sport bike for this edition, I welcomed Hyosung’s offer of a GT650R – I had long wanted to experience one of these bikes.
Starting the bike for the first time, I immediately became aware of the typical V-twin roughness. It was interesting to find that the engine smoothed out considerably at small throttle openings at highway speeds, where it almost felt like a parallel twin. Although the GT650R has been criticized for it’s roughness, I never experienced it as particularly intrusive. Obviously it comes nowhere near the smoothness of a Japanese four-cylinder engine, but it certainly does not – as another reviewer put it – “vibrate your hands off the handle bars”.
The engine power peaks at a mere 57 kW at 9 000 rpm, well under par for this class of sport bike, but a very respectable 68.1 Nm of torque at 7 500 rpm goes a long way to making up for the lack of power. Weighing in at 191 kg dry the bike is slightly on the heavy side, and you are certainly not going to embarrass the mid-size crotch rockets at traffic lights. On the other hand, with a selling price of only R59 950 you’re not going to embarrass yourself in front of the bank manager. In comparison with the very few bikes in its price range, the Hyosung is definitely a viable option. Despite its weight, the GT650R is quite nimble in the twisties. I have quickly learned that the bike responds best to a late turn-in, but once turned in it tracks as true as a go-kart. With the amount of torque available, selecting the right gear in a curve is nowhere near as critical as it is for the rev-hungry fours – you can easily power out of a corner from as little as 3 500 rpm. Keeping the revs in the 5 000 – 8 000 rpm range brings out the fun side of the bike, and with handling to match you won’t be lagging far behind the Japs on a Sunday ride.
While not an outright commuter, the GT650R can be used in this role with relatively few penalties. The seating position, although low in typical sport bike tradition, in not as radically canted forward as other sport bikes I have tested. The result is less pressure on the wrists at low speeds. The engine responds well to the quick bursts of acceleration that are sometimes needed in commuting. The brakes retain the lack of feeling the previous generation was criticised for, but when called upon to avoid colliding with a U-turning car during the review period they provided enough bite to stop the bike in time. The GT650R is physically an attractive bike, and generally the level of finish is fairly good. The switch gear looks (and feels) a little plasticky, and the paint work on the fibre glass panels is not quite on par with the Japanese bikes, but I’ll warrant that it won’t be long before the Korean’s catch up to the standards of their island-bound competition.
In my opinion the GT650R would be a good choice as an entry-level sport bike. Power delivery is linear and non-threatening, but there is a lot of fun to be found in the upper reaches of the rev range. Combined with predictable and forgiving handling, it makes for a very sensible step up to the major league.
For more information, visit Hyosung’s website at www.hyosung.co.za.
Hyosung first came to the attention of the South African bike community when they introduced the original GT650, a bike that was remarkably similar in concept to the Suzuki SV650. Reviewers at the time generally felt that the GT650 had potential, but it needed attention to details. Hyosung listened and responded with the 2nd generation versions, the GT650S and GT650R. Although I had planned to review a litre-class sport bike for this edition, I welcomed Hyosung’s offer of a GT650R – I had long wanted to experience one of these bikes.
Starting the bike for the first time, I immediately became aware of the typical V-twin roughness. It was interesting to find that the engine smoothed out considerably at small throttle openings at highway speeds, where it almost felt like a parallel twin. Although the GT650R has been criticized for it’s roughness, I never experienced it as particularly intrusive. Obviously it comes nowhere near the smoothness of a Japanese four-cylinder engine, but it certainly does not – as another reviewer put it – “vibrate your hands off the handle bars”.
The engine power peaks at a mere 57 kW at 9 000 rpm, well under par for this class of sport bike, but a very respectable 68.1 Nm of torque at 7 500 rpm goes a long way to making up for the lack of power. Weighing in at 191 kg dry the bike is slightly on the heavy side, and you are certainly not going to embarrass the mid-size crotch rockets at traffic lights. On the other hand, with a selling price of only R59 950 you’re not going to embarrass yourself in front of the bank manager. In comparison with the very few bikes in its price range, the Hyosung is definitely a viable option. Despite its weight, the GT650R is quite nimble in the twisties. I have quickly learned that the bike responds best to a late turn-in, but once turned in it tracks as true as a go-kart. With the amount of torque available, selecting the right gear in a curve is nowhere near as critical as it is for the rev-hungry fours – you can easily power out of a corner from as little as 3 500 rpm. Keeping the revs in the 5 000 – 8 000 rpm range brings out the fun side of the bike, and with handling to match you won’t be lagging far behind the Japs on a Sunday ride.
While not an outright commuter, the GT650R can be used in this role with relatively few penalties. The seating position, although low in typical sport bike tradition, in not as radically canted forward as other sport bikes I have tested. The result is less pressure on the wrists at low speeds. The engine responds well to the quick bursts of acceleration that are sometimes needed in commuting. The brakes retain the lack of feeling the previous generation was criticised for, but when called upon to avoid colliding with a U-turning car during the review period they provided enough bite to stop the bike in time. The GT650R is physically an attractive bike, and generally the level of finish is fairly good. The switch gear looks (and feels) a little plasticky, and the paint work on the fibre glass panels is not quite on par with the Japanese bikes, but I’ll warrant that it won’t be long before the Korean’s catch up to the standards of their island-bound competition.
In my opinion the GT650R would be a good choice as an entry-level sport bike. Power delivery is linear and non-threatening, but there is a lot of fun to be found in the upper reaches of the rev range. Combined with predictable and forgiving handling, it makes for a very sensible step up to the major league.
For more information, visit Hyosung’s website at www.hyosung.co.za.