Is a replacement for the Suzuki SV650 finally getting closer?

New patents have emerged that suggest work is advancing on a brand-new parallel-twin engine from Suzuki that should very well prompt an overhaul of its ageing middleweight motorcycle range.

While most motorcycle life cycles are elongated with updates and facelifts over time, even by the most glacial industry standards the Suzuki’s SV650 is maintaining a brave front against much newer competition with roots it can trace right back to 1999.

That was the year Suzuki introduced its V-Twin 650cc engine, a revolution at the time that has stood the test of time well and been expanded out for use in the firm’s middleweight V-Strom ADV but one that is – some 20 years on – now lacking against fresher rivals.

However, these patents – actually dated from 2019 but only discovered now – show progress is now moving towards a fresh new engine that could set Suzuki’s path for the next decade or more.

It must be noted that patents from Suzuki have arisen more frequently than new production models, as demonstrated by the fact this is an adaptation of the XE7 engine seen in the Suzuki Recursion concept revealed way back in 2015.

Whether Suzuki is taking its time or feels the current underpinnings still have life in them, there is significance in these drawings as it marks a shift away from the V-twin configuration into a more conventional parallel-twin, one that could be adapted in many ways to impact many Suzuki models.

Though the last point is perhaps open to interpretation – such as going all the way to replacing the Vs in the 1000cc or so bracket – it’s presumed that the SV650 (or, S650 as it would surely need to be) should be the first model to get updated with the fresh underpinnings, followed by what would we guess would be a new ‘Strom’. 

Speaking of the Suzuki Recursion, that at the time appeared to hint at a SV650 replacement before everything went very quiet, but we think it could do a lot worse than drawing on that design once again…