2014 Suzuki V-Strom 650 Recalled for Defective Drive Chain

Suzuki Motor of America announced a recall on the 2014 V-Strom 650 ABS because of a problem with the drive chain. As of this writing, the recall campaign has not been posted by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, but we expect this to be done shortly. Meanwhile north of the border, a similar recall has been announced for the 2014 Suzuki GSX650FA by Transport Canada describing a similar problem.

According to Suzuki, a link on the drive chain on 2014 V-Stroms may not have been riveted properly. The saying “a chain is only as strong as its weakest link” holds true in this case, as the link may disconnect, causing the drive chain to come off the sprockets while the motorcycle is being ridden. This will result in the sudden loss of power delivery to the rear wheel, increasing the risk of a crash.

The Transport Canada recall notice describes for a similar problem for the GSX650FA which is still available in that market for the 2014 model year. The Canadian recall affects 53 units.

It is not clear how many units of the V-Strom 650 in the U.S. are being recalled; we hope to have more information when NHTSA posts a recall notice. At the moment, the recall campaign appears to only affect the 2014 V-Strom 650 ABS; as far as we can tell, the V-Strom 650 Adventure and units from previous model years are not affected, though that may be subject to change.

Suzuki dealers on both sides of the border will inspect recalled and, if necessary, replace the drive chain and both front and rear sprockets.

[Source: Suzuki, Transport Canada]

By Dennis Chung