Corrosion on near new bike

[robbie]

Hi folks. I've got a Suzuki SV650K3 just under 2 years old, great bike but has developed blistering paint on both the front folks and now starting to show rust. Bike is garaged and well looked after and can't believe this is happening already.

Has anyone else had any similar experiences ?

cheers
Robbie

[White trash]

Welcome to KB robbie.

Unfortunately, SV650s are not know for their astounding build quality. You'll also notice alot of rust under the botom of the lower triple tree.

For the forks, get yourself a good, fine grade sandpaper, strip the paint off 'em and give them a polish. You may have to remove them and get them professionaly done on the K3. Can't remember.

They're a fantastic bike but Suzuki really screwed the pooch on build quality.

[DemonWolf]

Welcome to KB robbie... hope ya get the bike sorted.

[zadok]

Welcome to K.B Robbie. Sorry to hear about the dilema. It's disapointing when you look after something and this sort of thing happens. As WT said, it should polish out, but it would be interesting to know if there is some lacquer that can be applied afterwards to give it some protection. Someone will know.

[White trash]

As WT said, it should polish out, but it would be interesting to know if there is some lacquer that can be applied afterwards to give it some protection. Someone will know.

Problem is, that from 2003 onwards, Suzuki painted the fork legs on the SV650s silver. The alloy corodes beneath the paint and causes it to blister.

The earlier model bikes had lacquer applied over the alloy, simply strip the lacquer and polish the forks. Not sure what the later bikes look like under the paint.

[rc_36_rider]

as wt said the early models had a laker over the alloy you can get the same effect by as he said sanding back the paint polishing the alloy and putting a laker over it. so you dont need to polish it every day . id say the alloy under the paint doesent look bad or it would show up when painted so it shouldnt be to bad to tidy up

[mstriumph]

hi robbie - and welcome ..........hope its sorted for you soon [if anyone can help u with the problem, someone here can]

[skelstar]

hey robbie. bad luck with the rust, hope we see you on one of our rides sometime. we usually head over the rimutakas once each weekend.

[Quasievil]

I just cam on this thread to see if it was a Suzuki

[Sniper]

Its camE Quasi Welcome Robbie. Hope you get it sorted mate.

[bungbung]

I just came on this thread

[XTC]

Reminds me of my brand new XJ600 years ago.... All the alloy bits were corroding under the clear laquer.... Take it back and demand a new one!

[SimJen]

Think yourself lucky you don't live in the UK. Thats where quality of build really comes into it.
Lots of the UK bike mags complain about rust and furry bolts on Kawasaki's and Suzuki's.......poor quality fasteners etc.
Its the Salt they use to melt the snow, and i've seen articles where even leaving a bike over a weekend (after a winters ride) without a wash leaves it mostly covered in rust by the following monday....

[Quasievil]

Lots of the UK bike mags complain about rust and furry bolts on Kawasaki's and Suzuki's.......poor quality fasteners etc.

For that you will be taunted till the day you die by the Kwaka Gods

[Paul in NZ]

The lower fork legs get a fair old hammering from stanes and such like and the main selling point of the 650 was that it was cheap as chips.. It had to be to undercut the 600/4's as it was not as fast... Shame really 'cos the whole oint of the bike was to deliver a jolly sensible motorcycle that was different...

I guess the stones puncture the paint which allows a bit of moisture under the coating and it starts to bubble. It's quite tricky getting paint to adhere to alloy at the best of times but the Japanese usually do a better job than most.

It's a damn good bike but you can't have your cake and eat it too... Or so everyone tells me, but I don't like cake so I wonder if this also applies to pies?

Anyway - strip the paint off. It's NEVER going to last anyway and see if you can polish the alloy. If you don't want to do that, you could refinish the parts and put some sort of motocross protector thingy up there.

If it makes you feel better my 25 year old Guzzi has a similar problem which I fix by giving it a squirt of satin black paint ever 2 or 3 years (usually change a fork seal or want to upgrade something)...

My 35 year old triumph also suffers and I powdercoated the sliders this time. Hope it holds up or it's off to the chromers...