SV650.org - SV650 & Gladius 650 Forum - 70bhp more than enough?

It's the difference between what you need and what you want and what you think you'd like.

In practical terms 70BHP on a bike will give you max speed around 125mph ish, and equates to a good 200BHP/tonne which would be considered pretty decent for any car. So yes 70BHP is plenty, however..................

We all go through the "more power" stage. I did, but eventually found that I just didn't enjoy riding a bike at slower (legal) speeds than it is really designed for. Last big bike I had was a FZR1000, no fun really below 3 figs, at 60-70mph you felt like getting off and kicking the tyres, it just wasn't doing anything. Since then I've downsized and am now happy with the bikes. You can "use" an SV650 on the road without being bonkers.

Just as a comparison, I have an NC700 DCT which is barely 50BHP but has very good mid-range grunt and cruises on the motorway a treat, 70MPH is a shade over 3600rpm. The DCT surprises a lot of faster bikes away from standstill because there is no pause for gearshifts so while on paper it's not quick, in reality it's just twist and go so takes no effort nor skill for that matter to get pretty good acceleration (and it does 80mpg easily). Not everyone's cup of tea, but something a bit different.