2006 BANDIT COMING TO U.S.?

[banditII]

Suzuki has the new website up and running with the 06 bikes.  No mention of a Bandit here in the U.S. for 06, unless they just haven't got around to loading it on yet.  Anybody know?

Warren

[Red01]

There had been rumors the Bandit would be missing from the US's '06 lineup and this could be the confirmation. They didn't seem to miss loading the new M109R (1800cc) Power Cruiser.

[PitterB4]

Suzuki has the new website up and running with the 06 bikes.  No mention of a Bandit here in the U.S. for 06, unless they just haven't got around to loading it on yet.  Anybody know?

Warren

Funny thing is that if you click "Standards" on their site, the background image is a silver B12.

[banditII]

I suspect that suzuki is not bailing out of the battle in this bandit / FZ1/ZRX fight.  It could be that Suzuki will not play during 06 to let the current 05 Bandit sell out, then weigh in with a 2007 supprise, or even a late 06 supprise?  I can't see any B-King taking the place or even stealing many sells from an FZ1.  Some people can do without wind protection, but not me with the kind of riding I do.  Put 20,000 freeway miles on a naked bike running 85mph and see if you don't agree it's Bandit time.  I look for a Gixxer engined revised Bandit equivelant with the same Bandit-like wind protection.  But I'd say if someone wants a new Bandit, better buy before they're gone.

[Desolation Angel]

There had been rumors the Bandit would be missing from the US's '06 lineup and this could be the confirmation. They didn't seem to miss loading the new M109R (1800cc) Power Cruiser.

Ewwww, that's ugly to me!  The only cruisers I ever liked were the late '70's to mid-80's Suzuki "L" models.

Like this '83 GS1000GL...



That's MY idea of a cruiser!    

[PeteSC]

I don't see Suz bringing a new model out, to drop it in a couple of years.
 We may not see the new Bandits in the US, but they'll be around for a while in the rest of the world.
 I think they'll follow the pattern of bringing the updated Bandit to the US a year after the world gets it.  Heck, they just have to crank out a few thousand more per year.
  Maybe the '05s are kind of backed up here, but Bandits have always been slow sellers here, overall.
    Frankly, we're the biggest bike market, but have the lowest level of motorcycle sophistication!

  Who knows?  Maybe the fuel prices will empty out the bike showrooms here, and they'll crank out some more Bandits?
  Toyota and Honda are running out of cars since people are parking the SUV's...............

[Red01]

I suspect that suzuki is not bailing out of the battle in this bandit / FZ1/ZRX fight.  It could be that Suzuki will not play during 06 to let the current 05 Bandit sell out, then weigh in with a 2007 supprise, or even a late 06 supprise?  I can't see any B-King taking the place or even stealing many sells from an FZ1.  Some people can do without wind protection, but not me with the kind of riding I do.  Put 20,000 freeway miles on a naked bike running 85mph and see if you don't agree it's Bandit time.  I look for a Gixxer engined revised Bandit equivelant with the same Bandit-like wind protection.  But I'd say if someone wants a new Bandit, better buy before they're gone.

The ZRX appears to have disappeared, too. I don't see the GSR/B-King taking much from the faired FZ1 sales either, but in markets where they have the naked FZ, I do... and the rumor has it the big GSR will be out next year with a Hayabusa based motor. I could see the Stratosphere maybe taking sales from the faired FZ, if it turns out to be more than just a computer mockup or showbike.

What I'd like to see is a Suzuki more along the lines of the FJR, perhaps with a Busa based motor and shaft drive.

[banditII]

What I'd like to see is a Suzuki more along the lines of the FJR, perhaps with a Busa based motor and shaft drive.

Yeah, that's true.  I'm amazed Suzuki has not already used the busa motor to make a killer sport touring bike.  Some say the busa is a sport touring bike, but they need to re-do it so that it has more wind protection and higher bars to compete with the FJR's of the world.  Suzuki really has nothing now to compete with the FJR or honda ST.

[Red01]

Plenty of folks do sport-tour on the Busa, but I want something with more upright ergos. Shaft drive would be a plus, though not a total deal breaker.

Considering everything out there right now, the FJR is the one at the top of my want list for a replacement for the B12. Not that I'm rushing out to buy anything right now though.

(I've often contemplated how hard it would be to use GSX1100G parts to make a B12 into a shaftie...)

[Desolation Angel]

Plenty of folks do sport-tour on the Busa, but I want something with more upright ergos. Shaft drive would be a plus, though not a total deal breaker.

Considering everything out there right now, the FJR is the one at the top of my want list for a replacement for the B12. Not that I'm rushing out to buy anything right now though.

(I've often contemplated how hard it would be to use GSX1100G parts to make a B12 into a shaftie...)

Please do that and report back.  That would tempt me, big time!

[Red01]

The engine end parts would be a simple bolt-on, but it would take some serious swingarm mods - or grafting a GSX swingarm... but it's longer than the B12 piece. I'm sure it could be shortened but that would require a driveshaft mod. IIRC, the GSX1100G doesn't use a 17" rear wheel either and I'm not sure how compatible the B12 wheel would be to the ring & pinion unit (which as I understand is a piece common to many shaft drive Suzi's).

So far, I've never had a chance to examine the parts off the G to see what all it would take, but if Suzi ever came out with a B12 shafty, THAT might just be enough to make me get a new one.  

[B12Teuton]

I went to a dealer yesterday and talked to one of the guys who is a Bandit head.  He's got three at the moment.  He told me the '05 on the floor was the last new Bandit they would see.  He said no more B12 in '06.

We'll see.

If that's true, there will be some smokin deals on left over '05's!!

[tacoman]

I could see the Bandit not making a return in '06.  A lot of the dealers around here didn't floor any 05's, you had to order one.  In the US, the "sport touring" segment is a slow seller.  Buyers here either want a sport bike or a cruiser.  The coming trend seems to be sport bikes with a stretched wheelbase and slightly relaxed ergos.  An insider said the molds and tooling for saddlebags is more than any return on investment.  I think a bike like the Busa is what we'll get and the mfgs will leave the rest to the aftermarket.

[Red01]

For being a slow selling segment, it seems odd that Yamaha seems to be doing a bang-up job selling FJR's and the Ducati ST variants are the fastest movers at my local Duc shop - and that's practically all BMW sells - just different models between SPORT-tour to sport-TOUR - at least until they threy the new K-bike roadster into the equation.
OTOH, the Honda ST13's don't seem to be rushing out the door. (But the cops are starting to buy them up here.)

Though I use my B12 as a ST mount, it seems to be marketed more as a UJM... and it's mostly a market for middle-aged guys who don't want a HD, GW or a race rep and are too cheap to buy a true ST mount... a small niche. Given all the upgrades Yamaha has given the FZ1 compared to the small changes in the 3G Bandit, it seems Suzuki is giving up on it - at least until the GSR1300 gets here - then the next question is will US Suzuki bring that one here, or just stick with cruisers and crotch rockets.

Kind of surprised to see the Katana continue to march on though...

[LowRyter]

ZRX is gone.

FZ-1 is brand new.

I'll bet the Bandit will be back. Since there's a new design, they'd be carzy not to import it sometime.