If Only Suzuki Would....?

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zimtim
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by zimtim »

Would the 350 actually be right for the market these days.
I know we all mostly want a smaller lighter bike i always felt the 350 was possibly a bit small and yet the 650 almost too big wouldn't say something in the 500cc range be a bettter option for Suzuki to bring out
Richard Simpson Mark II
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by Richard Simpson Mark II »

boboneleg wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:31 am I was talking to one of the guys on the Suzuki stand at the ABR festival and even he said that they have a huge hole in their range. I was actually bemoaning the fact that you can still buy a DR650 in Aussie and USA but not in Europe :roll:

Suzuki is struggling a bit with its motorcycle range. They were very reliant on the GSX-R range and let the rest wither away...
DavidS
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by DavidS »

As a TRAIL bike, a 120kg 350 with about 40bhp would be fine for most situations. I do like the easy going nature of my 450 though.
We have 80% road work in East Sussex so need something with enough fizz not to get swamped by traffic but agile enough in what nadgery we have and light enough to pick up.

I agree that for more adventurous travel something a bit more road suitable would be better but, if my wife and I honeymooned ok round camping Germany on our Bonneville back in 1977, theses current mega bikes don't really seem necessary. I would agree with you zimtim that 500cc, 60bhp and, say 160 to 175kg would be ideal for day to day travelling.

We don't really need all the gizmos, just a capable bike that won't break in half the first time you go up a kerb on it.
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Nick_2112
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by Nick_2112 »

Richard Simpson Mark II wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 12:21 pm
boboneleg wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:31 am I was talking to one of the guys on the Suzuki stand at the ABR festival and even he said that they have a huge hole in their range. I was actually bemoaning the fact that you can still buy a DR650 in Aussie and USA but not in Europe :roll:

Suzuki is struggling a bit with its motorcycle range. They were very reliant on the GSX-R range and let the rest wither away...
Agreed, without the GSX-R's and dare I say it, the 650 V twin in it's different guises, Suzuki would really struggle.

Suzuki seem to come to the party late, V strom 1000, GSX-S/F, Katana etc. and end up reducing prices.

For eg. I test rode a V Strom 1000 a couple of times, liked it. it was over 10K, in a short space of time they were 2 grand off??

As someone said the DR350/650 are just about the only old bikes they haven't stuck with.

The gap between KLX & CRF 250 and the 600+ enduros could be filled with a DR350 or DRZ.
daveuprite
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by daveuprite »

Nick_2112 wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 1:21 pm
Richard Simpson Mark II wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 12:21 pm
boboneleg wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:31 am I was talking to one of the guys on the Suzuki stand at the ABR festival and even he said that they have a huge hole in their range. I was actually bemoaning the fact that you can still buy a DR650 in Aussie and USA but not in Europe :roll:

Suzuki is struggling a bit with its motorcycle range. They were very reliant on the GSX-R range and let the rest wither away...
Agreed, without the GSX-R's and dare I say it, the 650 V twin in it's different guises, Suzuki would really struggle.

Suzuki seem to come to the party late, V strom 1000, GSX-S/F, Katana etc. and end up reducing prices.

For eg. I test rode a V Strom 1000 a couple of times, liked it. it was over 10K, in a short space of time they were 2 grand off??

As someone said the DR350/650 are just about the only old bikes they haven't stuck with.

The gap between KLX & CRF 250 and the 600+ enduros could be filled with a DR350 or DRZ.
Suzuki seem to be about where Kawasaki was in about 2001, with many bikes in need of a radical update and lagging behind the others. By 2004 Kawasaki had launched the awesome 03 ZX6RR and ZX636R, and the amazing ZX10R - which transformed how they were seen by sportsbikers. Suzuki needs to have a big re-think asap. Quality-wise too, they always seem to sit somewhere behind Honda and Yamaha.
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by johnnyboxer »

daveuprite wrote:
DavidS wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 9:14 am
daveuprite wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 8:36 am
Tonibe63 wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 6:16 am Royal Enfield are showing Suzuki that there is a market for a re-released dr350 but it may not by financially viable for them to do so. CCM also showed Suzuki the way by actually using suzuki engines in their 404 and 644 but again Suzuki may not have been interested in such a small market.
As much as we (fickle) consumers may desire a bike from our younger days Suzuki have big production lines that need to be kept busy.
It's not about nostalgia (or certainly not for me). It's about having available a reliable but small-ish multi-purpose trail bike. It can and should be modern, fuel efficient, low-emission, and fairly light but with quality suspension capable of tackling most off-road conditions. Basically an enduro kind of bike but beefed up a bit strength-wise for touring, with longer fuel range and carrying capacity.

Perhaps that's too much to ask and, as you say, a bit too niche for a company of Suzuki's size. Which leaves us on here raiding the aftermarket catalogues and adapting existing bikes to get to the TET bike that we want.

Eventually it will be electric anyway, and perhaps we will have to wait for that. We just need the charging network and range characteristics to enable us to do it.
I am concerned about buying Beta/Gas gas etc due to their apparent business fragility in this country and access to spares. Most KTM?Husky stuff is virtually next day!
I can't comment on Gas Gas. But Beta spares are readily available - you just need to know how to get them. I have to wait for some things on order from either Boano or another dealership, but most of the usual expendable engine and cycle parts are on ebay or elsewhere. I have a little spares kit of the common stuff I need so that I just replenish that in my own time rather than wait for essential parts. Beta have a really good rep for reliability and back up, although their American service does seem a bit better than their european dealership network. Size and back-up wise, Beta are somewhere between Gas Gas / Sherco and KTM / Husqvarna. They don't have the history of factory closures and re-invention that other small enduro bike businesses seem to suffer. Been in constant business for decades actually, with a ridiculously loyal fan-base of riders who love the rideability, reliability, slightly lower seat height and 'non-KTM-ness' of the brand.

A Beta 390RR or 498RR, with a few sensible long-distance and comfort mods, is a very good option for a TET bike - for riders who prioritise off-road performance over tarmac convenience.
Well said
Beta are family owned and have trading for nigh on 100 years
Spares in U.K. Are readily available
Beta sell the most Trials bikes in U.K. By a long chalk
Nowt to fear about Beta
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by johnnyboxer »

Richard Simpson Mark II wrote:
boboneleg wrote: Sat Jul 20, 2019 11:31 am I was talking to one of the guys on the Suzuki stand at the ABR festival and even he said that they have a huge hole in their range. I was actually bemoaning the fact that you can still buy a DR650 in Aussie and USA but not in Europe :roll:

Suzuki is struggling a bit with its motorcycle range. They were very reliant on the GSX-R range and let the rest wither away...
Kawasaki the same
Looking at both ranges at ABR Festival last week they have got nothing to offer in the range for a lot of the people there
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johnnyboxer
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by johnnyboxer »

DavidS wrote:As a TRAIL bike, a 120kg 350 with about 40bhp would be fine for most situations. I do like the easy going nature of my 450 though.
We have 80% road work in East Sussex so need something with enough fizz not to get swamped by traffic but agile enough in what nadgery we have and light enough to pick up.

I agree that for more adventurous travel something a bit more road suitable would be better but, if my wife and I honeymooned ok round camping Germany on our Bonneville back in 1977, theses current mega bikes don't really seem necessary. I would agree with you zimtim that 500cc, 60bhp and, say 160 to 175kg would be ideal for day to day travelling.

We don't really need all the gizmos, just a capable bike that won't break in half the first time you go up a kerb on it.
New T7 is going to sell a lot of bikes in the mid range sector up to 700cc to Adventure riders and travellers
Simple but well engineered bike there
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catcitrus
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by catcitrus »

The few bikes that sort of fit the bill like the KLR650, My wr 250R etc are not Euro 4 compliant and projected sales mean that manufacturers can't justify homologating them--both the KLR and my WR250R are still made and sold elsewhere. The genuine trail market is not huge and lets face it even KTM don't offer anything--yet. We have the BMW GS 310, the Honda 250 Rally and the Himalayan but thats about it--and none of these are really trail capable unless you are a pretty good rider(and I know users of these that are). I guess we'll have to see what KTM bring out--and the price has to be right!
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Re: If Only Suzuki Would....?

Post by EWR »

I've been thinking very hard recently about exactly what it is I want from motorcycling now, having got to a certain age (50) where my energy, risk appetite, crashworthiness and need/wants aren't what they once were. My big tour days are over, I don't commute by bike and and it's mostly day trips and gentle green laning now.

I've had a GSA, Super Ten, new AT (my DCT had a psychotic mind of its own) but, as a rose-tinted spectacle-wearing, serial owner of 90's Honda trail bikes (XRs, Dominators, Africa Twins etc.) and the occasional Yamaha DT, what I'd buy now if I could would be a southern hemisphere market Honda AG bike or something of that ilk maybe: low-tech, low seat, low power, low price but offering a huge amount of simple pleasure .

Of course, you can't buy that short of stuff in the EU anymore but you can buy the Beta Alp 4.0 and I pick mine up next week - a bit of a brave decision but as soon as I saw it and sat on it, I knew I had to have one. Great dealer experience so far too.
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