Review of the Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit motorcycle

The motorcycle after the sports tourist is very comfortable, the landing is straight and not at all stressful, although my height is 186 and my weight is over a hundred. The pendants are a little soft, but it doesn’t bother me; I’ve gotten used to them a long time ago. Only in aggressive turns is the rear a little unstable (swings) (the shock absorbers, of course, are in good working order). Regarding the power: it’s absolutely enough for me, I catch myself thinking that I don’t really need a liter, even though I drive fast. It’s convenient to move through traffic jams, no problems. It may be good that there is no draft at the bottom, but you can drive between cars very accurately, without fear of accidentally pulling the throttle (in my case, nothing criminal will happen). I don’t see much point in writing about what exactly I replaced from spare parts, because... The condition of all motorcycles is completely different. I’ll just say that I don’t regret money, I serve as expected. Over the course of two years, I spent approximately 60,000 rubles on spare parts and maintenance. I just can’t get the engine to work perfectly in all modes. Either there is a failure when starting, then there are jerks at high speeds. Naturally, I changed the spark plugs and cleaned the carbs. With varying success in general.

In Moscow traffic jams it behaves well, maneuverable, excellent mobility. The steering wheel is not wide, which is also a plus. Everyone buys a motorcycle for themselves and to solve their problems. I had a goal - to travel. He copes with it with a bang. I went on long-distance trips a couple of times, the case was in the back, on the sides, the bag was on the tank, I consider it to be quite load-bearing, since it did not affect the speed. I will note one inconvenience, this is the location of the spark plugs (under the tank), I did not change it myself, I gave it to my friends for service. The rear spring is in the middle position, which is how I bought it. It's not much fun to drive off-road, especially on sand, although you can pull it off even on it. In strong winds, sometimes you have to taxi. The overclocking characteristics suit me. At one time it accelerates to 180 km/h. It’s convenient that there is a central stand, which is perfect for servicing it. My consumption is about 5 liters per 100 km. The injector never failed, even after winter we started easily. And I’m very pleased that I have him with abs.

After 400, of course, the power reserve felt very decent. He seemed heavier, more powerful, and taller to me. Good acceleration, clear gearbox movements, everything is normal. Fuel consumption is somewhere from 7 to 9 liters in the city (if you don’t stand), and 6 liters on the highway, well, maybe less. Yes, the version with abs, I haven’t had to use it yet. I would like there to be an indication of the gear being engaged, because sometimes I get into 6th and then try to put it in 6th again, because... I forget about her. And some semblance of an on-board computer would be useful... I agree with the people’s opinion about the muffler - it’s really very quiet, they don’t notice me and almost don’t hear me. Whether it’s my friend on the boulevard 1.5 liter with a cobra!!! whoever knows will understand what I mean. With number two we accelerated to 220 km/h, although not for long, we probably drove like that for about 10 seconds, after all, we don’t ride on European highways. Well, it was all show-off, of course, before number 2; in normal life I don’t drive more than 150. Overall a very balanced motorcycle.

In the Middle Ages, a black knight was a warrior who did not have heraldic identification marks with him, which could be due either to the knight’s lack of such, or to the desire to hide his own identity or the identity of his lord.
The Black Knight is usually portrayed as a lone knight and a skilled fighter. This is almost always a negative character. For the first time, the black knight appears in the legend of the Arthurian cycle (the legend of King Arthur). For me, my “Bandit” looks exactly like this: a dark, faithful horse who is ready to rush into the flames at the will of the owner, but at the same time has your character and soul. Below there will be a small, amateur review of the Suzuki GSf 650S. First, I’ll write a short introduction about my motorcycle experience. My life as a biker began at the age of 14, with my parents buying a Riga-16. It could only be started from the pushrod, because... The first speed did not work (the speed was switched on the steering wheel, there were 2 of them in total). Of course, all this was great, but with each stop I had to get off it, accelerate and jump on the go, which could not but please everyone who saw this spectacle. I rode along ravines and paths, there was no talk of any city. Yes, and I live not in a village, but in a city, where every third person had a scooter, so I decided to upgrade the device to a newer one. I drove it for 1 season.

The next moped turned out to be a Regal Raptor DD50E, a kind of mini-chopper made in China. For its sake, I worked in a warehouse at a building materials store all summer. It was essentially the same “Alpha”, but with a frame for a cruiser. Later I changed the engine in it to 125cc. The driving routine was: you ride for a week, fix it for a week. Everything fell off and unraveled, even to the point that the frame on which the passenger’s seat was held fell apart. I rode it for 2 seasons. After that, until May 2017. there was a break, during this time I opened category “A”, “B”, and bought myself a Suzuki GSf 650S. I’ll say right away, I wanted to take the “holy” Honda cb400, but apparently the name covers up all the other shortcomings, and the prices for the dead device were higher than the price for a more recent “bandit,” so I took him.

Now we come to the very essence. I was warned that “six hundred” almost immediately was too much. But it was a very good, not dead option. Below are some dry numbers about its characteristics: Suzuki GSF650S Bandit 2005 (carburetor) Maximum power: 77.5 hp. (57.0 kW) at 10000 rpm Maximum torque: 59.0 Nm (6.0 kg*m) at 7800 rpm Fuel tank capacity: 20.0 l Motorcycle weight (dry): 204 kg, loaded condition -227 kg (20 liters of gasoline + 3 liters of engine oil)

The acceleration was simply mind blowing! In the first season, I was even afraid to unscrew the knob completely, switched to 7000 rpm, and still it was very cool. Closer to the fall, I realized that the engine needed to be “turned”, and began to switch to 9000-10000 rpm. That’s when the real the essence of "Bandit". Despite the heavy weight (for a road car), it was like flying into space. But here I’ll immediately make a reservation: 1st and 2nd gears are very short. 1 to 25 km/h, 2 to 60-70 km/h (sport owners will grin with their first gear up to 90-100 km/h), everything above these speed ranges only caused the motorcycle to roar, but not speed. And no slipping clutch! If you decide to switch to 1st gear in 2nd gear at 50 km/h, then be sure that your wheel will lock. Just for a second, but this will be enough to prevent you from repeating this again. I accelerated to a maximum of 202 km/h on the highway, measured using an application on a smartphone (with Internet)

I said about acceleration, it’s time to talk about brakes. There are 2 discs, 290 mm, 2-piston Tokico calipers at the front and 1 disc, 240 mm, 2-piston Tokico calipers at the rear. I’ll say right away that before buying the motorcycle I went to the service center, and upon inspection it turned out that the brakes were quite fresh (the original Tokico ones were in place). After the purchase, the service center changed my brake fluid (front and rear brakes). And yet, the brakes were not “enough”. If you drive within the limits of traffic rules, then of course there are enough of them. But in “rocket” mode, these are frankly sluggish brakes (I often read that this is a “disease” of all “bandits”, both big and small). In other words, the dynamic characteristics of a motorcycle “outweigh” its ability to brake.

About fit and comfort in general. The landing is classic, road. You sit upright, you can, of course, bend over the windshield when accelerating, but this is not a sport, so you can’t drive in this mode for a long time. Because I have the “S” version, I have a fairing and a windshield. I highly recommend that everyone take this version! It is very convenient on the highways even in the summer, when there are a lot of insects. It is extremely stable on the highway, neither trucks nor wind at speeds of 130 km/h bothered me. I drove a maximum of 300 km on it per day. Among the disadvantages I can name is the hard saddle; the fifth point gets very stiff.

A 20-liter tank can’t help but please. It’s a real sports tourist) Consumption, if you push all the money, up to a cruising speed of 160 km/h, will be about 8 l/100 km. In normal mode, something around 5.5-6 l/100 km.

I can’t say anything bad about the suspension, the usual front 41 mm telescopic fork at the front and a pendulum with a monoshock absorber at the rear. It is very soft, when cornering there is a slight sway, not very strong, when you get used to the motorcycle, you will stop noticing it. Cornering is very easy My tires were fresh - Pirelli Angel st 2015. When traveling to any motorcycle festival, you often have to drive to its location over gravel, dust, sand, roots, etc. So, it’s very easy to do this on it, without trying to roll it on its side (within speeds of about 10 km/h). We can say that the motorcycle is quite versatile. Weight. It is heavy, you are either taller than 170cm or have good physical shape. I’m just 165 cm tall and I work out in the gym. And yet, it was difficult to unfold it in place or put it on the middle footrest (this is a special pain, my arm hurt for a week out of habit). This needs to be kept in mind.

Well, this is a question that concerns most novice bikers. Is it possible for a first-season driver who has no experience driving even a YBR 125 to take six hundred at once? I'll say no. In my opinion, it is too powerful and heavy, with weak brakes. It can be recommended (if religion does not allow you to take 400cc) to yesterday’s owner of a YBR 125 or NINJA 300. It will last a long time.

I hope the review was informative, you can ask questions in the comments

Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit

Brief review of Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit

Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit is a road motorcycle that replaced the outdated 600 cc version. However, the first generation of this model differed little from the discontinued GSF 600 Bandit, and only from the second generation the differences between these models became significant, when in 2007 the motorcycle received a completely new engine, injector, new frame, new swingarm, new suspensions and a hydraulic clutch system. In 2009, it was restyled with minor cosmetic changes.

The Bandit 650 is a typical representative of modern classic motorcycles, balanced in all respects - moderately powerful, it is very practical and well suited for both everyday riding and longer trips - in addition to the regular version, devoid of plastic body kit, there is also a modification of the GSF 650S Bandit with front fairing providing good wind protection at high speed.

Similar motorcycles:

Honda CB 600F Hornet
Honda CBF 600
Yamaha XJ6 Diversion
Yamaha FZ-6
Kawasaki ER-6
Stels Benelli 600

Technical characteristics of Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit

Years of production: since 2005
Class: road
Frame: duplex steel
Engine: 4-stroke, 4-cylinder, in-line
Engine capacity, cubic meters see: 656
Cooling: air-oil (since 2007 - liquid)
Valves per cylinder: 4
Fuel supply: 4 carburetors (injector since 2007)
Power: 80 hp (since 2007 - 85 hp) at 10,500 rpm
Torque: 54.1 Nm at 9500 rpm (since 2007 - 61.5 Nm at 8900 rpm)
Maximum speed, km/h: 235
Acceleration from 0 to 100 km/h: ~4.2 seconds
Transmission: 6-speed
Wheel drive: chain
Front tire: 120/70-17
Rear tire: 160/60-17
Front brakes: 2 discs 290 mm (since 2007 - 310 mm), 4-piston calipers, ABS as an extra. options
Rear brakes: 1 disc 240 mm, 1-piston caliper, ABS as an extra. options
Front suspension: telescopic fork with pretension adjustment
Rear Suspension: Progressive monoshock with preload and rebound adjustments
Gas tank volume, liters: 20
Fuel consumption at 110 km/h, liters: ~5.6
Dry weight, kg: ~201 (since 2007 - 215)

Pros and benefits of Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit

Comfortable fit
Good brakes with ABS (optional)
Good acceleration dynamics
Maintainability
Low cost of maintenance

Pros and cons of the Suzuki GSF 650 Bandit

Heavy weight
Low ground clearance
No problems with spare parts and consumables
Mediocre traction at low revs