In the market for a new one

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I know its slower than many of the bikes we are talking here but whats wrong with the old 1000 Connie? Should be able to pick one up pretty affordable and mine was bullet proof.
 
I bought one in October. I had a 2004 BMW R1150RS. As I got older I became unsatisfied with the riding position. The bike also felt cumbersome and heavy. I just didn't enjoy riding the BMW and I was tired of the gee-wiz technology.

I thought a Bandit might be a good replacement. I started looking looking for a left over 09 but there are none to be found. I got a fair deal on a 2011 with the luggage.

I like it. I flipped the peg mounts 180 degrees and put the seat in the high position for more leg room. It's about the same weight as the BMW but handles and feels like a much lighter bike. The wife and I did our first day trip last weekend on it. I was pleasantly surprised by the handling with her on back. I love the engine. Plenty of power, smooth and vibration free. Possible future mods are a Vario touring windscreen and Sargent seat.

I could live without the full fairing but it's not hard to remove for servicing once I figured it out. Seems like it will be easy to work on. It's a Bandit with a fairing so it's a proven platform and parts availability should not be an issue.

I considered a C14 Concour. I even joined the Concour Owners Group. I finally passed on the Concour for several reasons. The Suzuki was about $4K cheaper, The C14 is about 100 pounds heavier than the Suzuki. It has more technology than I needed or wanted. I was worried about the complaints about heavy handling. I wanted a bike that was fun to ride, not one to sit in my garage.

So far the Suzuki fits my needs fine.

I'd say go for it.

The luggge has been added since the pic was taken.

IMG_0842Medium.jpg
 
Very nice looking bike. . .Suzukis are solid bikes, for sure. I used my son's SV650 a few times and was surprised at how nice THAT bike handled and performed. . .and was reliable as a hammer.
 
Yes, I've decided it's the bike I'm going to buy. Since a local dealership here in Atlanta was so put-out by my desire to pay cash and take the MSO with me I will defer my purchase until next spring.

The $199 side luggage deal runs through March, 2012 so that's the latest I'll wait. There are a ton of these bikes in the Suzuki warehouse so getting one in the crate shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks for the picture!
 
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