Suzuki GSF600 Bandit (1996-2005)

I have owned this bike for 3 months now and have loved every minute for it. Due to my restricted licence, it has been restricted to 33bhp but still has enough power to get you into trouble. I commute 30 miles a day and am getting about 50-55 MPG. All-round it’s a good first big bike or just a normal every day bike and always leaves you with a smile on your face. Highly recommend it.

What an honest bike. Great value used. It'll rust and the exhaust collector will rust out. However you'll grin every day on it. Ive just put a Stebel horn on it - well worth doing cos the std horn is useless. 50 mpg sensible riding. Genuine 120 mph +. Starts, rattles and runs for ever.

What more can be said about the Bandit? It's a great bike! I owned a 1996 600 'S' a couple of years ago and it was great fun. Perfect for a weekend blast or even touring! I loaded mine up with luggage and took a 1300 mile trip around Ireland in 5 days and the bike did not miss a beat, even though driving on on some terrible roads at times and exposed to awful weather it kept going! The brakes aren't the best for sure and the front forks can be a bit bouncy but the engine makes up for it. Although lacking in a bit of torque it's a gem and responds well to a decent can and dyno. Had mine tested at 86bhp! Very novice friendly but not the lightest bike so watch it if turning sharply at low speed. Spares are plentiful and bike is easy to work at. I eventually replaced my Bandit with a VFR but still have very fond memories of it. Well recommended!! :)

I bought my 1999 Bandit 600N a couple of weeks ago. It is restricted due to my licence but has plenty of power up to 9k then it just goes flat, but i've been told that that is where the rest of the power normally kicks in. The bike only had 11,500 miles on it which i hav already aded another 1000 miles to. So far so good. The handling's good, the riding position is all day comfortable, and I've been averaging 50mpg (I dont like to hang around!!!). When i first got on, it felt very heavy but as soon as it starts to move it is as light as air. Very stable and confidence inspiring. However, the bike is not perfect. The front forks are a little soft and it is pain to do any engine work as you need to take the tank off (which takes time if you dont want to chip the mint paintwork). The brakes seem fine - after I rebuilt the front calipars. I would recomend a fly screen as motorways are hard work otherwise. Also, a tail tidy looks soooo much cooler than that grotesque thing it had before. All in all, a great bike that can do pretty much anything. I love every minute I ride her and deffinatlely have chosen the right bike for me. Also, at £1200 I cant complain!!!

I picked up my Bandit 600 (1998) on Thursday and have done roughly 200 miles. In that time all I can say is that I love this bike. I had been riding a CBR 125 for the last 2 years so I was quite intimidated when the keys to my Bandit were first handed to me as I new I had to get home on it. After riding for about an hour all the worries I had were gone. I found it very comfortable and easy to adapt to. I’m on a restricted licence so it’s been limited to 33 bhp but I think it has more then enough power for a big bike newbie and the restrictor kit hasn’t taken any of the fun out of riding. Now as I said above the bike is 98 and for a bike of its age I think it looks great. I won’t be able to comment on some things until I had it a while but my overall verdict is that I would defiantly recommend this bike.

I bought a 2001 mk2 600 bandit soon after passing my test in Sept last year.I have loved every minute of riding this bike though I did find it quite heavy early but soon got used to it. Servicing it fairly straight forward although I did have problems fitting new rear brake pads due to poor design. It has got plenty of power and I have no problems keeping up with my friends FZ6, FZ6 Fazer and Honda Hornet.Fuel range is very good though I don't have a fuel gauge so have got into a habit of fueling up every 100 miles which costs about £8.00/£9.00. It has a nice smooth gearbox which is much smoother than the FZ6. The Bandit 6 is a great bike that will serve you well.

Had a 2000 model Bandit from new and it was my 1st 'big bike'. Plenty of power for a newcomer, comfortable ride and excellent handling (i could take turns faster on this than many race-reps i've ridden). Build quality was slightly iffy in places when compared to more expensive bikes, but then you get what you pay for. Ultra reliable though, the only problem i had in 4 years was the brake calipers seizing (design fault). The bike is also very heavy for a 600 which may catch some smaller riders out. Overall, a great 1st bike.

My first big bike, and it looks and sounds great, thanks to my brother keeping it very maintained, forget the plastic fantastics, go for a bandit and have something that will get noticed

What else can I say, it rocks :)

This, as for so many others, was my first bike. Fot this reason I could never hate it. It had a scorpion exhaust, that assisted those pops and crackes to be heard when slowing in gear, which for me is one of the best engine sounds! I shall be honest though. The forks dive badly, the brakes are decoration I think, because they don't seem to affect the speed of the bike much and the bike does not instil confidence in corners due to feeling rather top heavy. Don't trust the fuel guage, it lies! Reading this you might think I had bought a well used hack, not so. It had done 2500 miles and was only a couple of years old. Very clean, and was like new. So why is it so bad? In my opinion its because its so cheap. So there is nothing more negative to say really. You get what you pay for! For a cheap bike to pin to the stop at every opportunity (provided you wont need to stop in a hurry) it's great fun. If you decide to buy one, change the exhaust for something that lets your hear it, and you will forgive it for anything....well....almost.