What to look for in a used Suzuki Bandit 600

Hi guys, my first post here!

I am looking for a used Suzuki Bandit 600 and will be taking my A2 license in a month or so. I’m going to view one this weekend. Photos look great, no body damage and clean.

My question is, what should I look out for in a used Bandit 600?

Thanks,
Rich

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Are you planning on commuting into London or live in the Low/Ultra-low emission zone?  If so forgot the Bandit 600, won’t comply with the regs.

The engine will laugh heartily & disparigingly at people calling Hondas ‘bulletproof’. But at the end of the day it was a budget bike & the general finish reflects this. That said, they seem to reach a certain level of scruffyness & stay there.

What mileage is it?

Edited to say hi & welcome. :sunglasses:

Thanks for replying guys.
I actually live in Birmingham!
Mileage is 26,000? If that’s bad? Or good? A 99’ model I think.

Any info or anything I should look out for? Do certain things tend to go wrong with it? My last 125 was carbed and I loved it but I had to push it home too many times. I’m afraid this will happen again with this Bandit!

Its an 18 year old machine and you’re going to have to assess it as you find it. Whatever you end up with a proper maintenance schedule should eliminate breakdowns. As with all things mechanical there’s a balance between the cost of buying new and buying second hand. There’s much been written on the related subject of comparing the running costs of taxis, new vs used. At the end of the day, and you can apply the theory to any vehicle type you like, newer vehicles cost more to acquire and less to maintain, older vehicles cost less to acquire and more to maintain and if I was a gambling man I’d wager your granny already knows how to suck eggs.

What the London Taxi Drivers Association concluded was that after the initial depreciation of purchase taxes and driving off the forecourt there was very little difference in the cost of running new vehicles vs running older vehicles. The real difference between the two was the amount of off road time that was required to deal with the increased maintenance needs of older vehicles.