2016 Suzuki Bandit 1250S Road Test Review

Old standard sportbikes never die. At least they don’t if they’re the Suzuki Bandit 1250S. Once a mainstay of Suzuki’s lineup, the big-bore Bandit has had a tenuous existence lately. After a major 2007 refresh that saw it get a 1,255cc liquid-cooled engine, revised suspension, and updated bodywork, the Bandit 1250S held on for a few years before quietly disappearing from Suzuki’s catalog, only to resurface as the GSX1250FA in 2011. The do-it-all standard machine survived a little longer before once again being dropped in 2013. Now, three years later, it’s once again risen from its ashes as the Bandit 1250S ABS.

Very little has changed with the Bandit 1250S since that 2007 update. The biggest update was pretty much the half-fairing in 2013, with subtle changes to the styling along with a different headlight. Other than that the only other real change is an upgrade to Dunlop’s newer OEM-specific D218 tires.

The big 1,255cc engine still pumps out gobs of low-end torque from literally off idle. How much? You can take off from a stop in fourth gear with just a touch of throttle, upshift to sixth, then watch in amazement as the engine has enough steam at idle to propel the bike with no throttle at all. That stump-pulling torque means easy stoplight holeshots in traffic and highway passes that are a mere flick of the wrist away with no downshifting necessary.

With so much low-end power on tap the Bandit’s throttle response is butter-smooth, with no hiccups or hesitation to ruin the linear power delivery or upset the chassis midcorner. The freight train continues up to about 6,000 rpm, where unfortunately the party starts to tail off and the engine’s torque-biased state of tune becomes readily apparent. Trying to rev the Suzuki’s powerplant up to anywhere near its 9,500-rpm redline produces more noise than acceleration, and you’re better off short-shifting to take advantage of that torque.

An engine with character like that is better suited to touring than sport duty, and the Bandit has some pluses in this category. The typical inline-four vibrations are damped out well, as the gearing is fairly tall, with the engine loafing along at 3,900 rpm at 70 mph in sixth gear. The height-adjustable seat (31.7 or 32.5 inches) is thickly padded for decent comfort. There’s not a lot of wind protection from the fairing, however, with the short windscreen doing little to deflect the airflow. And while it’s equipped with a 5.0-gallon fuel tank, fuel economy was no better than 40 mpg, resulting in the fuel gauge warning you to search for a gas station around the 160-mile mark.

Happily, the Bandit isn’t totally out of its element on twisty pavement. Steering habits on the Dunlop D218 tires are mostly neutral, albeit on the heavy side; the Suzuki requires some effort to initiate a turn, surely not helped by the bike’s narrow bar and overall heft: At 562 pounds with a full tank, the Bandit 1250S could certainly benefit from a major diet. There’s decent ground clearance, the Dunlops provide good grip, and the suspension is adequate up to a mildly aggressive pace.

Venture anywhere past that point, however, and the age of the Suzuki’s design quickly shows. The 43mm conventional cartridge fork is adjustable for preload only, and an overabundance of compression damping tries to make up for the too-soft spring rates. The result is a harsh ride over bumpy pavement even at a touring pace yet with little control over brake dive. The rear shock, which is adjustable for rebound and spring preload, is only slightly better, though much of its harshness is masked by the seat’s deep padding.

The brakes have adequate power, but feel is stiff and wooden with a lot of lever effort needed for hard stops. That high lever pressure means it takes a lot to activate the ABS, which is not exactly transparent when it does intervene, with surprisingly rough cycling that you can feel through the bars and lever. The clutch also shows its age, with a very stiff pull that rivals old Ducatis.

There’s no denying the Bandit 1250S ABS is still a bargain at just $9,899. That means savings that could be put into a taller windscreen, different brake pads, tires, etc. The only problem is that it’s hard to overlook the new GSX-S1000F ABS, which has a livelier engine, better handling, better wind protection, and weighs in as 87 pounds lighter for just $1,100 more.

[Editor’s note: Now, if you’re reading this in 2022 or later—and if you’re reading it in 2021 or earlier, get in touch, we have many questions— and shopping for a decent example of the 2016 Bandit 1250S ABS, they seem to be going for anywhere from $7000 to $9000. And most examples seem to be fairly decent; these bikes seem to be popular with the kind of meticulous rider who invests in bike covers and carries a little notebook in which to write down every possible detail. Sadly, the bike isn’t exactly common.]

Can the Bandit 1250S ABS continue to survive in these changing times on thrifty versatility alone? As the years have shown, time will tell.[Another note from 2022: Time tells us the Bandit 1250 did not, in fact, survive. The big Bandit’s only real problem was that its similarities to other Suzukis had the brand competing against itself, so It was a one-and-done, a short but sweet chapter in the long and continuing history of liter-plus four-cylinder Suzuki standards. —ed.]