User Review Review: Suzuki Bandit 400

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Suzuki Bandit 400 Review

Review of the Suzuki GSF400 Bandit as a First Motorcycle

by Amy M. Yu

Photos of Suzuki Bandit 400

In my opinion, it makes a terrific and fun first bike for an at least moderately confident rider, and is an extremely useful city or commuting bike for neophyte and skilled riders alike.

To give some context to my opinions, I'll give a bit of info about myself. I started riding via an MSF course, and a '92 GSF400 Bandit was my first bike after that. I'm approximately an even 5 feet tall, and weigh 115 lbs. with all of my gear on. My legs are somewhat long for my height (30.5" inseam), but I have a short torso; sportbikes that require an aggressive forward-leaning position tend to be more uncomfortable and difficult to manage for me.

Ergonomics

The GSF400 is a standard, meaning that the riding position is essentially upright. It's a bit of a sporty standard for its era, but the riding position is nowhere near that of a contemporary sportbike. Some reviewers have complained that the seat causes them to slide forward into the tank, but I haven't found that to be a problem. The seat height is low; I've measured mine at 27-28", and I can flatfoot with bend in my knees to spare. This isn't a bike for an excessively tall rider; riders with an inseam greater than 32" have reported feeling cramped on it. It does have the advantage of being narrow, which can help a shorter rider balance it at a standstill,, and affords greater leverage for backing up. Another nice touch for the smaller rider is an adjustable-position brake lever. I've found, however, that even on the closest setting, the distance from the throttle to the brake is a bit large for my hand.

The Bandit has in inline-4 engine, making the front of the bike rather wide, and it has a large fuel tank for its overall size. This results in the bike feeling a bit top-heavy and tippy, which may be less than confidence-inspiring for more timid beginning riders. When I was starting out, I kept the tank no more than 2/3 full to keep the center of gravity a bit lower, and used saddlebags rather than a tank bag. Because of the top-heavy nature of the bike, I would hesitate to recommend it to a beginning rider who couldn't flat-foot it (and I am not of the school that thinks of flat-footing as a requirement for all short or beginning riders). The top-heaviness of the Bandit did probably slow down my initial ascent up the learning curve.

I can pick my Bandit 400 up by myself after a drop assuming that the pavement is not wet or sandy, but it's difficult and in general, if there is help around, I will gladly accept it; the Bandit weighs about 420 lbs. dry, but the high center of gravity can make it feel pretty heavy.

It was originally sold with neither fairing nor windscreen, which limits its usefulness on the highway; if you expect to ever exceed 50 mph, it's in your best interest to install some kind of deflector screen. I installed a National Cycle flyscreen, which has noticeably improved the experience of riding the Bandit on the highway. Without the deflector screen, speeds above 70 mph result in enough head-buffeting to make me dizzy. I know that some people have installed aftermarket fairings on Bandit 400s, but I have never felt the need to.

I find the Bandit 400 to be a comfortable bike for long-distance rides, although the same people who report sliding forward into the tank find it less comfortable over the long haul. On long-distance rides, the first endurance-related problem I have on the Bandit tends to be a cramped-up throttle hand. The first owner of my Bandit rode across the country and back on it.

When one starts carrying passengers, one discovers that it's quite possible to carry passengers larger / heavier than the pilot!

Power Delivery

The second edition of _The Complete Idiot's Guide to Motorcycles_ reports that "Some people consider the smallest Bandit...one of the best-handling motorcycles ever made. You have to rev the snot out of its little 4-cylinder engine, but when you do, it goes like stink." I think that whoever wrote that summary has the character of the ride spot-on.

Despite being a smaller-displacement bike, the Bandit 400 is definitely not underpowered. Mine will cruise happily at 80+ mph, and the top speed of a well-maintained Bandit 400 has been cited as over 100mph.

The Bandit 400 revs high. Really high. It redlines at 14,000 rpm. Its acceleration can be somewhat anemic below 6,000 rpm. Mine also has a whopping flat spot in the power-delivery curve around 4,000 rpm, although I understand that this is not characteristic of all Bandit 400s. The power band kicks in suddenly around 6,000 rpm, but is reasonably broad. I've heard reports of another flat spot around 9,000 rpm, but mine doesn't seem to have it. I tend to keep the Bandit in the 6,000--8,000 rpm range in the city, and rev it between 8,000 and 10,000 rpm cruising on the highway, going up to 12,000 when passing. I've never redlined it.

As might be surmised from the information above, the Bandit 400's power-delivery curve is highly nonlinear. The abrupt arrival of the power band at 6,000 rpm has made some riders nervous; my complaint is more to the effect that the lack of power below 5-6,000 rpm is frustrating. The good news is that once the engine is revving over 6,000 rpm, the power band is broad. You won't twitch your right hand by accident, look up, and discover that you're halfway across the state.

Gearing and Clutch

The Bandit 400 has six gears. You can't go very fast at all in first gear; its primary utility is in keeping the engine from stalling pulling away from stoplights. When you're riding in the city or on secondary roads, you'll discover yourself shifting back and forth between second and third gear an awful lot to keep the engine above 6,000 rpm. The variations in speed typical of highway riding require less shifting.

Low-speed riding in heavy traffic tends to require a lot of clutch-feathering and use of the friction point to keep the engine from stalling at low speeds.

If you start out on a Bandit 400, you will learn a great deal about shifting and use of the clutch very quickly. It will stall at stoplights until you really know what you are doing with the clutch and throttle control, which can be frustrating for a more inexperienced rider.

It is very important on the Bandit to carefully match engine speed to road speed and to keep the revs up while downshifting so as to not skid the rear tire. I do not have a sense on how much of a problem it is on the Bandit relative to other motorcycles, though.

Editor's Note: i think this note may have reflected old tires, as the author has since put on new tires she is very happy with.

Handling and Brakes

The Bandit 400 is very easy to turn. Sometimes I think that it would happily ride around in circles all day if I let it. The steering is quite responsive, and can feel almost alarmingly flickable at first. Once you get used to it, though, its small turning radius and maneuverability makes it both practical in the city and fun on the twisties.. The Bandit 400 is maneuverable enough that, with a little skill, it's possible to outrun larger-displacement bikes on anything but a straightaway.

Low-speed turning takes practice; it can feel unstable at first due to the high center of gravity. It's essential to keep the rpms up during slow-speed maneuvering.

The Bandit 400 has excellent front and rear brakes and a short stopping distance. The rear brake is so good that it requires some amount of discipline to remember to use both brakes! The downside to this is that moderately hard braking during any sort of a turn pretty much guarantees a drop. I admit that I am a bit in the bad habit of trailing the rear brake a little during some turns, but that hasn't seemed to cause any problems.

Reliability

The inline-4 engine has a reputation as being sturdy, and in my experience, it is. Most mechanical problems I have heard about Bandit 400s having seem to result from lack of maintenance or unwise modifications.

The Bandit has four tiny cylinders, and four tiny carburetors to match. The tiny float needles tend to get gunked up over time, and the carbs then overfill, so it's important to keep the carbs clean.

The most annoying recurrent problem I have had with my particular Bandit is fluid lock. If the Bandit tips over and lies on its side for more than a few minutes, at least one of the cylinders is likely to fill up with liquid gasoline. When that happens, you have to remove the spark plug and either sop up the offending gas or wait for it to evaporate. Attempting to start an engine with a fluid-locked cylinder can crack cylinder heads or worse, but that has never happened to me. The fluid-locking problem is exacerbated by dirty and overfilling carbs; with overfilled carbs, the fluid lock happens almost immediately when the bike is dropped; with clean carbs, it takes a good 10 minutes to develop, but if the bike is left on its side for a long time, it will eventually happen, even with clean carbs.

When I bought the Bandit, it had problems starting that seemed to indicate a bad battery. It turned out that the battery was fine, but some of the electrical connections had corroded and needed to be cleaned and tightened. The Bandit, to my knowledge, is not prone to the electrical problems that have plagued some other Suzukis of the same era.

There was also a great deal of rust in the gas tank when I bought it, and some of the rust had gotten into the engine, which probably also contributed to the stalling. I've heard reports of rusting-out gas tanks from other Bandit 400 owners.

It speaks well of the engine, I think, to note that when I bought my Bandit, it had been stored with less than proper preparations (though in a garage), unridden, for two years, and once the carbs were cleaned out, the rust cleaned up, and new oil and spark plugs installed, she began running like a top and still does, despite several drops. Any Bandit 400 you buy in the USA will be at least 10 years old, but if it has been maintained well, it should still run reliably.

So overall, the Bandit's engine is robust and sturdy. It also does not have a great deal of expensive plastic bodywork or chrome to break or muff up in a drop. This is ideal for the beginning rider, since you will most likely drop the bike a few times, and dropping the Bandit is much less painful, financially, than dropping a fully faired sportbike or shiny Harley.

Some Bandit owners report trouble starting the bike when it's chilly out, but mine actually starts fine down to 32 degrees Fahrenheit.

One caveat I've heard repeated in multiple places is, "do not, under any circumstances, rejet the carbs." I've had at least one report of a Bandit 400 engine destroying itself after the carbs were rejetted. All I can guess is that because the cylinders are so small, small errors in the jet diameter can make a huge percentage difference in the diameter. The Bandit 400 is not the bike for you to buy if you have a hankering to make extensive mods on the engine.

Utility and Fun

The Bandit 400 is a lot of fun to ride, thanks to its maneuverability and a power band that I would characterize as "spirited." It's definitely a bike that, while appropriate for a beginner, isn't easy to outgrow quickly, especially if you do a lot of in-city riding. The Bandit 400 makes a superb commuter bike; it's the right tool for slicing through city traffic. I plan to start track riding on mine soon, and will post an update after the track day.

Summary of the Bandit 400 as a beginner bike

Pros:

• Low seat height and narrow seat make the bike manageable for smaller beginning riders
• Adequately, but not over-powered
• Easy to steer; small turning radius
• Good brakes
• Reliable engine
• No extensive bodywork to be damaged in a drop
• Fun to ride; encourages the beginner to spend a lot of time on the bike
• Not easy to outgrow; still fun for the skilled rider
• Very attractive styling, and routinely mistaken for a 500-600cc bike ;-)

Cons:

Top-heavy design causes the bike to be tippy; therefore I would hesitate to recommend this bike as a first bike to someone who could not flat-foot it or who did not feel moderately confident on a bike by the end of the beginner's MSF course.

The US version of the Bandit 400 was made for only 3 years, from 1991-3; therefore any specimen will at this point be at least ten years old, and is likely to require some minor tuning up, especially if it has been stored. Make sure that you know how to evaluate the condition of a used bike when you go to buy, or take along someone to help.

Not a good bike for tall riders.

Inspires cries of "aww, how cute!" from people who know what it is.

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