Dealer Recommendations

Hi There,

I will be in the market for a new Bandit in a couple of months for my wife who has fallen in love with mine, I have been doing the rounds to a few dealers getting to know some of the sales people & seeing what they have to offer.
Are there any users here that have purchased their Bandits new in South East Qld? If so how were you treated? Is there any dealers I should avoid or any you recommend?
I will also be selling her current bike (2005 Honda VTR250) to help pay for the new one, are trade-ins a waste of time?
Sorry for all the questions but I have never bought a new bike before & want some advise before I part with my hard earned!
Thanks in advance.
Dave

DMoney wrote:Hi There,

I will be in the market for a new Bandit in a couple of months for my wife who has fallen in love with mine, I have been doing the rounds to a few dealers getting to know some of the sales people & seeing what they have to offer.
Are there any users here that have purchased their Bandits new in South East Qld? If so how were you treated? Is there any dealers I should avoid or any you recommend?
I will also be selling her current bike (2005 Honda VTR250) to help pay for the new one, are trade-ins a waste of time?
Sorry for all the questions but I have never bought a new bike before & want some advise before I part with my hard earned!
Thanks in advance.
Dave

Buy and sell privately is my advice especially if a trade in is involved.
There are many members here who would help you look at a bike if you ask nicely and recent bikes are fairly easy to check over.
The Mrs will find the weight a big jump from the 250 but if she can handle that she’ll be fine. Does it have to be a Bandit or will a similar bike do?

Hi 2 Wheels,

I will be buying the bike new rather than second hand, the price of the Bandits at the moment is very reasonable so I think its the way to go. She definitely wants a Bandit, loves the naked look & can ride mine comfortably, I will miss her Honda though, is a great learner bike & is fun to ride (I sneak out on it from time to time).
So better to sell the Honda privately from your experience?

DMoney wrote:Hi 2 Wheels,

I will be buying the bike new rather than second hand, the price of the Bandits at the moment is very reasonable so I think its the way to go. She definitely wants a Bandit, loves the naked look & can ride mine comfortably, I will miss her Honda though, is a great learner bike & is fun to ride (I sneak out on it from time to time).
So better to sell the Honda privately from your experience?

I would think so mate. Unless its a bike the dealer has a shortage of they will price it depending on how long they think it will sit there taking up space regardless of how good it is. I'm not sure what the 250 market is like up there but that could be against you (does QLD have LAMS?). Of course there is no harm in asking and you never know you might have a dealer who has been asked to keep an eye out for your trade in. Win win in that case

You don’t think you could go 2.5 - 3k under retail for a 12 month old bike (still under warranty) probably with a pipe, new tyres and rad guard already fitted?

I would consider second hand, I actually bought mine 2nd hand when it was only 6 months old, the only problem is that she hates the front fairing on the "S" & wants the one without it which are quite hard to find.
Yeah, we have LAMS up here & her bike is approved.

If you were down here I could recommend a dealer for you, or even a secondhand gem.

As for your missus's bike definitely sell privately. Trade ins really only work for convenience as the dealer will buy it for much less than than its worth so they can make a profit on it.
example I sold my GS500F privately for $5500 trade in would have been $3500 maybe $4000 because they they would mark it up to $5500

Having livesd in Bris Vegas for years, I always had good dealings with Springwood Suzuki on the southside. I never bought a new bike from them, but a few mates did and were very happy. A bit of a haul from your kneck of the woods though. There is a Suzi dealer up the Sunshine Coast who advertises some good prices - might be Griffin Motorcycles. I don't know what they are like to deal with, but the prices look good. Gus might know 'em as he is up that way.

Your wife has mighty fine taste in bikes. I have a '11 naked with ABS and love it.

Sunstate motorcycles on the sunshine coast is the suzuki dealer

also widebay motorcycles in gympie

Sunstate ,where do i start .
Would i buy another bike from them .( bought 5 so far ) Yes prices are good .
Would i have it serviced buy them .--- NO .Too many makes sold to get it all right .
Would i trust them on dealer bike set up .No .I'd ride it home and check everything .
Are they awkward to deal with --Yes ,staff change over is huge .
Are their prices on tyres good ---Very ,very good .

I'm friends with Shane from Gympie Suzuki Dealer .Better to deal with but dont know if he can match
the prices of Sunstate .

Griffin are Yamaha and KTM .

Have also has dealings with Springwood Suzuki and have been very happy. Have bought both of my bikes from TeamMoto but only because thats where the best price was to be found at the time.

If you are buying from a dealer end of the month is best time to shop when they are trying to make their monthly quota... At least this has been a tactic that has worked for me both times.....