Givi panniers

I wanted to use the E41 side panniers I had on my VStrom onto my 2010 1250 Bandit. My local dealer supplied a side pannier rack kit Part No PL539-KL539. Everything bolted on until I got to the rear bridge bar, which ended up being 1 inch in front of the weld lugs it was supposed to bolt onto. This bar fitted neatly through the empty blinker holes in the mudguard but could not be attached to anything until I improvised using the occy strap bolts from the hand grip behind the pillion seat with a plastic spacer around each bolt.. As well, the mudguard booty from under the seat had to be discarded as the inner arches in the booty prevented the bridge bar from going through the mudguard. This I solved by drilling through with a large drill bit. The assembly appears quite solid, although I have experienced workshop fitted kits losing bolts after a long journey.


Next, I was most unhappy with Givi's solution to the relocation of the blinkers. The u-shaped bracket they supplied has to be squashed between the number plate lamp and the rubber plate , deforming the seal, because a spacer was not provided. Even so it wobbled because a backing plate for inside the mudguard was not provided. The job was both unsightly and made the number plate and blinker globes prone to vibration. My solution was to cut the u-shaped bracket in two redrill the holes and bolt the two assemblies vertically onto the weld lugs .
The dealer, the distributor and I have looked up photos of successful assemblies and we all agree that it is bigger and different to what is on mine.
Two empty holes are left in the mudguard. Why were blanks not provided?. It makes a Bandit look like a BMW dual.
Another major problem is that the front of the LHS frames covers the seat lock keyhole. I had to bend an ignition key and leave it in

Given Givi's reputation this sounds quite strange, almost like someone has put the wrong kit in the bag.

The PL539 is a very common Bandit kit that fits all the straight back panniers (I believe). The V35's have a more body hugging profile so uses the PLX539 kit.

I'd be checking another kit and/or bike to see what has gone wrong, you should have to do anything but bolt it up. The indicator attachment has always been a after thought, a lot of others fit a third party setup.