[b16h22]

Originally Posted by sukiwa

Suzuki shouldn't mind TVS branding, they were partners in India couple of decades back :-).

This is that exactly what came to my mind , the Suzuki-TVS JV.

[venukrithish]

Neat mod. From the side it actually looks a lot like the apache

[neil.jericho]

After a bit of a hiatus, I was reunited with my Suzuki GSXRRRRRR 250 and truth be told, it was nice to get back onto the peppy little motorcycle. Before I could return to Cochin, I did enjoy a rather spirited ride on my friend's KTM 399 in the mean streets of Trivandrum. I believe that I have said this before on the forum but the power delivery in this new generation 399 is absolutely addictive.

My friend strongly suggested that I take the very familiar, winding and twisting MC road to return to Cochin, as there was quite a bit of road work going on in the other route. Ive ridden and posted about this route on different threads, so many times, that I really dont have anything new to add, except that its a biker's dream. Only the final highway stretch as I entered into Ernakulam brought down my overall speeds. Despite being on the well-mannered Suzuki GSXRRRRRRRRR 250 and taking plenty of hydration breaks, I did complete the ride in far less time than I expected.

Coming up in further updates are
1. Service at Suzuki's Bike Zone dealership in Vytilla
2. Quick pit stop at F Motors (5* experience as always!)
3. Ride updates

[sole_rider]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

except that its a biker's dream. Only the final highway stretch as I entered into Ernakulam brought down my overall speeds.

Hi Neil, happy to see your ride update. I was always wondering how could you love riding on MC road so much. I agree the road is nice. But ever since the allowed speed on SH brought down to 50, and with the installation of speed cameras at every corner how can someone ride peacefully. And the cameras are plenty after Chadayamagalam I guess.

[VijayAnand1]

Glad to hear from you Neil. I simply think the motorcycle didn't like the too much R moniker one bit and simply started to give you the real deal after the hiatus. Guess it now shall deserve a simple single R.

Cheers!
VJ

[ryosuke]

Dear all,
I am a Gixxer SF 250 owner basically from Bangalore but my income source has made me cross a state and reach the shores of the city that does not sleep, Mumbai! It has been a nice experience so far but I am facing an issue here. I do not know which Suzuki service outlet to go to for a regular service of my beloved beast. It would be of immense help if any of the Suzuki Gixxer 150/250 owners here at Mumbai suggest me a Suzuki service center or even a Mechanic who is good with bikes.
Looking forward to your response and more interactions on this forum.

Thanks in Advance
Ryosuke

[sukiwa]

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

After a bit of a hiatus, I was reunited with my Suzuki GSXRRRRRR 250 and truth be told, it was nice to get back onto the peppy little motorcycle.

Pleasantly surprised to read an ownership update from you. I thought another bike was coming in your parking lot, perhaps in BLR.

Originally Posted by ryosuke

It would be of immense help if any of the Suzuki Gixxer 150/250 owners here at Mumbai suggest me a Suzuki service center or even a Mechanic who is good with bikes.

Mumbai is quite vast in terms of distance and time, not sure which part of Mumbai you stay/work in. Found this post on servicing done at Kiran Suzuki, Thane, please check if it's convenient for you. That post/thread is about Suzuki V-strom SX250, however that bike shares lot of parts with Gixxer SF250.

[ryosuke]

Originally Posted by sukiwa

Mumbai is quite vast in terms of distance and time, not sure which part of Mumbai you stay/work in. Found this post on servicing done at Kiran Suzuki, Thane, please check if it's convenient for you. That post/thread is about Suzuki V-strom SX250, however that bike shares lot of parts with Gixxer SF250.

Sorry I forgot to mention about my whereabouts in Mumbai. I stay at Kandivali East in Thakur Complex. So looking to find a good authorized service center/ FNG in the vicinity of about 15 kms.

[b16h22]

Been noticing the sales trend of the Gixxer 250s for last few months. They were never great sellers but the recent numbers are alarming for potential buyers and current owners alike. They managed to sell just 97 units last month and it is not a one-off. The sales have been hovering around 150 units for a while.



https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/motor...-analysis.html (February 2024: Indian Motorcycle & Scooter Sales Figures & Analysis)

To put things into perspective

The sibling V Strom 250 sold 370 units
MT15 sold 10k units
R15 sold 11k units
KTM 200s sold 2.5k units
KTM 250s sold almost 1k units
Triumph 400s sold almost 1900 units
RE sold about a zillion 350s

At what point Suzuki might call it a day and pull the plug the plug on the 250 Gixxers? They can't keep on selling sub 100 units or even less. Even Kawasaki sell close to 70 units of Z900 That said, I put the blame 100% on Suzuki for messing up their strategy with the 250s. As an owner, a situation where it might be impossible to get specific parts for the Gixxer twins scares me, because it is already not great.

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by b16h22

s
RE sold about a zillion 350s

At what point Suzuki might call it a day and pull the plug the plug on the 250 Gixxers? They can't keep on selling sub 100 units or even less. Even Kawasaki sell close to 70 units of Z900 That said, I put the blame 100% on Suzuki for messing up their strategy with the 250s. As an owner, a situation where it might be impossible to get specific parts for the Gixxer twins scares me, because it is already not great.

The 250 cc segment is the most underutilized and backburned segment of any CC segment here in India. Let's take for example of the average, a 200 cc, a 220cc a 223 cc all had and still have great reception with some bikes of 223 achieving a cult status. The disgraced 250 segment is a cursed segment with little takers, across-the-board and across every manufacs.

Interestingly, people still love anything with 1 or 3 as prefix and not 2. Apaches started as 150, 160, 180, and then Bajaj with the 180 which were all a hit. It's a fine dance of marketing and pricing that plays a key role. Same goes with 300 CCs, people love anything between 125 and 200 and above 300 to 400.

Case in point. The Domi 250 is a flop, the ADV 250 is a flop, the Suzuki 250 is a flop, barring the CBR 250, the only bike that really hit the notes hard and etched a name for itself in the Indian history books. Every single iteration of the 250 simply failed to take off here in the Indian market.

My summation; people simply aren't willing to pay extra for the 50 CC and the resulting variances in price without realizing they're actually getting more for their buck for a given variant both in terms of performance and mileage. If folks still weep over 75 plus mileage over a 250 cc, it's better they remain in stone age with their 100 cc jewels.

Cheers!
VJ

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

The disgraced 250 segment is a cursed segment with little takers, across-the-board and across every manufacs.

Interesting take and can't really say I fault it at all. Though I note you seem to have left out the Duke 250.

Cheers, Doc

[b16h22]

Originally Posted by VijayAnand1

The 250 cc segment is the most underutilized and backburned segment of any CC segment here in India. Let's take for example of the average, a 200 cc, a 220cc a 223 cc all had and still have great reception with some bikes of 223 achieving a cult status. The disgraced 250 segment is a cursed segment with little takers, across-the-board and across every manufacs.

It is an interesting take but as Doc pointed out the D250 is a sales success in KTM terms. The issue is certainly not the 250 badge here. For starters the Gixxers are styled to appeal to maybe sensible and old buyers. But the entry level sports bike segment is anything but a sensible buyer's segment. The potential buyers need modern and exciting styling, modern hardware, lively performance and character from their bikes.

The Gixxer twins fall short in many of the above aspects. The styling is lacklustre and anonymous. The SF for example looks weird from most angles due to the really short windscreen and tall clipons. The naked looks almost invisible, presence wise. Not to mention the grayscale color options. In this price range, the external appearance matters a lot as it is an aspirational segment. You really have want a bike. The RE 350s, Triumphs, Yamaha R15 & MT15 duo, KTMs all score heavily in this department.

The engine despite having spritely performance is a grown man's engine. It is too linear for it's own good. Again not a great attribute for a sports bike engine but a great fit in a sports tourer (say V Strom 250).

The hardware is perfectly adequate but nothing special compared to the segment leaders. The peers get USD forks, TFT screens, 4 piston calipers, liquid cooled engines etc. We can argue that a well tuned regular fork setup and box section swingarm is adequate for the segment needs but that doesn't sell motorcycles. This is not 2000s, the competition has moved on (not applicable to RE as they have strong emotional quotient attached to the brand) It is pretty evident where Suzuki has cut costs and if Yamaha can provide Liquid cooling and other niceties for a 150, Suzuki can as well.

The most important bit - Marketing. Let's be honest here, the 250s are basically invisible to the potential buyers. Nobody knows such a bike exists. It looks too similar to the 150. Add Suzuki's lacklustre marketing division and you have the perfect recipe for disaster.

We can argue that the stale response from buyers is due to the unique attributes of Indian motorcycle market. We can argue that the buyers didn't give a chance to the brilliant 250 platform despite Suzuki's best efforts. But that is not the case here. Suzuki India messed up and the product tanked badly. By the time they woke up and put this engine in a decent platform that had good potential (Strom), the market had moved on. They are riding on the sales of Access (I own that one too ) and that is a risky strategy. The 150 sales are really poor as well.

Now the reality is, us owners are really stuck in a hard place. These bikes have really poor resale value plus the below average support from Suzuki was always an issue. Now if they decide to pull the plug, it'll be the final nail in the coffin.

[ebonho]

Originally Posted by b16h22

The Gixxer twins fall short in many of the above aspects. The styling is lacklustre and anonymous. The SF for example looks weird from most angles due to the really short windscreen and tall clipons. The naked looks almost invisible, presence wise. Not to mention the grayscale color options. In this price range, the external appearance matters a lot as it is an aspirational segment. You really have want a bike. The RE 350s, Triumphs, Yamaha R15 & MT15 duo, KTMs all score heavily in this department.

The engine despite having spritely performance is a grown man's engine. It is too linear for it's own good. Again not a great attribute for a sports bike engine but a great fit in a sports tourer (say V Strom 250).

All of your points are actually ones that made us buy the SF.

In 2019, in its price bracket (2 lacs), if you dod not get on with a KTM, the Gixxer in my opinion had no competition. In our final consideration set, only the Dominar came close.

For a fully faired 250, it is both big as well as plush and supremely comfortable. And performance wise it is a great motor, again if you do not have KTMs in the equation.

Let us look on the bright side. At least it did better than the Inazuma.

Cheers, Doc.

[Rhaegal]

The market for gixxer 250s is very bad, have a gixxer sf 250 bought in first lot as seemed agood buy then.
Recently bought a Triump scrambler 400X, finding hard to find buyers for sf 250, dealers are low balling.
Wanted to keep both but having WFH keeping two bikes and a moped is too much.
Also worried about future spare part availability.

[VijayAnand1]

Originally Posted by ebonho

Interesting take and can't really say I fault it at all. Though I note you seem to have left out the Duke 250.

Cheers, Doc

ADV/DUKE 250 both fall under the same category of engines from KTM Doc hence mentioned that alone.

Originally Posted by b16h22

It is an interesting take but as Doc pointed out the D250 is a sales success in KTM terms. The issue is certainly not the 250 badge here. For starters the Gixxers are styled to appeal to maybe sensible and old buyers. . Now if they decide to pull the plug, it'll be the final nail in the coffin.

If I had to summarize your elaborate answer to a crisp one liner "Competition yields variants, the customer decides its probable success" And one can fill in everything in between as per the variables..

Cheers!
VJ