The Bandit was first released in January 1996, but few of them were registered as 1995 models and powered by a re-tuned and higher capacity version of the GSX-R1100 engine.
In 2006, Suzuki launched the GSF1200 Bandit, a naked, powerful, agile, and practical machine with all-rounder capabilities that carried on the heritage which made the Bandit family famous and came with a long list of updates and changes that made the machine more appealing to the public.
The bike received a revamp with a reshaped tank and side panels, a height-adjustable seat, and a longer hexagonal-section swingarm. The bike was offered with optional ABS, while in other markets like the U.K. it was offered with ABS as a standard option.
The 2006 Suzuki GSF1200 Bandit featured a comfortable upright seating position with an adjustable tube-type handlebar and a height-adjustable seat that offered riders of different sizes the option to tailor the riding position to their personal preference. The wind tunnel developed a fairing to protect the driver and passenger and was smaller and lighter with a higher windscreen.
In the performance department, the 1200 Bandit took its thrust from a 1.157cc four-stroke four-cylinder air/oil-cooled engine fed by four Mikuni carburetors and delivered an output power of 98 hp with a peak at 8,500 rpm and 92 Nm (68 lb-ft) of torque available at 6,500 rpm. The bike was set in motion by a five-speed manual transmission and pushed to a top speed of 236 kph (147 mph).
The bike rolled on a set of spiral three-spoke cast-aluminum wheels fitted with two 310 mm discs with four-piston calipers on the front and a 24 mm disc with a single-piston caliper on the rear for braking performance.