History
SO – I came to Cornwall with two motorbikes which had stood unused and decaying away in the garage in Scotland for over 10 years. The Honda Deauville would not start (with an external car battery of course) so it was pushed into the van. The BMW R65LS started straight away and I rode it into the van.
After arriving in Cornwall I found that all four spark plugs on the Honda (a twin) were defective but it took me almost two days to replace them as it involved removal of so much bodywork. This put me off the Honda so I sold it.
The BMW had actually stood for eighteen years, but was really rusted. So I began a restoration project which would take me a year.
During that time I had no bike, and I had not ridden one for 10 years. I decided to get a bike and ended up buying a Royal Enfield Bullet. It was great bike to get back into biking. I liked it a lot but worried about it’s reliability.
I finally got the BMW operational, and for reasons I do not understand (??) I went and traded the Bullet in for a Royal Enfield Himalayan.
This was a good bike, but I was just using it for the same sort of rides I used the BMW for. And I preferred riding the BMW to the Himalayan.
I did realise, when I had both of these bikes, that I would not bother getting them out to do short trips. Why?
It was the hassle of maneuvering a bike weighing 200Kg out of the garage, then finding a place to park it where It would not fall over (especially the Himalayan which had a rubbish prop stand).
It made me think of over 40 years ago when I used to jump on my Lambretta in normal clothes and footwear and go anywhere (crash helmets were not compulsory then). So I decided to sell the Himalayan and buy a scooter. But which one?
At first I considered the Chinese AJS Modena/Lexmoto Milano. These are really Vespa imitations and I decided they were trying to be something they are not.
I then looked at the various Korean scooters such as Sym and Kymco (which imitate Lambrettas) and although better quality, I still worried about reliability.
The touring scooters like the Suzuki Bergman are nice, but bigger and heavier, and more likely to be a hassle to maneuver.
After weeks of research on line I settled on the Suzuki Address. Reviews stress it’s reliability, ease of owner maintenance, a petrol consumption, I feel it is an “honest” scooter, not trying to be retro or something it’s not.
I within the space of two days I sold the Himalayan and ordered the Suzuki. I would happily have had a used one, but nothing was available in Cornwall so I ordered a new one from Dammerels in Cornwall. I pick it up on Saturday 16th August.
So I have swapped a 410cc go-anywhere adventure bike for a 113cc city commuter bike.
I still have the BMW. It will easily cruise at 80mph all day long and is fine for longer trips (and I am quite attached to it). I think the Suzi will be complimentary to the BM rather than competing for my affections.
Time, as ever, will tell.
One thing I have noticed is that are very few posts on any forums about the Suzuki Address 110. I put this down to:-
Most owners are simply commuters as opposed to enthusiasts and are not really interested in other owners.
The Address is not sold in the USA where most of the English speaking forums posters live.
There are few accessories or upgrades available so nothing to ask about.
The enthusiasts tend to go for “cooler” looking machines such as Sym or Lexmoto or bigger machines like the Bergman.
It is reliable so there are not many faults to ask about.
I hope the last one is true. Time will be saved both in spannering and forum searching. I have spent far too much of my time in forums with the BMW, the Bullet, and the Himalayan. Time to get off the web and get a life.
The only changes I intend to do is to fit my old alarm, and my ancient top box. (It’s been on a Honda H100, a Honda Deauville, a Royal Enfield Bullet, and a Royal Enfield Himalayan as well as being loaned to a relation who had it on something or other).
The rear carrier is rated for 6Kg. The Himalayan was 5Kg but I added some strengtheners. I think the limit on the Suzi may be due to stability concerns. The rack looks like cast aluminium and is probably stronger than the Himalayan steel tubes.