Suzuki sales incentives

from British Dealer News Dec 2022

MARKET WATCH

Museum restoration of oldest exhibit

IT CAN BE HARD ENOUGH getting the parts to restore a bike that’s 25 years old. So spare a thought for the folks at the Sammy Miller Museum, who’ve been beavering away to spruce up a bike that’s just turning 125 years old ...

The British 1898 Quadrant features a French Le Brutus engine, putting out a heady 1.5hp, and is a fantastic example of the very earliest pioneer machines used at the beginning of the last century. With an automatic inlet valve and mechanical exhaust valve, two-speed transmission and copper petrol and oil tanks, it seems completely alien to modern eyes. But as part of the British bike industry heritage, it’s priceless.

Starting is via bicycle-type pedals, there’s a unique shaft final drive system with roller sprockets, and there are four main controls for the engine – a compression release, plus throttle, mixture and ignition adjustments. Sounds almost as complicated as turning off the wheelie control on a modern KTM!

The Quadrant is the oldest bike on show at Sammy Miller’s Museum in Hampshire – which is well worth a visit for any bike fan. More info at: sammymiller.co.uk.

New Suzuki sales incentives

Suzuki dealers will no doubt be cock-a-hoop after the firm launched a series of new models at the Milan show. But while dealers wait for supplies of the GSX-8S, V-Strom 800 DE and three new 125 scooters, the firm has launched two new deals to help get more business through the doors.

First up is the latest finance deal; interest rate hikes have seen an end to most 0% finance products, but Suzuki is offering a four-year fix on loan interest rates, with a 4.9% deal on HP and PCP agreements, and no deposit needed. The deal covers the Hayabusa, SV650 and V-Strom 650 models only at the moment.

Suzuki GB head of motorcycles, Jonathan Martin, said, “We’re acutely aware of the fact that there are challenges being faced at the moment, so, to help our customers, we’re providing the opportunity to fix their interest rate for up to four years. The result is a known monthly repayment that’s not going to change, providing certainty and stability. And at 4.9% APR it helps keep those repayments low and manageable and means they can put a new Suzuki in the garage for less.”

The other initiative is a new accident claims management programme, which is a service that has become popular in the aftermarket in recent years. It’s a first for a manufacturer, though, and looks to be a useful tool for dealers as well as customers. The Suzuki Accident Aftercare Programme is a free service, available to Suzuki riders with any age of bike, and aims to make managing the aftermath of a crash easier. It provides a single point of contact at a Suzuki First call centre for managing liaison with insurers, machine recovery, repair at an official dealer with genuine parts, claims management and any legal issues.

The programme obviously aims to increase business for official dealers instead of other third parties, and Suzuki is offering help in a variety of ways, from assisting with machine storage, recovery and return logistics, parts price support and market rates for labour.

Jacob Lewis, Suzuki GB’s customer retention manager said, “We pride ourselves on our level of aftersales care at Suzuki, and I think our customers and dealers will agree we put a great deal of effort into things like our Suzuki Service Promise and our Vintage Parts Programme. And we’re really pleased to be able to further demonstrate our commitment to our customers and Suzuki owners with the Suzuki Accident Aftercare programme. Managing the fallout from an accident is stressful, but we aim to make this process as easy as it can be, by handling everything on the owner’s behalf. Best of all it is entirely free of charge.

“The programme is also an opportunity for our dealers to increase their profit by taking on repair jobs that would previously go to third parties assigned by the insurance company without the customer’s involvement. We are able to support in a variety of ways so dealerships can maximise their returns.”