The Demise of the FZ6S2 in the US?

[jtarkany]

Well with all of the speculation on the future of the FZ6 in the U.S., coupled with all of those lucky devils jumping to liter bikes, most notably the FZ1, I decided to call Yamaha US Customer Relations, (800) 962-7926, and ask them point blank, "Is the FZ6 out of production after 2009?"

The answer...drum roll please...;

"We don't know. We won't know until September. You can call us back then and we will be able to tell you more."

Pretty anti-climatic huh? So, while rumors run rampant, my guess is we won't have an official word from Yamaha until the 2010 new model release.

 

[rbesr]

That's about par for the course from Yamaha. They announce their model lineup in September. I've owned Yamaha since 1994 and it's always been this way.

 

[Yatz86]

surely they wont remove the best selling model worldwide from their production lineup, doesnt make good business sense

 

[jmerch44]

I bet it depends on which one sells better this year.

 

[manas12]

Well, I guess someone posted in another thread that since the R is the new one for this year and for people wanting to upgrade they have R6S. Might be that they bring FZ6-N state side? Should be interesting to read next year's model lineup.

 

[GSBandit6]

While the FZ6/Fazer may be a sales leader worldwide, it's not the strongest seller in the US. Unfortunately, most Americans aren't interested unless it's a V-twin cruiser or a plastic clad race replica. The naked or half-faired standard is probably the best all-rouder but just isn't popular. I could see Yamaha keeping the Fazer for Europe and Asia, but killing it for the US market.

 

[madmanmaigret]

While the FZ6/Fazer may be a sales leader worldwide, it's not the strongest seller in the US. Unfortunately, most Americans aren't interested unless it's a V-twin cruiser or a plastic clad race replica. The naked or half-faired standard is probably the best all-rouder but just isn't popular. I could see Yamaha keeping the Fazer for Europe and Asia, but killing it for the US market.

I agree with this wholehartedly but how can Suzuki keep selling the SV?

I know there are a ton of Suzuki fan boys out there but can it really be that many to keep that model around while the whole country loses the better bike? :spank: NO YAMAHA NO!

 

[SovietRobot]

surely they wont remove the best selling model worldwide from their production lineup, doesnt make good business sense

I'm sure the R1 and R6 sell millions more, even worldwide.

 

[mcteague]

surely they wont remove the best selling model worldwide from their production lineup, doesnt make good business sense

I doubt they will stop making it but would not be surprised to see it gone from the US lineup. It's already not popular here which is one good reason I got a deal on a leftover '08.

As remarked by others, the US market loves cruisers and plastic covered sport bikes. I'm sure the FZ6R will do better for Yamaha than the FZ6. I LOVE my bike and rather like the fact that it is not run of the mill.

But then, I don't like NASCAR, baseball, football, "American Idol", SUVs, etc. So, I guess I'm not the typical American anyway.

Tim

 

[AlanB]

I agree with this wholehartedly but how can Suzuki keep selling the SV?

At my locla shop there's a bunch of FZ6Rs and no FZ6s. There's also a couple SV650Ss (which now come with a full fairing), and no SV650s. I'm in SoCal, where it seems the market is for racer wannabes.

 

[GastonJ]

I agree with this wholehartedly but how can Suzuki keep selling the SV?

I know there are a ton of Suzuki fan boys out there but can it really be that many to keep that model around while the whole country loses the better bike? :spank: NO YAMAHA NO!

they don't keep selling the SV any more, well not the SV650N at least. Been updated/renamed to the Gladius. They do still make the SV650S though, but unsure for how long. It's been on the go for 10 years.

Yamaha made it's first quarterly loss in 4 years, didn't it?, of $467 million - which may explain them having a rethink over what models they're selling. It's unlikely they'd want to continue selling a number of models in the same class, whereas dropping the XJ/Diversion after such a short time wouldn't really be an option after spending money on the R&D.

So really that only leaves the FZ6 Fazer to be dropped, if they're trying to save money. :spank:

 

[brady_cakes01]

I would like to see the FZ6-N come to the states for sure

 

[Buzz]

While the FZ6/Fazer may be a sales leader worldwide, it's not the strongest seller in the US. Unfortunately, most Americans aren't interested unless it's a V-twin cruiser or a plastic clad race replica. The naked or half-faired standard is probably the best all-rouder but just isn't popular. I could see Yamaha keeping the Fazer for Europe and Asia, but killing it for the US market.

This is basically the same thing that happened to my bike (Honda 599/Hornet). It's a great seller in Europe, but only lasted a couple years in the US line-up. I guess the US market at-large just doesn't get naked bikes.

 

[jtarkany]

At my locla shop there's a bunch of FZ6Rs and no FZ6s. There's also a couple SV650Ss (which now come with a full fairing), and no SV650s. I'm in SoCal, where it seems the market is for racer wannabes.

I'm in Ventura and have had the same experience at my local shop.

 

[Sawblade]

I think nakeds would do better in the US if they actually advertised them. Most everybody that asks about my bike has no clue that yamaha makes anything that isn't a race replica or a cruiser.

 

[wolfc70]

This is basically the same thing that happened to my bike (Honda 599/Hornet). It's a great seller in Europe, but only lasted a couple years in the US line-up. I guess the US market at-large just doesn't get naked bikes.

The 599 failed due to price. It was just too expensive in the entry level market. That and the 599 had carbs, the FZ6 and SV650 had fuel injection, for much less. The much better 919 was only $800 more. The Bandit 1200s was only $300 more. I almost bought one in 2004, but I lost my job so I did not get a bike. IIRC the 599 was $7259 on the floor. You were paying a premium price for 10 year old technology. Other than that is was a neat looking naked.

I hope Yamaha keeps the Fz6 around. There is not much out there in what used to be called a "standard" bike. I like the looks of the "r", but the plastic panels just get scratched up over time since to do simple service, they have to come off. I will take the half fairing, thank you.

 

[dankatz]

I doubt the R1 and R6 sell better worldwide. They probably do sell better here since most riders here get weekend bikes. The R1 & R6 are very uncomfortable for daily commuting. The beauty of the FZ6 is its overall package which is why it sold well. It's competition is getting much better (look at the new Bandit in Europe), so it needs a major update or won't last too long...1-2 years max

 

[wrightme43]

The FZ is just a plain universal japanese motorcycle. I hope they keep it, but that is not the most popular class of bike now.

 

[OZXJR]

I was in the local yamaha dealers a few weeks back and they had a lot of FZ6's ,hopefully it's all good in Oz.

 

[CZAR357]

I think nakeds would do better in the US if they actually advertised them. Most everybody that asks about my bike has no clue that yamaha makes anything that isn't a race replica or a cruiser.

Thats pretty much the way it is. One guy saw my bike, noticed it was a Yamaha and thought it was an r1?! I told him it wasnt and he then said "So it's an r6 then?" Told him no again and said that it was an FZ6 to which he said, "Oh, never heard of it." He did tell me it was a nice bike though!:thumbup: