2008 Suzuki Boulevard M50

I had not been on a motorcycle in over a decade and wasn't sure if I would ever own another bike again.

But when I first sat on this one I knew that I had to have it.

Very comfortable, The handle bars reached out to greet me, It wasn't too heavy so I felt that I was in control of it ... instead of the other way around. The handling was a dream and though the braking system seems a bit weak the shaft drive allows me to come to a quick smooth stop every time. Even though I cannot start as quick off the line as a Harley, Once I get to cruising speed I can keep up with them. Fuel injection makes this bike easy to start. The over- all design turns heads, Very beautiful to look at. I have the silver and black gas tank which, In my opinion looks better than the yellow and black.

Had to change out the passenger seat because it wasn't very comfortable.

This is a keeper, Fun to ride on short rides to work or long rides into the country.

I could go bigger because I'm accustomed to riding again, But I'm very happy with my Boulevard and have no intentions of turning it in anytime soon.

i really enjoy riding when the chance is given. its hard to find time in between deployments and pcs'ing to other places every other year. but all in all its a great bike. looking ito customizing mine this year witha bobber kit.

I got this bike used with 4,000 miles in June 2011 as a gift for my SGT promotion and Father's Day.

I can't be happier with this bike. We do a lot of rides in the Army due the regulations that requires it and I keep up with Harley's that got double the engine. I have put this bike to 120MPH ... (that's as high as the meter goes) and it was like nothing happened. It's comfortable for long rides and easy going for slow traffic, even though it got a lot of torque because of the shaft drive. A get a lot of looks in the bike and nobody knows what is the brand until they ask me. Even the Harley Shop mechanic where I bought it from told me that he wishes the Harleys got the comfort and handling of this one. I am considering getting a M90 or a M109R2but this will stay, maybe to pas down to grandkids....

Stay Safe Ride Hard

I'm not the kind of guy that needs 1500 cc's between my legs to feel that I have a big enough bike beneath me. I've gotten a lot of mileage out of some smaller cruisers and don't make a habit of riding 2-up, so I enjoy the slightly smaller bikes.

I've pretty much lusted after the M50 ... since I set eyes upon a Charcoal and Yellow Special Edition in 2008. Problem was, I just couldn't justify buying the bike for the paint scheme alone, and my '07 Shadow VLX was doing an admirable job as my daily commute bike. But after sitting on an M50 in late 2009 and suddenly feeling very "connected" to it, I started making plans to own one. Therein lay Problem Two: convincing the wife that I HAD to upgrade to the M50.

I invested more time checking reviews of the bike than I'd invested in finding a qualified doctor to perform my vasectomy. More and more, the positives surrounding the M50 were hard to ignore. It took two years, but I finally set my foot down with the wife and said, "I'm buying an M50." Okay, this was after she said that I could actually go out and get one...

Yeah, yeah, maybe I could have devoted more time an effort at making a deal on an M90, or I could have followed through on the killer deal I had waiting for me on an '01 Road King. But coming from a background of smaller-displacement Shadows and Vulcans, the M50 was a logical step up.

I have not been disappointed; not one bit.

Forgive me as I make comparisons to my new M50 versus my former ride, the Shadow VLX...

I'm 5'11" and 177 lbs., and the ergos of the Suzuki fit me pretty well. It could use maybe a little more pull-back on the handlebar, and maybe be just a little narrower between the grips, but it's not at all uncomfortable. The seat offers nice support, and is a massive improvement over the saddle of my old VLX. I like the simple instrumentation, and the layout of the idiot lights on the tank don't make me feel like an idiot trying to read the things.

Fuel injection is a BIG plus. Starting the M50 on a cold morning means I'm off and riding in a tenth of the time that my carburated VLX required for warm up. Performance? I'll say that my old VLX wasn't as much of a slouch coming off the line as many people might think. But the M50 has twice the HP and only outweighs my old Shadow by 60 lbs, so power is there in spades. Cranking the Suzuki's throttle from 65 mph has the bike hitting 80 mph faster than a speeding ticket. The 5-speed tranny rolls easily through the gears, and the shaft drive feels smooth.

When I first got the bike, I expected to put in some time getting comfortable and confident with it. I was amazed at how quickly I became acclimated to the characteristics of the bike. This would be a good thing since I had an 80 mile trip from the dealer to home, and a good chunk of this would occur in commute traffic.

The M50 maneuvers better than I expected from a cruiser, making it easy to flick in and out of traffic. In slow-speed travel (you know, when you're rolling on the freeway slower than a bride will walk down the aisle to her waiting groom), the M50 is well balanced and not twitchy, with no need to drag your feet to feel at ease at a creeping crawl.

And that takes me to the subject of brakes. They're front disc/rear drum, and unlike the complaints of some other reviewers, I found they bring the bike to a halt without worry. Again, my first real foray with the Suzuki was in rather sudden spurts of stop-and-go traffic, and the M50's brakes were consistently solid enough that my pulse didn't end up in perpetual hyperdrive.

Fuel mileage on the M50 tends to average 45-48 mpg, even with regular runs of 75-plus on the freeways. Yeah, the mileage might improve if I'd slow down a bit, but the 819cc motor loves to run. So...

I really like what Suzuki has done with the M50, and it's been a great step up from my Shadow. Give me some time, and maybe I'll bring myself to upgrading to the M90 or (gasp!) an M109R.

But, in the meantime, I am a satisfied M50 owner and rider.

Hallo. After riding behind my husband for a few years, 2 years ago I took my courage and learned how to ride motorcycles. When the time came to buy new bike, we were looking at Honda Shadow but I wasn't feeling it. As we were leaving the dealer's, my husband spotted Suzuki M50 and it felt perfect. ... I'm enjoying it third season now and every year it seems to "fit" better and better. As for technical issues, there have been none. My husband owns 2007 Suzuki Boulevard m109r but always complaints about comfort of the ride. I never have such complaints! Love it!

I'm part of the older generation riders coming back to their roots and their love of motorcycles (65 years old). I bought an M50 and it's the first time I have been back on a bike in over 25 years. I picked the M50 after much research in middle size cruisers. In general I think the M50 is a very ... good bike for the money. I like the style and the low to the ground seat. (I'm 5'8"). I think there could be an improvement in the rear suspension. it seems harsh and doesn't take bumps well, even with ajustment. It could use a rear disc brake. But, it's easy to ride and easy on the eyes. I'd give it an A-.

What could I not say about this bike!

The M50 is the best all around Bike you can get on the market. With the Bad Boy style and the technology of the street bikes the Guys and Gals and Suzuki have it going on!

With the gas prices high this past summer it was the best investment ... I made in years. If you want to get a bike and have every dollar pay YOU back get a Suzuki M50!

I've had this bike since May '08. I am very pleased with it. I have put 13000 miles on it so far. And I just don't get tired of riding it.

I laid it down for the first time on Wednesday (The day before Thanksgiving) and the headlight got damaged $400 to replace the headlight casing and assembly ... (not including the headlight) I thought was extremely expensive, but being my fault, and the first penny I put in this bike aside from maintenance, I guess I can't complaint.

Bottom line, bike has lots of power, great stability, reliable starts, and lots of fun!

I've been riding for the better part of 20 years now. My first bike ever was a suzuki 125, then I upgraded to a Honda CB 900, and had several 750's and 800's since. This bike leaves them all in the dust. It's quick throttle response and high end torque is superior to all other bikes I've ever ... owned. At 65 or 70, a hand full of throttle quickly propels the bike to 90 mph I do believe that the front brakes leave more to be desired as they don't not adequately stop the bike in highspeed emergency situations, but experience on a bike will more than make up for that. While this is a smaller cruiser, I wouldn't recommend it as a first bike for the inexperienced rider.

I loved my Bandit, I loved my Katana, but I didn't love my comfort level as time marched on. I knew that to keep riding, I'd have to find something more comfortable for me. I had just about forgotten about daily riding until the gas price spiked.

I went into the showroom to see what ... I could get for my Katana and figured I would get a big scooter for gas mileage and comfort. I sat on a couple big cruisers and wondered how anyone could have fun on these big ponderous bikes. Oh well different strokes for different folks I guessed.

Then a bumblebee caught my eye. It was a cruiser, but it looked, well, sporty. It was a Suzuki M50. I sat on it and it was like settling into a favorite chair. Feet forward was different for me, but it felt nice. I talked to the salesman about a few of the bikes and scooters and he suggested the M50 after discussing my riding style.

It had reportedly good gas mileage, not better than the scooter, but it was fuel injected. That would make for easier and quicker starts in the morning. It also had shaft drive, which would be great, I I had often let my chain maintenance slip, preferring to ride, over working on a bike.

I traded in the Katana and rode out on the M50. It was a little awkward for the first few miles, riding feet forward. But the bike was so well balanced that quickly dissipated. I was so surprised at how well the bike handled and how much I could lean it. I had always assumed that cruisers were big slow handling boats on the road, the M50 was NOT shaping up that way.

The power delivery was smooth and even and although the M50 has about 1/4 the power of my previous bikes, it in no ways leaves me feeling flat. In fact the power is just about perfect, I can loaf along, or I can squirt out of traffic. On the back roads, which have always been my favorite, this bike really shines. It is very stable and yet with the nice wide handlebars and low center of gravity can really be tossed into turns. It's hard to describe how it feels, I guess riding in on back roads with lots of twists and turns, the bike feels secure, safe and exhilarating all at once.

As with any bike there are a few items I would change:

The seat could be more comfortable if you are a person who scoots way back. There's a right angle under the cushion that hits some people in a not so sweet spot, but it's not bad for a couple hours. There's a cheap home-fix for that or you can get a pad, or another seat.

The key is on the right side and anything attached to it scuffs the area around the ignition when riding.

The headlight is a bit on the weak side, the high beam being worse than the low beam. However, it has a pull trigger pass switch which shines the low and high at the same time. This is what I wish the high beam was, but you can pull that with the low beam on and get great illumination.

I wish the wires were hidden, I wish there were no visible seams anywhere. But overall this bike is a LOT more than the sum of its parts. It is a fantastic package and coming in just under 7K, it is a great value! I have gotten more compliments on this bike than on all my other bikes together, and I've had this only a handful of months. Not that I really care about what people think of my bike, I just want to ride. But still, it feels nice to have people pull up and compliment it.

Having ridden for 30 plus years I have to say the M50 is a great bike to ride every day or for a long haul. the ride position is comfortable, the handling is great and the power is more than sufficient for anything I can ask of it. the seat leaves a little to be desired but a high quality lambs ... wool seat cover has helped. The noise level is subjective I guess and I am happy with not having to listen to a "droan" while cruising at a constant speed for miles on and.

It is a bike that has helped renew a passion for riding and has also invoked a great sense of pride in owning it. Strange?? Maybe but perhaps that is just because I love riding it.

I just got the M50 two weeks ago and can only say WOW, I am a new rider and feels great. I am six three and 275 lb and the bike fits great. I will upgrade to the M109 as soon as I get some more experience. I rode 200 miles this weekend and I will change seat during my 600 mile service, bike is quite ... for the look. I was at a light with the Vespa and I could hear the Vespa over my bike. Over all and for the money love my bike.

Good performing cruiser, decent power, shaft drive, fuel injection. Good looking bike, got more comments/questions from people regarding it than my Harley Davidson. Gas mileage could stand to improve, gets about 41-42 mpg. Shaft drive performs well, especially in engine breaking, you'll need it seeing ... as the front rotor and rear drum seem insufficient for stopping this thing adequately from high speeds. Stock pipes don't sound very good, it's a quiet cruiser, but swap them out for some vance and hines straightshots or cruzers and it looks/sounds great. Photo is a little awkward because of angle. Great stability at high speeds, stopping can be awkward at first due to it's weight, experienced riders should have no problem. Good low seat height, forward controls as well, I'm a 5'1 female and ride on it comfortably.