“Smart Buy Suzuki” offers the purchase of motorcycles online

In many ways, the future is now, with internet shopping bringing the markets of the world to our doorstep. Now you can order your next new motorcycle online.

If you live in France and want a Suzuki, of course.

You’ve probably ordered everything from motorcycle gear to pet care supplies to dinner over the internet. Some smaller electric motorcycle companies without an established dealer network will ship you a bike that you buy from their website. But now, one of the big players is jumping into the e-commerce pool. Suzuki France offers its entire range of motorcycles for online ordering via “Suzuki smart buy.”

It’s not exactly like ordering a motorcycle from Amazon, though. It is still a vehicle that must be registered and registered. Taxes are also to be taken into account. But the Suzuki France site will take your deposit and put you in touch with a dealer. This dealer will finalize the sale and then deliver the bike to you.

All of us busy people (and introverts) might appreciate fewer opportunities for human contact. There is also the problem of sales: if you know what you want and what you want to pay, why do we have to go through the sales rigamarole?

But here’s the rub: sometimes we don’t know what we want. There is no way to sit on a bike, on the internet. You cannot test a bike online. The color of a motorcycle rarely shines through a screen the way it shimmers in person, on a sunny day.

So far, Suzuki Smart Buy does not replace the French dealer network. You can always visit a dealership in person, review your options, sit on bikes, and talk to a salesperson. But is that how the world is? Will more manufacturers offer full online sales?

Some manufacturers already require customers to post a deposit on bikes (especially limited editions) online, but a fully online sales experience seems both remote and a bad idea. Many of us have taken delivery of a motorcycle (or other durable good) and found a defect, warranty issue, or other defect. Selling entirely online could make this process even more difficult.

Maybe something like a peddler would be a good solution. We will always need to touch a motorcycle in person, especially when we are new to the sport and not sure what we are looking for.