Anybody have experience with Suzuki GS650

[Freebird]

My son, Dylan, is looking at buying his first bike. I actually don't want him to have one but he is 22 and makes his own decisions now. I know it's hypocritical of me to not want him to ride when I'm been riding all my life.

 

So, one of his co workers has an older, '78 or '79, Suzuki 650GS that he has offered him for what I think is a decent price. It looks like it would make a good starter bike but I know nothing about these old Suzukis. Have any of you ever owned one of them? Any major issues such as transmission problem and etc? He told me that the fork seals are seeping a very little but otherwise, it seems to be in good shape. I haven't actually looked at it personally. Fork seals will be an easy enough fix.

[ToyOdie]

Don,

I don't know specifically about the GS650 however I have had a Kawasaki KZ400 and a Honda 750 four. I'm pretty sure that this one is like most of the Jap bikes made in the 70's and 80's. Other than basic maintenance there pretty bullet proof. Just like our RSTD's and RSV's there are four carbs that will occasionally need to be sync'd. You've been around bike long enough to know what to look for when purchasing a use bike. It should be a good starter bike but it was the prelude to the crotch rocket and can be very quick. Be the "Good Dad" and give him the safety talk.

[Rick Haywood]

Don, I rode a GS750 Suzuki for 7 0r 8 years. The wife and I put 90,000 miles on that bike without any major trouble. I had to put an altenator in wasn't very much money and took me a little over 1 hour to do. Other than that the rest was just taking care of the bike. Oil, filters, chain lube and chain, did have to put rear sprocket on after about 70,000 miles. we rode the heck out of it and I loved the bike. Really no difference between the gs650 and the 750. If the price is right I don't think he can go wrong for his first bike.

[stickhandle2]

Not sure about the GS 650, but I rode 78 GS 750 and loved the bike, honestly it is still my favourite ride that I have had. I believe the 650 were early 80's models, back in the late 70's Suzuki had the GS 550, GS 750, then added the GS 1000.

 

Again not a fancy bike but a great standard bike to ride.

 

Good luck with his decision.

 

Mike

[droupou]

My first bike was a GZ 250. Other than it being super small, it was a great bike that was reliable.

 

cheers,

Rick

[cecdoo]

Old Suzukis never die, they just keep on running. Most of the guys I rode with in the early 80s had gs suzukis, and they ran great and never had any real problems, I was always partial to the Yamaha maxims, I did buy an 85 suzuki gv1200 new and still own it, awesome bike. I think the 650 would be a great starter bike for Dylan, as tall as he is he shouldnt have any problems handling it. Guess it all depends on how well it was maintained and how much they want for it.

Good Luck, Craig

[slowrollwv]

Don I had a 78 GS 1000 and wish I had it back. Those old bikes take a beating and just keeps on running.

[cowpuc]

Indeed, those were tough scoots. One of the issues I had thru the years of working on all the older Jap multi cylinder scoots had to do with them sitting for a long time without being ran. Its not uncommon for someone who owns one to forget to prelube the top end before they attempt to fire it up. Most, if not all, of the metric's are line bored aluminum "bearings" that the cams run in. Spin em up dry with no prelube and they gall real easily. They can be repaired but its kind of a hassle. Just knowing the history of the bike helps a lot!

Another issue pertains to rusty tanks, a quick pen light check with a mirror (make sure you look at the roof) will reveal a lot. I had to coat many of those old tanks (use Red Kote - stay away from "Cream Coat"). Never had much long term luck with inline filters, those dog gone teeny little rust dust particles always seemed to find they into the carbs AND, the carbs on those GS's can be a bugger to work on.

Also remember those brake caliper pistons,, have your son check em by center standing the scoot, hit the brakes hard and then see if the wheels spin freely after releasing the brakes.

In the end, nothing wrong with those older scoots especially if they have been used regularly throughout their lives.

I know what cha mean Don about really not wanting the "kids" to follow in our tracks,, whats good for the Goose isnt always good for the Gander so to speak,,, the change over from them being a child to being an adult can be trying at times... If Dylan is lacking in Motorcycle experience and he were my son I would set up a track around your building out back, pick up a couple of cheap XR100's and go to making tracks in the dirt before seeing him ride off on the highway - if he were willing. Knowing you though, he probably already has plenty of stick time..

Tell him I said all the best on the scoot and to be careful out there!!!

[MiCarl]

Don, I'm one of the few shops around here that will touch a bike that old. Here are the things I routinely see:

 

Fork tubes pitted or scratched? Knock 50% off the book value.

 

Tires worn out or more than 5 years old? Knock off another 30%.

 

Now the bike is worth 20% of its book value. Doesn't take too many little surprises to make the bike a loser, even if he gets it for free.

 

Rust in the tank? Another 50% off.

 

Another common thing is brake hydraulics all full of sludge. That can get expensive.

 

It's not unusual for someone to show with a bike that age he's just bought and face a $1000+ repair bill to make it safe and reliable. They'd have been much better off to spend a few extra bucks and get one that some other sucker fixed up.

 

If it's a routine rider that's in decent shape, has been maintained and only needs fork seals (seals, dust seals, bushings, oil) it's probably an $800 motorcycle.

[Rdfroese]

I had a 1979 850GS. A great bike. There's been some good posts on this era bike. I totally agree - a tough bike, just maintain like anything else.

[Freebird]

Thanks for the replies folks. First, I was wrong about it being a 650. He came by last night and corrected me. It is a GS550. It belongs to one of his co-workers and has been a daily rider all summer. His friend rides it to work almost every day. It has 17,000 miles on it at this time. I know that if it needs repairs that a shop would charge him a fortune but if it does need anything, I'm sure it's nothing that I couldn't handle.

 

He has at least agreed to store it here through the winter so I can check it out closely and take care of any issues that I find. He can buy it for $700.00 so I think it will be OK. Heck, if he were to end up giving it away later, most of us have lost more than that just on depreciation on vehicles.

 

He has also agreed to take the motorcycle safety course so I feel good about that.

[cecdoo]

Think you dodged a bullet on this one, most kids want start out on an old 900 Ninja, My sons first street bike was a 550 Maxim and we took a couple pretty long trips with that bike. That 550 Suzuki ought to be a good starter bike and the Safety course is a great place to start.

Craig

[vzuden]

My my son 's first bike was a '78 Honda CB750 for which he paid $1.00. It turned out to be a great father- son project. He learned about every aspect of the bike from new rings, valve job to electrical and brakes. He rode it for several years and ended up selling it for more than I had invested in it (labor is free). But working together on it together over a winter was priceless.