GS Love?

Zarathustra · July 07, 2003, 02:34:35 PM

i was having a conversation with another gs owner who reads this board, and we came across an interesting thought. everyone on the board says how much they love their gs's. however, it seems that the ones who say they love them the most are the same ones who mod their bike into an almost new breed. can this really be called "loving the gs"? it seems to me that people more love the idea of what the gs can/could be, with some work. whenever a new member gets on the board they usually ask about mods, both cosmetic and performance. how much can someone really love a bike if they need to change certain things about it almost immediatly after purchase (fork springs, shock, fender chop come to mind)? to my readings, it really doesn't seem like many people love the gs for what it is, they just love it because it's the cheapest alternative to a sport bike, that with some mods, can almost act the part as well. maybe i'm mistaken, but when i see a gs with an r6 tail, gsxr forks, new rear sets, full fairing, b4 rear wheel, huggers, fairings, new handle bars, etc i have to wonder how that person loves a gs. i just think we're giving a false image to new riders who ask about the gs. if someone wanted to do absolutely no modding whatsoever, i wonder who would honestly say they love that bike. i don't know if i could (hence all the mods). it's a nice bike, and a great beginner; but do i love it? i don't know. Just a thought.

glenn9171 · July 07, 2003, 02:45:58 PM

Modding is "making the bike unique" not "changing it into something else". It doesn't matter what motorcycle you buy, you WILL mod it to some degree. I bet you could count all of the perfectly stock motorcycles in the world that are more than a year old on your hands.

pantablo · July 07, 2003, 02:46:01 PM

Quote from: Zarathustraif someone wanted to do absolutely no modding whatsoever...

Bite your tongue! Actually I can appreciate your point of view. I've come to think that modding a bike, whatever bike it is, comes with the territory. Not many bikes dont have an undertail, or a hugger, or smaller turn signals, or improved suspension, etc. I think its part of the appeal of having a bike-making it personal. That can mean cosmetics (or functional) or it can mean performance improvements. No bike is perfect as stock...at least considering how many people swap on an aftermarket exhaust onto most any bike you'd think that.

The GS IS a great bike, a great first bike too. Its also a great canvas for personalizing it-for function, cosmetics, performance. I love what the bike is in all those respects.

Piper5177 · July 07, 2003, 02:46:19 PM

I have said I love the GS, and I modded mine quite a bit, but, I still do love the original product. If I hadn't been in an accident, the only things I would have changed were the front fork springs, tires and mirrors. I will still consider that a stock gs. As far as the fender goes, thats a government regulation, and so is the lean carburation and exhaust noise for that matter.

J-Lo · July 07, 2003, 02:47:35 PM

LOVE. There's that damn word again.....it started with the women wanting to hear it, and now it's hear...SHEESH. :nana:

Anyhoo. If YOU had a wife [which a lot of you do], and you loved her, would you buy her EVERYTHING she wanted [or needed]to look nice, feel good, and 'perform' well? Damn right you would.

Same thing, different spouse. I love my GS, and I want HER to be happy. Anything I can do to make her look better, or peform better, is done before she asks. After all, who wants to fight?

IMO, lovin' your GS is all bout doin' whatever you think it needs to be happy.

LOVE man, love.

P.S. Don't tell my girlfriend I said 'The Word' ok?

Zarathustra · July 07, 2003, 03:08:31 PM

i think with the example of gsxr forks and a b4 wheel, the statement's more like, "baby, you know i love you; but i'm gonna have to get you some lyposuction and a facelift real quick." i dare you to say that to your wife and tell her it's from love.

pantablo · July 07, 2003, 03:15:31 PM

Quote from: Zarathustrai think with the example of gsxr forks and a b4 wheel...

This is what has me thinking about a sv650...

[edit-but these things are also not necessary to even ride the gs hard on the street; only necessary for racing. the rest want it for bling-bling. like you wouldn't want you gf to get "augmentation"... :nana: ]

scratch · July 07, 2003, 04:39:36 PM

Some people 'love' a bike because they can modify it.

It's not so much going fast, as it is in trying to go fast. Or in this case making it go fast.

July 07, 2003, 06:39:12 PM

I think mods such as sticky tires or progressive springs are not really changing the bike. They may enhance the bike but your not actually changing anything.

Full fairings, R6 Tails etc on the other hand is outta control, why not just buy a full faired bike to start with? The GS500 is a naked bike!? This said, if that's what you want to do... then do it! It is up to you, its your money and your bike!

The good thing about having a stock bike is it is UNIQUE! :nana:

Stay Safe

Zarathustra · July 07, 2003, 06:50:25 PM

i disagree; changing the suspension is changing the bike. for instance, if there was a car on the market which was a decent car, but to make it a good car you had to change suspension, tires, etc. would you call it a car you love and think it was great? i wouldn't. i'd say it was an ok car, which needed some work to be a good car. therefore, i find that saying i think the gs is a great bike is a bit misleading. when i first got it, it was ok. with some work, it's good. so to call it a great bike (and when talking about a bike or car you have to be talking about it stock) i find it suspect. as for loving a bike because you can mod it easily; sure, i can understand that. modding is fun, and it's a great bike to mess around with since it is naked, and does need some work. but if i were selling someone a bike, i would not look at a stock gs and call it a great bike without mentioning that some mod work should be done on it.

ScottWV · July 07, 2003, 07:15:51 PM

I don't love the GS500 as a whole... I love my own bike. Not because it's a GS, because it's mine. And part of making it mine for me is to modify it to my liking. The GS500 is just a great bike to make your own, that's how I see it.

July 07, 2003, 07:18:24 PM

Ok - what happens if the stock tires are no longer available to purchase so when the time rolls round that you need a new set you turn up at your local dealership and say "New set of stock tires please" and he replies "Sorry, they are no longer available, but I have this tire that is equal, just a different brand" - that's a mod? So now I have to say to my friends - "Yep, its stock but I did Mod the tires - there the same just a different brand"!

You win the argument because technically you are correct, anything you do to the bike that alters it from factory is a mod. This would also have to include adjusting the suspension settings from the factory delivered 4 setting on the rear shock.

I just think maybe your taking it to the extreme?

I took the warning stickers off the fuel tank when I picked up my bike - I guess that's a mod also because technically the bike is no longer stock?!

I do love my GS500, but only now those warning stickers are taken off!

Stay Safe

MODS SO FAR:
Warning stickers removed...
That is all!

Zarathustra · July 07, 2003, 07:24:25 PM

i was more refering to the oil change progressive springs in the forks, and not the rear suspension. i'm not nitpicking about stickers and and adjusting the preload. as for tires, i ditched the stock tires early, because unless you're srinath, they're crap.

that's a mod in my book; replacing things before they actually need to be replaced. most people on this board replace the tires well before they actually need to be changed. it's true, you can ride the gs without fork mods, etc. but i wouldn't call it a great bike without those done.

bbanjo · July 07, 2003, 08:14:21 PM

Bingo. Love the bike for the same reason that I love my VW Golf.

Potential.

Make it your own. Use other folks bikes as a guide (I dig what Pablo's done with his ride more than any) but make it yours. I get more happies doing things to the GS than my Golf so I know it's right. I've been modding Busses/Rabbits/Golfs for 19 years now (ow) and this bike rocks on the mod return factor.

Like I started all over again.

Arpee · July 07, 2003, 08:31:04 PM

Quotei was more refering to the oil change progressive springs in the forks, and not the rear suspension. i'm not nitpicking about stickers and and adjusting the preload. as for tires, i ditched the stock tires early, because unless you're srinath, they're crap. that's a mod in my book; replacing things before they actually need to be replaced. most people on this board replace the tires well before they actually need to be changed. it's true, you can ride the gs without fork mods, etc. but i wouldn't call it a great bike without those done.

yeah, but Zara, the GS came with subpar suspension and tires because it was an entry-level bike and had to be priced that way. Note that Suzuki didn't cut corners in the frame, and general design and intent of the bike...they just needed to keep it affordable. Look now at the SV650 which suffers from the same suspension problems (not quite to the extent of the GS500) but that's now Suzuki's entry level sportbike, and they probably won't change much now that they've got a good formula.

Sooooo...if one wants a "good" performing entry level bike, one must modify it, or better yet, personalize it....

pantablo · July 07, 2003, 09:32:19 PM

hey, honda civics are great cars. they're economical, stylish, great for budget minded buyers...but if you like to thrash your car in the canyons you install wider, bigger diameter wheels with low profile tires. You might even lower it with tighter suspension...you might need better lighting to do angeles crest in the middle of the night (as the boy racers do)...

You upgrade a basic, decent car to suit your personality and how you use it. Could a honda civic owner that simply commutes say he loves his car, or a college student with his first new car, say she loves her car? Yes you could.

It's a nice car but you might want to make it a riceboy car and take it racing because its light and you can do lots of things to it...its all a matter of degrees. That doesn't make the civic a bad car, does it?

we could say the same for the gs500, couldn't we?

JohNLA · July 07, 2003, 10:17:02 PM

I loved my 02 the moment I saw it and it's price tag. That is why I paid MSRP

I loved it even more when I whacked the fender off. I might have been a tiny bit happier on a bigger bike but with the exception of the SV it would have cost nearly double. I have spent less than $150 in mods. There is nothing better under $5000.
You wanna fight :guns:

Wrencher · July 08, 2003, 04:04:09 AM

For what its worth, I have three categories for bikes/cars/allmotorizedthings.

Stock: Nothing replaced or added that is not normally consumable. Tires, brake pads, fluids, rubber hoses, seats, etc are normally consumed by normal usage.

Upgraded: Replacing things regardless of their state of wear for bigger better faster.

Mod/Custom: Altering existing pieces of the bike or aftermarket pieces either way or making parts that were not designed for a given application work. Gixxer front ends and Kat shocks definately fall into this category.

Given the above definitions I don't think the "Mods" are automagicly NOT in love with their bikes but it does give make me wonder. Some do and some don't.

I don't think the issue is "Joe doesn't love the GS cuz he mod'ed it". The question is why did he mod it. There is moding out of love for the bike and there is moding to change the things you don't like about the bike. It takes all kinds.

The Buddha · July 08, 2003, 07:20:41 AM

Why me...what did I do....
Never mind...just kidding...
There is no bike that dont need modding...Every thing I have owned I have had to mod for my liking. Some because they burnt out, blew up or I crashed... - Dirt bike bars on my virago, GS - bar ends, Kat grips, levers, Vulcan - Frame chop to fix alternator, Regulator bracket so its out in the open etc...
Others have been cos they are just a little more $$ but a lot better, sealed batteries, Disco lights on the GS etc...
I am Cheap and lazy. I like things that are easy to do if they have to be repeated over and over and things that last longer (forever) and are generic in nature. The GS has turned out to be the easiest to satisfy all the needs. Most bikes are purpose built...You cant commute on a goldwing, you shouldn't try to tour on a Ducati 996, and you shouldn't try to race on a virago. So If you want to do any of those you better get some saddle bags or take off the saddle bags or get sticky tires...Just figure of speech dont take it literally and say sticky tires dont make a virago into a race bike. Being the eaisest to do that makes the GS a prime candidate. If Kat shocks fit the eliminator - 1100 shadow shocks are a great upgrade as is the 1500 vulcan for the eli 1000 but I'd have fit it on it.
Cool.
Srinath.

News:

GS Love?