Blank Slate GS500 ( if Suzuki were listening)

[Watcher]

... a V twin is crap. How does the ninja 650 manage to be skinnier than the sv and its shorter wheel base to boot.

Just went to a Kawi demo yesterday.  They did a good job making the Ninjas and Z series bikes feel very thin by making the seat and fuel tank very aggressively shaped.  They get really narrow right where your legs go, but the engine and frame and rest of the fuel tank are still just as wide as any other typical bike.
Sat on a Honda CB1000 and had the same to say.  You could see that it was a wide 4-cylinder but it felt very slender based on the "cockpit".

Still, hopping back on my Duc at the end of the day (a V-twin) it felt overall smaller.  It even felt lighter than the Ninja 300 I rode, which was a shock.

The issue that perhaps many Japanese V-twins have is they don't use the same crank journal for both pistons.  When you take, say, the crankshaft out of a GS500 and put it in a V-twin engine you end up with something that is the same width as a parallel twin that also needs a much larger engine compartment because of the rear cylinder.
Can't comment on the SV since I didn't get a good look at them at the dealership I was at, but on the Yamaha Bolt series bikes it's really obvious how offset the cylinders are.
Harley uses the same journal and has one piston rod going through the other so the cylinders are perfectly in line with each other.  Ducati uses the same journal but the piston rods are side by side so the cylinders are offset ever so slightly, you can barely notice.  THESE result in a very narrow motorcycle.

[sledge]

There is an even more modern take.......the SFV650 Gladius.

It features and includes a lot of the things that, according to some posters in this thread Suzuki should have included in a revised version of the GS5.

FI
ABS
Digital instruments
Adjustable front and rear suspension
Twin discs








Unfortunately........hardly anyone bought one!!

I didn't buy one, because NO DAMN CLOCK IN THE DASH!  how else am I suppose to know when to go faster because I'm running late like a mofo. 

really, big pet peve, not having a digital clock in your fancy digital dash. really jerks my chains.

oh and that ugly freakin "the flash" tier peg supports.. or idfk what to call them. that the rear and front pegs are attached too.. whats worse is Suzuki wanted to show it off. as its painted a different color from everything else. stylizing.. Glad was a fail. big one, like, some kid out of highschool graphics design class could of done better...

Take a close look at the styling cues of today's naked hypersports , particularly the MT07 and its colour options and combos.  Would it be fair to say the Gladius set the trend?.......I think it would.

And on the basis of your comment I also think what you and the rest of the fan club want is a brand new GS5 with all the bells and whistles but still looks like it was designed back in the 80s......right? 

[gregjet]

The MT07 is definitely NOT a hyper sports. The engine characteristics are much more like the GS500. Good low and mid and runs out at the top. It's why I bought one for road riding. It is badly fueled so wheelstands because of the nofuel/all fuel way the ECU delivers fron small throttle openings to big ones, which goes away once the ECU is reflashed properly. That plus rear weight biased and short swingarm with soft suspension. I hate the adolescent manga styling of the MT. I bought it IN SPITE of the styling because the base bike is pretty good. I would be happy if the MT07 styling was less draggy and more smoother lines ( like the GS500), it's true.
The manga styling is a bit of a trick. The japs have rules about how fast a bike is allowed to go. But making the styling basically a parachute you can have big advertised power figures but limit the top speed by the bike having huge drag. Because most modern buyers only care about looks, it is an easy sell. Reckon it's an exaggeration. Have a look at motorcycles actually designed for real speen . The hyabusha is much reviled for it's looks. Why? Because it is designed to have min drag, not max. MotoGP bikes have fairings that look much more like the GS500 than modern  bikes with their sticky out bits. In the 90's everyone would just disable the speed limiting stuff on the bike ( speed and power limiters etc), so they went stealth limiting in an area that most riders won't touch ( or to be honest, understand).

Buddah: I am at a loss at your comments about the VTR250 front brake. I raced it and a CBR250RR ( twin discs), and to be honest I liked the VTR single disc brakeing better ( bendix pads in both and HEL brakelines on both). The VTR did have an aftermarket ultralightweight disc, so the material may have been a better disc material than the stock one. And VTR weighed nearly 40kgs less which I guess helped.

Hmmm a clock on the dash certainly would have no influence on my decision to purchase a bike but it certainly would be easy enough to include nowdays.

" but still looks like it was designed back in the 80s......right? " except for my dislike of manga styling , I would be happy with a bike that looks like a modern designed bike,  FROM AN ENGINEERING point of view. Actual artistic aesthetics are pretty irrevelant to me.

BTW if you want to see what a SV650 would look like if it was designed by Ducati/Cagiva and engineered to be light and handle and stop. That is a lightened and modded SV650 motor:

[J_Walker]

There is an even more modern take.......the SFV650 Gladius.

It features and includes a lot of the things that, according to some posters in this thread Suzuki should have included in a revised version of the GS5.

FI
ABS
Digital instruments
Adjustable front and rear suspension
Twin discs








Unfortunately........hardly anyone bought one!!

I didn't buy one, because NO DAMN CLOCK IN THE DASH!  how else am I suppose to know when to go faster because I'm running late like a mofo. 

really, big pet peve, not having a digital clock in your fancy digital dash. really jerks my chains.

oh and that ugly freakin "the flash" tier peg supports.. or idfk what to call them. that the rear and front pegs are attached too.. whats worse is Suzuki wanted to show it off. as its painted a different color from everything else. stylizing.. Glad was a fail. big one, like, some kid out of highschool graphics design class could of done better...

Take a close look at the styling cues of today's naked hypersports , particularly the MT07 and its colour options and combos.  Would it be fair to say the Gladius set the trend?.......I think it would.

And on the basis of your comment I also think what you and the rest of the fan club want is a brand new GS5 with all the bells and whistles but still looks like it was designed back in the 80s......right? 

I would want the design of a "new" GS500, to either have the tried an true naked sportbike look, or for them to give it more of a highway bike look [someone earlier mentioned competing with ducatis scramblers.] I like the GS for what it is, but besides it needing a clock that ISNT. a wrist watch. my only gripe with them is the weight of the bike, the lack of and power of the bike.. face it, a honda civic off the factory floor, has a better 0-60 then the GS500 ever will, and it SUCKS at pounding it around trucks at 65-70mph on the highway. yeah yeah, its not a highway bike.. but I don't live in europe or japan! so I NEED MORE POWWWAAAAA. Like I said earlier, 75hp 65ft.lb GS500 Triple. they could seriously kill off the SV line if they did that.. Remember when the speed triple came out a couple of years ago.. and it was such a big thing, because it was done right...

[sledge]

There are bikes on the market that offer everything you, and others in this thread say you want.


However......I think the real issue you have is that these machines DONT say GS500 on the side!

[The Buddha]

Buddah: I am at a loss at your comments about the VTR250 front brake. I raced it and a CBR250RR ( twin discs), and to be honest I liked the VTR single disc brakeing better ( bendix pads in both and HEL brakelines on both). The VTR did have an aftermarket ultralightweight disc, so the material may have been a better disc material than the stock one. And VTR weighed nearly 40kgs less which I guess helped.

Didn't the VTR250 have that front brake with some funky plastic cover color matched to the body or something
Cool.
Buddha.

[gregjet]

Buddah, I think you are thinking of the very original VT250 (1980's early) which had "inboard" disc brakes, The cover BTW was pressure cast aluminium. It was still not very useful . I think it was added as the current thinking was that performance discs were cast iron and the actual disc looked bloody aweful. ( and I mean REALLY aweful).
Here is a pic showing the 1999 VTR250 (one of  my old race bikes with a Suzuki rgv250 modified fairing):
.

I disagree about the GS500 being no good on the highway at 65-70mph ( 100-166pkh) I found it perfectly adequate and the fully faired one excellant. It is the tourer of choice ( and they DO have the choice) for 2 of my friends. I prefer my MT07 but that is because it is now better suspended. The big tank on the GS 500 is really good for touring.

[J_Walker]

There are bikes on the market that offer everything you, and others in this thread say you want.


However......I think the real issue you have is that these machines DONT say GS500 on the side!

No I want the "scream" and whine of a 1990's GP bike, and never will have it... 

@greg have you ridden a GS500 on the highway? its a joke getting around anything on the highway, seriously it lacks hard. saying it can "do" highway speeds is like saying you could be spider man.. sure it could, but fails badly at it.

[ShowBizWolf]

I personally have never had a problem with my GS on the highway. With or without the nose fairing it always had plenty of "gtfo" if I needed it/wanted it.

This thread is a very good read!

[J_Walker]

Everyone's highway speeds must be averaged at 55mph. Meanwhile I hopped on the highway today and the moving speed was 85mph.

[ShowBizWolf]

Ahh okay. Yeah the highway here is 55 limit, so people usually go about 65/70 lol... and if I wanna get around someone going that fast (which almost never ever ever ever ever everrrrrrrr happens) I'd hafta be going 75+... then, I've never had an issue. Just tuck and go!!! But yeah 85, not around here.

[J_Walker]

Yeah, noticed I said moving speed, not speed limit though, I want that to be clear.. the speed limit it normally 65-70ish and if traffics groovin' its 80-85. if its 4 in the morning, it's 90-100. Maybe florida's drivers are just fast... 

my dreams and opinions are just that, mine. people can disagree with me, muh feewings won't get hurtsy wursty.

[Watcher]

Never had trouble getting mine over 80mph.  Commuted nearly every day by interstate, posted speeds 55, average speeds closer to 70...

Closer to 90 it would run out of pulling power, but it would eventually make it's way to 100 if given enough time and no headwind...

[J_Walker]

Never had trouble getting mine over 80mph.  Commuted nearly every day by interstate, posted speeds 55, average speeds closer to 70...

Closer to 90 it would run out of pulling power, but it would eventually make it's way to 100 if given enough time and no headwind...

the GS500 has no "safety" in terms of speed after 70mph, the amount of torque and horsepower needed to up and go to move out of a way, it just doesn't have..

that's another benefit of Florida drivers, they are very very angry. especially old Hispanic women.. road rage happens often, an the ability to "move" yourself between say two cars away from a raging old women in a 4000lb battering ram. happens more often then I'd care to admit.

and inb4 quit pissing off drivers... I have friends mothers, even a nurse at my doctors office, who all admit to being mad at motorcyclist because they think we're somehow getting somewhere faster then them.. [mind you lane splitting in Florida is illegal, but still happens due to OTHER motorcyclist riding litre bikes thinking their unstoppable.] or people who are like my father, who hate when you're GOING the speed limit, and will tailgate you until you speed up with the rest of traffic.

and again not saying the "GS500" CANT do highways. It just barely can do them.. and leaves you wanting more for safety reasons, or just getting around a whole line up dump trucks carrying rocks and sand in the right two lanes... mmmmmmmmmmmm good for the skin.

[Watcher]

IDK, man, I lived and rode in Chicago where everyone drove very aggressively.  I've been cut off, tailgated, merged into, passed in my own lane, brake checked, forced off the road, etc, and I stuck with the GS for a good 3 years.  I ended up with a second GS, even.  Furthermore I "upgraded" to a Honda 500 twin.
Never felt like more power was really necessary.

Not saying more power wouldn't have benefitted me, but I think you aren't giving the little twin enough credit.  It does just fine on the highway.

Now a 250cc, I'd say you are gambling with your life taking that on I294!     THAT fits your "can barely do it" description.

[J_Walker]

I always say, everyone can ALWAYS ride/drive better. no matter how good you think you are at behaving an following road rules, we all have habits. My 02 SV650 I would say was a good power amount, not too much, but not as little as the GS500. Frankly when I can afford it, the GS500 will get garaged once again, and i'll ride what ever I get next.. but for now it's all I got.

[mr72]

Man, so much to comment about on this.

First of all, if traffic is moving at 85mph, then it's hard to understand the need to "get around" another vehicle. In other words, what's the real need to have excess power to pass a vehicle moving at 85mph? If there's a slow-moving vehicle, gravel truck, whatever, then a GS500 has more than enough power to pass it. But if you're seriously talking about a real need to go 100mph on public roads with posted speeds of 65-75mph, well I just can't possibly relate. I hope you get arrested driving like that.

To avoid an accident or collision you know the brakes are far more effective and safe to use than accelerating away from trouble. Going faster when trouble approaches is maybe not the best plan.

Anyway, I'm not the right person to argue this. I don't like riding on the highway due to wind and the "if you crash" safety issue so I avoid it. But I can assure you a GS500 is fast and powerful enough to use on the freeway at legal speeds in the USA.

[HPP8140]

Guess it depends on personal weight and state of tune.

Don't have any trouble going from 70-90+ in a hurry from 6th gear on my 02 GS. May folks think flooring it is best, but that just bogs it down, progressive roll on is best.

Lot of it also comes down to planning, awareness, and not panicking. Don't really remember a moment in over 100k miles I needed "max acceleration" to do anything other than just because.

[gregjet]

Mr Walker ( oh ghost who walks), I have a friend that did the big lap around the outside of Australia . That's over 9000miles. He said he never felt he needed more HP including passing triple dogie road trains in the unrestricted speed limit Northern Territory ( NT has since restricted top speed to 100kph and special 120kph). For most of this country , you speed, you lose your licence. Most sit on 105kph in 100 zones and 124 in 120 zones.
I rode a cx500 from Townsville to South Australia 7000km and again never felt I needed more power. Easy cruise.
I travelled 6000km to Phillip Island in 2014 on my Husky TR650. About the same weight and HP as the GS500 ( but WAAAY better suspension). No problems cruising nor passing. It takes about  13HP to do 60miles an hour on a motorcycle sitting upright. 

You are correct, if you can travel at those speeds you mentioned, especially if you lived in Germany with the Autobahns, but our ( Aussie) roads are simply not good enough to consistantly travel at big speeds ( there are exceptions and I know people that DO . I also have HAD many friends that DID always travel at thos speeds and aren't with us any longer. Quite a few when you get to my age).
Of course the limit on speed is wind resistance and the F Suzy has a resonably slippery fairing so needs less HP to go and to accelerate at those speeds than a naked.

Our Florida equivalent drivers are Sydney drivers.

Doesn't matter what size motor you have when it comes to rocks and sane blasting. Hmmmm exfoliation...my skin feels sooo smooth.

[J_Walker]

Rock and sand blasting?.. sure just go around the big trucks.. but when their is 5 in a row.. it doesn't really wanna choo choo fast enough, gotten a few damaged visors this way... 

but what ever. everyone here seems to think their GS500 isn't scooter tier [when it is.. common now], guess I'm barking up the wrong tree on this forum trying to argue other wise... as it seems those who agree with me, are long gone. This is my last post on this thread.