Howdy all,
I just completed the MSF's basic rider course and am planning on buying a GS500E that I'll be getting a good deal on. The only problem is it's 250 miles away in the Bay Area and I really don't think I'm ready to brave that sorta ride yet. I haven't been able to find anyone willing to let me borrrow a truck for a day, and I'd prefer not to have to rent one. My parents do have a minivan, though, so my question is: can I (safely) load a GS500 in a minivan?
Go to a rental place, Avis, Thrifty, Hertz, or even UHaul, and rent a stripped cargo van. It's a passenger van, like a Ford C150 or something, which has 4 or 5 rows of seats with all those taken out besides the two front seats. It should fit in there nicely. I'd do a dimension check before following through, I've never done it.
i've taken my honda in a cargo van. there was plenty of room. had to look carefully to find good tie-down points, but it worked.
i'm guessing the GS won't fit in a minivan. it's 81.9" long and 32.3" wide. take a tape measure to your parents' van just to be sure, but i don't think it'll work.
cheers,
will
I was trying to fit a gs5 into a grand caravan and it wouldn't fit. I rented a uhaul trailer for $14.... (designed for a motorcycle.)
$14 you say? Well....I guess I can go without food for a couple of weeks :)
It will fit in all minivans, provided that the seats are removed, and the mirrors are removed from the bike(not the van).
Dimensions: about 6-1/2' long, about 4' high(4.5' with mirrors) and 2' - 3' feet wide.
Quote from: DomIt will fit in all minivans, provided that the seats are removed, and the mirrors are removed from the bike(not the van).
Dimensions: about 6-1/2' long, about 4' high(4.5' with mirrors) and 2' - 3' feet wide.
I tried and no luck... maybe other minivans will apply.
Also keep in mind... limited places to tie down. And the potential gasish small
trailer would be best imo. That way there is no way it won't fit.
DONT FORGET TIE DOWNS (like I did...)
I don't have anything against the idea of a trailer, its just that I don't have a vehicle with a hitch (I know they have temporary ones, but don't know how much they cost or how long they take to install). I'll have my dad take some measurements and see if it'll work out.
Quote from: PneumaticPantherI don't have anything against the idea of a trailer, its just that I don't have a vehicle with a hitch (I know they have temporary ones, but don't know how much they cost or how long they take to install). I'll have my dad take some measurements and see if it'll work out.
it would fit inside the grand carvan... my problem was the opening of the door was like 9 inches shorter than the inside (if that makes sense....) be sure to measure the opening... not the inside
good luck!
I see what you're saying. I'm fairly confident that if the motorcycle will fit inside, I'll find a way to get it inside.
Why not just go rent a pickup truck for a day or two. You can probably get the GS in the Van (tight) - but getting it strapped in securely will probably be difficult. And Do you really want to have to fix the vans interior (not to mention maybe parts of the bike) if it doesn't stay put when you're hauling it?
I'd call around about a pickup truck rental .Any small pickup will do the job- just needs to have tie-downs in the front of the bed (close to the bottom inside of the bed). You strap the bike down on each triple clamp right at the handlebar and cinch it down (the bike centered in the bed). Compress the forks as you strap it down (Not all the way down but a good bit of the way down..). Leave it in gear (I even leave the sidestand down).
With the bike centered and strapped down evenly in the center of the bed- the bike wont move... I've transported quite a few bikes this way and never had a problem.
Here's a quick search result I did...
http://motorcycles.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http://www.motorcyclebeginners.com/transport.htm
I have transported my GS in the back of my Astro van. Take the seats out, drop a small chunk of 4 x 4 behind the front seats to act as a wheel chock, and use the seat anchors in the floor as tie down points.
I do take the mirrors off the GS.
its seriously cheap for a small uhaul box truck. its like 19 bucks a day.
Quote from: Greg GabisI have transported my GS in the back of my Astro van. Take the seats out, drop a small chunk of 4 x 4 behind the front seats to act as a wheel chock, and use the seat anchors in the floor as tie down points.
I do take the mirrors off the GS.
Ditto, and I thought the Astro was the smallest of 'em all, but then I started remembering all the others, mea culpa :oops: , like that old slant-nosed Toyota and the Mazdas, Luminas, etc. Ok, so it will fit in an Astro, and it will definitely fit in an Aerostar.
I think a good rule of thumb is if you can fit a sheet of 4x8 plywood standing between the front seats, then your gs will fit.
Quote from: weaselnozeits seriously cheap for a small uhaul box truck. its like 19 bucks a day.
19 bucks + .40 a mile. That adds up quick if you figure in a 500 mile round trip.
A word to the wise about renting: get a cargo van with unlimited mileage. I rented a truck to p/u my GS. It was a Ram 2500 with the quad cab. The GS would not fit in the bed lengthwise. So that commercial is BS. I have rented several vans from Enterprise. They are low to the ground for easy loading, and pretty fuel efficient because they run 6 bangers. There arte multiple places inside to anchor tie downs.
Good luck !
Just bring a ton of rope and some blankets, then tie it to one side of the van and floss the rope either thru the windows, or run them both front and back thru the drivers side door and the rear door. Use a trucker's hitch to cinch it to the driver's side wall. Woiks like a charm! :thumb:
The minivan can have a hitch receiver installed and then get the trailer... FWIW, GS should fit in a minivan...
BTW There was a 13 year old girl driving one the other day in my neighborhood, drinking coffee and talking on the cell phone and beating her kids and feeding her dog as she tried to fit me and the GS in it ... at 40 mph... good driver that girl... Then the cop that showed up, accidentally stomped on my head and stomach as I was bleeding to death, and gave me a ticket for littering, and when she got out of her minivan and saw my blood and screamed he said I am a threat to her and shoved a restraining order in my mouth that I was just using to breathe through and proceeded to pet her dog and help her with the groceries and the kids halloween costumes .... nice helpful cops around here ...
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: seshadri_srinathBTW There was a 13 year old girl driving one the other day in my neighborhood, drinking coffee and talking on the cell phone and beating her kids and feeding her dog as she tried to fit me and the GS in it ... at 40 mph... good driver that girl... Then the cop that showed up, accidentally stomped on my head and stomach as I was bleeding to death, and gave me a ticket for littering, and when she got out of her minivan and saw my blood and screamed he said I am a threat to her and shoved a restraining order in my mouth that I was just using to breathe through and proceeded to pet her dog and help her with the groceries and the kids halloween costumes .... nice helpful cops around here ...
Cool.
Srinath.
Either you live in the most messed up town ever or you've got a really odd sense of humor....I hope it's the latter.
Anyway, I was wondering if someone could take a tape to their favorite GS500E (pre-2001) and tell me what the height of the handlebars (without mirrors) is. My pop took some measurements of our minivan today, and he said the only problem would be the height. The specs on the gstwin page say 42.5", which would be difficult or impossible to get through the opening. I think (hope) that that measurement includes the mirrors though.
Charlotte is supposed to have a lot of money ... like we have no idea where they got it all from, a large number of airheads - 45 in education whooooooo we beat South carolina and Missisippi, some very very ineffectual cops, quite a few bad drivers ... though they blame South carolina and other state drivers for all that and some arcane laws against motorcycles. So add it all up and its likely...
Cool.
Srinath.
Quote from: DomIt will fit in all minivans, provided that the seats are removed, and the mirrors are removed from the bike(not the van).
Dimensions: about 6-1/2' long, about 4' high(4.5' with mirrors) and 2' - 3' feet wide.
um, exactly to the top of the gauges is 40-13/16" on the kickstand. you also have the bars to contend with which, if need be, can be lowered for your purpose. The height of my handlebars is 46". If you bring a 6mm allen wrench the bars will rotate below the height of the gauges.
I hear the shocks on the GS500 are pretty easily compressed. How much extra clearance be had by compressing the shocks? The interior of the van isn't a problem, but it's the opening I'm worried about (I think it would still fit without compressing the shocks, but it would be nice to have some extra certainty).
Hey PPanther, I live in Visalia, east of you on the 99 about 2.5 hrs or so. If you can't get something figured out, I'd ride my GS out to SLO to meet up with you, park it, ride up with you to pick up your new bike, and ride your GS back to SLO, then ride my GS back to my place.
If you are interested, PM me, or email me at:
anthony_gross AT hotmail DOT CoM.
You can click on my Pictures page to see what my '00 looks like.
Quote from: Mk1inCaliHey PPanther, I live in Visalia, east of you on the 99 about 2.5 hrs or so. If you can't get something figured out, I'd ride my GS out to SLO to meet up with you, park it, ride up with you to pick up your new bike, and ride your GS back to SLO, then ride my GS back to my place.
Thats really nice of you, and I would definantly take you up on it, but I only have my permit (it takes about 10 days to get your paperwork after passing the BRC) and as such I can't ride on highways. Aside from that, I don't know if I'm really ready to take on Bay Area traffic. I'm from up that way and I'm terrified doing it in a car.
Ahh, I meant that I'd ride YOUR new bike back with you driving your car back.
y not just take the forks off, im sure it will fit then.
In all honesty I would consider that if it would make the bike fit, but since I've never done that with any motorcycle I really don't know how difficult it would be (I'd assume the wiring harness prevents you from really seperating the two. I'd prefer to not have to do that, as I think compressing angling it in/ compressing the forks/ letting air out of the tire if necessary is going to give me the 1 inch of clearance I need to get it through the opening in the back of the van. Is it difficult to remove the forks?
Quote from: PneumaticPantherIs it difficult to remove the forks?
That depends on what you consider "difficult".
I started to write up a list of steps, but if you remove the forks how are you going to manhandle the bike into the van?
Perhaps it would be enough to loosen the triple clamps and slide the forks UP as far as they will go? I'm sure it's not much, but even an inch would help.
It's not that bad, plus if you had them off you could check the lube on your front wheel bearings, steering head bearings, and all that...BUT, you could also just pull your handle bars out of their clamps, loosen the triple clamps up, and slide the fork legs up with wheel still attached until you had the clearance you needed to roll the bike up the ramp into the van. Let me know if you want help with anything, it costs me 7-8 bucks to get to SLO from Visalia on the Gisser, and I've been wanting to go to the coast anyway (Mainly for the Splash Cafe, downtown Pismo.)
Let me know-
I'll draw a diagram because what I'm talking about is a bit hard to explain otherwise but basically there's plenty of clearance inside the van. The problem comes in the entry path which is staggared (see below).
(http://www.ascentwebdesign.com/diagram.jpg)
As long as the front wheel goes over the hump without anything hitting the top, I think it's going to be fine. The extra space I would need is only some manuvering room to make sure that doesn't happen
Hmmm. Could you maybe
* rotate the handlebars down a bit
* roll the front wheel over the hump
* pull the axle and the front wheel
* get the handlebars through the "hole"
* reinsert the front wheel and axle
* and roll the rest of the bike in?[/list:u] :dunno:
You might be able to lay a piece of plywood over the threshold that is as wide as the opening, then lay the bike on it's side on some blankets over the plywood(to protect your paint and whatnot), slide it in, then stand it up once it's inside....worth a try :dunno:
Quote from: DomYou might be able to lay a piece of plywood over the threshold that is as wide as the opening, then lay the bike on it's side on some blankets over the plywood(to protect your paint and whatnot), slide it in, then stand it up once it's inside....worth a try :dunno:
Then you will have to deal with possibly fuel spills & oil getting into places of the motor where you might not want oil to get. If one lays the bike down, when it is put upright do not start it up for a while until the oil drains back down into the pan.
If you're worried about laying the bike down and getting the motor all sticky icky, you can bring a 12mm open ended box wrench for the tank bolts, a 21 mm socket with at least a 3" extension for the oil plug, a flathead screwdriver for the petcock valve on the tank, a pair of pliers for the hose clamps, and an old bleach bottle for the oil, maybe some rags for spillage, and a stopwatch, because if you time yourself you'll be done in under ten minutes. And if you're really paranoid about spills, you can throw a foot long piece of 1/4" o.d. aquarium tube on the carburetor float bowl drain the remaining gas from the carbs into a Mason jar or whatever.
You should probably change the oil and oil filter as soon as you get the bike anyway.
Well, I answered the question this evening. Yes. Absolutely. As in I took the mirrors off and I was perfectly fine, several inches of clearance in the entrance. Now I feel dumb for even starting this thread, but thanks to all of you who gave me advice. Another quick question, though. Is it normal for the tank and plastic bodywork to have a little bit of play in it? I had already bought the bike before I noticed this, but I took a look up under the front of the tank and noticed that it's held to the frame by a tab-like joint. I assume there must be some other, hidden fasteners elsewhere. Can anyone tell me what the normal amount of movement I should be getting here is?
Quote from: PneumaticPantherIs it normal for the tank and plastic bodywork to have a little bit of play in it?
Sure, I guess so.
Quote from: PneumaticPantherI took a look up under the front of the tank and noticed that it's held to the frame by a tab-like joint. I assume there must be some other, hidden fasteners elsewhere.
Nope, no hidden fasteners. Besides the "tab" in the front (I call it a "C channel") the only other fasteners are the mounting bolts at the rear of the tank.
However, there
are a few "spacers". A long, thin rubber bumper is pushed on around the bottom perimeter of the tank. Two cube-shaped rubber pieces are glued to the underside of the tank on either side, towards the rear. They rest on top of the frame.
Hope this helps. :dunno: