Because it was low miles and CHEAP.  It was a deal I couldn't refuse.

We lucked into our first baby G. My sweetheart and I were looking for our first bike to learn on, and the baby G was the second bike we looked at. I'd been all set to buy the first bike we'd looked at (a cruiser, believe it or not), but that deal fell through when the chick was all flaky. We found the bike, and then we found the forum...the rest is history. I think we were meant to have our bullet-proof, taught-us-both-to-ride, cult classic little GS! 

And I'd make it THREE GS's if my bf wouldn't throw me out for bringing another GS home! 

Got lucky, great little bike.
It was cheep, low miles and light.
On big bikes I spend too much time around 100. This bike is happy at 80.
I got my first bike in 1963, and must have had a couple of dozen over the years. This is one of the most fun to knock around town on.
Wish I had a small cruiser to take trips with, and a dual sport to explore the woods. But what I do most is run errands, and the GS is perfect for that.

the devil made me do it.











(gotta love religion  )

Hello all, first post here.

Just got my 05 GSF about a month ago.  Really, in a perfect world, I would be riding a gsxr600 right now.  I bought the GSF because it looks close enough to the gsxr (or at least better than the ninja 500), was much more comfortable, and of course, its cheaper in all aspects of ownership (insurance, maintenance, etc.).

That said, I really like the little gs.  It goes fast enough for me and I believe the ease of riding will make me a better rider for my eventual upgrade.  Against my advice, all my friends are getting 600 supersports as their first bikes (the gsf is my 2nd bike), so I'm turning into the "little guy" in the group.  Oh well... a few more years I guess and I'll get the gixxer.

By the way, this is a great forum you folks have here.  You may think I'm crazy, but in the past month I have literally gone through the first 684 pages of this forum (thats where the gs500f specific info stops), reading nearly every topic dealing with the gsf.

Keeping the rubber side down,
*ZeroCool*

What?  Are F-model owners starting a cult?   

I bought a GS because I wanted a sane, small, easy to handle first bike.  I didn't (and don't) want some esoteric thing that requires a 6-month wait for parts from lalaland.  That narrowed things down quite a bit.   I figured I had a choice between the EX 250, the EX 500, and the GS. 

I ruled the 250 out because I like to take long rides.  Although I know the 250 can do it fine, I figured a little more displacement would  make things less annoying on the freeway.  Both kawis were out entirely because of water cooling, which is one more thing to fail 1500 miles from home.  Although I could flatfoot the 250 and nearly flatfoot the 500, the seating position didn't feel right.

I spent quite a bit of time on beginnerbikes.com (now gone) soaking up info.  I gathered that the EX suspension was a little more primitive than the GS's, but the EX had a slight power advantage.  I prefer a good handling chassis to power anyday, so score a point for the GS.

The first time I sat on a GS, about a year after I caught the bug, I knew it was the right bike.  It was an 04 F-model, but I ended up going to the dark side and buying a 96 E-model.  I suspect the GS will see plenty of bigger and better bikes arrive and depart my garage in the coming years. 

it was a purchase of opportunity....

plus chicks really dig the bucket headlight, the 130 rear tire and the sweet 1980's styling 

yep i rather handling over power to cause if you cant handle the bike whats the sence of having lots of  power lol

I cant afford insurance on anything bigger, well maybe a SV650 but i wasnt willing to pay anymore a year than i do now.

i almost bought a Black ZZR-250, it looked very nice but wanted a 500. the Kawi EX500 doesnt look so pretty, theyve had the same fender style since the 80's dont u think its time for a change?? lol

The power is okay on the GS, would prefer more...still waiting till i can afford insurance on a gsxr600-750

Pure research found me the naked 99' GS500E.

This is simply the only bike that fit my list of characteristics.

Looks - ya can't beat a naked bike with a bucket headlight (and I aint joking)
Handling - This bike was voted over and over in the top three of almost every comparison I could find
Cheap - $2500 for a good looking bike with less than 3K miles - ya can't beat that
Reliability - Bullet-proof engine
Parts - Suzuki has been building this thing since I was 10yrs old.  Parts are cheap and plentiful.

I rode this bad girl for two years before finding this forum and now I love her more than ever. I am a firm believer (cult master?) That this is the best bike out there.

And now because of this forum I have two more GS's in my stable

Speed Is not (and never was) a factor for me. If I can go 180mph I probably would. I know me. So I just ride the GS like a hot rod and stay under 100mph. She does me good and I love her for it.

i bought mine coz it was the biggest i could get whilst still learning - now that i'm kinda used to it - it could do with a little more grunt.. but i'll wait till i cana fford the insurance for something bigger....

live the sound of a twin.. ...

Because it was the only bike I could finance, I think they were trying to get rid of it and told me thats the only bike they could get me into

I originally wanted a CBR 600
DENIED
Then a GSXR6 (different shop)
DENIED
then a FZ6
DENIED
then a Katana 600
DENIED
then a EX 250
DENIED

and as I left in shame, they called me back and said they could get me financed for this bike

(mine is not an F, but I am going to answer anyway)

1) inexpensive
2) bulletproof / reliable / can to 95% of maintenance myself
3) mechanically simple (no water pumps, only 2 cylinders, etc)
4) light weight
5) purdy (I loves them nekkid bikes)
6) quick enough to be fun, but not so quick as to allow me to kill myself too quickly

Because its a chick magnet.....

Well I don't have one yet (maybe this week).. but I looked into them because they look better and have a little more power than the EX250, have a decent seating position, are relatively cheap, and most importantly they are a good beginner bike for people l9ike myself who have never ridden before.

I got mine because 1) wanted a comfortable commuter bike 2) wanted good beginner bike to become a good rider on and 3) i know if i had any more power i would kill myself because i drive like a jack ass and therefore would probably ride like a jack ass (which i do)

I got mine cause it was the right price, for the right things.  I was lookin for a newerish beginner bike, mainly had my eyes on a sv, found this one in the paper for cheap with 3k miles on it.

Figure I'll ride the crap out of it this season and next season step up to a gsxr600 or 750.

j7

I researched beginner bikes for a long time until I got my gs500.  Many people told me that it was an excellent bike to begin on, so when I finally had enough money to afford one, I started looking around.  I went to a site dedicated for Texan riders and I also signed up at this site.  I found a 1998 gs500e for 1,800 with only about 9,000 miles.  I figured it was a steal so I bought it. 

I have put about three thousand miles on it since December and it is now almost July.  In the past few weeks I have been driving it even more often than before.  I love the gs and Im very glad that I decided to get a smaller bike for my first.  I always drool over other bikes but the day will come when I have a bigger/faster bike.  I still havent decided if I will sell the gs500 though.  I think when the time comes, I will need the money,  but I want to keep the gs close to home.  Hopefully I can sell it to a close friend for a good price so that I will still be able to see it and rembmer the times we had together.

I got my GS500F because it is one of the bigger capacity bike we are allowed to learn on here in Australia.