I'm a 57 year old that started riding at eight.I've owned about 25 motorcycles over the years. We just moved to the Big Island of Hawaii, so I sold my motorcycles first, as shipping is very spendy. Our house is about 15 minutes from Hilo, where there is a Suzuki shop. They have a new GS500F for sale there (don't know what year). Back in 1980 I bought a new GS450ST, which I liked a bunch in it's day. So I'm considering buying the GS500F for myself, but thought I might ask a few things.
    First, do you have to remove any bodywork for an oil and filter change? How about to replace spark plugs? I watched a video where an owner was using the Suzuki valve shim tool and was having a tough time. The tool kept slipping off the bucket on him. Is there a beter way? Or has this tool worked okay for others?
    I think the GS500F would make a very good ride here on the island. I don't need a super fast motorcycle to get me around. I love the large gas tank on this bike. My GS450ST used to average about 66 mpg, and I understand some of you are getting close to that from your 500s.

    Jon in Keaau

I visit friends in Hawaii Kai. Always wanted to ride there but only Harley's for rent and too expensive. Thought of buying a used bike and leaving it there but the parents said NO to leaving a bike for their kids to ride (would have been cheaper that way, too).

As for work: plugs: easy. Don't even have to remove the fairing but it is easier if removed (takes a minute to do that)

Oil: should remove lower fairing to get at oil filter easily. Takes maybe all of 1 minute to remove the lower fairing. Have someone show you how to do it once and you'll see it is really simple.(Let me know when you get it - I'm available to fly over    )

Valve tool? No opinion there. Have one, haven't used it. Friend did valves with screw drivers. Not hard to do but is easier if 2 people work on that part - one to hold tools and one to play with shims (no, I don't mean to go down to Waikiki beach and play with those "shims"). See if dealer will do first valve adjustment as part of the sale. After that, valves are good for quite a while before they need work.

Overall the GS500 is really reliable and easy to work on.

You buy one and I gonna look you up for a ride to Zippy's for chili rice    next time I'm there.

Quote from: Birdmove on September 14, 2011, 03:56:32 PM
    I'm a 57 year old that started riding at eight.I've owned about 25 motorcycles over the years. We just moved to the Big Island of Hawaii, so I sold my motorcycles first, as shipping is very spendy. Our house is about 15 minutes from Hilo, where there is a Suzuki shop. They have a new GS500F for sale there (don't know what year). Back in 1980 I bought a new GS450ST, which I liked a bunch in it's day. So I'm considering buying the GS500F for myself, but thought I might ask a few things.
    First, do you have to remove any bodywork for an oil and filter change? How about to replace spark plugs? I watched a video where an owner was using the Suzuki valve shim tool and was having a tough time. The tool kept slipping off the bucket on him. Is there a beter way? Or has this tool worked okay for others?
    I think the GS500F would make a very good ride here on the island. I don't need a super fast motorcycle to get me around. I love the large gas tank on this bike. My GS450ST used to average about 66 mpg, and I understand some of you are getting close to that from your 500s.

    Jon in Keaau

Jon....IMHO a perfect bike for your use....(relative to what bikes are out there, it might not be considered fast, but it is still pretty fast)

1.  You should get 60 to 70 MPG on regular ( I routinely go 160 to 180 miles between fill up, without having to go to reserve..

2. I have done oil changes and filter with the fairings on and off.....I prefer off, worth the extra 18(I think) fasteners ...mostly allen head screws and a couple of push  pins...plus you can do a nice clean up on the inside surfaces of the fairings...

3.I guess you could do spark plugs with the fairings on, but I never did... when I do the plugs I give the engine a good cleaning too...

Really the (lower) fairings are  easy once you do it once.....just remember to remove the "hidden" plastic push pins inside and under the front area...

4.  I just used the motion pro valve tool.....it does not slip off if you do it correctly...I saw that video and don't know why it slipped of so many times for that guy...If you insert the tool properly and carefully it works great!!!

The only thing hard about the valve adjust is that you have to take off a lot of crap just to get down to the valves and cams.....seat, tank, a few weird gizmo thingies, Valve cover, etc....  Once you do it the first time, it really is not all that much.....can do in an evening...

Cookie

I just put in 4.2 gal at 271 miles today.  Running about 65 mpg now on my 02 GS in the summertime, bit lower in cold weather.

If you don't like the bodywork on the F model it's an easy conversion to a naked E model, many have done it.  I like them naked.

http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=21212.0

Quote from: Birdmove on September 14, 2011, 03:56:32 PM
    I'm a 57 year old that started riding at eight.I've owned about 25 motorcycles over the years. We just moved to the Big Island of Hawaii, so I sold my motorcycles first, as shipping is very spendy. Our house is about 15 minutes from Hilo, where there is a Suzuki shop. They have a new GS500F for sale there (don't know what year). Back in 1980 I bought a new GS450ST, which I liked a bunch in it's day. So I'm considering buying the GS500F for myself, but thought I might ask a few things.
    First, do you have to remove any bodywork for an oil and filter change? How about to replace spark plugs? I watched a video where an owner was using the Suzuki valve shim tool and was having a tough time. The tool kept slipping off the bucket on him. Is there a beter way? Or has this tool worked okay for others?
    I think the GS500F would make a very good ride here on the island. I don't need a super fast motorcycle to get me around. I love the large gas tank on this bike. My GS450ST used to average about 66 mpg, and I understand some of you are getting close to that from your 500s.

    Jon in Keaau

1.) Oil and filter change can be done with fairings on, but even Hayne's recommends taking at least one fairing off. You'll see why when you get the bike. Trying to get a socket wrench around the fairing AND exhaust pipes is pretty difficult to do without burning yourself.

2.) You can change plugs without removing the fairings if you're surgical with a deep socket, but I take both fairings off to make the job easier.

3.) The guy on the video was probably inexperienced. I haven't heard of GS500F's being any harder to shim than any other bike.


The nice thing is the GS500F is a faired version of a naked bike. Therefore you don't really have to fight with the fairings like you do on a standard sportbike (it was a pain bleeding the brakes on my friend's ZX-7R for example because the brake fluid reservoir was buried behind a hard to remove fairing). They come off really easy and are really easy to put back on.

   Think I'll call the dealer tomorrow and see what his out the door price would be. It'll be high, as it seems all new motorcycles are normally higher here. Another good reason to buy the GS is the dealer is about 15 minutes away. The Honda/Kawasaki/Yamaha/Kymco dealer is about a five hour round trip in Kona (that's why they call Hawaii the Big Island).

    BY the way, with Suzuki cutting production down due to unslod older models, anyone heard if the GS500F will be back for 2012? It would be in it's own class now that Kawasaki has dropped the Ninja 500. I owned an older pre-"Ninja"/EX500, and it was a great motorcycle.

    I'll let you know if I become the newest old geezer GS500F owner shortly. I know I would love the bike.

    Jon

Quote from: Birdmove on September 14, 2011, 11:12:46 PM
  BY the way, with Suzuki cutting production down due to unslod older models, anyone heard if the GS500F will be back for 2012? It would be in it's own class now that Kawasaki has dropped the Ninja 500. I owned an older pre-"Ninja"/EX500, and it was a great motorcycle.

Jon, we are still waiting for a true 2011 model. They are usually out by now but so far no-one has really seen one. My local dealer reckons they don't come out until the end of the year, which is BS. Some 2011 models in the USA are just restamped 09 models - same color, when Suzuki changes color every year.

A few of us are keeping sharp eyes out at dealerships for the fist sign of a true 2011 model. We'll let you know when they arrive.

Michael

Quote from: Birdmove on September 14, 2011, 11:12:46 PM
   Think I'll call the dealer tomorrow and see what his out the door price would be. It'll be high, as it seems all new motorcycles are normally higher here....................................

The almost $6k MSRP of the GS500F was reduced to $4399 a while back to sell off the leftover 09,08, and 07 model's, don't know if that holds for HI and AK but just want to make sure you are aware of it.

http://www.suzukicycles.com/Product%20Lines/Cycles/Products/GS500F/2009/GS500F.aspx?category=sportbike

I think 09 was the last of the GS500 models that will be sold in the US.  It's already been dropped from the EU market, too hard too meet the polution regs with the GSs ancient engine design.  Never know though, they did update their equally ancient 250cc thumper engine and add FI for the TU250 a couple years ago.

http://www.americanlisted.com/hawaii_11/motorcycles_10/2006_suzuki_gs500f_motorcycle_500cc_3300_katy_houston_cypress_13878452.html