A
Note from the Owner
Mark,
I wanted to share my excitement with everyone about my locating
a 1980 GS1100ET in pristine condition. I purchased it on Ebay in
March of this year. It was originally purchased in Pasadena
California and it went with it's original owner to the Chicago
area. The original owner is a car dealer and had the beauty
sitting in his showroom when the second owner purchased it in
2003. The second owner didn't like driving it in the Chicago
traffic so he put it on Ebay and I lucked out and got it.
I purchased a 1981 GS1100EX brand new, but had to sell it for
financial reasons. Back then I read an article in Cycle World
about Terry Vance and Byron Hines building a 1980 street looking
GS1100. It only looked like a street bike but it would run in
the low 10's in the quarter mile. Anyway, the pictures showed a
red 1980 just like this one. I fell in love with the color
scheme and always wanted to find a 1980 or 1981 and restore it
like that bike. I still have the magazine from then as a guide.
That all ended when I purchased this 1980. It had 12,263 miles
on the clock and was kept in an environmentally controlled
garage. Everything is original expect the handle bars, front
fork brace, and the Vance&Hines 4 into 1. I have the
original 4 into 4 pipes because the original owner took them off
and stored them right after he purchased the bike. They are in
perfect condition! He also changed out the handlebars and saved
them. The seat is original with no tears or splits. The original
paint is shinny and looks almost like it just came off the
showroom floor except for a few small scuffs from 24 years of
life. The chain, battery, and tires have been replaced by the
second owner. Also included in the original show room price tag,
owners manual, and a Suzuki shop manual.
This is a dream bike and I feel blessed to have it. I also have
a 2004 Suzuki Hayabusa, (2) 1981 Suzuki GS1100EX's, (1) 1976
Honda CB 550-Four, (1) 1973 Honda CB 350-Four. All but the
Hayabusa and 1980 GS1100 are in different stages of restoration.
Thanks for listening !
Sincerely,
Pete
Mitchum
