GS450S tank on GS450L - Who has done it?

[Guest]

Has anybody put a GS450S model tank on the GS450L bike? Just wondering if it will indeed fit. I'm modifications are needed but how much? Just relocation of front mounts? I'm sure somebody has done this. Thanks in advance.

[Steve]

Front mounts are different, for sure, but I don't know about the rear.

On some of the larger bikes, the rear mounts are different, starting in '82.
Might have to check the parts fiches to see if there are differences.

What years are you considering?

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[got20z]

Not real picky about year. Just would like to know which one I could try with the least modifications. The bike I'm working on is missing a lot of parts so I'm just going to go custom and make it my own. I want to do a cafe theme so that means I want a different tank. The L model tank is nice but just not really the look I'm going for. Thanks for your post.

[gsrick]

Since the tanks are nothing alike, and judging by the majority of L models, I'd guess the S tank will be too long to fit the L frame and seat. The 450S we had was a rather long bike for it's size, well it felt that way because the seat allowed me to slide back a little to make it feel like a bigger bike.

[Steve]

Not real picky about year. Just would like to know which one I could try with the least modifications.

OK, then, let's just start with the basics.

If I recall, you already have an L. What year? Hint: it would help to add this information to a signature, so you don't have to mention it in every post where you are asking about your bike.

Do you have a lead on an S tank? I just looked at the parts fiche for the L and the S. It appears that the rear mount is the same for both, so it might be as simple as moving the front mounts on the frame.

One other thing to consider: One reason the L tank mounts farther back at the front is because the triple clamps on the forks are different. The forks have a leading axle, mainly to let the tube extend a bit lower, giving them the "chopper" look of extended forks that was popular at the time. To keep steering geometry about the same, they left the wheel/axle assembly in the same place (relative to the chassis), but moved the fork legs back by straightening the angle on the triples. That would let the fork tubes hit the tank, so they made a shorter tank. A shorter tank didn't hurt the "chopper" look they were going for, either.

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[sam000lee]

I'm guessing that the swap would take at least some modification of at least the front or the rear mounts. If the inside gap of the tank mounts is the same, it's pretty easy to cut the mounts of and re-well them in a different place. You can similarly rework the rear mount. Depends on what you mean by "least modifications" - Doing this on my GS450L with an L tank to slightly adjust the tank setup took maybe an hour or two.

[Gorminrider]

The front mounts are different. The E and S model tank mounts closer to the frame and further forward on the frame... The T/ L mounts stick out on stalks bfurther back.
The rear mounts are different too but a piece of 90 degree angle might be all you need(the bolts are on different axes and the E/S tank has 1 bolt versus (I do believe) two on the L.
The coils are mounted differently too. If you go and look carefully at these features on the parts fiches you will see the coil mounts and the front tank mounts as I try to describe, excepting the rear mount of the tank which is not plain... https://www.cmsnl.com/suzuki-gs450_model13427/

Incidentally I have not seen any 450 with leading forks

One reason the L tank mounts farther back at the front is because the triple clamps on the forks are different. The forks have a leading axle

but if you have an example I'd be interested to see it.
I see it that Suzuki actually made filler pieces to prettify the frame for the shorter (but bulbous T and L tanks.(but the rear mount isvery near the same spot )
The E/S tanks are very tapered at the front, and cover the frame entirely without this cosmetic and do not interfere with the ( as-far-as-I-know identical) triple tree.