1980 GS550e that's been sitting for 6 years

[Guest]

When it last ran it ran OK. Then it sat for 6 years straight. Any advice on the steps to take to get this thing up and running again? I also thought about just selling it if the headache is too intense.


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[tom203]

Looks good to me- seems unmolested. Are you mechanically minded ,or willing to learn ? Who told you that it ran great 6 years ago?

[shepoliceman]

Looks good to me- seems unmolested. Are you mechanically minded ,or willing to learn ? Who told you that it ran great 6 years ago?

it was mine and ran great and then I sold it to a friend who let it sit for 6 years. It was given back to me like this and now here I am

i am not too mechanically inclined. Im a basic, but I can follow directions?

[tom203]

it was mine and ran great and then I sold it to a friend who let it sit for 6 years. It was given back to me like this and now here I am

i am not too mechanically inclined. Im a basic, but I can follow directions?

No problem then- you've come to the right place !
how long did you own it? Did your friend have any (bike) issues that he confessed to?
Anyways, properly cleaning the carbs after 6 years of ethanol sitting in them will be the most labor intensive fun - do you have a place to work on it? Plus having experienced help is a big plus.

[shepoliceman]

No problem then- you've come to the right place !
how long did you own it? Did your friend have any (bike) issues that he confessed to?
Anyways, properly cleaning the carbs after 6 years of ethanol sitting in them will be the most labor intensive fun - do you have a place to work on it? Plus having experienced help is a big plus.

thanks in advance for your niceness and prompt response! I have a place to work on it yeah. My friend literally rode it for a month and never touched it again and so it sat. Maybe I'll make this my summer project ? Yeah I figured I gotta clean the carbs and also the gas tank has some rust around the Suzuki logo on the other side of the pic. Also there is not brake line fluid it appears. Any goto threads you can recommend?

[steve murdoch]

Welcome to the site.
Your bike looks to have good cosmetics.
An excellent and thorough carb cleaning guide can be found here. http://zeus.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage...d_Tutorial.pdf

Tank cleaning, brake repairs and repair manuals can be found here.

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/

[shepoliceman]

Welcome to the site.
Your bike looks to have good cosmetics.
An excellent and thorough carb cleaning guide can be found here. http://zeus.mtsac.edu/~cliff/storage...d_Tutorial.pdf

Tank cleaning, brake repairs and repair manuals can be found here.
http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/

thanks! I'll start getting prepared.

[tom203]

Just removing the carbs from this model bike is a challenge- cleaning them ain't that bad, just time consuming. There are folks on here who will clean them ,or you might find a guy in your area who can clean them using ultrasonic methods.
But before you get too deep into this, I'd check the bike's ignitor box to make sure it is still sparking the plugs. The 550 ignitor is suspect, might as well find out up front. Do you know how to do this? All you need is a good 12 volt battery or a NON running vehicle to supply 12 volts to bike's electrical system so you can crank it over and look for spark at plugs.

[shepoliceman]

Just removing the carbs from this model bike is a challenge- cleaning them ain't that bad, just time consuming. There are folks on here who will clean them ,or you might find a guy in your area who can clean them using ultrasonic methods.
But before you get too deep into this, I'd check the bike's ignitor box to make sure it is still sparking the plugs. The 550 ignitor is suspect, might as well find out up front. Do you know how to do this? All you need is a good 12 volt battery or a NON running vehicle to supply 12 volts to bike's electrical system so you can crank it over and look for spark at plugs.

I can definitely handle the spark test. I may have someone within a few blocks of me who owns a repair shop who has that ultrasonic machine you spoke of. And yea, I've taken off the carbs before. it's such a headache.

I really appreciate the time you took to respond. Thanks. I'll be sure to document what I am doing and post updates through the summer.

Oh does anyone have a good link to replace the bucks assemble and headlight? It's cracked and being held on by zip ties. Might as well replace the whole thing .

[dorkburger]

Definitely looks like a nice original bike worth saving, plus you know a lot of its history which is a plus.
Looks like you've been directed to the right links. Depending on your skill / patience / available time, I dont even see it as a summer project, more of a de mothballing. Please dont neglect the safety issues such as brakes, etc, and be aware that even if the tires have decent tread, they are likely old enough to need replacement anyway based on age.

And dont be like the ding dongs I see in Philly riding helmetless.
Good luck.

[tom203]

"Oh does anyone have a good link to replace the bucks assemble and headlight? It's cracked and being held on by zip ties. Might as well replace the whole thing ."

just put in "suzuki gs550 headlight" in ebay motorcycle parts section and a bunch will surface, so you might find what you need.