Wrong hecktail?

[arve]

Ive hunted down a correct tank for my 1978 GS 1000 E, a local bike breaker has one,but wait a minute: This tank has an "intendation for emblem" in the sides,but what about the hecktail? Ive now seen pictures of two different bikes with intendation in the tail, but these bikes both have tanks with straight sides, that came on '79 models and newer. Could that be a coincidence? My bike has a hecktail with straight sides so Im starting to wonder if the intended parts are correct after all..But then again, that may also be a coincidence...Weird ones often come my way..It also seems to have a sissy bar from a L or American model on the correct flat saddle, looks too high..I think the tank was probably not changed without reason, in case of a crash the hecktail may have been damaged and swapped for a '79 one. So now i wonder: Does anyone know at which serial no. the intendation tank was swapped for the one with straight sides? May a combination of the first and a straight-sided tail be original? According to frame no. list @ www.gs-classic.de the 1979 frame no's start at 52, the no. on my bike starts at 50, although it was first registered in '79.
Arve

[almarconi]

Whats a hecktail ?

[bwringer]

I... I also can't really figure out what your question is, dood.

Also, are you in the US or somewhere else? There are some important model differences in different countries.

[Pete Logan]

Tail Lamp / License plate housing. Believe it's a European slang term. Example only - this is from some GS750 or another.

[arve]

The bike breakers here call them hecktails,perhaps a mix of german word heck,meaning aft or rear end of..."hekk" in norwegian is mostly used for the stern(or was it stem,anyways its at the rear) of a boat,but is sometimes also used for a car,or in this case a motorbike..My question is simply what parts are original for my bike,im abit confused since the hecktail,or tail lamp housing if you like,has smooth sides,indicating its a '79 model,while the frame no,according to the german site mentioned above,indicates its a '78 model E.Which should be similar in most markets,only the reflexes on the side of the..you know..are orange on bikes sold in norway and perhaps other places,while theyre normally red on pictures found on the net.Also,american sold ones seem to mostly have saddles that are higher at the rear,while others have a flat bench.Perhaps they were both optional,I dunno.I want to make my bike look like a "skunk",but it would satisfy even more to know for sure that it IS a genuine skunk.Is there any way to tell,from other than the frame number?

[steve murdoch]

Arve, if your frame says it is a '78 GS1000E, then it would be a Skunk.
I only know North American models so it should have tank and tail indentations, stepped seat, mag wheels with dual front discs and the black/white paint scheme.

[Pete Logan]

Is there any way to tell,from other than the frame number?

Frame number gives you the year of manufacture.

It's quite possible, and quite common, for bikes manufactured in the second half of a year to sit in the dealership for a while and not be registered for the road till the following year. The registration document would then record the year first registered, which would be one year later than the year of manufacture.

The frame number is the only reliable guide IMHO.

[arve]

Its registered in april '79, just before the snow leaves, in a small Norwegian town called Kongsvinger. I doubt someone came around every day to buy a new Suzuki 1000... It has cool feature, the two letters on the licence plate is a code for where it was registered, in Kongsvinger at the time they used the letters HK, which equals HP in English..

[kochic]

If it can help my 78 has a ribbed tank and tailpiece.
Marc