85 GS550e simple question.

[c0okiez]

hey guys, new member here. I just picked up an 85 gs550e from a buddy for free and have a few questions. It came with no manual, and the previous owner just kept it in his garage, with little knowledge about the bike.

1. Regarding the fuel petcock, it has 3 choices when viewing it from the side [up, right, down]. I'm honestly unsure of which is the on, reserve, and prime setting. Can't find much information about this simple question.

2. The stock airbox was damaged and cracked, and I want to switch to emgo pods or unipods setup, however, with the 2-barrel carbs; how am i sure the pods i order will fit. almost every site suggests a 54mm. Will they be oval shaped to fit the carbs?

3. If i go the pods route, what do you guys recommend for the jet sizing?

Any help regarding these questions would be greatly appreciated.

[tkent02]

Don't go Emgo.

[BassCliff]

Greetings and Salutations!!

Hi Mr. c0okiez,

Try to post up a picture of your petcock. Check the "Where Do These Hoses Go?" article on my website and see if it is similar to the "normal" stock petcock. I don't know what to tell you about your weird dual-throat carbs. I think you may be in for a bunch of trial and error. There's an '83 GS550 service manual on my website. See if that one is close enough. About all I can do is dump a TON if information on you and share some GS lovin'.

I just stopped by to welcome you to the forum in my own, special way.

If there's anything you'd like to know about the Suzuki GS model bikes, and most others actually, you've come to the right place. There's a lot of knowledge and experience here in the community. Come on in and let me say "HOoooowwwDY!"....

Here is your very own magical, mystical, mythical, mind-expanding "mega-welcome". Please take notice of the "Top 10 Common Issues", "Top 15 Tips For GS Happiness", the Carb Rebuild Series, and the Stator Papers. All of these tasks must be addressed in order to have a safe, reliable machine. Now let me roll out the welcome mat for you...



Please click here for your mega-welcome, chock full of tips, suggestions, links to vendors, and other information. Then feel free to visit my little BikeCliff website where I've been collecting the wisdom of this generous community. Don't forget, we like pictures! Not you, your bike!

Thanks for joining us. Keep us informed.

Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff

[c0okiez]

thanks guys. i figured out the fuel petcock dilemma. i just need to know about the pod filters for my carbs, its a 2-barrel set up, so the pods will need to be oval shaped. the dimensions are roughly ~95mm x ~55mm.

[Mike]

thanks guys. i figured out the fuel petcock dilemma. i just need to know about the pod filters for my carbs, its a 2-barrel set up, so the pods will need to be oval shaped. the dimensions are roughly ~95mm x ~55mm.

Avoid them. More of a hassle than they're worth.

[c0okiez]

the stock airbox is broken beyond repair, so i really have no other choice man.

[mike_of_bbg]

If you go pods, get some real K&Ns, and get the DynoJet kit for your bike. Simply changing the jets will not compensate for the vacuum changes throughout the RPM range - the shape of the needle is just as, if not more, important. Unless of course you like spending months of testing with different jets and shims and still never getting it right...

[mike_of_bbg]

the stock airbox is broken beyond repair, so i really have no other choice man.

Sure you do - even cheaper than Emgo pods I'd reckon:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/83-Suzuki-GS-550-E-Air-Box-w-Filter-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem43a54a1d5cQQitemZ290535906652QQptZMotorcyclesQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

[c0okiez]

hmm, that looks like it just might work for mine. 83-85 looks like it uses the same airbox. def. won't rule that out. thanks man.

[c0okiez]

does anyone have any idea on oval pods that would fit? or where i can even look. I tried everywhere it seems and this 4cyl, 2 carb set up is pretty common. but no parts?

[mike_of_bbg]

Try searching the forums for "oval pods" as I did. This thread came up and it seems that they are no longer available (it's unclear if there was ever a specific part for the 83-86 GS550s), though someone did cleverly hook up some 52mm round pods to his intake boots.

http://www.thegsresources.com/_forum/showthread.php?t=170978&highlight=oval+pods

[c0okiez]

hmm, he has an interesting set-up. have any idea how he fabbed those up?