Is it possible to get my 1981 GS450 to look sportier

[Anonymous]

I picked up a 81 450 recently in great shape. love the bike, love the ride, so far its been a great first bike but Id really like it to look alittle more modern/sporty. Am i wasting my time/money? Is there much available for this bike. I was originally looking for a gs500e , my friend has an 89 and it looks great stock to me. I see tons of stuff online to make the later 500s look better but ive yet to see any 450s looking much diferent than stock

Any other Suzuki stuff swappable with this bike? tanks, seats, tail sections, lights?

heres a pic of what I've got

 

[bgmart450]

Wow, that looks just like the color we painted my wife's 450S.

I doubt you'll find anything off the shelf to bolt on your bike. You could try a 1/4 fairing like the ones that comes the S model or shorter turn signals. I am sure a bunch of other stuff is possible if you have the cash and know-how.

So far I have ditched the gauge cluster, put lower bars and put a bicycle speedo on mine (the black one). I am planning on clubman bars, bar end mirrors and possibly a paint job soon.

 

[Nerobro]

Trim the fender to look modern. Get new rear view mirrors. Get new turn signals. Paint the engine black. Flat black.

That should do it.

 

[isaac]

Black forks, black wheels, black engine, black rear shocks. That's a spray can, not a part swap. Yeah you can swap tanks, but you will be doing some modification on the way to make em work. If you wanted to, you could get the plastic and tank off a newer Katana or GSXR and make em fit, but you have to trim and come up with your own custom mounting for everything.

Look what I did by just blackening, lowering, yanking turn signals, and modding the tail:

 

[Jethro]

Too bad, I think it's perfect as is.

You know what rocks? A bike that's stock!

 

[UncleMike]

That's why I've got two!

Now I can mod the hell out of the 450, which was already modded a bit when I got it, and keep the 750 relatively stock.

 

[bgmart450]

Too bad, I think it's perfect as is.

You know what rocks? A bike that's stock!

A clean resto is indeed a pretty site. But just as there will always be restorers, there will always be hot-rodders/modders. I got one of each, the 450S will remain stock minus the paint.

Beauty is a very personal viewpoint. Just seeing thr whole 'chopper' craze should tell ya that :lol:

 

[IanFrancisco]

I just posted a pic of my '80 GS450S to the gallery. Pending review. I've got factory bar-end mirrors on mine that add to the cool factor but make lane splitting a little trickier. It's not legal in most states anyway. You might be able so see 'em in the avatar. I think your bike looks way cool as it is. We're old-school, pre-retro owners! Let the plastic crotch rocket crowd do their own thing. I get lots of compliments when I park at the local bike shop. People think my 80's look is cool...

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[Desolation Angel]

Gee, your bike looks great just like it is to me. I wouldn't spend anything cosmetically. Save your money for future mechanical trouble/upgrades.

 

[Guest]

Hey Pele, have you decided what to do?

My '81 GS is exactly the same as yours except maroon instead of blue.

As it's been sitting still for a few years, I need to do a lot of cleaning up and fixing of a few minor issues.

I've been "inspired" by the Laverda 750 SFC cafe racer look and plan on going down that path myself.

All I need to do (other than fixing up the minor issues) is find some suitable bars, find a way to move the footpegs back and up a bit, and see if I can bring the duck tail forward and shorten the seat base. Oh, and paint the front mudguard the same colour as the rest. The previous owner has creased and scratched it unfortunately, so I'll have to get it straightened which will probably ruin the chrome even more anyway, so I might as well paint it.

I've got a fair bit of work ahead of me, but that's ok because at the end I'll have the GS that has given me so much pleasure in the past but it will be the way I like it and want it to look, so will be much more rewarding than going and buying another bike that's already been done.

 

[kalessin]

You can always put go-faster stripes on it...

 

[Guest]

Now there's a thought!

 

[Anonymous]

looks like ill be doing some forced tail end modification as i broke my rear light and alittle of the tail plastic went with it


isaac: i just noticed that you have a 750, so your stock tail looked like this
:

my 450 has a tail that looks like this

I broke the rear light and about an inch of plastic maybe above the light, Im going to try to file the plastic flat, and do the plexiglass type thing like you did...it wont be as easy but i think ill be able to make something work

any advice?

 

[Guest]

Make sure you keep the pic's coming Pele, I wanna see how it looks!

I'm actually thinking of bringing my duck tail forward and shortening the seat pan like a real cafe racer.

If you look at any Laverda 750 SFC pic's, you'll see that the duck tail doesn't extend past the back wheel at all.

 

[andyjohnson]

pele,
I am starting on a project similar to yours. Just got a GS450L for cheap and am trying to make it more sporty. The L model is set up as a cruiser, so I've got work to do, the first step is bars, which I've just ordered (the style is called "Daytona"). the next step for me is the seat/tail. I was hoping someone could let me know what it takes to replace the L models big two step seat with the tail and seat from a GS450S, or any other sport seat that is known to work well. I've also read that you can raise the shocks on the triple tree to get a sportier response from the suspension, although I can't figure how to keep the raised shocks from hitting the handlebars, any advice on that would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks guys
Andy Johnson

 

[wayne cooper]

Check them out

Check them out

Nice ride as is. Just looked through some old numbers and found a possible lead for you. AirTech-2530 Fortune Way, Vista Ca. Phone 760-598-3366. If they are still around they had some dynamite glass products. If I remember correctly searched "vintage fairings". Not sure if they still exist, its an old note in an older book-good luck and hope to see more posts on you progress, Cafe' has class!!

 

[bgmart450]

http://www.airtech-streamlining.com/

They are still around. Not cheap however

 

[adam]

Yes you can change the appearance

Yes you can change the appearance

I have an 81 gs 450 L . I just replaced the apehanger bars with some black cafe style bars. And the seat looked to bulky for the cafe look i'm going for so I got one from a 450 T . It's my impression that you can use just about anything from another suzuki 81 450 but different model letter t, l, e, .....

 

[bgmart450]

Re: Yes you can change the appearance

Re: Yes you can change the appearance

I have an 81 gs 450 L . I just replaced the apehanger bars with some black cafe style bars. And the seat looked to bulky for the cafe look i'm going for so I got one from a 450 T . It's my impression that you can use just about anything from another suzuki 81 450 but different model letter t, l, e, .....

Mix (T & L) or (E & S) together and you should be OK.

Do any other crossovers and you may have issues. The tanks and seats for those 2 classes are way different as is the peg positioning, rear fenders and other rear bits etc etc...

 

[adam]

yeah

yeah

But not if you have the tools and skills. essentially the same bike. same frame. and engine set up . and stuff.