Eventful Day - 3 Test Rides

Hello All,

I test rode the Honda Unicorn, Suzuki GS150R and Suzuki Gixxer today. My (very basic) observation are as below: (previous to this, I have only had experience of riding Splendor and Victor in my family)

1) Honda Unicorn - A lot of waiting minutes and confusing minutes later I was allowed to test ride a Unicorn for around 1KM (around 1/2 Km each way) before the pillion started saying that the fuel in the tank isn't enough and we can't go any further, so, I must take a 'U' and head back towards the showroom.
They also said 'Black' colour has a waiting period of 2 months. So, solely based on this, Unicorn is finally out of my choices. I can live with the fact that Unicorn's looks won't make heads turn, but I can't wait 2 months just to get delivery/possession. Moving on...

2) Suzuki Gixxer - WOW! Riding this just 10 mins after riding the Unicorn, and I could feel the different very clearly. Pick up much better, breaking was more...I don't know how to say it..I mean, I felt the bike would have a shorter stopping distance comparing to Unicorn. The handle bars, seating position and the seat itself seemed comfortable (but it was only for 5-10 mins when I was riding this bike). Later I even decided to sit as the pillion and take another short trip, found the seating position too high to mount (Perhaps some ladies may find it little uncomfortable?). The read seat foot rest has to be folded inwards so as to do a kick start, else the kick level will hit against the foot rest. I did not see any way to change over between PWR and ECO mode, the sales guy said he wasn't sure if this feature was available in Gixxer. The chain is 'open', so, I felt it would be more prone to dust/dirt. Horn sounded sufficiently loud.

3) Suzuki GS150R - WOW! (again). Riding this bike just a few mins after riding the Gixxer, I felt without doubt Gixxer has more pick up and faster response when given throttle. The bike has a bigger fuel tank but leg/thigh position wasn't a problem in neither Gixxer, no GS150R. I know that this bike has 6 gears, but the road length and traffic only permitted speed till around 50-55 km/hr and I was satisfied on the 5th gear cuz the bike felt smooth and no vibrations...Just then the sales guy said "sir, there is one more gear left" I thought to myself "ok, why not?"..and then I shifted to the 6th and wow! the bike moved even more so smoothly, as if gliding on the road. The breaking felt suitable to me for Bangalore traffic. Ofcouse, if it was raining and I was driving at 90Km/hr and had to apply sudden breaks then maybe it won't stop like how it was stopping today, but riding the GS150R for the first time today AND having those comments about the bike skidding from this thread at the back of my head was making me slightly nervous, but overall I found the breaks to be very effective and I didn't have any problem today. Chain is covered and the horn sounded sufficiently loud.

GS150R is still my first choice. Gixxer may appeal to majority of the people but somehow I prefer the mature looking GS over the sporty and cool looking Gixxer. I think the thing about the "looks" of a bike i.e what looks good/bad depends on person to person. It doesn't have SEP (Gixxer and Lets have SEP) but still the mileage is around 50kmpl for most owners which sounds good to me. Tomorrow I will go to the showroom again and discuss a final quotation with the Manager...lets see how it goes. My heart says GS, but the brain says Gixxer...very confusing. The Manager also said that "MAYBE" GS150R 2015 models will have SEP...expected the newer version to be available in market by June 2015, but ofcouse, he said he was just guessing.

PS: Aerolex suzuki said they don't have any GS for display, and not even for booking. They have exhausted their stock and there won't be anymore stock coming up cuz suzuki has decided to stop production of this bike, so, I should buy Gixxer and it is available with them. I was little surprised cuz no other dealer/sales guy talked like this. The person who I spoke to at Aerolex is "MAHESH" or "Mukesh" can't remember.

Re: Carb screw jammed

In GS150R rear-wheel doesn't spin in neutral even at high rpms as 6,000 RPM. But it does in gear & clutch completely disengaged(clutch lever completely pulled-in/squeezed/pressed).

Another reason could be float is acting up; float not completely filling the bowl. As Pilot-Jet is positioned at little higher position compared to choke & Main-Jet.

Picture is not from side, however you can see in this video at 6m:23s

Re: Suzuki GS150R

Hi All Gspian,

Hope you are enjoying ride with GS.

I am a great follower of this forum and nice to see people sharing technical knowledge around.

Got few issue with my 7 month old GS and wanted guidance / help from you guys.

• Which is best spark plug for GS , apart from what mentioned in service manual. ? Is it really necessary to change though engine starts without any issues?
• Which is best oil grade to be used in winter season for GS? Presently using 20w40 as recommended by Suzuki.

(Please also guide if this is only an engine resonance effect, any measures to get rid-off this)


Thannks

Ravi

Re: Suzuki GS150R

• Is spark plug change needed? If not, leave it alone.
• 20W40 is absolutely perfect for Pune weather. Using it for past 6 years. For GS150R, it was perfect for Jammu Kashmir Leh Ladakh (September weather) as well.
• 3.5k rpm resonance has been there since batch 1. It will go away eventually.
• Ask SC whether you need to change the fork oil. I don't think you do at 8300km.
• Check front disk again at other SC or garage.
• Don't spend money on rear disc brakes either. Fitting disc brakes from outside is never reliable, and GS150R's brakes is very good. Hope you are using the front and rear in 70:30 or 60:40 proportion.

Enjoy your GS, don't screw around the machinery. Keep it stock and it will serve you for a really long time.

Finally

Hello All,

Bike shortlisting and selection has been a 'ride' full of confusion!

Started off with an all Honda line up - Unicorn and Trigger
Next - Unicorn, Trigger, Hero Xtreme (2014 model that came out in April I think)
Next - Unicorn, Trigger, GS150R
Next - Unicorn, GS150R, Gixxer
Next - GS150R, Gixxer
Next - GS150R

My Requirements were:
a) I don't want the bike to wobble if a heavy bus/lorry/trailer zooms past by close to me in the adjacent lane on the main road (Hosa Road, Bangalore for example). The bike should feel stable.
b) 150cc engine - cuz for the past 10 yrs or so I have only been riding 100cc. Just thought of trying something with more engine capacity and also to accommodate point (a)

So, finally I booked a GS150R for myself today from "NineStar Suzuki, Bangalore"

Re: Suzuki GS150R

1) Check oil seals at top of each fork , in warranty they should replace including fork oil.
2) try abrubt breaking for few kms not at high speeds , this shoulg set break pads polished firmly on disk.
3)sprk plugs last much longer than recommended , mine is 32,000 kms and not even cleaned once since last changed.
4) 3.5k resonance is related torque / rpm and air fuel mixture changing in carburetor , we do not have any option to modify any of that, we can effectively and safely minimize it by inserting a rubber spacer at silencer and body connecting nut , this is successfully and easily done by many GS owners, this is smoothest band.
5) engine oil is peculiar in GS , I like change it more frequently to keep it running as smooth as possible all the time , 20/40 is defacto, 10/40,15/50 are great , due to more moving parts compared to other bikes ( 6th gear & engine balancer, SJS )1lit oil is not enough for longer duration as well as on long runs, prefer semi / synthetics . GS is very sensitive to OIL and fuel quality any deviation results in harshness and vibes as well as irritating sounds.
This is extreamly reliable bike and should last for generation , mine has covered 62k under 3 years , still getting 56 km/l , no major repirs , no ASC visit since 20 months 32k kms,

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1) Check oil seals at top of each fork , in warranty they should replace including fork oil.
2) try abrubt breaking for few kms not at high speeds , this shoulg set break pads polished firmly on disk.
3)sprk plugs last much longer than recommended , mine is 32,000 kms and not even cleaned once since last changed.
4) 3.5k resonance is related torque / rpm and air fuel mixture changing in carburetor , we do not have any option to modify any of that, we can effectively and safely minimize it by inserting a rubber spacer at silencer and body connecting nut , this is successfully and easily done by many GS owners, this is smoothest band.
5) engine oil is peculiar in GS , I like change it more frequently to keep it running as smooth as possible all the time , 20/40 is defacto, 10/40,15/50 are great , due to more moving parts compared to other bikes ( 6th gear & engine balancer, SJS )1lit oil is not enough for longer duration as well as on long runs, prefer semi / synthetics . GS is very sensitive to OIL and fuel quality any deviation results in harshness and vibes as well as irritating sounds.
This is extreamly reliable bike and should last for generation , mine has covered 62k under 3 years , still getting 56 km/l , no major repirs , no ASC visit since 20 months 32k kms,

Re: Suzuki GS150R

Hello all,

Looks like finally the issue I had with replacement in Carb is solved today. It appears that the choke cable was jammed or something (normal choke operation was working fine but it was getting pulled even when choke is not applied). After replacing choke cable idle is much more stable and no rise in rpm on warm engine nor engine dying at low rpms. Will observe for a few days now if it sustains.

Thanks [MENTION=36366]SparKot[/MENTION] for continuous support

Re: Suzuki GS150R

great ..that was the only issue, ensure you use choke at regular intervals to avoid jamming , usually in morning first starts for couple of seconds

Re: Suzuki GS150R

So, I was wrong at narrowing down to the issue; beating around the bush!!!

That brings me to the question, How often do/did you use choke?

Btw, I observed that choke cable is nylon-coated near the lever on handle, throttle cables looked normal. I opened switches for lubing as indicator switch was becoming tight.

TitBit: Do not let your motorcycle to drench in rain. Apparently rain-water is acidic, not good for the metallic components!!!

Re: Suzuki GS150R

I seldom used choke. Have been using bike for bit more than a year now and never had issue with normal kick start every morning without choke. Started on first kick always.
[MENTION=36366]SparKot[/MENTION] What is the point you are trying to make saying choke cable is nylon-coated? What effect does it have?

Re: Suzuki GS150R

We were trying the identify if our cables are Teflon(PTFE) coated on FZ-16[S] thread. I saw some cables with Nylon coating on the internet. Nylon is supposed to reduce internal cable friction by a great extent.

People with broken cables can throw more light on the subject.

TitBit: Clean gear-shift-lever joints & apply silicone grease. Now enjoy the butter-smooth gear-shifts on GS150R. Tight gear-shifts => tight lever joints!!!

Re: Suzuki GS150R

I see. Nice tip about the silicone grease. Will try that. Currently bike is behaving nice to me and experience is the smoothest since purchase because of eliminated 3.5k rpm resonance effect.
Next task is Full DC conversion. :P That'll make it complete

Re: Suzuki GS150R

Hey guys ,
missing some old GSpians on this longest ever thread , many new people have joined and great this thread is as alive as ever ,
thank you Vikshe

Re: Suzuki GS150R

Even old members are posting some posts

Sent from my XT1033 using xBhp Connect mobile app

Re: Suzuki GS150R


you don't require choke to be utilized every other days , I never ever used chokes in my earlier 100ccs ,
I too never used fore almost a year until the issue propped when one day at dawn of rainy season , my choke valve stuck , though SVC did rectify under warranty and they gave reasonable reason to use choke as possible, during longer period of hours once bike engine is not running , the Air fuel mixture and warmness the compression is at down side (we call it cold start)choke is basic fuel licker or controlled leaker were more fuel is passed(leaked)to get more compression at cold start , also engine linings have lesser engine oil film alongside this helps in immediate cooling due to sudden heat generations,and ultimately protects engine at cold starts........whew.


my take is when we have good quality fuel inside you hardly require choke or so , our loyal GS 150r starts immediately at flick of button or so called half kick on any given day without choke , but suzy has provided hand mounted control for the choke so utilize it as you wish atleast in a week for 3-4 secs.

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you don't require choke to be utilized every other days , I never ever used chokes in my earlier 100ccs ,
I too never used fore almost a year until the issue propped when one day at dawn of rainy season , my choke valve stuck , though SVC did rectify under warranty and they gave reasonable reason to use choke as possible, during longer period of hours once bike engine is not running , the Air fuel mixture and warmness the compression is at down side (we call it cold start)choke is basic fuel licker or controlled leaker were more fuel is passed(leaked)to get more compression at cold start , also engine linings have lesser engine oil film alongside this helps in immediate cooling due to sudden heat generations,and ultimately protects engine at cold starts........whew.


my take is when we have good quality fuel inside you hardly require choke or so , our loyal GS 150r starts immediately at flick of button or so called half kick on any given day without choke , but suzy has provided hand mounted control for the choke so utilize it as you wish atleast in a week for 3-4 secs.

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my bike was accidently fallen by a car at parking lot , now I have bent handle and foot peg right side , I cursed that drunken guy ..., ther is also small but substantial dent on the tank,
now I would like to know can the bent handle rectified with footpegs and can dent be removed by SVC , or I have to change handle bar .
foot peg in gs is removable(its foot peg holder that is bent), can dent be removed .
I would like to hear from likes of vishnukund , gmagesh, punarvasu and all other greats who oen GS