Project GSX-R600

Part One

When you find a used GSX-R600 for $1700  the first thing you have to ask yourself is what's wrong with it and how much will it cost to repair. Buying a used bike from a bloke off the street is always a dodgy affair. You usually have a limited amount of time to ascertain what's wrong, it won't come with maintenance history and most people will not let you test ride the bike without putting some cash in hand. To be sure, it is a risky proposition. First thing to look for is oil leaking out the bottom. If it starts right up, sounds fine and the mileage is low enough you can reasonably assume the engine and starter is okay. Should you own your own tool box and be considered handy with a screwdriver, one better have a good idea what the parts will cost or it's just asking for financial trouble and insults from friends and family. If you think it's an easy matter to fix and flip the bike- think again. Parts are not cheap and if you have to pay retail for new parts you better be in love with the bike, because almost certainly you'll come up on the losing end of this romance. A cursory look at any preowned bike will only reveal the most obvious issues. Once you get the bike home and start looking under the fairings, inevitably and with few exceptions... more problems are revealed. Cosmetic problems are usually fairly easy to fix but can cost you a pretty penny to remedy. Tip: Always treat your parts person with respect and patience and they may cut you a deal on parts.

In the case of a Suzuki 2001 GSX-R600 that came our way the most glaring issue was the completely nackered bodywork and this may have blinded us to some of the hidden problems. Somebody took a can of flat back spray paint to the side fairings in order to hide the fact that they never took the approved road course at the Motorcycle Safety Foundation. We've seen this before...let's call it the "Mad Max" style.

At first glance the bike did have some good things going for it: Scott's steering damper, Penske Racing Suspension, Yoshimura TRS stainless exhaust.  Tires, chain and sprocket looked good. No rust- always a good sign. No oil leaking out the bottom. Coolant looked fresh, radiator not leaking- fans okay.  But wait- that exhaust hanger does not look right....

I'm quite sure Yoshimura didn't design their exhaust to fit like that!  Well maybe we just need a new bolt and bearing in the footrest hanger....


This brake pedal doesn't look right either......guy must have a narrow foot or likes living life on the edge! No deal breaker here Tip: EMGO makes cheap replacement parts.

Okay, the bike was clearly dropped a few times, but the mileage was low and the frame looked true ;-).

This bike could win an award for most disgusting tail section ever. More flat black spray paint.  We noticed the under tray was cut in half and duct-taped together after we brought it home. Still trying to understand this one...I guess this could be considered one way to do a fender eliminator. We don't think Competition Werkes ever made this version though. We did get 25 bucks for the tail section when we sold it on Ebay...but this was not much of a consolation! Tip: Always sell your trashed and smashed parts on Ebay, you never know how much money you can recoup.

Needless to say, there were no working brake lights or turn signals with only one running light operational. Maybe the previous owner lived in Miami where such things are overlooked or they figured they could just outrun the police. At least there was provision for a license plate bracket...lending evidence to a previous life on the street. I should also mention there was one outdated, nonfunctional HID light bulb ballast installed. The stock light only came on when you flipped the brights on....not too bright.

The front headlamp cowling should have been a dead giveaway that there were more problems to come...

CAVEAT EMPTOR.... what were we thinking???

This is not a spaceman's helmet..or Wall-E the robot's head....it is a completely crushed and almost useless headlamp assembly. Needless to say, once removed this did not fit back into the cowl anymore.  My first thought was, these are not cheap. I guess it did cross my mind "Why the hell did we buy this?".....It is only because we like challenges and *can* usually get parts cheap because we are in the business and have an Ebay account in good standing. Tip: Check out our Ebay store. 

Stay tuned for part two...we will show you how we transformed this embarrassing hunk of junk into an object of lust, speed and beauty!

At least they used gloss black on the front cowling!