Suzuki GSX650F Forum - www.GSX650F.biz

Hi. This is my first post. I'm from Norway, so if my English isn't entirely correct, please bear with me.

I've got a GSX 650 F 08 for about 2 years now. I don't know if you guys have the same problem, but the paint quality is pretty bad, I think. Especially on the wheels.
I've never used a (I don't know the exact word in English) high pressure washer on it, but the paint seem to peel off.



These two pictures was taken when I was preparing the wheels. Here I used a high pressure washer, but no chemicals:





My solution to this problem was to powder coat the wheels.



I thought I might as well powder coat some other parts in the process.



I think the colour came out pretty good:



The bike before:



And some pics after (The picture quality was pretty bad due to the bad lighting):









Anyway, thanks for reading. And feel free to leave a comment.

Hi, it looks like salt corrosion to me?
http://www.newsinenglish.no/2011/01/10/ ... nning-low/

No, it's not salt corrosion. I don't ride my bike in the winter season. The snow you see in the picture of me on the bike, is just a huge pile that took a long time to melt.

If you look at the pictures where I was preparing the wheels, you see a lot more spots where the paint came off. And the inside speaks for itself.

It looks like the result of a poorly prepared to be painted part to me. I.E.; did not get it properly cleaned before putting the paint on, mebe a bad primer surface also.
Your "Fix" looks good.
Most tastefull work.

Hello and welcome.
Bike looks good I always wanted to see the red wheels ,looks alot better then I thought

Thanks.

As for the paint on Suzuki:
Suzuki have a pretty bad reputation regarding the paint quality. At least in Norway.

A Suzuki dealer was actually taken to court by a GSX 1000R owner, and sentenced to fix the paint. NAF (translates to something like Norwegian Automobile Assosiation) tested the paint, and found it to be to thin.

Here's a link to the article. It's in Norwegian, but at least you can see some pictures. (Mabe you can use google translate, but in most cases the translation is just confusing)

Edit: Forgot the link. Here it is: http://bike.no/content/2228/

Looking at the parts you powder coated in the shop, I had my doubts, but on the bike and under natural light conditions, it looks really nice. Good job!

I had a small spot on the gas tank where the paint went missing. A couple applications with the touch up pen and it's repaired. I'm keeping my eyes open for more. Hoping it's not going to happen all over the tank.

Thanks.

Luckily I have a friend who work with powder coating, so all it costed me was a six pac, and some hours of work time.

But I think the work starts now, keeping the wheels clean.

Suzuki and paint quality is a subject that you can debate over as long as you want. In simple terms it always comes out to this.
Suzuki factory paintjob sucks
If its the frame/tank/wheels. From all big manufacturers its the least durable, this goes back to the late '90's and early 2000. My nephew had a 2002 Bandit 600 with paint becoming dull after one season.

In the past, no one really complained about it because Suzuki was the cheaper one of the lot. But their pricing is equal now so they better do something about the overall quality.

my wheels are as badly flaked after 2 years and 43000 all weather miles ... but that is Suzuki for you ..

Awesome job Snikkeren, well done !

Half year ago, I got a new front rim,
Het paint chipped of in the same way, it did on your bike.
My bike was 2 years and 4 months old, and was replaced bij Suzuki.
I'd only had to pay for the new michelin tire

@papa r: Thanks.

@Lampie: I could probably complain to the dealer, but I didn't want to go through the paper mill, and in a couple of years have the same problem again. When I had the chance to fix it myself for next to nothing, the choise was simple.

red wheels and highlights with the stickers really looks good! all that needs paint now is the engine/clutch housing to match. (my first thought is black but i wonder if red will go well?)

Thanks.

I thought about painting the engine/clutch housing black. I think red would be a bit over the top.
But if I paint the engine/clutch housing black, you can see the rest of the engine in the silver/grey colour if you look at it from an angle, and I don't think that would look good. Then I woult have to paint the rest of the engine, and that's just too much work.