Ok,
what a touch and all seems to be comming together her majersty has just given us a £1k rebate and finally left me in a position to buy a bike (RESULT)
anyway still have to be careful but have found a lovely 1996 GPZ 500, with 21k on the clock looks very well maintained…
What do people think of these? it is a 1st big bike so I think on that basis will be good, however what is the reliablity like fuel consumption etc etc
I had a GPZ500s as my first bike 
It was a 1998 model i think and I really loved it. Only had it for a week so can’t say much about it but it was a nice ride 
I also owned a 1997 GPZ 500. It was an easy bike to ride but I tired of it very soon after having it. I found the tyres to be too small and therefore it didn’t feel that secure on the road. And it was too upright for my liking.
However, I do gather that it is an excellent first bike, along with the SV 650. It would be great to learn on, but don’t expect to keep it for long as you will want something with a bit more grunt
aaaaa - bump - chewwwww
anyone other than the 2 previous comments owned one?
How much money you got to buy and insure the thing? I never owned one, but knew people that did, and it is just what people say above, OK first bike but you are going to tire of it relatively quickly I reckon
not alot to be honest as we are going on holiday soon we are keeping some of the money back for that…
unless anyone knows someone looking to see a nice bike cheap… I would love an SV but I just cannot get that kinda of money together (unless my insurance claim surprises me anyway but I doubt it)
dont know about the gpz but if you are looking for an sv at a good price i would try and keep an eye on the for sale section on forums.sv650.org
A friend of mine has a GPZ500, she learned on one and so bought one and has been riding it ever since. She loves it and I know it’s good on fuel and fairly easy to maintain.
A good first bike. I have a SV650, it’s my first ‘big’ bike and I do 200 miles a week on it. Again great on fuel but a little snatchy in slow moving traffic.
You don’t see a lot of GPZ’s around these days, they are known courier bikes too.
gpz500 not a bad first bike but as above you will probably very quickly outgrow its potential.
also engine is the same as the er5 whick gets very rattly after say 35 k so i believe also stones get caught between the fan and the radiator and tend to rip the radiator apart so it can leak. these are like gold dust to find and very pricey.
consider the resale value also when you come to sell/px it for a bigger/newer bike if you look at ebay prices you will get a rough idea of its worth but a grand seems a lot. you can get a good bandit 600 on ebay for around a grand with a lot better chance of resale plus lots of trick bits/secondhand bits around to repair or customise it .
bandits will always be popular because they are a cheap easy bike to ride and maintain plus a bigger grin factor in my book.
I had one as a first bike, it was great but as people say you may outgrow it fairly quickly. Cheap to run and insure. It’s a twin so you need to get used to that. Comfy riding position, very upright and comfy pillion seat. Low end torque so good for town riding. Also consider early fazers, bandits etc. Buy the best example you can as with any bike. There will always be a market for these as they make great starter bikes so selling it on shouldn’t be too difficult.
Buy it, if you can get a good deal, if it runs well. These are the sort of thing that just make my day, if you can commute on it and that is your intent, it’s great for the purpose. You will learn to love it, and soon, you will find yourself looking at a 600 cc machine in the wrecker’s yard and considering if you can swap the forks to your 500. But be strong, take it and ride it in its original splendor. Enjoy it for what it is, as opposed to what it can be.
They’re good little bikes.
Conveniently, there’s a 4 page buyers guide on the GPZ500 in the March issue of Classic Motorcycle Mechanics which would be worth popping down to your local WHS for a browse of.
Doesn’t that anoy you ? Sometimes I can’t get to the magazine rack for people standing there reading the damn things - IT IS NOT A LIBRARY, the magazines are for sale not for viewing . . . .
/rant over
/feel calm again 
I had one as a commuter bike after I passed my test, it was a great bike to start out on. I did 6/700 miles a week, in all weathers and it never went wrong (until rust got to the front section of the exhaust and it holed).
That bike is the sole reason that I can filter confidently 
There was me thinking I was the only one on here who reads this mag:)
