Rear Mudguard/Fender Install

[Snubnose]

I am replacing my hacked off fender (03 B12S) with one that is fully intact. Other than figuring it out as I go along , which often costs me more time than I have, and often finds me kicking my own ass for not knowing something sooner; has anyone ever done this? and do I need to fully remove the rear grab handle and rear cowling first?

[mademiriam]

I should probably wait for all the much more qualified people to answer...that said;
Yes I believe you need to remove the rear cowling at least on my 05 the fender plastic sort of rests on the bottom edge of the rear cowling. In order to remove the tail plastic you need to remove the grab handle. This is easy to do. The rear cowl and fender are held together by what i will call 'body fasteners' they are little round things with a center plug in them, push in on their center, and then you should be able to either pull them out by hand or quickly pry them up a bit with a flat head screwdriver. Other than that there should be a few bolts, before you start taking the old one out you may want to remove your battery as it's weight rests on the rear fender plastic.
Awaiting the correction of the gurus 

[Red01]

Since I had a stainless steel undertray on mine for a while, I've had the tail bodywork off a few of times.
Made is correct, the grab rail and tailpiece need to come off of a 2G to swap undertrays.
Nothing to fret over though, it's pretty simple.
 

[PaulVS]

My '03 got rear-ended in a parking lot last summer, fortunately it only broke the rear fender, the guy gave me $150 cash for the replacement.

I can't remember what had to come off... but I do remember I took off a lot more parts than were actually necessary.

IIRC, there's only 4 bolts that hold it in place.