Which trail bike bike is the best for my adventure?

[trustme]

interesting how this turned into the usual kwakasucki & spewzuki pissing contest

The DR 650 is a throwback to the 70's, it is an agricultural machine @ best & not the best option for long distance (RTW) riding without spending a lot of cash on getting it up to spec.
The KLR 650 is only slightly better, a budget bike for those that don't know any better. Dohicky kinda says it all

As it stands the BMW F650 G/S , F650 Dakar or G650 G/S is arguably the best option for what the thread starter has in mind.
Ask a simple question, why are most of the hire bikes in this size BMW & NOT Suzuki or Kawasaki ??

There are 2 schools of thought.

1 / Beemers are the ultimate in comfortable, all roads , long distance touring motorcycles, with the best backup in farkles like Touratech to further improve their capability . True

2/ Beemers are no more reliable than anything made by most of the other manufacturers especially the Japanese. When they die [ and they do ] it will usually be in a place far from the factory approved workshop with the required diagnostic equipment to find it's way through Canbus & 3 on board computers . Without that you are pretty much buggered. Seen it twice in NZ never mind the back of bum fuck

I suspect the NZ rental market is driven by Ewen & Charlie wannabes living their dream. Nothing wrong with that , it is what it is.

In Mongolia or India, agricultural is your friend , after all they still drive Morris Oxfords because they are so reliable which really means easy fix.

[jafar]

Until the fuel pump shits itself, the electrics crap out, the back shock explodes & the forks break in half

The beemers are actually not bad, comfy & a very reliable motor, the thing that puts me off is the weight of them, for many people, especially women, they break the golden rule: thou shalt be able to pick up yer own 'sickle. Some twin cyl adv bikes are lighter.

The reason most hire bikes that size are BMW's is cos that's what people want to hire. It is also worth noting that you are not usually allowed to take your hire bike off the tarseal.

Cheers
Clint

I could care less about Kawasakis or Suzukis, but I can tell you that an F650 is not an adventure bike - I owned one.

If you take an F650 beyond anything more than easy gravel, you'll find that they're too heavy (and worse, top heavy), too peaky, too easy to break, expensive to fix and simply not fit for purpose.

There are 2 schools of thought.

1 / Beemers are the ultimate in comfortable, all roads , long distance touring motorcycles, with the best backup in farkles like Touratech to further improve their capability . True

2/ Beemers are no more reliable than anything made by most of the other manufacturers especially the Japanese. When they die [ and they do ] it will usually be in a place far from the factory approved workshop with the required diagnostic equipment to find it's way through Canbus & 3 on board computers . Without that you are pretty much buggered. Seen it twice in NZ never mind the back of bum fuck

I suspect the NZ rental market is driven by Ewen & Charlie wannabes living their dream. Nothing wrong with that , it is what it is.

In Mongolia or India, agricultural is your friend , after all they still drive Morris Oxfords because they are so reliable which really means easy fix.

In the 2 years I owned an F650 I never had an issue with it, the bike isn't perfect, but is still a better option than the DR 650 or the KLR 650 IMHO.

[pete376403]

In the 2 years I owned an F650 I never had an issue with it, the bike isn't perfect, but is still a better option than the DR 650 or the KLR 650 IMHO.

What sort of roads was it used on? It may well be a better option than the DR / KLR for good condition paved road riding.

A 650 Dakar I used had a very nice seat, pretty average power and pretty crap suspension for a bike that was advertised as an adventure bike, especially at near twice the price of the DR/KLR alternatives

[Woodman]

The price difference between a DR/KLR and a BMW Behemoth would be a big factor to me.

You can get a lot of riding/gas/accomodation/food/russian concubines/beer etc for the $20k or so difference.

But again we's all different.

[Bass]

In the 2 years I owned an F650 I never had an issue with it, the bike isn't perfect, but is still a better option than the DR 650 or the KLR 650 IMHO.

When I went shopping before heading to Oz a couple of years back, it was with little or no bias as I knew nothing at the time (and that hasn't changed much, I know).

If I put price to one side, I would agree with your opinion until I got 500 km away from the nearest workshop and 200km away from the nearest person. Out there I think you are wrong.
So, as others have said, it all comes down to what sort of riding you want to use it for.

However, having said that and without backing away from it, we did meet a guy on an F650 who was going to all the rough places, had been on the road for over 2 years and had the most heavily laden bike I have ever seen. He estimated its loaded weight at 320 kg (before he got on).

[Padmei]

The price difference between a DR/KLR and a BMW Behemoth would be a big factor to me.

You can get a lot of riding/gas/accomodation/food/russian concubines/beer etc for the $20k or so difference.

But again we's all different.

To many people $25-30K isn't a lot of money for a toy. Look at how many flash utes there are out there worth $30 -50+K

[marty]

I'm not sure about all the statements about 'do around oz first' and 'xyz bike won't handle it'

plenty of great stories about guys and girls just getting on their bike and riding the fucking thing - russia, south america, asia, whereever.

get a simple machine that you can afford, and ride it.

[DR650gary]

I'm not sure about all the statements about 'do around oz first' and 'xyz bike won't handle it'

plenty of great stories about guys and girls just getting on their bike and riding the fucking thing - russia, south america, asia, whereever.

get a simple machine that you can afford, and ride it.

What he said.

I have spend days tooling around Thailand on scooters and step throughs from 50 to 250 cc. All were good, some were better but reliability is the key for any trip and lighter is better, especially when you are up to your axles in sludge. I know.

No best bike, I like them all.

I do envy you the trip though

[dino3310]

Decisions decisions..... fuck it mate get a land cruiser with a winch

[jafar]

What sort of roads was it used on? It may well be a better option than the DR / KLR for good condition paved road riding.

A 650 Dakar I used had a very nice seat, pretty average power and pretty crap suspension for a bike that was advertised as an adventure bike, especially at near twice the price of the DR/KLR alternatives

The BMW was used to travel across the USA, mainly on paved & gravel roads . We got into some fairly remote places. Your right about the power, but it is adequate for the intended use. the suspension was ok for solo riding that I was doing.
BMW 650 comes with a lot of stuff as standard that the KLR/ DR bikes just don't have. That should be factored in when comparing list prices.

[fleebag4@]

You'll see me about as i ride up that way alot on my SV650 since i have a friend that way.

My choice is between the Kawasaki and DR though i know both will need better seats, shocks and fuel tank. I just seem to get mixed reviews on the Kawasaki and the DR650 is one i lean towards as we both need to have the same bikes

[jafar]

You'll see me about as i ride up that way alot on my SV650 since i have a friend that way.

My choice is between the Kawasaki and DR though i know both will need better seats, shocks and fuel tank. I just seem to get mixed reviews on the Kawasaki and the DR650 is one i lean towards as we both need to have the same bikes

Have you looked at the DRZ 400 ??

[fleebag4@]

Read one his books, the Silk Road and they do have a number of problems. They only mention one major one, but they admit in the later chapters to having a few issues. I think BM had them sign a clause that the book would be edited first for obvious reasons.

[dino3310]

My choice is between the Kawasaki and DR though i know both will need better seats, shocks and fuel tank. I just seem to get mixed reviews on the Kawasaki and the DR650 is one i lean towards as we both need to have the same bikes

could be as simple as Air Head versus water cooled............. if thats at all simple

[fleebag4@]

Haven't looked at that as i think it may b to small.

Could try sweet talk Yamaha for a bike and i'll write a book to