Dual sport advice

[karlfitt]

Posting this for a friend of mine.

he is looking for a dual sport to take with on his motorhome.

He had a KLR 650 before (not sure what year) His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy. In the dirt, first gear was too tall to go slow anywhere (steap hills etc)

Is there one that can do a good job of both or not?

He has found a BMW F650 GS (2001), any experience with these here?  how low is first gear?  How well does it do on the road?

What else is out there for him to look at in the 3000 to 6000 price range?
He of course likes the low end of the scale, the 6000 was put in there because of the BMW.

Thanks in Advance.

[garry]

Yamaha WR250R has lots of fans. And it's over 100 pounds lighter than a KLR, so better for dirt and easier to take on/off a motorhome. I think most dual-sports are going to be a bit buzzy above 60 or so, but they aren't going to blow up at that speed either.

[Yankee Dog]

..................................... His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy. In the dirt, first gear was too tall to go slow anywhere (steap hills etc)

Is there one that can do a good job of both or not?..................................

The short answer is no. There really isnt anything that will give you a smooth ride down the freeway and still be a dirt devil. I have a 2005 baby beemer which I use as a 2up dirt bike. It does fine now I have put knobbies on it and geared it down. Course it pretty much sucks on the freeway, but you get what you pay for.  

As for the price range, there are plenty of used dual sport out there in the $3000 range. And $6000 is waaay too much for a 2001 F650GS.

[RideAboutNow]

I wouldn't choose any 650 as a trail bike due to the weight involved, but if I had to pick one it would be the Suzuki DR650 for it's all-around versatility, wide availability (tons of nice used ones out there), good aftermarket support (bigger tanks, better saddles, etc), reliability, low price, etc...

I would point him towards WR, KLX, CRF 250 depending on his height and budget, all are great bikes on and off road.

[buls4evr]

                   NO.............     no one bike will do all those things well and not vibrate at 60. You can't be a wussie and ride a Dual-Sport bike.

[sammyseaman]

                   NO.............     no one bike will do all those things well and not vibrate at 60. You can't be a wussie and ride a Dual-Sport bike.

  This ^^^^^

[Nodaclu]

I found my Funduro to be pretty smooth at 60+ (for a thumper) on the roads, but it's definitely more street biased than even the later GS's.



They're fairly inexpensive if you can find one. Mine was a '99 purchased last year for $2,650 sans bags. It's was pristine with 11K on the clock.

I miss it.  

[buls4evr]

   I think some of you missed the "go on steap (sic) hills" part of the original post. What steep hills that you need to gear down" into first for" would you be riding a BMW streeter on? His "friend" already had a KLR that did not work.

[Nodaclu]

I think some of you missed the "go on steap (sic) hills" part of the original post. What steep hills that you need to gear down" into first for" would you be riding a BMW streeter on? His "friend" already had a KLR that did not work.

I think YOU missed reading some of his post as well. Below I've quoted the parts of his question that were relevant to my response:

He had a KLR 650 before (not sure what year) His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy.

He has found a BMW F650 GS (2001), any experience with these here? How well does it do on the road?

The bottom line is that his question was ultimately answered by those who said NO - one bike won't do both. Since he mentioned that the KLR was buzzy at 60, and asked about the 650GS, I thought I would offer my thoughts on the earlier F650 from a street perspective, while understanding that the earlier answers of "NO" above meant that his friend was ultimately going to to choose one direction or the other.  

[GRN]

I'm in the "buy it for the off road, and live with WHAT IT IS on road" camp. If it's truly dirt/trail worthy, it's not going to be smooth on tarmac at open road speeds. Weight and displacement don't fix this. My DR650, that I dumped a shitload of time and $ into to make as usable in all conditions as possible, wasn't any better on road than my KLX is, but the KLX a hell of a lot better off road. Pick one and live with it's limitations, or find a way to take two. Two is good  

[Lon]

Yamaha WR250R has lots of fans. And it's over 100 pounds lighter than a KLR, so better for dirt and easier to take on/off a motorhome. I think most dual-sports are going to be a bit buzzy above 60 or so, but they aren't going to blow up at that speed either.

I had a WR250R and a DRZ400S. (Also an XT225, and now a KX125, but we'll leave those out).

Both are indeed a bit buzzy over 60-65.  

The WR250R's suspension is definitely a bit nicer for me, it handled a fair bit better off-road (geared down + YamaLink from PO).  Of course, I didn't set up either bike for me.  

One thing to note is that I only rode the WR250R in true off-road situations with Pirelli Scorpion Pros, while the DRZ has only ever had my usual Pirelli MT21/K270 dual sport combo - after the tires wear out, I'll toss some Scorpion Pros on the DRZ and take it for a spin at the local park.

The WR250R's stator is attractive - 350W output.  It's getting there for aftermarket stuff, which is nice.

The DRZ makes oodles more power than the WR250R, given similar mods (airbox opened, jetted/mapped, etc.).  Anyone who tells you differently is on a bad trip.  Brakes are about the same between both.  On-road manners are similar.  The DRZ has more options  for aftermarket luggage-hauling, if you're like me and like to take overbuilt trail bikes on long trips.

When it comes down to it, I simply liked the DRZ more.  Parts for it are cheap.  It has a "don't give a flying cowpie about it" going for it, much like a KLR.

[Lon]

He had a KLR 650 before (not sure what year) His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy. In the dirt, first gear was too tall to go slow anywhere (steap hills etc)

Is there one that can do a good job of both or not?

I should have read this part first.

KTM 690 E.

[bungie4]

WR250R / CRF250L

[bluepoof]

I had a 2001 F650GS.

While my particular bike was the stuff of STN legend for its mechanical craptitude it really was a great motorcycle.

I took it offroad many times with no trouble, but it would like have the same "issues" that the KLR had (I have limited experience riding KLRs but I found them to be similar off road).  I put "issues" in quotes because the F650GS just isn't the right bike if you want to do serious offloading, but it does great on dirt roads, gravel, mud, etc.

I also had no trouble with it on the street.  I took mine from California to Florida and back with no issues.  Going at freeway speeds on the interstate all day was a pain, but I thought the same thing about my SV650S.    

If I were your friend, I agree with Lon and would look seriously at the DRZ400.   It's lightweight, more off road-worthy, and can definitely handle long trips on the street.

[kitkat]

Only dualie I'd ever bother with.  I had a Baghira, now have a Mastiff.  660 yammy single.  <400wet.  Search national CL, you can find good examples from between for 1500-3000.  Prefer the SM version in Baggy or Mastiff..although the enduro with 19" front can be found (which is stratospheric)  Baggys have about 11.5" shock travel, Mastiff 7.5".  Top shelf bits on all models.



SM version, "Black Panther"


http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/20/938/Motorcycle-Article/2005-MZ660-Baghira.aspx

[Ack535]

WR250 or CRF250X

I love my CRF!

[Explorer]

Like lon says I would go with a DRZ it has great power, great aftermarket for it. it's basically a dirt bike on the street and if you need to you can Gear it down.  if your buddy is set on a 650 I would suggest the Honda Xr 600 instead it's basically a dirt donkey go anywhere dirtbike.

[DangerMoney]

Posting this for a friend of mine.

he is looking for a dual sport to take with on his motorhome.

He had a KLR 650 before (not sure what year) His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy. In the dirt, first gear was too tall to go slow anywhere (steap hills etc)

Is there one that can do a good job of both or not?

He has found a BMW F650 GS (2001), any experience with these here?  how low is first gear?  How well does it do on the road?

What else is out there for him to look at in the 3000 to 6000 price range?
He of course likes the low end of the scale, the 6000 was put in there because of the BMW.

Thanks in Advance.

I went through what your friend is going through. Rode KLR, BMW F650GS Dakar & Honda XR650L If he wants a low first gear, low price and something he can easily load/unload I'd suggest a Honda XR650L. Not buzzy at freeway speeds, parts are cheap and easy to find. Big, after-market gas tanks are available. Will easily do 70 MPH.

[919]

Posting this for a friend of mine.

he is looking for a dual sport to take with on his motorhome.

He had a KLR 650 before (not sure what year) His complaint was over 60 on the road, too buzzy. In the dirt, first gear was too tall to go slow anywhere (steap hills etc)

Is there one that can do a good job of both or not?

He has found a BMW F650 GS (2001), any experience with these here?  how low is first gear?  How well does it do on the road?

What else is out there for him to look at in the 3000 to 6000 price range?
He of course likes the low end of the scale, the 6000 was put in there because of the BMW.

Thanks in Advance.

250 or 400, why is he taking it on the highway?  Save that for the motor home.

[nesquikninja]

Ive got a 2013 CRF250l. Smooth at 60-70 no problem.

Smooth slow first gear.

Get it

[GRN]

why is he taking it on the highway?  Save that for the motor home.

Well, RV has to be unset and packed, it's slow and sucks in corners, and it probably gets 8mpg - downhill... how many reasons ya need, bro?