Need advice on what bike to buy

cwbashaw · Post by **cwbashaw** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 9:56 am

I'm going to be selling my DR350 soon so I can buy a better adventure touring bike. I want something that would be good for occasional long trips the highway and still preform well on dirt roads (like the Frederick watershed). I have a trials bike for more aggressive trail riding so I won't need it for that but I will get on fire roads with it from time to time.

I'm buying a used bike in about the 3 to 4K range and the options I'm considering are...

Kawasaki Klr650
Suzuki V-strom 650
Kawasaki Versys
Bmw F650GS (preferably a Dakar if I can find a good one in my price range)

What bike would be best for me?

dak · Post by **dak** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 10:31 am

I would get bmw g650x before f650 gs dakar

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dak · Post by **dak** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 10:47 am

dak wrote:I would get bmw g650x before f650 gs dakar

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Or a bmw g450x more dirt then touring

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cwbashaw · Post by **cwbashaw** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 11:01 am

the 450 seems like it would be great int he dirt but I wonder how it would do on the highway. I want something I could do a 200 to 300 mile day on the highway with from time to time.

I also forgot to mention the dr650 which seems to be a pretty good possibility.

hondahawkrider · Post by **hondahawkrider** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 11:44 am

cwbashaw wrote:the 450 seems like it would be great int he dirt but I wonder how it would do on the highway. I want something I could do a 200 to 300 mile day on the highway with from time to time.

I also forgot to mention the dr650 which seems to be a pretty good possibility.

BMW 450 is not a street bike, it'd be like getting a crf450...

For the money, you can't beat the klr...

mdubya · Post by **mdubya** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:00 pm

I don't think there really exists a bike that is good on the highway and good on the dirt. You need 2 different bikes, IMHO.

Post by **Bucho** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 1:29 pm

mdubya wrote:I don't think there really exists a bike that is good on the highway and good on the dirt. You need 2 different bikes, IMHO.

Thats pretty true, its always gonna be a compramise.

A KLR650 or DR650 (w/ small windshield, aftermarket seat, maybe larger gas tank...) would both be nice fairly cheap bikes if you don't mind having the thumper engine. I know some people hate them and would never even think about getting on the highway w/out a multicylinder bike.
I have no experience w/ the weestrom or versys, but both should be more then adequate on the dirt roads and have plenty of power and weight for the highway.

cwbashaw · Post by **cwbashaw** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 2:20 pm

My DR350 has worked out pretty good for me so far, and if it had a little more top end it would be perfect. I'm thinking the dr650 is probably the way I'm going to go. When I got it I thought I would ride trails more than I do, now because I prefer riding the trials bike on the tight trails instead.

Is the DR650 fast enough to get on the highway safely? I've done 200 + mile days on the DR350 before so I don't think comfort on the 650 will be a problem for me. The 350 tops out at about 65 but that's pushing it.

motojunky · Post by **motojunky** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 2:25 pm

cwbashaw wrote:My DR350 has worked out pretty good for me so far, and if it had a little more top end it would be perfect. I'm thinking the dr650 is probably the way I'm going to go. When I got it I thought I would ride trails more than I do, now because I prefer riding the trials bike on the tight trails instead.

Is the DR650 fast enough to get on the highway safely? I've done 200 + mile days on the DR350 before so I don't think comfort on the 650 will be a problem for me. The 350 tops out at about 65 but that's pushing it.

A couple of years ago (OK, 13) my buddy and I decided to do a SaddleSore 1000 (1000 miles in 24 hours). I rode my CBR600 and he rode his completely stock DR650. He cruised at 70+ for 20 hours with no issue. At last check, his bike had around 30k on it and still ran fine.

If you're bored, here's my lame ride report from back then: http://userweb.magpage.com/cfaison/ss1000.html

The DR will do the highway just fine!

cwbashaw · Post by **cwbashaw** » Mon Apr 25, 2011 3:03 pm

Sounds like the DR is probably the way to go then.

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