Agreed, I picked up one about a month ago. Enjoy it more than my R6.
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Looking for a tough motorcycle
- Thread starter Deimos
- Start date
Agreed, I picked up one about a month ago. Enjoy it more than my R6.
DRZ400's are tanks, but strain a bit on 400 series highways. I'd recommend any dual sport in a 650.
Deimos
Well-known member
I'm 5'8, almost 5'9 with decent boots and had trouble climbing a fully equipped 2011. Kind of embarrassing haha.
Cruiser eh? I didn't like the new Shadow Phantom, not sure how that Harley compares.
I'll look into them, thanks!
I demo'd the Varadero in July and found like the vstrom, I'm too short for that ride.
I love that video. Definitely the type of abuse I'd expect from a dual sport.
Yup, I second the dual sport. One might look at my bike and think I could care less about it, but it's just that I enjoy riding it more than I like looking at it. I knocked a hole in the coolant reserve tank, so I replaced it with a turkey baster zip-tied up by the rad
That's the kind of ingenuity I appreciate! Reminds me fixing things around the house.
I'd have to try one out for sure before committing. So you're saying avoid anything post 2008?
I hear it does everything exceptionally well. Will look into it thanks!
i can relate, I had more fun on 50cc scooters and homemade bikes in Europe than on any bike I'd ridden to this day. The DRZ might not fit the bill for long distance riding (2up+luggage).
If only, but my back has gotten worse after almost herniating a disk last year, so the ergo's of the SS are making riding unpleasant if I'm out for more than 1 hour and/or 2-upping my lady friend.
Well......that changes just about everything.
Someone mentioned a Bandit......that's probably the best advice, IMO.
I rode my B12 straight home from deal's gap, without my 3, surgically removed herniated discs. (19 hours)
I had no trouble riding that bike 12 -14 hours either.
Plus - if you keep 'em upright, they're hard as hell to kill.
wonderings
Well-known member
The BMW GS/A is a great bike that takes a punch and keeps on going. Built tough with a long lasting tradition of fine do it all motorcycles. Easy to work on yourself if you want, some say one of the easiest bikes to work on. Downside is the price, which you mentioned in your OP.
(not me)
A new contender in the N. American market is the Yamaha S10. Great bike, built tough, great reviews and I have not heard anything bad about it, well nothing serious. Cheaper then the BMW and you will have the Yamaha quality as well. I would say its "tougher" then the V-strom for off the pavement pursuits, but again, thats just what I read. It appears to be build more for it though, and gotta love having a shaft drive. No more chain maintenance!
(not me)
A new contender in the N. American market is the Yamaha S10. Great bike, built tough, great reviews and I have not heard anything bad about it, well nothing serious. Cheaper then the BMW and you will have the Yamaha quality as well. I would say its "tougher" then the V-strom for off the pavement pursuits, but again, thats just what I read. It appears to be build more for it though, and gotta love having a shaft drive. No more chain maintenance!
Moshe Zuchter
Member
Dual-sport motorcycle, like the KLR650, is great. I had a KLX650 that was a beast of a bike. No fear of dropping it. Single cylinder engine. Tons and tons of low-end power. Easy to ride. Cheap parts and cheap to maintain.
As many have mentioned the Suzuki V-Strom is a great bike for riding. It isn't a bike that will define you but rather lets you do almost anything you want with it. It doesn't excel at any one thing but does most htings very well.
I ride a 2006 Suzuki V-Strom DL650. I bought it new at the end of July of 2006. I have put 193,000+ km's on it since I bought it. Every year I ride it more than the previous year. Last year I did 49,000 km; this year I am already over 48,000 km on it with lots more riding to go. At the beginning of September I did a 10,300 km solo ride to the Grand Canyon and area. It was loaded down with tent and gear. Temperatures ranged from +5 in some mountain passes in Colorado to 120 F (49 C!) in Death Valley., The last three days I be-lined home and did 3200 km in three days, pretty much all of it at speeds of 130kph to 150 kph. End of July I did a seven day, 5,400 km ride to the East Coast.
My bike has had almost no issues other than self inflicted ones. The clutch release wore out around 100,000 km and took $50 to fix. This was a soft failure and meant that over time I ran out of clutch cable adjustment until I repaired it. I had a plugged fuel filter at 145,000 km and again this was a soft failure as the bike had a flat spot in the rev range at around 8,500 rpm that got larger over the course of 20,000 km until I changed the filter. Ted Rose of Rosey Toes put in new rear wheel bearing around 150,000 km and at around 170,000 km corrosion in the starter switch meant it didn't crank sometimes when wet. Cleaning the contacts cured that.
It uses a bit of oil when doing higher speed riding and that is about the only thing different in how it runs compared to new.
I commute with it in almost any weather (except snow or ice on the roads.) I do weekend rides, do long trips, rip through twisties with sport bikes, blast down gravel roads, pile a bunch of crap on it and on occasion put a passenger on the back and they say they are pretty comfy.
Maintenance amounts to changing oil and filter once in a while, replacing brake pads, getting tires and chain and sprockets (by the way I use Ted Rose's method of taking care of my chain and got over 76,000 km out of my last chain. Don't bother cleaning the chain, just lube it with every tank of gas and after every rain ride and that takes about 10 seconds to do.) The last time it was at a Suzuki Dealer was around 24,000 km for a valve check.
There is no right or wrong when it comes to bikes but if you want something that has a minimum of fuss and bother and just lets you ride the hell out if it all the time it's hard to go wrong with a V-Strom.
..Tom
I ride a 2006 Suzuki V-Strom DL650. I bought it new at the end of July of 2006. I have put 193,000+ km's on it since I bought it. Every year I ride it more than the previous year. Last year I did 49,000 km; this year I am already over 48,000 km on it with lots more riding to go. At the beginning of September I did a 10,300 km solo ride to the Grand Canyon and area. It was loaded down with tent and gear. Temperatures ranged from +5 in some mountain passes in Colorado to 120 F (49 C!) in Death Valley., The last three days I be-lined home and did 3200 km in three days, pretty much all of it at speeds of 130kph to 150 kph. End of July I did a seven day, 5,400 km ride to the East Coast.
My bike has had almost no issues other than self inflicted ones. The clutch release wore out around 100,000 km and took $50 to fix. This was a soft failure and meant that over time I ran out of clutch cable adjustment until I repaired it. I had a plugged fuel filter at 145,000 km and again this was a soft failure as the bike had a flat spot in the rev range at around 8,500 rpm that got larger over the course of 20,000 km until I changed the filter. Ted Rose of Rosey Toes put in new rear wheel bearing around 150,000 km and at around 170,000 km corrosion in the starter switch meant it didn't crank sometimes when wet. Cleaning the contacts cured that.
It uses a bit of oil when doing higher speed riding and that is about the only thing different in how it runs compared to new.
I commute with it in almost any weather (except snow or ice on the roads.) I do weekend rides, do long trips, rip through twisties with sport bikes, blast down gravel roads, pile a bunch of crap on it and on occasion put a passenger on the back and they say they are pretty comfy.
Maintenance amounts to changing oil and filter once in a while, replacing brake pads, getting tires and chain and sprockets (by the way I use Ted Rose's method of taking care of my chain and got over 76,000 km out of my last chain. Don't bother cleaning the chain, just lube it with every tank of gas and after every rain ride and that takes about 10 seconds to do.) The last time it was at a Suzuki Dealer was around 24,000 km for a valve check.
There is no right or wrong when it comes to bikes but if you want something that has a minimum of fuss and bother and just lets you ride the hell out if it all the time it's hard to go wrong with a V-Strom.
..Tom
wonderings
Well-known member
Have you thought about adding a scotts oiler? Sounds like it would take the minimal time of lubing the chain yourself right out of the picture.
I agree, you cant go wrong with a V-strom, its reputation speaks for itself, rock solid bike.
I've thought about a chain oiler and might add one "some day", but I have to say it really is absolutely no hassle lubing my chain. I do it with a warm chain (either before I fill up when on a trip or immediately after getting home after filling the tank or rain riding.) I put it on the centerstand and run it in first gear. From behind the bike (and well clear of the chain!) I spray about 5 seconds to either side of the chain so that lube gets into the area between the links. That's it.. takes about 15 seconds in total including the time it takes to get the bike on the stand and grab the chain lube
Having said that I couldn't say anything but good about a chain oiler.
..Tom
Honda Cub. Can run on used cooking oil, and still works after being dropped from a building. Just saying! :lol:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaeKrqJJqm0&feature=player_detailpage
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aaeKrqJJqm0&feature=player_detailpage
Deimos
Well-known member
Great city bike, can't see myself doing long trips on it LOL
I've been reading up on the klr and the only issue I find is it's poor ability to 2up.
It's got the power I wish the KLR had. If it can be lowered and still be safe, it's a contender.
Oh lawd.....Again, great for city and not much else.
wonderings
Well-known member
for comfortable 2 up your gonna want a litre bike for sure. V-strom 1000 and Yamaha S10 would be what I would be checking out if my BMW is not in the picture. I think the Yamaha will push Suzuki a bit with the v-strom as the S10 is an excellent all around bike like the GS, but a lower price tag.
The v-strom can be lowered quite safely. A lot of owners, myself included, drop the front end through the forks between 7 and 10 MM, and many folks (who don't ride off-road) lower the rear with aftermarket links. When I bought my DL1000, it was lowered. Being 6'2", the first thing I did was to go back to stock.
Same story with the DL650. Lowering up to an inch and a half is not a worry.
Same story with the DL650. Lowering up to an inch and a half is not a worry.
Most people that have ridden the KLR and the Strom really notice the much higher level of power and the much better highway abilities. The KLR is a better dirt bike, the Strom a better road bike.
As far as power goes I gave a friend a ride back from Ohio to Pickering a few years ago, His ride was a V-Strom 1000 that he wrote off in Ohio. At the time I was about 250 lbs (I'm lighter now!) he was probably 20 lbs lighter. I had top case and side cases on the bike. When we got on the bike we were well over GVWR for the Strom. We super-slabbed it on the Interstates and travelled at 120 to 140 kph all the way. HE was blown away by how well the little Strom handled the load and how much power it had! A DL1000 is certainly more powerful (and if you change the gearing it really comes to life!) but he felt there was little given away in real world riding.. I just had to shift a bit more than he might have on his DL1000. (By the way I LOVE wringing out my little Strom!)
There are many people who do lower the Strom with great success. I'm fairly tall so haven't need to do so.
Another thing you might consider is the new 2012 V-Strom. It has been redesigned and improved in a number of ways without ruining the essence of the bike. One thing that might be good for you is that, while the new bike is slightly taller than previously, the seat shape is supposed to make using it easier for people that aren't that tall. As well, there is an optional lower seat.
It will be my next bike for sure!
..Tom
fyrebug
Well-known member
you might want to consider the kawi versys if the v-strom is too tall. it's a little smaller, same 64hp, 'dual sport' and for city riding all the reviewers say it's more fun than the wee.
as for power, I was originally looking at the wee, but my ninja 500 has 60hp, the wee has 64... on a bike that weighs more I don't imagine that results in speed. the point of the bike is clearly not to go fast, it's to get there in comfort, drive all day, and not have to fix it as mentioned, but I think it's still an important thing to consider. As you had a gs500 you'd have a good feel for whether that matters to you.
it's too bad, the wee doens't have a bit more oomph, the sv650 has 73hp with the same engine (I think it's the same..)
seems the big strom's extra power is cancelled out a bit by the extra weight so that's not a true solution either.
the bmw though seems like a good contender and is what I'm now leaning towards after tons of reading on the adv forum.
as for power, I was originally looking at the wee, but my ninja 500 has 60hp, the wee has 64... on a bike that weighs more I don't imagine that results in speed. the point of the bike is clearly not to go fast, it's to get there in comfort, drive all day, and not have to fix it as mentioned, but I think it's still an important thing to consider. As you had a gs500 you'd have a good feel for whether that matters to you.
it's too bad, the wee doens't have a bit more oomph, the sv650 has 73hp with the same engine (I think it's the same..)
seems the big strom's extra power is cancelled out a bit by the extra weight so that's not a true solution either.
the bmw though seems like a good contender and is what I'm now leaning towards after tons of reading on the adv forum.
johnnycage
Well-known member
SV650 naked
The engine in the DL650 V-Strom has a heavier flywheel than the SV and was tuned for more mid-range torque. A co-worker had an SV and I found that in stop light to stop light riding they were very similar in acceleration, and the Strom was easier to ride around town with less shifting.
The biggest performance issue with the DL100 V-Strom is that it is geared too tall for North America. Adding a few teeth to the rear sprocket or making the front a tooth smaller really wakes up that bike. It will never run like a liter sport bike but isn't intended to either.
Having said all that, power alone doesn't make a big more satisfying. A good all rounder isn't dominated by any one characteristic (for example power) but rather does most things very well; and that is what puts a smile on my face when I ride mine. The bike never limits me, I can just do almost anything I want with it and never be limited by the bike. It's as if the bike doesn't even matter, it's just me riding a bike and smiling big time.
..Tom
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