Originally Posted by Threewheelbonnie

There is a French guy who switched from an airhead outfit to a 750 Ural who does have a blog and has been all over the place. I'm afraid the name escapes me.

Originally Posted by Wheelie

Wow, a lot of great replies.

I was considering bringing two Urals. There are a few reasons why I am considering a Ural:

• As far as I know, getting a bike registered with a chair in Norway means that you can only use it with a chair (new legislature), and, if it is retrofitted it is a pain in the ass to get approved. As the Ural already comes with a sidecar, I'm thinking this will be easier and cheaper
• All the taxes in Norway makes bikes very expensive in Norway. I.e. a brand New BMW f800gs will set you back approximately € 20.000,-. Labor costs are high, and I'm pretty sure that experts that fit side cars are far between - if any in this tiny country - which would mean that retrofitting a chair would cost a lot of money. Another brand of bike, with a side car, could therefore cost a lot of dough. The taxes are based on weight and power, and the Ural would new cost almost as much as a BMW f800gs (insane, I know)
• The Ural does evoke some feelings, though these feelings are less important than having a good ride. If the bike is semi ok in its handling, performance, and reliability - then it is an option. From the comments so far, it seems as it is
• The 2wd exited me at first, but is now less important as I have found it is extremely seldom useful and not really used - it is a hype as far as I have come to understand (please correct me if I am wrong)
• After having seen youtube videoes with it flying offroad, it made my heart thump - but after reading revies, I have found that it really sucks offroad when travelling at slow speeds - you really have to gun it and hope for the best (correct me if I am wrong). As such, the offroad capabilities don't appeal to me much anymore.
• Travelling fast does not concern me, though I would like to be able to keep it above 90 kmh in head wind and up hill.

I really have not decided upon a budget yet, but a 1200GS would be too expensive (currently € 30.000 brand new in Norway). I was thinking more in the lines of an F650GS Dakar with a chair, but have no idea if this would be superior to the Ural, and if so, to what degree. The f800gs appealed to me until I read all the common problems a lot of riders have with these - hopefully these will be corrected by the time I would be ready to buy one.

As for when? Maybe never? There are a lot of things that need to happen for something like this to come true. Ideally i was hoping it would happen when the kids were six and eight yrs old, which would mean four and a half years from now. In other words, it is very early...

I would be buying used, ideally a bike that is three to five years old with not too much mileage on them, which means that i can look at bikes which are new now.

As for experience with a side car - I can't really say I have any. I have a 1962 Vespa with a side car which is like riding a wheelbarrow - maybe more so as it is not set up correctly (I only use it on typical parade days and special events). My wife has very little riding experience at all, and no experience with a sidecar.

Turning a wrench does not frighten me. I'm currently restoring a few scooters. I don't know what i am doing, but somehow they come together bit by bit. But, that does not mean I think it is ok to break down in a bad spot with antsy and grumpy kids and wife. Changing oil, cables, tires, spark plugs, etc are all quick fixes, but seized bearings, broken oil seals, etc is something which should not be a monthly event, (and that is between two bikes).

Anyone have an idea how much it would cost to retrofit a chair to your bike in your country? Please let me know what country and what bike... or other examples.