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f650 vs aprilia pegaso vs suzuki dr650se vs xt600tenere vs h
Hi!
The eternal question,WICH BIKE??? i'm a bit of a short guy,170cm so seat high should not be much than 850mm(i couldnt touch the ground with my feet otherwise) http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/redface.gif Wich bike is the best,considering price should be under 2500 euro. BMW inspires confidence,but it's extremly ugly!!!How good are big milage ones,for that price usualy +50000kms or so Aprilia is well designed,looks goog for all purpouses and it's even got a temperature gauge,and fuel reserve warning light!? absolutely NOT NEEDED,SO THE GERMAN ENGENIERS THINK!!!i cant belive it!!! Tenere is a bit old fashioned and,tough not ugly as the BMW but i'll be stil lought at around town,small fuel tank too,is that seat realy confortable!? Please give me your coment on all of them thanks jondoe [This message has been edited by jondoe (edited 29 January 2003).] [This message has been edited by jondoe (edited 30 January 2003).] |
Everything depends on what the bike will be used for.
In general, I would vote for BMW.. (owned Pegaso and driven BMW and Yamaha on noumerous occasions...) |
Hi!
Why BMW? What are you impresions on Aprilia? I dont think that BMW is that much better,tough it has the same robust Rotax engine(only Ap's got an extra intake valve) and BMW is so ugly! I'll use it for round the mediteranean an a bit of sahara. But i'll all so will use it for crusing around town and beyond. The round the med tour:Moroco-WSahara-Muretanie-Algeria-Tunisia-Libiya-Egipt-Jordan,and on to Europe Since this is my first big trip,and I don't have much offroad expiriance i'll stick to the good roads whenever posibile. Only real offroad will bee desert camel route from Ouadane north-east to Chegga(not on utexas maps)and then to north-west to Tindouf or continue north-west to Chenachene and on to north beetwin the ergs,wich should soposed to be hardpacked rock track(enyone has the info on that?) cheers jondoe PS: are the air/oil cooled good for such hot conditions? [This message has been edited by jondoe (edited 01 February 2003).] |
suzuki DR650 seat height 34.5in (2.54cm=1in)) the suspension can be lowered 1.5in,in the rear shock adjustement: you now have a 33in seat height. order the gel seat lowers the seat height 1.5in---now you have a seat height of 31.5 which puts it in a catagory where most people will have no problem putting their feet down. i do not think you can do this with any other duel sport except BMW650 which has a 31in seat height.
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Hi! Thats true,i saw the ad on dr650se for sale with 820mm seat(costume low seat) plus suspension,it might work Suzuki dr650se,i think,could be my choise,or may be not.Look's decent,it's cheep,robust dr machine,small exhoust pipe... but the debate goes on Why is xt600 tenere(twin headlamps) so hard to find,on mobile.de not a one at the moment!? |
There is a budget priced version of the Dominator known as the Vigor, and this may interest you. It shares the Dominator engine but has a low(ish ) seat height and is very easy to ride. Earlier models are known as SLR650s, and are more " off road " ready, although this in reality only means knobbly tyres. A very simple, air cooled engine.
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Only down side - it's a spanish made model - hard-ish to get hold of and you would want to make sure that the bits that are not used to bad weather are stripped and powder coated - this is my plan over the next year to get get hers ready for a trip. http://bike-exchange.com/honda%20slr%20650.jpg The vigor which took over in 1998 (uk) has a rev counter and a small cowling/fairing. Tony. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/biggrin.gif |
Hi!
Yeah,it like a dominator,more or less same,seat hight:845(domi 880) not much low after all. bmw-800mm suzuki xf600 freewind-830mm aprilia pegaso-845mm some one with expiriance with a suzuki? How come thay are so cheep,compared to bmw and aprilia,tough thay all have the more-less same price when new! cheers jondoe |
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The SLR650 and Vigor can be picked up for around 1500 GBP or less. Why - well probably the bad image they have, Spanish made etc... don't know - open to suggestions here...... |
Hi!
Prices in Germany,www.mobile.de Aprilia year '97 aprox 3000 euro BMW F650 '97 aprox. 3000 to 3500 euro Suzuki xf freewind '97 from 2200 to 2700 cheers jondoe |
[QUOTE]Originally posted by jondoe:
[B]Hi! The eternal question,WICH BIKE??? 1. It depends where are you going and what you want to do in the countries you are going. 2. For countries like Morocco, Pakistan, India, Nepal etc. a enduro bike good, not heavy, not expensive using little petrol and tire. What with a 1122 ccm bike, on which you have to replace the rear tire after 5000 km? 3. I am driving an old Honda 600 XLM with a tank of 30 liters (bought it in 1985) and it is really very, very riable (roughly the same engine as Dominator, but older than Dominator). With one tank filling I made it(2 persons and lots of luggage) from Pula in Croatia back to Zurich in Switzerland, crossing several passes in the Italian Alps (roughly 880 km. On this bike I not even had to change any bulbs in 17 years, change oil every 4000 km, change chain every 20 000 km, change rear tire every 7000 km - for Europe - change front tire every 15 000 km, change battery every 5 years. This bike never gave me any problem in 17 years. Nearly forgott the brake pads. I think it is far better than the 600 Tenere, and for several trips far better then a huge and heavy BMW. For me its the best bike for adventure travel, and I will use it on my trip to Pakistan / India this summer. And driving it on bad roads is simply a pleasure. ------------------ Alois |
Hi there, I cant comment on the other bikes but I do have an aprillia pegaso 1996 model and I cant believe how good its been, used all year round never fails to start. Comfy fastish, the only complaint is the small 100 mile tank range. A pain when touring and you constantly have to look for petrol. Spares could become a problem if required, but as i,ve not broken down I dont know !
I would not replace my bike with any one that list with the exception of a mint tenere or a new bmw 650 dakar. HTH |
With Aprilia there is one major problem -- head gaskets can blow... and they DO blow... quite often...
Therefore I have voted for BMW - reliability is the key here... |
I am only 5'6" and I have an Aprilia Pegaso. I find it a very comfortable height and riding position is good. I have tried many bikes including BMW's (my partner has one) KLR 650 which we used to have was just too high. So far the Pegaso seems great for me although I haven't been too far on it yet.
Ally |
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Hey Ally, I thought I was the only rider, you never see them on the road !. Is your the Mk3? Dont think its as pretty but the tank is bigger right? I,m 5ft 6" too and find it spot on. Predator exhausts are good for when your rot out. I,ve only had to put petrol in and ride it...cant fault it really :-) |
Hi Blackjack
I've only just bought the Pegaso, which is why I haven't been very far yet. Mine is the Pegaso3 model and I quite like the styling. I got a good deal on mine and it already has a Predator exhaust and a full set of Aprilia hard luggage. Ally |
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I've a Pegaso3 and it's been very well mannered so far after 6000 miles. I've heard that the head gaskets are prone to blowing but as it states in the service shedule, the head bolts torque should be checked on the first two services. So, check with your service mechanic to see if he has done this.
I find the bike comfy, reliable & good fun. I get around 140 to 180 miles to the tank full as well. It's gonna taking me to Morrocco next Feb. |
I would vote for the KAWASAKI KLR650.
I am very happy with this bike and am currently in the process of modifying it for my panamaricana-trip. I dare to say it is best value for money with good dual-sports capabilities. cheers gijs. |
Hello "jondoe" and the others,
we wrote two posts (and other with us) on the excellent Suzuki DR 650 SE on http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb...ML/000004.html explaining our experiences with these bikes. We wanted to find a good e-start replacement for our beloved XT 500's (139 kg empty) for travelling a second time overland from Belgium to India and back. I made a list of tech specs of all types of bikes which seemed suitable for us - emphasis was on weight (dry or full) mainly, and a bit on HP. Of course also seat height, price and years they were built were added. After these first scans, I started collecting reports on several bikes from all kinds of magazines here and abroad, and from the internet, looking at reliability, handling, etc. And sure, we also had many looks and a few rides on the real things. XT 600 E's (156 kg empty), Dominators (152 kg empty), Transalps (191 kg empty), KLRs (168 kg empty), an XL 600 LM (155 kg empty), and I even had a proper look at my trusty 1986 R 80 G/S PD (186 kg empty) - I tested the latter thoroughly in Tunesia and found it instantly too heavy. Availability of special parts like a big tank was also important. As for seat height : a whole lot of things can be done to lower any bike. Cutting down the seat itself is a first, lowering the front forks through the "T-piece" (sorry, don't know its name in English), making longer cushion rods, and if necessary : getting a lower rear suspension. All bearing in mind that a loaded bike is lower anyhow. And lots of testing and getting professional advise too. My last doubts were between the DR 350 (130 kg empty), the 400 (132 kg empty) and the 650 SE (147 kg empty - this last generation DR was about 10 kgs lighter and also lower then the older models). The 400 was too new, no big tanks were available (yet ?), and water cooled (a minus in my opinion because of extra mechanical bits that can break). The 350 was finally dropped because we thought it would be too slow (and boring) for the looooooooooong distances in Turkey and Iran, but I still think it's an excellent overland bike. Now, after our last journey in 2002 for 6,5 months, I would still prefer an even lighter bike. We were stuck quite a few times because of the bike's weight. We're both very very happy with our choice but a post like http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb...ML/000016.html makes me doubt again. How about 50 kgs lighter with the same punch ? (and the same solidity and reliability) Like many people before me wrote : travelling can be done on ANY bike as long as you yourself feel good on it. I've seen pictures of a Pan European and an R1 on jungle mud roads, of a 50 cc postman's bike along Australia's Gun Barrel Road. A scooter passed us on one of the harshest parts in Ladakh going to Pangong Tso, and we saw fifty Indian bikers two-up (!) on Honda Hero's, Bajaj and Pulsars, all 100-125 cc Indian bikes on the Manali-Leh road... Good luck with the testing and the final choice. Trui ------------------ Iris and Trui 2 belgian women, often travelling on motorbikes (now on DR650SE's) 2nd overland from home to Northern India and back, April-October 2002 |
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