Hello guys,

this forum helped me to buy a transalp 600 almost 2 years ago and I'm still very thankful for that. The transalp was (sadly) a very capable and amazing bike that I explored Austria, Switzerland and Italy on. Sadly I had to give her away and switched to a naked bike (SV650x) which I bought brandnew (mistake!) and own for around 8 months now. I love the SV650x, amazing looking, amazing engine, amazing fun but I need a travelbike.

In may i start my journey throu England (England, Wales, Scotland) with the SV650x and I'm already afraid because of the seating position , still I'm gonna do it. I'm 99% sure tho, that in the end of the year or even after the trip, I need a new travelbike.

The facts:
Call me boring but ABS is a must have for me. The reasons why ABS is good (for my needs) are obvious, the reasons why I don't wanna miss it, are sad.
I am not alone anymore, my girlfriend is very much into riding with me (and exploreing the rest of europe with me) therefore the SV650x is out just because of the 2-UP cabability. I need something comfy, I want the concept of an adventurebike (because I really like the concept), therefore sporttourers are out.
I don't like to admit it, because I really really like it, but I will not ride alot off the road. I would say that 90% of the time im on pavement, 10% forests/gravelroads. That's it! I took my transalp onto a MX-Track last year and it was fun. But it was also tiring and at one point (when I realized that I can't probably control my wrists/hands anymore after 6 hours) it got scary too

The conclusion: I need an adventure bike for the roads in europe.
BUT, I still plan to do my dreamtrip (riding from Germany to Mongolia within a year) but not anytime soon. I just can't decide if I should buy a bike that is capable of doing that NOW or buy it whenever the time comes, where im actually going.

After lots of reading and reading I managed to cut down my list to 4 bikes.
Suzuki V-Strom 650 (2017+)
Suzuki V-Strom 1000 (2017+)
Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L (2016+)
KTM 1050 Adventure (2015+).

While the pricerange is quiet similar (7k-10k) i basically can afford every bike right now. But which one is the right? Everyone has clear advantages and disadvantages. I have to testride all of them (first appointments are set) but still, I'd like to get some opinions on long term usuage of those bikes from experienced people.

Suzuki V-Strom 650
Lightest option, cheapest option, very capable engine for soloriding.
Question: Since we will do some 2-UP riding (yet I can't tell how much it actually will be), is the V-Strom650 still a good choice? I can see only 2 reasons why I would like to get a 1000 instead of a 650 and the capability to go 2-UP is one of them. IF we really only do 1 big trip a year (3-4 weeks) and some Weekend-Getaways, do we really need a 1000? Or is the V-Strom650 doing the job?
Since I don't wanna switch bikes every year (which I did so far), won't the 650 constantly bring this wish up? I WANT MORE POWER. If I need to chose a bike to seddle down with, shouldn't it be a 1000? I don't see a reason for me to get a 1200+/160hp+ bike. A 1000 is all I need, even a 650 is all I need now. Is the 650 capable enough to fit my needs without constantly making me think about moving to a 1000? Especially in terms of 2-UP, long distance and comfort reasons?

The 1000
If i come to the conclusion that I want a1000, which one? The Africa Twin is surely the best looking, most offroad capable, most desireable bike of those 3, but then again: Do I need the offroad capability especially since the AT lacks roadcomfort compared to the other two? For my offroad needs all of the others bikes do a well job, the others are way better on road tho (i guess).
The KTM1050 and V-Strom1000 are kinda comparable. The V-Strom got probably the most powerful/comfortable engine of them all and makes the best deal for long-distance road traveling. I can't really find a reason to get the KTM but it's look.
In my mind I come to this point: Do I need Offroading? Get the AT, do I care for the look? Get the KTM, in any other case: Get the V-Strom.

Long story short, should I aim for a 650 over a 1000? Or is a 1000 the better option to just seddle down with a bike and not wishing to switch anytime soon? edit: if i ride 2-up with my girl right now on the sv650x (76hp 645ccm) i think the power is enough, will I keep thinking like that?
Should I take in consideration, that I plan this big trip or should I just get a bike for that need WHEN I'm going and ignore those plans now?

Thanks.

PS: on the 6th of April i testride the AT. In may i get the opportunity to testride a V-strom 1000 and KTM (directly comparable). The thing is: a short testride of like 20km will probably give me the opinion that the more agressive and more playful engine of the KTM is more fun, but won't that be annoying after the first 500km of a 4500km long trip throu Spain?