take risks

Buddy wants an adventure bike. He is new to riding and I'm trying to help.
He wants to do some trips to Colorado and such.

I imagine he will spend 80/20 on vs. offroad.

He is looking around the 600cc size. I am suggesting a twin, but this adventure stuff is not my cup of tea.

Any help would be appreciated.

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Apex

BMW F650. Rode a new one...awesome bike.

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omjunk

DL650!! Cheap, fun, reliable, many dealers and a 300 mile range.

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james1300

Yup! The Suzuki DL-650 VStrom. (It won't break his bank)
W I D E service interviles.
TON's of support and goodies available.
I rode mine to do an 'Iorn Butt' qualifer. Left the FJR at home.
I LOVE mine.

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RobG

Yep... on the V-Strom (DL650)... or if he wants to do a bit more dirt, the DR650 (I have one, love it).

Rob

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koorbloh

people often say what percentage they want to ride on vs off road...

but you really have to ask yourself...is that 80% road commuting and putting? or do you need to go long distances? is that 20% "off road" truly off road? or do you mean a dirt road that joe average SUV can traverse with ease?


what I'm getting at is that paved vs dirt percentage means nothing.


what do you want the bike for?


I feel that you cannot go wrong with a vstrom, however, depending on what you do...you might want a klr, dr, gs, wr, super sherpa, or cr.

so...honestly, if you want relevant recommendations, describe to us what you really intend to ride, or we'll all just mention our favorite bikes like everyone else in this thread has done.

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PeteN95

Jeff makes a good point here, while a Vstrom is a great motorcycle, you are really limiting yourself to dirt roads as far as "off road" goes. The DR650 has much more off road capability, but you probably don't want to ride across the country on one. A KLR or BMW 650 single are inbetween those. BMW confuses the issue because the newer F650 is an 800cc twin and a G650 is a single, but they used to call the 650 single F650?!?

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r1200r

yep, if you can't swing the 1200GSA, the 650 is awesome.... BMW makes a great Adventure bike and there's a lot of good after market stuff for them.

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Bmwridr05

You can literally write a book on this topic. Been hashed to death on numerous forums.

I'll throw my latest standard answer out there though .... used KLR.
Tons of mods and aftermarket support available.

Cheap to buy, cheap to maintain, easy to work on yourself.
I've owned two, great do-it-all bike.

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gpd323

I researched the BMW's ($$$), the DR650 (oil cooled), the VStrom (sweet bike) and the KLR's. The budget way I found was a used KLR all upgraded from stem to stern. Some blemishes but it was the cheap way to try the ADV rider concept and see if I like it.

I have the complete service history and it has the 685cc big bore kit!

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koorbloh

what's wrong with oil cooled? the dr makes more HP, more smoothly, and the bike's 50 pounds lighter...

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gpd323

Nothing, just making a observation.

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nwmcrider123

I personally like my WR250 Adventure.



In all seriousness, there are quite a few different options in the mid cc ranges.

KLR 650, DR650, Sertao(single), Vstrom, XR650... Those are the top contenders I can think of off the top of my head.

The KLR is probably one of the most popular choices due to it being one of the cheapest to pick up and it also has one of the biggest aftermarket followings. The bike has changed very little in the last 20+ years making it inexpensive for repair and upkeep.

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Bachelorhouse

My recommendation is a used bike in decent condition that will hold its value for a while. (and most of the bikes mentioned could fit)
He needs to ride something (anything) for a year to decide what he really wants. There are so many differences between dualsport bikes that many of us have more than one.
The Japanese 650s are a good place to start..

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aRAD161

That KLR looks like awesome! Dig the black.

for the DR! Loving mine for the short time I have had it.

on the percentage game - it really is a useless way to describe the function of a bike or product - it's a compromise either way. For example, someone says "this is a good 75/25 tire", = it will do pretty good on street and can handle some light off road. It does not translate to it rides very well on road and can tackle any off road you decide to ride every once in a while.

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243Win

Well said. Like my DR650 so much, I got another one.

And you can ride them long distances, rode mine to Vegas from Port Orchard via the coastline, cut inland on dirt from Orick to Weitchpec. Good times.

Used, mid-sized. Ride it and figure out what is right for the rider.

Added an SV650 modded with bags and dirt-bars/bark-busters as one of my other rides as I didn't care for the DL650, but liked the engine. IT's set up so I can stand and ride down a dirt road and sit up nice and comfy the rest of the time.

DR650


SV650 looking up Sun Valley

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