BMW F650 GS opinions

Gday
I'm after a general idea of what people who have tried this Beemer
think, as a long-distance commuting bike. I've heard they're very good
in terms of an on/ off road bike, but it's a single cylinder, water
cooled four, which may be a little light on. Any comment would be
great.

Cheers

PQ2

<SPADA>

 

"a little light on"? They seem to go pretty well. I'd think
they'd be a bit small if you're planning on chasing Hayabusas
up the highway ...

-----sharks

 

I've only ridden one around town for a few days. Makes a great commuter.

Remember, it's not *that* long since a 650 single was considered a big,
powerful bike.

I've ridden (often a long way) behind the Aprilia incarnation on long trips
and they seem to have no problem maintaining quite silly speeds through
twisty mountain roads or along open highways while laden down with camping
gear etc.

If you want to blast off 1000cc sportsbikes, look elsewhere. If you want a
decent bike, capable of touring dirt roads as well as providing ample fun on
highways and mountains, you could do a lot worse. Some have suggested that
the Pegaso 'version' is superior, but I've only heard that from Peg
owners..........

Moike

 

Ohhh, Mike...silly? Never !

FUN is the word here !!

See other reply
cheers
pete

 

Good choice!
In the land of speed guns, who really needs more...

Diff between the BM and the Pegaso:
Up to 2000, the Peg was the better bike, USD forks, better suspension,
5-valve head, more punch at lower revs, !!better chassis and brakes!!
BM was conventional forks, 4-valve head etc etc.
Both bikes were and still are using the 650cc Rotax engine.
Since 2001 both got FI (BM's having probs with surging which was never
admitted to, but new '03 models are reported ok....Pegaso never had probs
with it).
BM has better dealer network, some of those do hopefully know their stuff,
the Aprilia guys here in Vic don't know their arse from their elbow, at
least when it comes to Pegs.

The Rotax engine has 2 main weak- points to it ( regardless of Aprilia or
BM): IF the head isn't torqued down at the 1000km service and again at the
6000km service, they all are prone to head-gasket failures between
30-50.000km.
Waterpump impeller shaft seals are prone to failure at around the same point
in time (easy repair/fairly inexpensive).

Both models run conventional forks now, spare part pricing is 6-of-one,
half-dozen-of-the-other, with BM slightly cheaper overall (but not by much).
Crash repairs are mostly cheaper on the Pegs.
Insurance premiums vary from company to company, some classify the older
models as class4, the new IE models as class6 (no idea why, but more
expensive), with other companies they're all the same (class4).
Anyway, both are a load of FUN (which is what really what counts for me) and
easy to live with.
Both are only short-distance 2-up bikes.
Both can be taken to dirt roads without a problem (actually : more FUN).
Both will give you a grin from ear-to-ear and are comfortable long-hours
bikes.
Better tyre-choice available for the 19" Pegaso front wheel than for the 21"
BM.
Both can haul arse big-time through tight and twisty stuff.
Both DON'T like aftermarket pipes too well...
Pegaso has better engine braking.
2002 Pegasos are selling for just under 12k O/R new with a set of panniers
(if you squeeze the dealers), a great deal, considering the panniers are 1k
on their own incl. frames. It also comes with braided lines and some other
goodies ex-factory. Not many left, be quick.

That's about it.
Get one of them (either) and start the silly grin.
Of course, Moike's been on the bottle last night and his remarks about silly
speeds on a single are just the results of that )

cheers
pete
Pegaso/V-Strom/XT600

 

They supposed to be a good all rounder, certainly much better than a
R1150GS offroad due to the weigjht.

You should get lots of hits in Google.

If you are in the market for this type of bike then have a look at the
Kawasaki KLR650-A18 due in October. About $8,200 for the Kaw or
$12,900 for the BM.

 

There's a clue in the "18" bit in the model designation. The KLR has been
pretty much unchanged since the late 80's, when it grew out from 600cc. The
extra four and a half grand it costs to get the F650 buys modern suspension,
modern brakes, modern metallurgy and an engine without a chain-driven
balance shaft waiting to do a suicide bomber impression...

 

Yes, apart from a few updates (limited) in 1996 the KLR650 has not had
a lot of changes. However, when you read the owners reports there
certainly isn't a $4,700 difference.

The other clue is that this year Australia gets the US A18 model (23
litre tank and soft forks) rather than the C8? that we got last year.

 

But if you were to read F650 owners reports, you'd no doubt come across
stuff like, "Well worth the $4700 difference..."...

And the splat-tastic single-piston front caliper, too?

 

There are a few ex F650 owners that went to KLR that don't say that
but.....

Actually the caliper does not get any comments.
New fork springs (standard too soft) and a braided line (if you are
using it only on the road) get a mention.

 

In aus.motorcycles on Fri, 19 Sep 2003 14:09:54 +1000

But are there any who went from KLR to F650 who say it wasn't worth the
extra?

Zebee

 

Ouwww, no contest, really...
One's the rough-as-guts ex-dirt bike, wanna-be dual purpose out of the 80's
leftover (hey, got one of those XT600's, too, know the diff)
the other is a '90s derived soft-roader with decent
chassis/brakes/ergonomics/finish etc etc.
If trying to mark the mid-line between dirt and road, the KLR is decidly on
the dirt side of things, the BM/Peg on the road side of the line.
None of them is perfect for everything, but which bike/car/washingbasket
ever is?

cheers
pete

 

I do not know.

The main point is that these are two very similar motorcycles with
similar power, handling, robustness etc but one is noticably cheaper
than the other.

I don't believe that the tank badge is worth $4700.

PS the percentage drop on resale is similar (at least in the US and
UK).

 

Hehe, and I've seen otherwise, too.
Don't go and hide now, that old RS still got some legs and can lift the
skirt )
cheers
pete

 

There is also the F650 CS. It's more or less the same but with a belt
drive (no oiling the chain) and lots of conveniant luggage options.

If there is no off-road in your plans then the CS could be a better
choice.

Tim.

 

Objection !
Same thing as calling a Yammie Diversion and a VFR800 the same thing just
because both of them are around the same size, have a fairing of some sort,
and are called (or were called, with the Diversion) Sports Tourers
And yes, the Yammie is a lot cheaper.
pete

 

Agree on that score.
But...the CS is also a lot lower, great for shorties, cramped ergos for the
6-foot club.
Resale also questionable, due to very small numbers getting sold (compared
to the "normal" 650), might not be as popular.
cheers
pete

 

Having tried both, back to back, the CS is a smidgin (that's like a
poofteenth, but more polite) lower. It is also more "gentle" for the
lack of a better expression, in it's turning in.

If you can handle the extra height, living with chain lube could be
worth the bother.

My opinion, worth what you pay for it!

regards,
CrazyCam

 

But...the CS is also a lot lower, great for shorties, cramped ergos for the

BMW has 3 seat hight options for the 650Gs, they probably have the
same option for the CS.

For a commuter bike anything without a chain is already quite a ways
ahead, and the stereo potential rocks ;-)

 

My wife rode a 2001 F650GS for 12 months while on her P's We bought it used
at 1900 kms on the day that LAMS came in last September. She's 5'3" and
handled the bike quite well, so it is managable by shorter riders. She has
since moved up to an SV650-S (the 2002 model, she thought the new 2003 model
was not as 'female friendly').

After 12 months, here are some general comments.

- Braking is not particularly good on these bikes - I've never slid around
so much, the rear locks up alarmingly easily. I've ridden two other GS's and
found this to be consistent. The single front disc adds to the braking woes,
and I've had a couple of nasty frights at speeds of only 50 ks when
emergency braking was called for. Brake soft and early. This occurred on the
stock tyres which are (allegedly) a harder 'dual surface' tyre, so switching
to a softer compound might improve this. But after paying 13K plus, having
to fork out another couple of hundred for softer tyres just to avoid sliding
around seems annoying.

- I don't regard it as an off-road bike, it's too heavy and a bit fragile.
Think of it more of a road bike that can handle a gravel road without
grounding out. I would not take it anywhere *interesting*, especially as you
probably won't be able to fix it if something went wrong. If you really want
to go bush, stick to something without EFI and compooters in it, as you'll
have a fighting chance of fixing it if something goes wrong out of mobile
phone range.

- It is definitely a bike you can cruise on all day, the wife and I spent a
lot of time cruising around NSW/QLD with no complaints. She was very
comfortable, and the bike's low centre of gravity means it handles a
cross-wind better than just about any bike I've ever ridden.

In hindsight, we would not buy this bike again. It's a decent bike, but I
don't consider it 'value for money'. The handwarmers and panniers are nice,
but you can install those on any bike. For an RRP of $12,900 + orc I'd think
one could rightfully expect twin front discs, but apparently not.

Some good suggestions for dirt-worthy alternatives have been made above.
Possibly also consider the KTM 640 Adventure. For a road-bound learner (in
NSW) or anyone looking for a mid-sized commuter, I would also recommend the
Suzuki GS500. 500ccs, comfortable, upright seating position and able to
cruise at freeway speeds easily. More importantly a RRP of $7390 (+orc).
Take the $4500 diff, add a screen and some throwover bags and you're
laughing. In hindsight, that was the bike we should have bought for my
wife's LAMS period.

PS - We are planning on selling the GS very soon, so if you are interested
in buying it, please ignore the above. It's a fantastic bike and we love it,
really can't bear to part with it.



Manning