Which On/Off road Bike Recommendation??

[Dietrich_R1]

So wanting to get another bike. Something that I can take off-road & a minimum of fire road accessible. I still want to have it street legal & a 1/2 ass'd descent road ride. Don't want to spend a fortune either.

The KLR 650 comes to mind... any other ideas? I have an R1 so I'm used to power. I'm 6'1" & 230lbs.

I really need something I can take up to the hills where it's not 120 degrees & unwind a bit.

[TFOGGuys]

KLR650 is the claw hammer of motorcycles, meaning it will do almost everything, but isn't necessarily the best tool for the job. Along the same lines, you might look at the DRZ400(better off road, not as good on the highway), BMWF650GS (much like a KLR, but with more ponies), DR650S, or KTM 640 Adventure (Better than the KLR in almost every way, but expensive and has a sky high seat, ask Rybo). Others might include the VStrom, Older Transalp, or XR650L.

[RCStylin']

ktm 690 enduro...badazz

[spdr8cr02]

XR650R... and yes this one was street legal... I really wish I had kept it.

Also it's the king of Baja.

[= Buckeye Jess =]

Don't nail me to the wall if I'm completely off on this one guys...but isn't the Versys supposed to be fairly good for this too? Obviously you'd wanna change your tires if you're gonna be off road a lot... I've not had the chance to ride one myself yet, but I do keep hearing good things about it.

[Jim_Vess]

Don't nail me to the wall if I'm completely off on this one guys...but isn't the Versys supposed to be fairly good for this too? Obviously you'd wanna change your tires if you're gonna be off road a lot... I've not had the chance to ride one myself yet, but I do keep hearing good things about it.

The Versys is strictly a road bike. With less than 6" of both front and rear suspension travel, it wouldn't be a very fun ride on dirt.

[FZRguy]

It's fine for dirt roads. I'm planning on a SM bike for the same thing.

[Bueller]

Second the Supermoto

[salsashark]

Aurora Honda had a couple of used 650s the last time I was there...

[= Buckeye Jess =]

The Versys is strictly a road bike. With less than 6" of both front and rear suspension travel, it wouldn't be a very fun ride on dirt.

Really??? I thought they were being marketed more as a dual purpose? hmm...

[Jim_Vess]

Really??? I thought they were being marketed more as a dual purpose? hmm...

On Kawasaki's website the Versys is listed in the same section as the Ninja 650R - the "Sport" section.

http://www.kawasaki.com/home/

[Wintermute]

How off road do you want to go? Gravel roads or 6-inch rocks and logs?

What's your budget?

Is there a chance you get that strange disease that causes adventure riders to up and ride to Patagonia? Like this SgtMarty guy.(From here in CO.)

If you're going to ride somewhere like Mexico, get something cheap and common like a KLR or DR 650. If you break down and need a part there's tons more Kaw and Suzuki dealers in Mexico than BMW motorcycle or KTM. KLRs also have forums full of people glad to help with mods and questions.

[rybo]

Had the KTM for a little while and while it was a better performing bike it had some serious drawbacks as a daily rider.

1) Oil filters are bloody expensive for the thing and it takes 2 of them! The austrians like their oil CLEAN, but at a cost. Also it had a relatively small oil quantity, so oil changes were frequent.

2) parts were not super easy to find, or cheap. I got the bike used and did some work to make it better. I should be used to it, owning a ducati and all, but the KTM parts were even MORE expensive than the duc parts.

3) Sky high seat. An oxygen mask should be standard on one of these.

I eventually caved and sold it to buy a DR650. While it's not as good in terms of ultimate performance, it's good enough and it's become my daily rider.

Doing it over, I'd consider my primary mission more carefully. If I was really serious about adventure RACING I think the KTM would be hard to beat. Light, powerful, pretty much a purpose built machine. My mission is more mundane. The occasional adventure tour, some gravel roads and daily commuting. The suzuki is a better fit for me. The KLR or the XR are equally good choices. The KLR is pretty much the textbook all arounder. The XR a bit more off road focused. I like the DR a lot because of it's simplicity. With good tires on it it actually handles pretty well too!

have fun

[Dietrich_R1]

Thanks for everyone's input! I really just want to trailer it up out of hell & somewhere more cooler. Then to ride it down the road to the next trail or into town for some grub & gas. Probably a little more than fire road access, but not doing any jumps!!!!

Thanks

[PhL0aTeR]

Probably a little more than fire road access, but not doing any jumps!!!!

Thanks

KLR/DR/XRL is going to be your best bet IMHO for the kind of riding you want, and i made that assumption by you saying you wanted to trailer it up and then hit a bit more than fireroads but staying off the jumps.

in order of dirt worthiness, honda XR650L/suzuki DR650/Kawasaki KLR650, you can just reverse that order for street worthiness IMHO.... I have a DR650 and love it... probably push it more than i should on single tracks, but im def not flying thru the air on it....

[rforsythe]

Agreed with Rybo/Phloater (Rybo's DR used to be mine). For your purposes I'd just get one of those. They're cheap, simple, reliable, and will be more than capable of everything you want.

[Dietrich_R1]

Ran to the closest Honda Shop near work & sat on the XR650L. I was impressed on how big it is & for me that's a nice feature.

Sticker on it is $6K. Asked the salesperson "rough" numbers & he said "about the same out the door w the current deals".

Anyone know what I should expect to pay for it?????

Thanks,
John

[Mental]

Love my DR400. Cheap, capable, dead nuts reliable, good commuter bike, but top speed of 65