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D
Deleted member 23845
Guest
All,
Last week I rented a BMW F650GS from MountainADV in Durango. I put on over 200 miles swanning about my home town roads of LaPlata County, San Juan County and a dip into the Southern Ute Nation of NM. Last June I rented a Suzuki V-Strom (650?). Comparatively the BMW is a much finer ride, at least for a 5 foot 5 inch guy like me with 30 inch inseam, and into my sixth decade.
Pluses of the BMW:
-really superb handling, dip into curves, predictable--best feature of bike
-smooth braking although the long throw of the rear foot lever seemed a bit strange, single front brembo did a nice job, no abruptness--linear throttle--easy start
-reasonable seat height, no problems mount/dismount
-excellent mileage (over 50 miles/gallon)
-low center of gravity, very predictable on gravel and bit of off-road fishtailing
-reasonable weight
-good instrumentation including gear indicator and fuel level
-excellent wind break with shield--set up for bags and rack is nice.
Minuses of the BMW:
-seemed underpowered to me, low end torque so-so, bike had less acceleration than my Moto Guzzi V7 750 twin, and less than the V-Strom 650
-speedometer was hard to read, little dial and numbers
-clutch engage is at very far end of throw, clumsy take off
-non adjustable hand levers: a reach for small hands
-weird turn signal set up: individual L and R and separate cancel switch
-UGLY bike, really wonky design, but pretty orange.
Would I buy one? Unlikely, as the low power is a deal buster, and ugly.
Last week I rented a BMW F650GS from MountainADV in Durango. I put on over 200 miles swanning about my home town roads of LaPlata County, San Juan County and a dip into the Southern Ute Nation of NM. Last June I rented a Suzuki V-Strom (650?). Comparatively the BMW is a much finer ride, at least for a 5 foot 5 inch guy like me with 30 inch inseam, and into my sixth decade.
Pluses of the BMW:
-really superb handling, dip into curves, predictable--best feature of bike
-smooth braking although the long throw of the rear foot lever seemed a bit strange, single front brembo did a nice job, no abruptness--linear throttle--easy start
-reasonable seat height, no problems mount/dismount
-excellent mileage (over 50 miles/gallon)
-low center of gravity, very predictable on gravel and bit of off-road fishtailing
-reasonable weight
-good instrumentation including gear indicator and fuel level
-excellent wind break with shield--set up for bags and rack is nice.
Minuses of the BMW:
-seemed underpowered to me, low end torque so-so, bike had less acceleration than my Moto Guzzi V7 750 twin, and less than the V-Strom 650
-speedometer was hard to read, little dial and numbers
-clutch engage is at very far end of throw, clumsy take off
-non adjustable hand levers: a reach for small hands
-weird turn signal set up: individual L and R and separate cancel switch
-UGLY bike, really wonky design, but pretty orange.
Would I buy one? Unlikely, as the low power is a deal buster, and ugly.
