My wife is letting me move up a class from my 150cc Aprilia scooter to a bigger boy bike and I've always had my eyes on the F650. Now my bike friends are telling me to skip the thumper and look for a 2009+ as it will generally be a better ride. I will be commuting on this bike with great regularity. I am only 6 miles, city streets from the office, so nothing crazy there. But that will be bulk of the trips. I'd like to take it out for longer cruises to the hill country (central TX) and out to a few camping spots I like. Very limited 2up in town, but hopefully some fun 2up out on the country roads. So first thing, sound about right for the twin F650? So second, as I am looking I obviously have noticed the lesser availability of these used. Is there a mileage number to not look above? I am seeing Fleamarket $ in the 6,500-7k range but seeing them at dealers in the 8-9k range. How much is a reasonable amount to offer below asking at a dealer? I'm going to have to borrow about $4k, so need to go with a dealer since I'm not sure how to do a loan on a person to person sale. Extended warranty on a 2009 with say 15k-25k miles? While ideally I would like to put 5-10k/yr on it will I actually get anything out of the extra coverage? Lastly what should I look for, with boots on the ground, at a used bike from a dealer? Thanks guys, looking forward to a lot of great adventures.
An interesting "feature" of these bikes is the components which were sourced based on production cost rather than quality. What I mean is, parts made in China, with questionable quality control practices ... cheesy forks which might snap off while riding, that sort of thing. Check out the links below, they will give you a warm fuzzy feeling. Some people will tell you the fork design has changed and that problem won't happen any more. I wouldn't stake my life on such claims, personally, not when there are other bikes which have never ever had such problems available for similar money. http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=393785 http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hubb/which-bike/has-anybody-ever-seen-failure-38514 http://www.bmwmoa.org/forum/showthread.php?28793-Catastrophic-Forks-Failure http://f800riders.org/forum/showthread.php/17859-Catastrophic-Fork-Failure-F650GS-single http://www.f650gs.crossroadz.com.au/FFArchive.html
1) Wrong bike. OP is asking about the twin - that's the single. 2) All those links come back to the same 1 crash. Horrible, but hardly statistically significant. OP - Sorry I can't answer your questions specifically. Love my F8GS. Have a buddy with an F650GS that commutes daily/took it to Prudhoe Bay. He loves his. Have fun, ride the crap out of it. Actually, just realized I can help - Some credit unions offer loans on used motorcycles. If you're in CA, I know "Provident Credit Union" will do it. Might even be able to do it remotely through e-mail, etc. Just an option for pursuing a private sale and maybe saving a few bucks. -Kyle
What "these bikes" are you talking about? Only certain years of the F650 single? All F bikes? All BMWs? Agreed, there was some kind of rash based on the links you provide above...just not sure how much a deterrent that should be from BMWs and the current F bikes. This aside, to the Original Poster: I would suggest you still consider the single for what you describe, especially given budget considerations. I came off a 2006 F650 which I really loved. There is a great resource for this bike over at f650.com. But maybe some good twins showing up for sale too. All in all, you are headed down the right path. But don't rule out KLRs, Hondas, etc. They are good too. Welcome to the club.
Thanks Kyle. Yeah I saw the above threads and figured it was just a troll. Older forks and older bike. I really do want to ride the crap out of it. I've always been a bicyclist, so when I got the 150 I suddenly found every reason to take it places. After pulling it out of storage and riding again I realized just how much I miss the air moving around me. So looking forward to something that will take me farther.
Thanks Gumbeaux. You one of my Coonass neighbors (TX here)? I am still a little back and forth on the single or twin. I know what 75 on a 150 rotax feels like, and that isn't so bad. So 500cc more should be down right plush and smooth. I'll post up my F650 Q's over at F650.com. Maybe I just make my development four steps, 150, 650, 800, then 11/1200. Either way I don't think I'll be miserable.
Go for the 800 twin, I don't think you'll regret it. I had a 650 single before my F800 and this thing is more fun in every way.
Triumph Bonneville Scrambler. 900cc, Ultra reliable, none of that over-engineered German stuff, perfect commuter bike, And you can get a one new for what you would pay for a used f650
Nah...my wife was from New Orleans...not me. Either way, you will find a good fit in this group of bikes. The move from the F650 single to my F800GS was a great logical step as my riding became more advanced with more offroad and longer trips.
First, don't be disillusioned that since they call the 2009-2012 a "F650GS" that is much more a beginner bike than the F800GS. There are so few differences between the two bikes (rims, suspension and a few HPs) that is a marketing ploy. Most people will rant about how the rims on the F800 are weak and upgrade to Woody Wheels. Additionally, the suspension is another gripe area that ends up sinking a few grand to improve. Knowing the above, it makes a lot more sense to buy an F650GS and use the extra cash to buy suspension/rims. Also, if you buy a bike used from a person you are likely going to get a better deal as the aftermarket accessories can be pretty spendy and you might get a really tricked out bike for a much better deal.
Forget about the single, definitely go with the f 650gs twin. 09 and later. It's actually a 798cc parallel twin. Very easy bike to ride. You will want to keep a few bucks on the side for a taller windshield and more comfortable seat. If you plan on going off road at all, then a skid plate, hand guards and crash bars are a must. There's tons of info on this site.
I agree with the comments that suggest moving up to the F800GS. Mine has been terrific, 2009, now 28,000 miles. I think if I had bought the 650gs I would have been wishing I had purchased the F8 in the first place. Still original wheels and forks. It's been to Deadhorse, Dawson City, Eagle, Hatcher Pass, Nabesna, Circle, Manley, and all over remote parts of Nevada snd Northern California
