I've owned a dr650, ktm690, wr250 and now a 350exc. I owned the dr, ktm690 and wr simultaneously; and can say the 690 is the best street bike and in most instances the best dirt bike of all three. The 690 on the road has enough power that it accelerates as hard from 60-80 as it does from 40-60. It's smoother than the wr at 75 and is just barely humming along. My old 525 felt similar in power but was nowhere near as smooth. In the dirt is where it's dual sport nature is most noticed. Yes the suspension is light years ahead of the dr's and about a century ahead of the wr, the 690's lack of steering stop to stop turning, super tall seat height, the aforementioned power and 325 pounds of well hidden weight keep it from the prowess of a true dirt bike. My dr was tricked with drz front end, cogent shock, procycle 190 cam, high comp piston, pumper carb and two bros pipe. On the dr I did several multi hundred mile days with many of those miles at 75 down I-10. Not as smooth as the 690, but not bad either. I paid 2200 for the bike and sunk another 2 grand in mods so for under 4500 ended up with a bike that performed about 85 to 90 percent as well as my 11000 dollar 690. Granted there is no amount of money that could get a dr to the performance level of the 690, my point being the dr is a real value that responds very well to mods. I weighed all three bikes at an aluminum can recycling place: wr 298lbs tank full of gas. 690 327lbs tank full of gas. Dr650 343lbs little to no gas, but with 18-20 lbs of rack, top case and tank bag. As you can see all three bikes are substantially heavier than true dirt bikes. All three are true dual sports designed to have less rigorous maintenance schedule and travel many miles. What I have taken from this is that for long mileage runs, mild to medium off road work and and a maintenance schedule that fits in the average working class family man's schedule a well setup dr650 is a hard value to beat.
The 520 is a pretty slick looking bike. Especially with the carbon fiber skid plate. I'd never rock one (the CF skiplate) because I'm sure I would destroy it. I'm wondering about the subframe and what the maintenance intervals are.
When I was 127lbs in college I could kick start a XR600R... I also had no problem kicking an older DR650. With a bike that is kick/electric it is easy to use your foot to suppliment a weak battery. Having had my battery die on the WR250R (because of my negligence and leaving the heated grip on) has worried me about possibly making the same mistake out on a distant ride. When I get home I am going to pull the tank off and install proper fuses and relays as well as a LED indicator for the future owner... if I ever sell it. Like I said previously... I'm 27, no kids, not married, no girlfriend. I'm an engineer for a defense contractor and I get paid to travel... paid a lot. 6 figures. You're right about the eye candy. I suppose I could always have the suspension worked on the WR250R... add a Lynx fairing, do the 290cc kit, full exhaust and steering stabilizer... oh and gas tank. If I go up on the rear it might make cruising on the interstate in 6th easier. Or I could just sell it and get a KTM 690. Personally I would rather start with a better base for my needs. I'm pretty indecisive at the moment on what I want to do... I have a lot of time to think about different scenarios. This whole thing stems from my TAT trip I am planning. I'd take my 800xc but I am afraid that I will have too difficult of a time in some of the sections to enjoy the trip. I'd take the WR250R but I think I would dread riding all the way back across the country. I don't want to ship the bike, that's not really an option. I made this thread in the intent of finding something that is not only TAT worthy but comfortable to cross country superslab. You throw enough money at something... anything is possible right? It appears that the KTM 690 is everything the WR250R wants to be. If it's as nice on the road as people say it is, then its a 800xc replacement for me. If it's as good off road as the WR250R then its a WR250R replacement for me. Win win right? The Beta 520RS and the KTM 500EXC look like excellent fun bikes... but they wont do the long distance I am really wanting to end up doing eventually. Sorry for the rant, I'm sick
All this talk of WR450F or WRF engine doesn't make sense for the OP. I'm sure he meant a big bore version of the low maintenance WR250R, not the higher maintenance WR450F. Sounds to me like the WR250R is pretty close, but if you want more grunt for highway speed, 690 Enduro or TE630 for modern, or DR650 for old-school. No kick starters on 'em though. If you're willing to do a bit more the maintenance, the 500 EXC looks like a peach of a machine. What it really sounds like you need is more time to ride!
I too own the WR250, the 690 has always seemed like the obvious next step up and if I had the money I would have already done it. The reason many go for the WR450 is because it can be had cheap used and actually does make for a reliable road bike that can handle a lot of miles. In the mean time I've just been working my WR250 hard on back roads. I don't like the amount of input it requires to accurately meter its speed over 65mph. Its not that it can't run faster, its that its hard to keep it there. For instance, I might be going 70 and holding the throttle steady. I could look down and have dropped to 60 or gone up to 85 from a change in wind. Point it the throttle requires constant modulation. Some people can naturally moderate by engine sound, I can but only to within + or - 5mph and around here you have to go 7-10mph over to not be run over... and 11 will get you a stiff ticket. Makes the lil 250 horrible on the highway.
We share a lot of similarities. 27, owners of WR250R's, like the bike but want more, especially torque. I bought my WR new at the depths of the recession for $4K. I put 5000 miles - mostly off pavement on it. I liked it, but never loved it. I always thought it was too heavy for what it was. I started riding big dual sports on a Honda XL600R and still lusted for some torque. I never had a good reason to get rid of it until I got engaged this year. Now that the bike is on my fiances finger I am left poking around an old XR600R - that I actually love. Simple, air cooled, kick start, lighter than my WR and will rip. Its not the solution to your problem - but it has been my stop gap. I vacillate between the EXC500 and 690 - but at the end of the day I think I am going to go for the 500. The weight makes a huge difference. I try to stay off asphalt and I also am more of a base camper vs. epic long rides guy - so my situation may be different. I don't think I would hesitate to strap on a Giant Loop and go riding for a week at a time on 500. The bikes are proving to be relaible. Anyways - thats my 2 cents fwiw.
Man ... that is one CLEAN XR600R. Beauty! I agree on the 500 ... and I'm with you on your base camp ... long loop style. We do the same. Do this in the Sierra but also in Baja. We move every couple days to new town and ride day loops. Awesome. Leave all the crap in the Motel. (or camp)
What a beautiful XR600R. Have you had any problems with it? Awesome shop too. Don't find too many like it anymore.
Long day loops is where it is at in my opinion. No real problems to speak of. I don't really know the hours or mileage on it - but the wear points on the bike were in great snape - so I am pretty sure it was not ridden a bunch. It kicks over fairly easily if it has been started in the past week or so. I probably have $1800 into it. When it sits for a month it can take a few minutes to get it to light. It just turned 25 this year - so it should have antique tags soon
Xathor I actually have DeBandi's brother's bike and it is for sale. It is also local. http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=868461 By the way, I have the WR and I am keeping it.
Back to the kick-start option--- a DR-Z400 with the ACT wide ratio gear set?? You could swap front sprockets to suit dirt or slab. I just wanted to throw that out there since I'm sort of taken by the notion myself. Sarah
In three years on my DRZ400E it never failed to start and the original battery was never replaced. If someone does something stupid, leaves ignition and headlight on or cranks and cranks and cranks when fuel is shut off ... well, can't blame the battery for that. I looked closely at doing the conversion when I bought my DRZ E new in 2001. It was very cheap ($200) and the dealer could do the job in two days. I passed and am glad I did. Just not needed. If you ever have a problem or batt is getting a bit low ... just unplug your headlight (30 seconds) or put in a switch. This will ensure batt is fully charged in short order. That all said .... in deep sand or mud the DRZ is tough to bump start. Most novice riders screw up and run down their battery after a tip over. The bike is flooded and they don't know the technique for restarting after a fall. The longer the bike lays there ... the more severe the flooding. If you fall ... FIRST ... turn off fuel, turn off key. Next, get bike on its wheels ASAP. Next: Hold throttle wide open ... to the stop. Hold it there, do NOT modulate it. Crank it over. It will take several turns but should start up with some sputtering. Off Road Four Stroke Starting Lesson 101.
I sell you my plated XR600R and my TE510 figure out which you like better. I've never ridden anything orange, but a 610 sounds awesome for what youre looking at. My 510 and the 450s I've had are true enduros and needs frequent oil changes ... But hot damn!!!... They are fun innthe dirt! You'll notice the longer wheelbase and rake on the 610 over your WR, but you'll love the torque and being able to pass peope going 80mph if you need to.
The 690 is the hot bipolar stripper bitch that is hot in the sack one day and trying to cut your balls off the next day. After seeing what it did to fishfund in Africa I would never take one seriously. WR250R/X is where its at.
Maybe so, but I asked myself all the same questions as the OP coming off my venerable old XT350. I wanted dirt bike suspension for offroad, weight around 300 and enough power to make me grin in the dirt and not be a hassle on our crazy fast freeways. The LC4E has lived up to all of my expectations. I am not planning to unload the E any time soon unless I trip over a virgin 625SXC. But when I do it will for a 690. There is zero question in my mind about that.
It was.the doohickey. Fishfunds bike was continually breaking down. No need to repeat that nightmare.
I agree. That Fishfund report really put me off the 690 ... and it was backed up by Colebatch's riding partner Rod and his 4 months of constant problems on his KTM 690 ... where he was frequently towed. That Fishfund Luke is a bit of an idiot ... and no mechanic. So I can see him missing some basic maintenance things and screwing up some attempted "repairs", so I cut the 690 slack for some of this. But as mentioned, his problems were varied and never seemed to stop. No wonder those guys bailed the Hell out of Africa on that ride. Funny, the bike got fixed and sold ... and in capable hands has done a major problem free tour. (Ronin) Rod, Colebatch's partner is a very experienced rider/mechanic. The fuel pump issues (and other problems) pulled his chain for months. Was the other way around ... it was what the Viking did to his KLR You should not blame the KLR for an owner who knew nothing about maintenance and made so many mistakes with his bike. Glen learned A LOT ... eventually ... but at that time was a NOOB regards the care and feeding of the KLR. This was his first tour after being a Hell's Angel. Not much dual sport experience starting off. I remember reading his original posts here and couldn't believe how many times he screwed up and did not catch shit I KNEW was going to bite him. And it DID! You could see this early on in Mexico. As the trip went on he learned and got better. Then he got kidnapped and everything changed. On later tours, with his F650 he did MUCH better and really stayed ahead on maintenance. Not so on that very first tour with the KLR. KLR's have some problems but if properly prepped and cared for, they are pretty bullet proof. Dozens of KLR RTW ride reports prove that point. The KTM 690? No thanks.
I'm not sure I would dismiss the 690 over a few bad reports, given KTMs track record of making great bikes. I know the earlier models had fuel pump issues, among other things. Would I take one over a 640LC-4 or T610 for a RTW trip? Probably not, I like older stuff.
