2012 BMW G650GS Sertao Owners

[trainman]

Biggest gripe I have with the bike (Sertao) is it leans over too far on the sidestand, I'm 6'1" and weight around 230, I think it's heavy to upright, any tried it yet. This is what happens when you use the same sidestand as the one on the 650GS, it's too short for the Sertao.

John

[twinrider]

Originally Posted by trainman

Biggest gripe I have with the bike (Sertao) is it leans over too far on the sidestand, I'm 6'1" and weight around 230, I think it's heavy to upright, any tried it yet. This is what happens when you use the same sidestand as the one on the 650GS, it's too short for the Sertao.

John

Same as the Dakar, another issue you'd think BMW would have updated. Some Dakar owners bolt a hockey puck to the bottom of the sidestand.

[SafteyCushion]

Originally Posted by trainman

Biggest gripe I have with the bike (Sertao) is it leans over too far on the sidestand, I'm 6'1" and weight around 230, I think it's heavy to upright, any tried it yet. This is what happens when you use the same sidestand as the one on the 650GS, it's too short for the Sertao.

John

The only time I've had a bike fall off the side stand was when I rode one with a longer stand, the wind caught it, and it blew over on the right side. The bike stuck the car parked there, damaging both vehicles.

The only time I hurt myself getting on a bike was putting my right leg over a 1200gsa and then trying to push it up with my left leg from a fully leaned-over position

Best way to mount the bike, IMHO, is to be sure it is in gear, raise it off the side stand in the open position (wheel pointed to the right), raise your right leg so that you have a tripod between the two tires and your left leg. That works fine if your are tall enough

YMMV

[slider162]

Mine will be delivered on Wednesday. I couldn't find any decent used Dakars in the area.

[PullingG's]

Congrats...nice looking bike. Let us know your impressions.

[eanth]

Originally Posted by GSBS

Have you ever done a mock emergency braking test on the road? I mean REALLY grab as much brake front and rear as you can with the F650 ABS?

On mine at least once the rear wheel began to slide, that was it for the rear brakes. Nothing. Nota. Just plain scary to me.

!

I have an 03 Dakar and the rear ABS functions exactly as described here by GSBS. The front works great, but the rear is scary indeed. I took it in years ago under warranty (don't recall where) and was told that this is how these brakes are supposed to function. Couldn't believe my ears. I still have the ABS installed for the benefit up front but may lose it now that i've upgraded to an Ohlins rear and considering the YZ front swap.

[GSBS]

Originally Posted by eanth

I have an 03 Dakar and the rear ABS functions exactly as described here by GSBS. The front works great, but the rear is scary indeed. I took it in years ago under warranty (don't recall where) and was told that this is how these brakes are supposed to function. Couldn't believe my ears. I still have the ABS installed for the benefit up front but may lose it now that i've upgraded to an Ohlins rear and considering the YZ front swap.

Do the YZ conversion... you won't regret it!

I finally got to test ride my "new" Dakar today for the first time since converting to the YZ forks and having the stock Showa shock revalved and dialed in by Go Race Suspension in Virginia.

It is truly a different bike! Even though today's ride was somewhat abbreviated due to the cold weather and time considerations, the suspension handled every thing thown at it very well. I did a bit of slab and ran it up to over 90 mph, carved on some twisty backroads, even did a stretch of gravel and ran over a dog (Yes, A 50-pound DOG!).

I was going 45-50 mph when this boxer/terrier-looking dog was already running full speed and on me at 3 o'clock before I saw him... Ran clean over him with both wheels. His momentum and angle actually pushed the front end sideways enough to cause a pretty severe swerve and the forks bottomed out.

But the longer suspension must have cushioned the blow cuz the dog just kept running into the woods and wasn't yepping or crying.

Bottom line is that with stock suspension I'd have gone down and the upgrades kept me upright. Hell YEAH!

And the non-ABS brakes work just fine. I had toyed with the idea of buying the EBC oversized (320mm) motard rotor kit for the YZ front brake, but after today I think the stock YZ rotor is large enough for my riding. Nice to have the option for under $200 though.

David

[Durden]

Originally Posted by slider162

Mine will be delivered on Wednesday. I couldn't find any decent used Dakars in the area.

Awesome, it looks great, congrats. Please post some pics when you get it.

I'm interesting in seeing how the stock front suspension works out on these. Also very interested to hear if they resolved the water pump issues on the Dakar. I also broke down and will be buying a new Sertao as the Dakars around here are way overpriced - new ride and 3 year warranty for an extra grand - no brainer.

[Durden]

Is the frame on the Sertao the same as the old F650GS and Dakar? I'm curious if older pannier and rack systems would fit without any modification required, or if I would need to buy a rack system specific to the Sertao?

[slider162]

Originally Posted by Durden

Is the frame on the Sertao the same as the old F650GS and Dakar? I'm curious if older pannier and rack systems would fit without any modification required, or if I would need to buy a rack system specific to the Sertao?

I'm going to have to say yes only because Touratech is listing a few interchangeable parts including the guards and rack.

[slider162]

Sertao was delivered today. Sunny and 34° this afternoon and got 40 miles in. Hand warmers work very well. Tires are strictly street tires. Michelin T63s are in the garage. No real complaints to speak of so far.

[alskee750]

Ok, I went to BMW site but really dont get much info as I wanted to.. This will be my first attempt on owning a new BMW 650. Now my question is can everyone define each model, I'll give it a shot and tell me if I'm wrong.

- G650GS Sertao (Dual purpose), 21' front/17' back/ more suspension/spoked rims

- G650GS aluminum wheels/ lower suspension

-F650GS aluminum wheels/lower suspension/ 800cc motor????

Can someone help me out, was thinking of getting the Sertao but I dont like that it only comes white.

[trainman]

The Sertao has a 21" front and a 17" rear and the 650 GS has a 19" front and 17" rear. Biggest different in the two bikes is the suspension with the Sertao, it sets taller in the seat and will have a little more suspension travel off road. The tires and wheels can be a deciding factor if you what to ride the bike in rough rocky terrain, big front wheels (21") and spoke wheels are the determining factor here, but aluminum wheels have tubeless tires something else to think about. Now for me the Sertao is just one sexy looking 650 big single bike and I like it. Remember buying a BMW is buying a bike with a name, for the money you are spending there are many other bikes out there that will outperform the 650 BMW's. The question you asked about the BMW dealers sales staff, yes you can come out of the dealership more confused then before you went in is true in a lot of cases. The F650GS is a two cylinder bike, why is it called a 650 and not a 800, who knows, but I don't want to pay for a 800 with 650 decals on it, would you. Last, go set on the Sertao at the dealers showroom and when you upright the bike notice the weight, now think about picking up the bike off the ground when you fall over trail riding, now try the 650 GS, any difference.


John

[alskee750]

good call John, will sit on both and see what the difference is and feel. A bit of history from me, I owned a XR650L so I know how it feels picking up a pig! I've taken the XR in some NJ sand and also PA's muddy rocky terrain. Of course w/ my luck it got stolen from me and I will probably never see it again. I currently have a DR250 so if I really want to hit it hard in the dirt I'll take that one out. I also own a Triumph bonneville which I've been trying to transform it to a dual sport monster. The bad thing is, I feel I'm creating frankenstein. I've owned it new from 2001 and it's probably seen all kinds of roads and even some track time . I just think it's time for me to move on from the retro cool to a more suitable off road/on road motorcycle. I like the tall seat height of the Sertao, as my knees are not the same anymore . Of course the deciding factor is the price, as my budget cant go any higher to justify a BMW 800 or a Triumph XC.

Decisions, decisions..

[trainman]

Remember buy a bike for how you are going to ride it, plus a bike that you can keep up with your friends on. That is, if they are all riding 400-450's they are going to blow you away on your BMW 650 well unless you are on a 650 X-Challenge, or you are a great rider. I look at the 650 Sertao and the GS, both single and duel cylinder bike as road bike 1st and off road 2nd, not the other way around. Your XR650L was probably close to 50 lighter then the BMW's you are looking at so you know where you stand. I'm 66 and I think the Sertao will work just fine for my riding style today, I'm not buying it for a mudder, in fact I don't even want to see mud, or sand. Good Luck,

John