Took the bike out yesterday for my first time and went about 60 miles in the foothills nearby. First impression: the seat has to go. Felt like I was sitting in a bowl and that I was pushed to far forward and it was as hard as a board. Nor the first time that I have had issues with BMW seats. The bikes power was a little surprising and felt that it could have also used a 6th gear but overall I am happy with. Had my first WTF when I rode a mile to get gas before my ride nd the bike would not start after getting gas. It turned over but never caught. I followed the owners guide to the letter but it would not start. Pushed out of the way, took the gear off, popped the filler open and waited about 10 minutes and tried again with success. After the ride I was going to try to start it again after a few minutes but forgot so I was not able to try and duplicate what had happened earlier. Went out after 15 minutes and it started fine.
Dealer says it's the battery. I call B/S. After checking the battery and finding nothing wrong I took it or a ride. Going down the highway at 70mph the motor quits on me. I had the bike towed to the shop . With the ignition turned on but the bike not running the battery showed 6.6 volts. Replace the battery and have not had any starting issues since then. I have had the seat rebuilt, put bar backs on it, and new footpegs that are lowered about 1/2" from the original height and I now really like the bike. I don't feel like I am riding a scooter any more.
Brought the bike in because it died on me in Silverado Canyon. They replaced the fuel pump assembly and decompression lever. They also went to do the 18,000 mile service and have found that i need new brake rotors front and rear. They say they are out of spec. How could rotors be dead in 18,000 miles? This sounds ridiculous to me. Anyways if they are only .3mm out of spec is it really that big of a deal? I just put new pads on and they want to scrap the new pads as well. My biggest question is will sprockets, chains, and brake rotors from 2006 F650gs fit on my 2011 g650 or have they changed anything? I would like to purchase aftermarket parts and install them myself rather than pay 500 dollars in labor for bmw to install there overpriced parts. But there is no aftermarket parts on most websites for 2011 g650s. I can get parts all day long for the older f650 and I would imagine they should all fit. Am I right?
Hi. I want to change my hand guards by the Touratech. I understand that you have to raise the handlebars, change the original brake line and remove the weights, however, I have understood that the latter alters the control of the bike. I would like to hear opinions of those who have these hand guards. Thank you.
I don't know about the TT guards, we used Highway Dirt Bike Guards, but I raised our bars by 2" with ROX risers and didn't need to change the brake line. Never noticed much difference in anything after removing bar end weights. I posted about it all earlier in this thread. Good luck!
Are you considering these ones : http://www.touratech-usa.com/Store/...tech-GD-Hand-Guards-BMW-G650GS-Sertao-2011-on ? They look like the same as these (credits LostRider) : If so, I'm interested too, as I want to mount them on my 2004 F650GS with ABS and have the same question about the brake line+risers.. I'm pretty sure you need the longer brake line for the ABS models (and the G650GS all have it), you might not need it if you don't have the ABS, because the brake line goes directly to the front brake...
Yes, I want to put these handguards TT and my bike is the model with ABS. The rise handlebar is 34mm and need change the brake line. The question is whether these handguards are really strong and if remove the weights can change the stability of my bike. Thanks.
No, in my experience those hand guards are not strong, they flex and allow the levers to break, defeating the purpose. That's why we went with HIghway dirt bike guards. We have ABS and no additional brake line was needed when using the 2" ROX risers. I don't see how removing the bar end weights effect stability, I always thought they were they for vibration damping. Never really noticed they weren't there on any bike I've taken them off, but that's just me. Good luck! Mobile ADV Fix Complete
Bar ends simply add mass to lower the natural frequency of the bars, hence reducing the annoying high-frequency vibration at higher rpm. Removing them won't hurt the stability of the motorcycle, but may reduce cruising comfort. However, if you're removing them to add hand guards, you're adding the mass back so it's probably a wash.
OK, so I picked up a new 2012 G 650 GS in Sept. & absolutely LOVE it! I have ~3500 miles on it so far; almost all pavement at this point but we'll be hitting some dirt soon & I'm sure many drops are in our future. This bike is loads of fun & seems to defy gravity. I've been riding on the streets for almost 30 years now & this bike is even more fun than my old RD 350! I tried the F 700 GS, & it's a great smooth engine, but it just didn't feel right to me, seemed too top heavy. Even the G 650 GS is a bit heavier than I'd like, but when it's moving you can flick it around so easily, I feel like I could ballroom dance with it! I want to thank the people on this thread, I got some great info from this site! Some logistical notes I'm 5ft-5 & ~140 lbs.I have the bike with the factory seat & no lowering, it feels a bit big when I'm trying to back it out of a slight incline (I'll sometimes walk beside it to move it into position) but when I'm riding it, or stopped at lights, it feels great. When you lean hard to the left, the 1st thing you scrap is the kickstand (no centerstand on mine) but it doesn't feel like it's even close to sliding out at that point. I haven't scrapped anything on the right side, yet I bought it stock, I wanted to feel how the Beast ran, without any add-ons. Then I added some stuff 1 at a time: BMW handguards Wunderlich Tobinator windscreen adjustment Hippo Hands (I love them) Caribou 34 Liter B&W Top Case Here are some pics: The moto glamor shot a few days after getting it And here's some showing the accessories
Happy New Years everyone! Just curious if you current owners could give me an update on how the cast wheels are faring. Has anyone actually dented the rims? I know when the bike first launched everyone was apprehensive of them. I'm very interested in this bike, and if the wheels are doing well it looks promising!
14,000 miles and mine are perfect. Mostly on pavement, but I've been getting off road more lately and have no complaints.
i havent had any problems with the rims and ive got around 12k on mine, original tires too. just getting ready to buy a new set of tires. mostly paved roads and a few dirt roads. i havent read of any problems with them on any other sites either.
I would say it depends on the terrain you are riding. My friend Audrey has 2011 with the cast rims and while in Mongolia riding the hwy hit a very large pot hole and severly dented both rims at the same time. She was able to put in tubes and ride for a couple of 1000 more kms and said she did not even notice the wheels being out of balance!! She has since gotten to Japan and received new wheels to continue on the trip!
Thanks for the input guys. During work months of the year I typically commute and do minor forest roads/tracks. But, in the summer months I try to take a few weeks off and do some real adventuring (TAT 2 years ago, and hopefully Alaska or even South America This upcoming August). Cal, Does Audrey have a blog? Is she doing a rtw? Haven't heard of anyone doing intense global travel on the new G650GS yet.
Steez Its Ekke and Audrey Kok and I was wrong about the G650gs she is riding a 2012 f650gs the twin...but it does have the cast rims which she has since replaced. They have a blog http://www.ekke-audrey.ca/ I had breakfast with them at Xmas has they were home for a short time waiting for the bikes to arrive in their new destination. cheers
After many thousands of miles of dirt roads with countless large rock impacts I can't help but say the G650GS wheels are pretty strong. I've watched Nancy plow into large enough rocks many times to buck her right off the bike at speeds and there's no damage to the wheels. Her bike took the same punishment as my bike with the strongest wheels money can buy, Woody's Superlace, on the Tour of Idaho, CDR, many Death Valley trips and on the TAT, all the while running somewhat low pressures of 18-22 psi. Matter of fact her bike has taken more abuse than my F800GS did without bending the wheels, my F800 front wheel was far from round not that long into ownership. Methinks that hitting a large pothole on a highway hard enough to bend the rear wheel isn't a fair assessment of strength, potholes are generally square with sharp edges and can bend even the toughest wheels.... I've hit a lot of things riding off road very hard and never bend a rear wheel. Must have been some impact. Living/riding in Chicago for years taught me all too well about what a pothole can do to any wheels, car or bike. The fact that she was able to ride the bike to get help says more about how strong they are than the fast that they bent in the first place IMO.
