krazy-eyes
Race Dog
Since the power was out and I had nothing else to do, I decided to go test bikes.
So yesterday I took 4 bikes out for a comparative test.
As you know Iâ??m looking for a ktm 640, but owed it to myself to check out the competition.
I rode:
The BMW 800GS,
The new BMW 650 GS,
The BMW G650 X country,
And the KTM 640 adventure.
The BMW 800GS, blew me away!
everything on this bike is perfect. The power is more than enough, itâ??s nice and light, the sitting position is not to high or too low, the brakes make your eye-balls pop, and the heated grips rule!
wind protection looks minimal, but in actual fact is excellent.
I would buy this over a 1200GS or 950 adventure, and yes I have ridden all of the above.
A bit pricy, but the looks are awesome and justify the expense!
Too bad you cant have one for another 8-10 months.
Yes, the waiting list is THAT long.
The 650 is OK, and nothing more.
It is a watered down 800GS, and cannot be called a bike in its own right.
The ugly low screen, flimsy looking telescopic forks (as opposed to the USD forks on the 800GS), toned down looks, low slung mof-seat can still be overlooked. But the â??deal-breakerâ? has to be the mag wheels coming straight off a 1989 Kawasaki AR50 (see pic).
No thanks!
Lets hope they bring out a Dakar version soonâ?¦.
The X country is a bike without identity.
It has grunt, the 650 single comes to life when you ring its ear, and sounds good too, but it feels like it is missing something - either in the looks department, or the sitting position, or the practicality. I cant quite put my finger on it.
It looks good, but needs more masculinity. The sitting position is too far forward, and with such a small tank and zero wind protection you can forget about touring with it.
With nothing much going for it, no wonder BMW has dropped its price by 10K to try and promote slow sales.
The 640 KTM is not my first choice either. But taking price into account I can definitely live with it.
Vibrations that loosen your fillings, hard seat, and inadequate wind protection count against it, but this bike has â??houdingâ?.
This houding can be increased by adding knobblies.
The combination of the powerful 650 single and 28l fuel tank, you can decide whether you want to be a long distance tourer or neighbourhood hooligan.
Pity they donâ??t make them no moreâ?¦..finding a decent 2nd hand one is proving tough.
SOOOOOOOOO,
In order of preference:
1. 800GS
2. 640 Adventure
3. G650 X country
4. 650 GS
ps. sorry about the crap photos
So yesterday I took 4 bikes out for a comparative test.
As you know Iâ??m looking for a ktm 640, but owed it to myself to check out the competition.
I rode:
The BMW 800GS,
The new BMW 650 GS,
The BMW G650 X country,
And the KTM 640 adventure.
The BMW 800GS, blew me away!
everything on this bike is perfect. The power is more than enough, itâ??s nice and light, the sitting position is not to high or too low, the brakes make your eye-balls pop, and the heated grips rule!
wind protection looks minimal, but in actual fact is excellent.
I would buy this over a 1200GS or 950 adventure, and yes I have ridden all of the above.
A bit pricy, but the looks are awesome and justify the expense!
Too bad you cant have one for another 8-10 months.
Yes, the waiting list is THAT long.
The 650 is OK, and nothing more.
It is a watered down 800GS, and cannot be called a bike in its own right.
The ugly low screen, flimsy looking telescopic forks (as opposed to the USD forks on the 800GS), toned down looks, low slung mof-seat can still be overlooked. But the â??deal-breakerâ? has to be the mag wheels coming straight off a 1989 Kawasaki AR50 (see pic).
No thanks!
Lets hope they bring out a Dakar version soonâ?¦.
The X country is a bike without identity.
It has grunt, the 650 single comes to life when you ring its ear, and sounds good too, but it feels like it is missing something - either in the looks department, or the sitting position, or the practicality. I cant quite put my finger on it.
It looks good, but needs more masculinity. The sitting position is too far forward, and with such a small tank and zero wind protection you can forget about touring with it.
With nothing much going for it, no wonder BMW has dropped its price by 10K to try and promote slow sales.
The 640 KTM is not my first choice either. But taking price into account I can definitely live with it.
Vibrations that loosen your fillings, hard seat, and inadequate wind protection count against it, but this bike has â??houdingâ?.
This houding can be increased by adding knobblies.
The combination of the powerful 650 single and 28l fuel tank, you can decide whether you want to be a long distance tourer or neighbourhood hooligan.
Pity they donâ??t make them no moreâ?¦..finding a decent 2nd hand one is proving tough.
SOOOOOOOOO,
In order of preference:
1. 800GS
2. 640 Adventure
3. G650 X country
4. 650 GS
ps. sorry about the crap photos
![N[]vA](https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/39fc70600d70a0afa40b682c3a695dc0?s=96){kind=avatar}
