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KLR650: Great bike, especially for beginners!!!

donoman

donoman

Wookie
Joined
Apr 18, 2002
Location
Daly City
Moto(s)
make me bleed.
Picked up one of these yesterday to do some dual sporting. I have to say, I'm really impressed with the thing! The only drawback is that cruising on the highway may not be its forte due to lack of power at 65 mph.

Anyway, they are cheap, they are common, you can ride them anywhere including off-road and to BFE. They are simple to work on, no plastics to break or rash, and they're not going to make you look like a 6' monkey humping a football. Great if you're a tall beginner.

Just thought I'd throw this short review out there.

Who rides a KLR here?
 
Perfect bike for in the City and dirt road camping. The other thing it's good for is keeping the wear and tear off my VFR so I will have it to enjoy that much longer.
 
If we were all communists, we'd all have the diesel version...

(even if it was developed by the U.S. Army)
 

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Congrats D! I'll let you know when my clutch is fixed and we get back out in the dirt. :thumbup. BTW, how did u choose the KLR over the DRZ? Price?
 
CJ - Price --- after buying the BMW I am pretty much scraping the bottom. Now the bottom has been scraped.
 
511882680_Ya8PX-L-1.jpg


Here is mine. It's an awesome bike, especially with all the mods that the previous owner installed. A whole lot of fun to ride in the twisties, and adequate power on the freeway. I would recommend this bike to anyone who needs a beater bike. I think it is the ultimate budget motorcycle!
 
I'm thinking about painting the rims but I don't want to screw up a perfectly good set of chrome wheels!!!
 
they're rather tall to the seat though. And a couple of riders are complaining about the fender being a "sail" in cross winds, and are looking to get a smaller fender that's on the forks.

still, they're high in the running for my "next bike"

donoman said:
Picked up one of these yesterday to do some dual sporting. I have to say, I'm really impressed with the thing! The only drawback is that cruising on the highway may not be its forte due to lack of power at 65 mph.

Anyway, they are cheap, they are common, you can ride them anywhere including off-road and to BFE. They are simple to work on, no plastics to break or rash, and they're not going to make you look like a 6' monkey humping a football. Great if you're a tall beginner.

Just thought I'd throw this short review out there.

Who rides a KLR here?
Click to expand...
 
screw the communists, I *want* the diesel version! :)

Power it offa home made biodiesel and you got the ultimate SHTF bike!

BTW, it was developed in diesel because the Navy doesn't want anything gasoline powered aboard ship. And since the Marines are still hitching a ride from the USN, they wanted the diesel version. According to some stuff I read on the bike's development, it's supposed to be a torque monster, initial test riders buried the rear wheel trying to take off in sand until they learned to be gentle on the throttle

SlideSF said:
If we were all communists, we'd all have the diesel version...

(even if it was developed by the U.S. Army)
Click to expand...
 
and with pics for the civvie version, delayed production as they're busy pumping up Obama's War Machine:

http://www.dieselmotorcycles.com/model4.htm

can you imagine the range this would get with that big aftermarket fuel tank the OP has? this gets 100mpg at 45mph...
 
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I'll open this can of worms- I've owned a KLR 650 and now have a DR650 Suzuki. I like the DR better because it's lighter and feels more like a dirt bike off pavement, just as good/bad on the highway, it's simpler since it's air cooled, so why does the KLR seem to have a more rabid fan club?
 
Cheaper?
Larger fan base and more expertise?
Longevity?

I have to admit, the bike is damn FUGLY. I might get some Hello Kitty stickers to fix that.

I've seen a lot of ride reports with KLR's that ride around the world but haven't seen one yet for a Suzuki for some reason. People also like the XR650L's it seems, for stuff like Baja. Reliability?
 
The 2008 - present KLR is a very good bike. A bit different than the older models, especially with its looks......I love mine:thumbup
 
it depends on where you plan to ride most. if you're gonna spend most of your time off road, the DR is the choice. If you'll be on pavement most of the time, the KLR. Since I'd be spending more time getting to places to get off road than actually riding off road, the KLR wins for me.

Plus, there's no diesel DR :p

larry kahn said:
I'll open this can of worms- I've owned a KLR 650 and now have a DR650 Suzuki. I like the DR better because it's lighter and feels more like a dirt bike off pavement, just as good/bad on the highway, it's simpler since it's air cooled, so why does the KLR seem to have a more rabid fan club?
Click to expand...
 
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