Bandit 650s vs Vstrom 650 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Bandit 650s vs Vstrom 650

Bikerider

Bikerider

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Hello,

I am looking to get back into motorcycling this summer after having 2 years off. My M2 expires in June so I have no choice but to get something again soon. In the past I owned a Ninja 500r, DRZ400s, and an Aprilia Shiver 750. I am 5'8 with a 30.5 inch inseam. I want a comfortable bike that is decent for 2 up and is cheap on insurance. I narrowed it down to Bandit 650s vs Vstrom 650. I never rode an inline 4 so I am kind of leaning towards the vstrom for good torque. Id say 95% of my riding will be on road. The one thing putting me off the vstrom is the high seat height. I had a tall bike before and it was ok when you are alone but really annoying with a passenger when you are going through the city. Also Id like to be able to strap on a dog crate on the back so that I can take my golden retriever when I am going places over night (not touring but when visiting parents or cottage).

Anyone ridden both and can give me an opinion?
 
I used to own a V-Strom 650, and I friend had a GSXF 650, which I've ridden. I'm also 6' 2" with a 34" inseam, so V-Strom height wasn't an issue. Some thoughts:

- V-Strom for passenger comfort. My wife loved it. Better seat & more leg room.
- V-Strom is better set up for a rear box or luggage
- Riding position is more upright on the V-Strom, Bandit is partly bent over with a little less leg room. All depends on what you like
- V-Strom is lighter and more maneuverable in the tight stuff with the wider bars. Bandit likes sweapers. Switching up the bazooka pipe on the Bandit certainly helps, but its still a heavy bike.
- Bandit has a smoother engine, and power in the middle to upper range is better
- V-Strom is much better on crappy pavement or gravel
- Best to get your own quotes on insurance
 
How realistic is it to ride a bike like a vstrom through the winter? Up to 45 min rides with heated grips and a heated vest? I dont own a car and want the bike as practical as possible which is why I am thinking vstrom. The 1000 would be nice but I dont know if I trust my self with that much power and I read that the 650 is a smoother more refined bike.
 
The VStrom seat has rubber bumpers that can be shaved down or removed to drop it about half an inch. At least the older ones do - not sure on the newer ones. There's also lots of foam thickness in the seat if you want to shave it down. I went the other way and swapped out my stock 650 seat for the DL1000 seat (1" taller) to get more leg room. I'm 5'10", with approx 34" inseam. Speaking of leg room, the VStrom has a very relaxed seat-to-peg distance, even without seat modifications. It is also very comfortable for a passenger, again largely because of the leg room. The 650 has lots of power for 2 up riding for me and my wife at any semi-legal speed.

The VStrom is rather top heavy though, especially with a full tank of gas. But it will easily do over 400km on one fill up, so you don't really need to top it off if you are just running around town.
 
The V-Strom 650 is more than capable of taking passengers at most speeds you are evey likely to ride and is happy running loaded up at 150 kph all day in the USA. I have a 2006 DL650 with 202,00 km and a 2012 DL650 with 119,000 km. Both are great bikes, I like the newer one better but still love the old one (which I have basically retired.)

I have never ridden a Bandit 650.. I suspect it is more of a sport bike in seating position and general layout and I imagine it is a great bike if that is what you want. The Strom is a general purpose bike that you can pile tons of crap on with no issues and just ride on whatever kind of roads you want in jsut abou any kind of condition you want.

There is a guy on Stromtrooper that rides his bike all winter. He is in New-England and has put car winter tires on his V-Strom 1000. He loves riding in snow storms, etc.

..Tom
 
Here are a few pictures of my Stroms that hint at what it's about:

freezingrain.jpg

Interesting ride home one night... Yes, that's freezing rain all over it!

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Pickup truck!

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A messy commute mute to work!

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My 2006 hitting 200,000 km!

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My 2006 at the Grand Canyon

..Tom
 
Yes I have PMS! (Parked Motorcycle Syndrome.) I am hoping to be riding next week.. I have to dig out a bunch of snow and stuff to get my 2012 out of the shed in the back of the house and out to the road. Hopefully the ice and snow on my driveway has melted by then. :)

..Tom
 
My response is assuming that you are talking about the Bandit 650S and not the GSF650.

I've owned and ridden both gens of DL650, gen1 dl1000 and have ridden the GSF650.

I'd definitely go with a dl650 over the Bandit 650S. DL is fuel injected vs carbs (though mine never gave me any trouble) but more importantly the Bandit 650S was only available in Canada for a couple of years. It was popular in Europe, but never sold in the US. This means parts fiches can be difficult to find and parts difficult to order. I can't count the number of times I had to convince a parts desk robot that I wasn't talking about a Bandit 600 and that this bike actually existed.

And God help you if you tried having that same conversation in the US. Ask me sometime about finding a replacement brake lever in Colorado.

The dl650 is a ubiquitous bike with a big aftermarket. And it makes plenty of power. I think its still the best all around bike for the money.

But can we go back to where you're going to put a golden retriever in a box on the back????
 
If you were going for a bandit Id go for the 1200/1250. Maybe being biased as I have the 1250sa.
05c090fd3e65fb2f96e871aec17e7938.jpg


I do ride with a guy who has a strom.

Overall both great bikes

His feedback on the strom is
- awful stock seat
- weak front suspension
- not great clearance (on the 650) so need to stick to class 1 and 2 off-roads
- oil cool exposed a little

But otherwise he loves it

As for the bandit
- can chug a little when braking
- obviously not for off roading
- not as maneuverable as the strom

They are the negatives
Based on your bike history and 95% road riding you might be happier with the bandit (again Id suggest a 1200/1250)
If you do fancy off roading the strom is the way to go.

Again both great solid reliable bikes. Best of luck


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alangolding25 said:
If you were going for a bandit Id go for the 1200/1250. Maybe being biased as I have the 1250sa.
05c090fd3e65fb2f96e871aec17e7938.jpg


I do ride with a guy who has a strom.

Overall both great bikes

His feedback on the strom is
- awful stock seat
- weak front suspension
- not great clearance (on the 650) so need to stick to class 1 and 2 off-roads
- oil cool exposed a little

But otherwise he loves it

As for the bandit
- can chug a little when braking
- obviously not for off roading
- not as maneuverable as the strom

They are the negatives
Based on your bike history and 95% road riding you might be happier with the bandit (again Id suggest a 1200/1250)
If you do fancy off roading the strom is the way to go.

Again both great solid reliable bikes. Best of luck


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

Hey...I thought my bike was in storage:rolleyes:
I got no problems maneuvering LoL
 
Last edited:
I don't wanna have a dog inside a crate on top of a bike...I'm all clad in gear should I go down, but that poor pup...!
 
With that crate and the square side cases, I'd hate to meet a heavy crosswind! Lol


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the bandit said:
Hey...I thought my bike was in storage:rolleyes:
I got no problems maneuvering LoL
Click to expand...

haha you have a similar one? post a pic

lol I don't have any issues maneuvering mine either
 
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