Thinking of a new used ADV style bike, what are your thoughts? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Thinking of a new used ADV style bike, what are your thoughts?

regder

Well-known member
Site Supporter
My DL650 V-Strom was supposed to be a touring stopgap while my FZ1 was down. The ADV style long distance comfort and practicality has spoiled me and now I can't go back. While I fell in love with the style of bike, I never fell in love with the bike itself. It's at about 80k km's now, and a recent mechanical failure (see my Colorado ride report) has convinced me to start thinking of a replacement sooner than later.

The criteria is as follows
- Must be near bulletproof, reliability comes above all else
- Something used, under 60-70k km's, ideally under 30k km's
- $10k ideal budget, could stretch for the right bike.
- ABS is a must, traction control would be nice
- Don't care about off road performance
- Must be comfortable for long distance slabbing, fun in the corners
- Ideally comes pre setup with panniers and the usual touring stuff


Ideally, I would just buy the defacto 1200GS, they just don't depreciate though. Not a bad thing, but keeps a reasonable one a good bit out of budget.

Currently on my mind are the following
- 2nd gen V-Strom 1000
- Yamaha Super Tenere
- Yamaha FJ09 (did a demo day on one and don't remember liking it, willing to give it another shot)
- KTM 1190 Adventure, briefly thought about it before a google search for problems brought me back to my senses.
- Ducati Multistrada, same as above

Thoughts, suggestions?
 
Welcome to the dark side!
 
Bmw f800gs
 
Bit of a stretch to include the FJ09 in the Adventure Bike category but then Honda includes my CBF1000 in that. ( if you want to consider the CBF mine is for sale and hit's your requirements at half your budget but at least you can take it for a quick spin.)

There ae a couple of good Super Tenere discussions on the Stromtroopers forum.
 
I think Super Teneres are a bit porky...well, porkier than most. KTM reliability issues? Not sure about that, there's always the vocal ones but my KTM (a 1290 Super Adventure) hasn't had anything serious happen to it and it's a first model year, some warranty work but nothing that would have stopped a trip. You say you don't care about off-road but just gravel roads and mild off road stuff etc open up the riding possibilities exponentially in Ontario. There's tons of snowmobile trails to explore etc and I'm loving that side of things even though I know my bike isn't a dirt bike so don't discount it.
 
The CofG on the CBF is so low and the bike so light that it's okay on gravel and smooth dirt as I found out in the fall of 2015 getting a bit off track in Virginia.
 
Currently on my mind are the following
- 2nd gen V-Strom 1000
- Yamaha Super Tenere
- Yamaha FJ09 (did a demo day on one and don't remember liking it, willing to give it another shot)
- KTM 1190 Adventure, briefly thought about it before a google search for problems brought me back to my senses.
- Ducati Multistrada, same as above

Thoughts, suggestions?
For budget, perhaps a 2nd gen 650 Strom might work as well. It might be enough of a upgrade that you like it better and they can be found for decent prices.

Also consider a Triumph Tiger 800XC.
 
My DL650 V-Strom was supposed to be a touring stopgap while my FZ1 was down. The ADV style long distance comfort and practicality has spoiled me and now I can't go back. While I fell in love with the style of bike, I never fell in love with the bike itself. It's at about 80k km's now, and a recent mechanical failure (see my Colorado ride report) has convinced me to start thinking of a replacement sooner than later.

The criteria is as follows
- Must be near bulletproof, reliability comes above all else
- Something used, under 60-70k km's, ideally under 30k km's
- $10k ideal budget, could stretch for the right bike.
- ABS is a must, traction control would be nice
- Don't care about off road performance
- Must be comfortable for long distance slabbing, fun in the corners
- Ideally comes pre setup with panniers and the usual touring stuff


Ideally, I would just buy the defacto 1200GS, they just don't depreciate though. Not a bad thing, but keeps a reasonable one a good bit out of budget.

Currently on my mind are the following
- 2nd gen V-Strom 1000
- Yamaha Super Tenere
- Yamaha FJ09 (did a demo day on one and don't remember liking it, willing to give it another shot)
- KTM 1190 Adventure, briefly thought about it before a google search for problems brought me back to my senses.
- Ducati Multistrada, same as above

Thoughts, suggestions?
The CB500X has everything you want in your criteria. The only thing I see lacking is the hp you want as this bike is only 47 hp at 430 lbs. You can buy one brand new and still have money left over for accessories with your budget.

I have one and I love it, you'd be hard pressed to find any CB500X that regret buying it. The biggest issue is the suspension which many owners have upgraded.
 
A new bare bones BMW R1200T goes for about $12K.
Includes panniers, ABS and traction control.
Taxes not included of course.
I believe the 2018s are coming out next month.


Edit - I said $12K. Sorry, they are $18K
 
Last edited:
I want to suggest a KLR650. I'm just loving mine.

But it fails big on your list.
- It's way too cheap
- gotta buy your panniers
- the traction control is only in your head
- the ABS is only there because the brake a too weak to lock
 
the ABS is only there because the brake a too weak to lock

Hehe ..... I wish - had a few fishtails on 606s at one light on the James Cook Highway that goes orange to red way too fast........tho might be true for the front....the brakes reallllllly suck but then the engine braking on the big single is excellent.

Redger ...I'm at the forks for a few hours if you want a spin, it's 11 am now.
 
Hehe ..... I wish - had a few fishtails on 606s at one light on the James Cook Highway that goes orange to red way too fast........tho might be true for the front....the brakes reallllllly suck but then the engine braking on the big single is excellent.

Redger ...I'm at the forks for a few hours if you want a spin, it's 11 am now.

Yes I was referring to the front.

Not trying to hijack but is your CBF 2up worthy and do you have hard side bags for it? Maybe it would for the Squeeze and I. At this point my list is getting pretty short:
-fits us both
-hard bags
-mountain climbing grunt
 
Bmw f800gs

They were off my radar cause I thought they made similar power to my Strom. Google has corrected me, will add it to the list

Bit of a stretch to include the FJ09 in the Adventure Bike category but then Honda includes my CBF1000 in that. ( if you want to consider the CBF mine is for sale and hit's your requirements at half your budget but at least you can take it for a quick spin.)

There ae a couple of good Super Tenere discussions on the Stromtroopers forum.

ADV bikes are the SUV's of motorcycles. The layout is what I'm looking for. I'll keep the Long Way Round dreams in my head.

For bulletproof, my friend has an S10 turning over 200,000 kms with no major problems.

I sat on one. It must be one of the heaviest bikes in its class.

I rode one about six years ago and don't remember it being that heavy, but specs show otherwise.

I think Super Teneres are a bit porky...well, porkier than most. KTM reliability issues? Not sure about that, there's always the vocal ones but my KTM (a 1290 Super Adventure) hasn't had anything serious happen to it and it's a first model year, some warranty work but nothing that would have stopped a trip. You say you don't care about off-road but just gravel roads and mild off road stuff etc open up the riding possibilities exponentially in Ontario. There's tons of snowmobile trails to explore etc and I'm loving that side of things even though I know my bike isn't a dirt bike so don't discount it.

I've done gravel roads and a bit more on my FZ6 and FZ1 with Pilot Road's. By off road, I mean the Dakar Rally tests that the bike mags insist on doing with these bikes. I have zero interest in taking a porky, loaded bike, seriously off road.

A quick google search on 1190 Adventure's showed many reports of fuel pump failures, and gas boiling.

For budget, perhaps a 2nd gen 650 Strom might work as well. It might be enough of a upgrade that you like it better and they can be found for decent prices.

Also consider a Triumph Tiger 800XC.

I'm just not a fan of the Strom, I don't think the 2nd gen would fix that. I want more power, better brakes, better suspension. The Strom is a highly capable budget bike, just doesn't do it for me. The 2nd Gen 1k Strom address all of that. The Tiger is an interesting option

The CB500X has everything you want in your criteria. The only thing I see lacking is the hp you want as this bike is only 47 hp at 430 lbs. You can buy one brand new and still have money left over for accessories with your budget.

I have one and I love it, you'd be hard pressed to find any CB500X that regret buying it. The biggest issue is the suspension which many owners have upgraded.

See my notes above regarding the Strom.

Great idea, Shane, but a Tiger 800XR would be a better choice given the criteria.

via Tapatalk

Interesting


Thanks for the discussion so far :)
 
I've experience with the Strom, the KLR, DR650E. Versys650, the BMW F800GS and the new Tiger albeit a short ride on the Tiger.

The Beemer was a favourite of my brother-in-law who now rides the Tiger and he prefers the Beemer to the Tiger and Wee-Strom.

I liked the power off road compared to the KLR, and the comfort and stability on road. I found it had fun factor and handled the asphalt with poise, throttle response and stability while cornering like my VFR! But the price tag was too steep which is why I opted for the Versys.

In Germany my friend opted for the Versys 1000 while I rented the 650 with abs, and wish I'd gone with the 1000 as its pull uphill meant that Willie could grind pegs all day long as could Darryl on the F800 while I was shifting between 1st and 2nd. The real benefit on road is the 17inch front which quickly becomes a liability on rutted and muddy back roads, where the BMW would shine, similar to the KLR but with much better suspension and braking.

No bike while fully loaded is something I'd want to do solo riding off road on.

I'm in favour of the Africa Twin without DCT at the moment, but have only done a street only demo ride at Mosport last year on the DCT version.

If the tenere has shaft drive, that is a huge plus as I'm so tired of stretched chains and replacing worn sprockets. I doubt I'd take it anywhere more challenging then the trans lab or Dalton highway though, not with top heavy weight and expensive plastics. Pretty much the same for the Beemer, truth be told.

I've a well sorted XR400 that gets dirt out of my system.
 
FJ09 with a tire chanfge can be a decent gravel road bike, but not seriously dual sport
I recently put a set of Avon trail-master tires on mine and it made a world of difference on gravel

unfortunately the ADV capabilities of the bike need other changes to be appreciated:

windshield is useless, needs to be changed
stock seat is typically Yamaha hard as a board and narrow
heated grips are a cheap add on
a few after market throttle lock options available, no CC though
stock panniers are small and expensive, lots of options available now for luggage
Yamaha does not make available a top case, for wheelie concerns
I agree, with just my Givi V35 panniers loaded and a small tail bag it is wheelie happy


I've dealt with these issues on mine which has improved the character of the bike

but if you ride it and didn't like it, that's another story
this bike needs a fair bit of attention paid to suspension adjustment
stock setting out of the box is terrible, took me a few months to get it right
and had to do it again after adding the luggage and shield
 
Ktm 1190 is the most fun bike on your list I have had zero issues with mine so far.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk
 
Ktm 1190 is the most fun bike on your list I have had zero issues with mine so far.

Sent from my Nexus 5X using Tapatalk

To add to that, I think most owners that have one of these with issues have had those issues fixed either under warranty or added aftermarket fixes themselves.
 

Back
Top Bottom