Versys300, CCM, CB500, Vstrom650 small 'ADV' bikes | GTAMotorcycle.com

Versys300, CCM, CB500, Vstrom650 small 'ADV' bikes

crankcall

crankcall

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Ok so Kawi has thrown the Versys 300 into the mix, calling it a back road bike not an off road, sales for the Vstrom 650 are very strong, the CDN CCM distributor says there is NO problem selling bikes. The CB500 'packaged' bike is very dirt road capable.
So the trend is smaller displacement, better insurance, cheap to fix and operate. We wont bother with the Indian Enfield and China bikes in this discussion since they are just too obscure a spot on the radar.
I'm speculating (not really since they are getting built and sold) that this is not the next fad, its the new norm. Many people just cant put 28K into an adventure ride, lots are realizing when they get to taco bell in Owen Sound, having taken the gravel road from the Manitoulin ferry south, a guy that followed them spent 18K less, has the same capacity in his panniers and the same big smile. Possibly bigger.
I rode, and still own 1000cc+ 'adv' bikes. But i'm seeing the merit in these smaller bikes.

Is it the next fad or a sticking point? discussion open.......
 
Suzuki is also bringing the Van Van 200 here. I think these small off-road (or gravel road) capable bikes are sensible and as anyone who's ridden off road knows -bigger is not always better.

I think the Versys 300 is brilliant for what it's meant to do. I've been looking for a decent dual-sport for the cottage and it fits the bill perfectly.
 
Honda's African Twin has a wet weight over 500-lbs; it's asinine to me that these big-inch "adventure" bikes are so heavy considering their "off-road" pretensions.

The smaller bikes make way more sense if your plan is to actually take them off road.

Cadillac Escalade vs Jeep YJ. While it might be possible to take both off road one makes way more sense...
 
If this is the trend, I believe there's another factor besides cost. Speaking from an older rider perspective, along with being inseam length challenged, these bikes can offer a way to extend your riding life. Something to consider.
 
Seriously? The versys 300 gets 19" and 17" spoked wheels, while the 650 still has 17" cast. I call bs.

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If you are going to ride off pavement ... "weighing less than 300 lbs" is a much better feature than "having more than 100 horsepower".
 
I think the Vstrom 650XT gets 19"F 17"R wire wheels.

I rode this fall in AZ in some very precarious conditions, one guy with us had a 1200BMW and another a big KTM. I think the bikes are very offroad capable if your well trained like these guys obviously were, they ride all over the planet. They could do things that I struggled with probably 300lbs lighter. I had a road legal CR450. they also are both strong and can afford to drop a 28K bike, repeatedly.
We put the GS1200 on its side in a gully, I could not stand the bike up. He managed but just.
 
Meh, the adventure thing is getting out of control. To me the ccm is a real deal adventure bike but the rest are just street bikes that manufacturers tweaked a little to call adventure bikes. Is it Honda that has an adventure scooter now? When I saw that the whole cool niche aspect of the adventure bikes lost their appeal to me.

KTM should've made a 690 adventure spec with a rally fairing etc. hopefully they do with the new 790 twin that's in the works. That would be a very cool off road capable bike.
 
I think ADV is the Crossfit of bikes, i.e. people are buying into a lifestyle. Not to say that the bikes don't have value, on the contrary, but it's definitely the "it" category of the day.

I'd love a Versys 300 as a cheap utilitarian bike that doesn't burn oil like a two-stroke. *gives the FJ600 the side-eye*
 
ADV bikes are the new "standard" bikes. Upright riding position, comfy suspension, ability to have luggage. Nothing wrong with that. I can do without the ADV styling, personally.

I could see myself riding a KTM Duke 390 ... if only the engine were more reliable.
 
doesnt atleast part of the adv riding including some offroad capability? (I still consider dr650/klr adventure bikes, with dirt bias, as opposed to traditional which are more road biased)
 
The Versys 300 is going to do very very well. It is a great choice for a bike for both beginners and veterans. I would have bought it if it was out when I was looking.
 
The Honda CRF 250 Rally has my eye for sure. They still have yet to release the Canadian price
 
So I'd counter, the bike your riding is an adventure bike, the level of adventure is discretionary. When i first started watching scrambles , they moved the fenders up or ditched them, tossed the lights and put on knobby tires on the existing rims. Moto cross was a re jigged street bike.
I cant guess why the KTM 390 is such a problematic engine.

I don't mind adv styling, after 10 hrs in the saddle I'm happy about the standard bike configuration, I'll say this, 2 decades plus of off roading. I rode converted and modified street bikes and imported scrambler designs, bottomed shocks , pinched rims, rolled miles on with non functioning brakes when a cable snapped.
Not playing the Luddite, I love technology, but needing 10" of fork travel, 12" of monoshock and an armoured crash plate to clear a speedbump getting into a spot next to a taco truck seems overkill.

In about 3 yrs when a used Versys 300 is about free, I'll buy one and obliterate it, or not....
 
crankcall said:
So I'd counter, the bike your riding is an adventure bike, the level of adventure is discretionary. When i first started watching scrambles , they moved the fenders up or ditched them, tossed the lights and put on knobby tires on the existing rims. Moto cross was a re jigged street bike.
I cant guess why the KTM 390 is such a problematic engine.

I don't mind adv styling, after 10 hrs in the saddle I'm happy about the standard bike configuration, I'll say this, 2 decades plus of off roading. I rode converted and modified street bikes and imported scrambler designs, bottomed shocks , pinched rims, rolled miles on with non functioning brakes when a cable snapped.
Not playing the Luddite, I love technology, but needing 10" of fork travel, 12" of monoshock and an armoured crash plate to clear a speedbump getting into a spot next to a taco truck seems overkill.

In about 3 yrs when a used Versys 300 is about free, I'll buy one and obliterate it, or not....
Click to expand...
You have all great points that I agree with you on. I just wish I had the 19" front wheel instead of the 17", but the 21" is even better.
 
Blackfin said:
Honda's African Twin has a wet weight over 500-lbs; it's asinine to me that these big-inch "adventure" bikes are so heavy considering their "off-road" pretensions.

The smaller bikes make way more sense if your plan is to actually take them off road.

Cadillac Escalade vs Jeep YJ. While it might be possible to take both off road one makes way more sense...
Click to expand...

I sometimes think of my late uncle who went ashore on D Day as a mechanic. He commented that once things had settled down the various military riders liked the Triumphs, Harleys and Indians but in the opening days the lighter bikes were preferred because a rider could pull one out of the ditch by himself after a fire fight.

The term back road bike suits me as I have no intention of blazing trails or fording streams. I also want the bike to have the capability to handle the 400 up to those back roads.
 
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