Difference between the xr600 and the xr650
 

Just a quick one for those of you 'in the know'. I dont mean the XR 650 L, but whats the difference between the 600 and the 650, is it merely that one is newer than the other? And which come with electric starts? I saw an model with such a device last year at the HU meet, but couldnt quite remember the model....

Cheers!

Dave

If you only want a quicky answer ... everything except tyre sizes is different. someone else may have found another common part (the Honda badge?), but they are different bikes.

neither is natively electric start. the 650 was developed 10-15 years after the 600 and is all new. aluminium frame, water cooling, modern enduro ... awesome suspension, but I couldn't find the rear rebound damping when I needed it so I got to do some research on 3rd world hospitals

Hey Rich
can you tell more about your experience with this bike? i am about to order one of these Xr650, my Xr650L is getting tired and I want something with spares ready available. Getting parts from Oz to Africa is a real pain that is why i am thinking about the alu XR'
thanks for your ever very useful coop

you have to plan carefully for spares for anything in Africa! even the 100cc stuff the locals ride aren't well catered for.

I'd say the most important things are tyres and chain and sprockets. Cape Town to Cairo - fit new rubber in Cape Town, Nairobi and Cairo. oil, you'll have to make do with 20W50 in many places. the Honda engine is awesome and unlikely to let you down. if it does, you'll need parts shipped to you so make sure a reliable, bike-knowledgeable mate knows where to get your parts and how to ship them to you without paying massive duty on imports.

feel free to email questions, but I don't know where to start other than to say Hondas are great. maybe see you at Lumb Farm.

I've been riding my XR650R for a year now and I love it. I've toured half of Australia (other half starts next week), commuted to work, raced enduros (won one), and when I've finished in Australia, I'm going to ride home back to the UK. I have had some issues, but most of them have been my own fault to be honest. I think it's one of the most versatile bikes on the planet, heck, you can even give the sports bikes a hard time when it gets a bit twisty.

The sensible option for me though, would have been the XR600, purely for the fact that it's air cooled. I have had a couple of leaky radiators, one up at the top of Cape York which could have been a problem, but ended up not too disastrous. The 600 is great, a friend has one and loves it, so either bike will serve you well, but the 650 is heaps sharper handling and better in every way.