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  #1  
Old 19 Mar 2012
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Advice on which make to buy
Hi all, new to this site and so far found it very helpful.

Myself and the Girlfriend are heading to South America at the end of the year so we have just started planning. We are looking to travel around for 6 to 12 months and need some advice on which make of bike to buy and maybe the easiest country to purchase them.
Which bikes are the most reliable and which bikes are the easiest to get spare parts for?

Any Help would be appreciated

Thanks Chris
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Old 19 Mar 2012
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If I understand correctly, you're planning to buy the motorcycles after you arrive in South America? The consensus here seems to be that Chile is the easiest country in SA to get the bikes properly registered as a foreigner. Do a search; there are several threads on this that offer plenty of details.

As for what make and model, a lot of that comes down to personal preferences. I personally would want whatever is very popular with locals, as that will likely be the easiest to get service and parts for. Honda and Yamaha seem to be the most popular, but you'll also see other brands in lesser numbers.

What size of bike? What type: street, dual, etc.?
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Old 20 Mar 2012
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If your timing is flexible, consider waiting a bit. If you look, at this time of year there are many good options for used travel bikes now in Bs Aires. For owners faced with spending $2000 to ship their bikes back, it is often a better option to sell it to another traveler. Plus they come with luggage, skid plates, and sometimes tools and more.
Any bike is good, but my opinion is that its nice to have at least 500cc's to keep up with traffic on highways. You won't find that on most local bikes--unless you're willing to spend about 2x what you'd spend back home.
-Dave
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  #4  
Old 20 Mar 2012
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If you go on buying foreign registered bikes KLR 650 is the answer.Also DR 650 the newer model.
Now if you buy local registered and budget is a concern XR 250 Tornado is ok.But there will be limitations on riding those bikes out of the country.
Best advice,bring your own bike with!
Karl
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  #5  
Old 20 Mar 2012
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There is obviously no concensus, each poster will share his own experience. From what i witnessed after 5 years travelling this continent, the easiest and cheapest option was to buy a new chinese 200 cc bike in Paraguay. No borders problems, enough power to climb the Andes, easy maintainance, bureaucratic hassles free. For less than the price to ship a bike from Europe to South America, you get two brand new shining kangoroo skipping trail bikes.

For example : Kenton Dakar - YouTube

http://clasipar.paraguay.com/buscar?...kar&category=0

http://clasipar.paraguay.com/motos_t...o_1743189.html

Now if you want to impress locals and show you are a "gringo platudo", you can ride a foreigner japanese bike with all the bling bling equipment. Inconveniences will be : the price of spare parts, the difficulty to find them, interesting theft target (much value in low volume and weight). The advantages? You might catch attention of some local motorclub members, because showing off is part of the latin culture. The choice is a question of money and personality : indepth or superficial, observing or being watched.
Last edited by Vorteks; 20 Mar 2012 at 17:52.
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  #6  
Old 21 Mar 2012
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Phillipe
Maybe you didn´t noticed allmost all travellers here are then superficial and rich "platudos" showing off riders?????
Ahhhh yes that is why you showed off in BA with a nice XT 600
Any way I choose to ride my old trusty bike and not a cheap chinese ride.
Ces´t la vie mon amie.
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