Thanks Xfiliate. Right now I'm not reall pleased with my BMW but when I look back beyond the past three weeks it's actually been a reliable bike. I have cursed the oddball back tire size and the excessive weight of the bike since the start of my trip but the size and power has also been helpful at times.

The service at the Lima dealership has been good and they had the bike apart within 48 hours of arriving. I also had good service at the BMW shop in Rosario, Argentina but both shops simply didn't have parts and had to order then from Germany.

The Lima dealership told me BMW is opening a regional parts warehouse in Brazil next year to ease the problem but if a BMW fails in South America be prepare to go through a whole lot of trouble getting it fixed, including arrangement to have it shipped hundreds if not a thousand miles to the nearest shop, then waiting weeks to get back on the road.

I took advantage of the situation and flew to Iquitos for a week at an Amazon lodge.....

A whole three weeks ????

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Right about now that three weeks is feeling like three months. The shop has the bike mostly assembled and discovered the hydraulic clutch master cylinder is bad and they don't have the parts to rebuild it. We're hoping to find a generic cup seal from a hydraulic supplier in Lima but if not it's another three weeks....

Sorry to hear of the bad luck, sadly you're not the first BMW rider to be in this situation.

I support your "Get a KLR" idea. Travel bikes (for me) need to be somewhat expendable, not too serious an investment and something one can walk away from and not be broken, trip ruined.

For $2500 I can buy a decent, nice running used KLR or DR650, add $1000 more, maybe something fairly pristine or a DrZ400 or XR400. NO where is cheaper for bikes (new and used) than California (maybe Japan?)

Yet we constantly see guys ship their $10K to $20k bikes from continent to continent. They must be truly attached! I wish I had that sort of money. And when it breaks down (as your case demonstrates) you'll also need LOTS OF TIME as well. Hope you find somone who can actually rebuild a GS trans. Not all reports from Lima in this regard are positive. Best of luck!

Yeah, I'm a less-is-more kind of guy. Rather than spend thousands flying a favorite bike around, I think it would make more sense to put the money towards buying whatever is a common, easy-to-service motorcycle in your destination country.... but that's me.

__________________
Bruce Clarke - 2020 Yamaha XV250

Hi all,

this has become a very interesting thread and I had to laugh out loud a couple of times reading it.

here are some of my comments

@charapashanperu

yes, the DR650 can do this, I have done it.

@Mr Steam Turbine

OMG!!! If you come to Bolivia, I will buy you more than one . I am in Samaipata, and the next BMW dealer is only 120kms away ...


@ridetheworld

You call yourself ridetheworld and you dont know how to check the valves? Wau, you still have a lot to learn (as we all have to do) ... start tomorrow morning and buy a manual for your bike, then read it five times and then ask a friend to show you ... good luck on your journey.


So, I think the question Honda or BMW is answered by everyone contributing to this thread.

Saludos
mika

Well Mika, you'll no doubt be astonished to find out that I choose the name 'Ridetheworld' as an alias for a forum that is especially for overland 'round the world' trips, namely on two-wheeled motorcycles. On a well-known Indian travel forum I called myself 'Goldenchapati' but you might be surprised to learn that, in fact, in real life I am not actually "golden" nor am I "a chapati". I am deeply sorry if I missed the part where we're all supposed to create alias that have some bearing on 'real' life, and can only promise that next time I invent an alias on an internet forum I will endeavour that it will have some reasonable connection to my otherwise mundane, day to day, existence.

I don't think Mika intended any offense by his comments ... but as a NOOB, I'd grow a bit thicker skin ... it's all in good fun ... BUT ... Mika does make an excellent point.

IMHO, it is not wise for any Motoquero to attempt a cross continent or RTW motorcycle ride without substantial background knowledge of the basic mechanics and day to day maintenance of their bike.

Wouldn't you agree?

Without this knowledge you may fall victim to incompetent or unscrupulous
"mechanics" (or BOTH!!) out on the road. So take a course, get the service manual or hang out with skilled friends ... but do make an effort to learn the basics ... it will pay dividends X 1000 out on the road.

Once you buy a bike ... jump in and learn as much as you can about the ins and outs of that model. It's just not that hard ... and so much expert knowledge and experience here and on other model specific forums.
All the best!

I don't think you need to know a dam thing about anything before you go travelling on a bike..

I agree, you SHOULD, but if you don't if doesn't mean you don't belong...

I'm not going to learn how to make a birch bark canoe with a swiss army knife in case mine springs a leak.. You just improvise, adapt and keep going.

The learning curve will be steep, adventures will be had, stories will be told and the circle of life continues.


This forum is great for advice and real experience. And yes, you need a thick skin at times.

And that's definitely the most important thing to have if you plan on a big, long trip...

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Mollydog,

My response was merely an attempt of humour albeit sarcastic, hence the tactile smiley face at the end. This was also done "all in good fun", I can assure you of that

As for not knowing a thing about motorcycles and being a 'n00b' well I think your logic is fundamentally flawed. We all have to start somewhere and while some people learn better in the library I learn better by experience, and sometimes by asking questions on internet forums.

In India I just bought a motorcycle without any previous experience, and absolutely no knowledge of anything about them whatsoever. The next day I took on Kardung-la, one of the highest motorable roads in the world.

Yes it was stupid and a little dangerous, but reaching the top was one of the best moments of my life (short-lived as on the way into Nubra my outlet rod punched a hole the size of a penny coin the head gasket!!!).

In the short time I've been on the HUBB I've learnt many interesting things, for example what a GPS does and why I should buy a free-standing tent - to the technicalities of motorcycle ownership in Chile, and why you should always buy a Honda over a BMW in South America

This has all been invaluable and I will do my best to respond to the other queries of 'n00bs', preferably without making trite and condescending remarks. But anyway let's not high-jack an otherwise perfectly interesting thread!

Oops, I missed that bit too, I'd better grow another head, and fast.... :-D

Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk

All right, I'm actually smiling and laughing again.