I think the above statement is emblematic of a trend showing more travelers going away from BIG heavy, expensive road bikes (R12GS, F800GS, R100GS et al) to less expensive, more expendable bikes that crash better and generally are reliable. More going with 250s and 400's. More buying "in country" local china bikes. Things are changing fast. I still like my DR as a versatile travel bike but I'm in California now, not Africa.

With a few good mods the DR650 is surprisingly good on the road, even comfortable on long paved stretches at high speed. (Good seat a must, heavier springs will help) Try not to overload with too much stuff. Off road on tough tracks the DR is easy to ride if not over loaded. It's even good in sand (firm suspension helps), rocks if not too technical.

I'm sure once your F650GS is put right you can re-coup a good bit of your investment from the sale. Good luck with the DR.

I've read the ADV thread on the broken shock bolt as well. Some seem to speculate it's a design flaw from BMW.

BTW, you don't need any sort of Carnet for S. America, but if you're going back to Africa after that then I guess you would need one.
Safe travels, take pics, have fun!


Too much of a good thing? .... or "Why I Don't Camp". This guy really needs a GS.