Whether you buy NEW or USED, plenty bikes around, Oregon is good but will not have many used DR650's. Perhaps Jeff at ProCycle can help find a dealer in Oregon or may know a shop willing to do your mods?

Insurance I'm not sure about, but should be available for you. If you buy new, a dealer can help with this.

Prices will not vary all that much in Winter. Dealers can only go so low and most DR650's are already priced close to the lower limit.

Do some shopping:
https://www.cycletrader.com/search-r...trim=650|3247&

Scroll down, you will see a Bend, Oregon dealer. MSRP price is around $6500.
No sales tax, yes, but all dealers add on "fees" which I don't think you have in UK. (freight, Set Up, and more) On a $6500 bike could add on about $500.

If you want to save money, buy USED from a private party or buy a low mile used bike from a dealer, you may be able to do all the mods on the bike, then you pick it up in Spring.

I'm guessing new, with add on fees, a new DR650 will be close to $7000 USD on the road. Used, you can find really nice, low miles DR650 in the $4000 to $6000 area. Low miles being 5000 mi. or less.

Yes, makes sense. If you buy from a dealer (new or used) they should be able to install extras and do mods you want. This will not be cheap. (most USA shop rates are between $80 to $120 per hour depending where in USA) But if you buy a bike from them, I'm sure a deal could be struck on doing mods.

You don't necessarily have to register the bike in your name to tour round for a month or so. You can ride with current bike's registration (if valid)This is legal. But you will need proof of insurance, and on that I'm not positive how a NON US Citizen should proceed.

If you do register bike in USA you can use dealers address or ProCycle's address in Oregon or anyone here on the forum. (you can use my California Address if you'd like ... not a big deal) Just make sure person at address is willing to Forward mail to you as your new TITLE will be sent to that address in a month or few weeks after purchase.

Mollydog is skipping a couple of crucial factors, including:

You need an address in the specific state where you register the bike. "Anyone here on the forum" won't do.

Progressive Insurance is the standard go-to for foreign nationals.

Read all the fine print on the Oregon DMV site. It looks to me as if you are required to be an Oregon resident before registering a vehicle in the state, but you should confirm that yourself. Don't assume, and don't take anyone's word for it.

Emissions inspections are required for certain vehicles and in certain locations. if you buy used, don't hand over any money before determining that this requirement has been satisfied or is not applicable.

Washington and California are going to be easier.

Hope that's helpful.

Mark

This thread will help clarify which US states allow a foreigner to buy /register a bike: http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/hub...nals-can-58648

There's been a lot of talk about emissions. Part of the importation process of bikes into the UK is getting a road worthiness certificate called an MOT. In 25 + years of visiting bike MOT centres in different UK towns often several times a year (having owned multiple bikes simultaneously and a yearly MOT being needed for any vehicle over 3 years old ), no bike I've had tested, has ever had an emissions test, including when I imported a BMW into the UK from Germany. I've never seen an emissions testing device at any bike MOT station I've ever visited (I'm well into double figures for testing stations visited ). Cars yes, bikes no.

For what a DR is worth, while being an excellent bike, why pay freight, import tax and value added tax to bring it from the US, when you can buy a comparable other Japanese or European brand/model that is available for less money and hassle? Not to mention spares /parts availability (lack of ) for a vehicle not sold in Europe for years.

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I should have clarified that said address must be in state where bike is to be registered.

I wonder if any non-resident USA riders have purchased insurance lately?
Is Progressive still the "Go"? Any better options found?

There are several semi-new players in the Motorcycle insurance market here in California ... might be worth it to check them out:
Dairyland, Markel, Geico, Foremost, Nationwide, Farmer's, AAA, State Farm, Liberty Mutual, National General and a few more.

Mark, do you have a list of states that require Emissions testing on motorcycles? I wasn't aware of ANY that do.

California has talked about this but so far ... no actual legislation. Much as I hate anti-MC laws, I must say I would not mind a NOISE testing requirement. (don't hate me for this!)

Even though the loud bike thing is MUCH better than just a few years ago ... there are still too many HD guys roaring around waking people up at 5 am ... daily.

Parts not much worry. One stop shopping at ProCycle is fairly painless, getting all (or most) of what you might need in one go. Not to mention giant private market of DR650 owners ... huge resource of everything DR650. Shipping will cost you, but if you consolidate, maybe not too terrible?

Aussie DR650 riders constantly buy and ship parts from USA to Oz cause it's cheaper than buying in Oz. Go figure.

But it's the hassle part that may have validity. Alan Hopkins did quite well but was some hassle getting it registered but managed it. I'm sure others have done similar with foreign bikes, no?

IMO, not many Euro or Japanese bikes match up that well with the DR650. Other 650 class bikes have also been banned for decades, are in very short supply: XT600, KLR650, XR650L. I guess XT's are around, but not really close to the DR650 IMO. One viable option would be the XTZ660 Tenere'. Potential in that bike, yes?

KTM's could work. (bring parts & tools!) Most KTM's not inexpensive and NONE as reliable as DR650 IMO. But great bikes, faster than DR650, better off road. Certainly on option.

You could go with a BMW F650GS or Sertao ... good bike, but also more $$$ than the DR and 25 kgs. heavier.

What could be done is to buy a DR650 already in the UK ... or EU? Heard of a few newish ones brought in ... so one may come up for sale once in a while.
No easy solution.

Thanks for all the help and advice.

The procedure for importing into the UK is you submit the bike for a MSVA test which ensures the bike conforms to UK standards, and part of this test is emissions. The MSVA is unlike the MOT test in that the MOT test makes sure the bike is roadworthy, whereas the MSVA test ensures the bike conforms.

If the bike fails the MSVA you can make some alterations and bring the bike back for a retest. Once it passes MSVA you can then register the bike and then take it for an MOT.

As far as I can tell from looking up the specs the XT660Z is 180kgs dry versus the DR650's 153kgs dry. That is just under 30kgs of weight savings which is fairly significant. Plus the DR is carburetted, which is relatively simple technology.

DR650 choice : I am trying to buy a fairly light bike (around the 150kgs if possible), and bomb proof, with simple reliable mechanics and reasonable horsepower for riding solo fully loaded up through remote areas (Mongolia/Siberia).

It seems to me the DR650 meets these criteria and is reasonably affordable although I'd happily pay more for a lighter bike if it was as reliable and dependable.

[QUOTE=Flying_Dutchman;570381

As far as I can tell from looking up the specs the XT660Z is 180kgs dry versus the DR650's 153kgs dry. That is just under 30kgs of weight savings which is fairly significant. Plus the DR is carburetted, which is relatively simple technology.

[/QUOTE]
The XT660R is considerably lighter, has a lower seat and does much the same job as the Z version without the "bling adventure" styling.

Neither is now sold new in the UK: the R version was dropped from the Yamaha UK range about 2 years ago and the Z more recently.
There are a few around at decent prices:-
Yamaha XT660R | eBay

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Dave

I have a friend who is currently going through MSVA because it is a special built from parts, (Egli Vincent). I have never heard of a production motorcycle ever being subject to MSVA. Go to the DVLA website and follow the process. You absolutely will need to get NOVA certification for the import duty. Must be made within two weeks of import or they fine you £5 PER DAY after that !
I bought an old Peugeot import a while back, did the NOVA online. They charged me £14 (it was a cheap bike !), and then promptly gave me the money back when they realised how old it was.

Suzuki DR650R | eBay

I'm also looking at buying a DR650 in Europe - most of the ads I've seen so far are for bikes older than 15 years and lots of KMs, sometimes more than 50,000.

Lately I came across that one that was imported from the US: year 2014 and ~5000 KMs (although it's hard to check that as the original speedo was replaced by a digital aftermarket one).

Pros: Bike is already registered in Europe and has a larger Acerbis tank fuel + handguards + panniers mounts.

Cons: The digital speedo that makes it harder to check bike's history, a ding in the swingarm it seems... and the price. So yeah, that's over EUR 5300 / USD 6300.

Somehow it's hard to blame the seller: he had to pay at some point shipping (> EUR 500), import duty (10%), VAT (23% in Poland) and he went through the registration process...

On the other hand for EUR 6500 you can get a brand new SWM Super Dual, which is less charismatic and has fuel injection. But it's brand new...

Good points! I'd probably go for the SWM! As good as the DR650 is (mine has
over 60,000 miles on it) it would be more fun to try a new bike.

I don't know much of the history or SWM ... but if it looks good and rides good,
give it a try. Post up here what you find out!

Regards DR650 ... you can never truly know exact Odometer reading even with standard speedo. It takes literally 5 minutes to unscrew the speedo drive cable ... and sadly lots of unscrupulous owners have been known to do this!

You will learn more by looking at the bike carefully. I can tell the riding history of a DR by looking at it ... but I know the bike well and have seen MANY of them over many miles ... from brand new to 60K miles. Certain things can't be hidden.

Actually, that price is not to bad considering a new DR650 here now will cost OVER $6500 with tax and fees if bought new. Sure, you could find a older one for less ... but for a 2014 model ... not bad.
(I'd still buy the SWM!)

I get your point that inspecting the bike can give a hint on how much the bike was used. I'm not sure though I could make the difference between one bike that had 20,000 easy KMs on tarmac and another one that had only 5,000 but on rough trails.

Now what's putting me off is the ding in the swingarm that the seller omitted to mention. No idea how that could happen.



Re. the SWM, it's not available yet in Poland unfortunately.

Looks like a VERY nice DR650. I would not worry about the swingarm ding, no idea how that could happen.

If you have never ridden the DR650 I would try to get a test ride. The bike may surprise you. It's quite good on high speed motorway ... and great on tight back roads in the mountains.

Reliable, easy to work on yourself ... and will last a long long time.

But a test ride should help you make up your mind!

If you are buying new, have you looked at the prices in Canada, I think with our exchange rate you could get a much better deal here.

Check Suzuki Canada site. $6099.00 CAD list for a 2017 model.

https://www.suzuki.ca/?q=en/node/4024

Suzuki USA, base price $6,499.00 US

Suzuki Cycles - Product Lines - Cycles - Products - DR650SE - 2017 - DR650S

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I started out with nothing, and I still have most of it.

Hello again,

I went ahead and bought a low mileage 2013 DR650 from a dealer in Minneapolis and will pick it up in springtime. Plan is to do a 12,000 mile trip through the USA for 2 to 3 months before shipping it back to the UK. Register it here and then prepare it for the trip from UK to Magadan starting in spring 2019.

Thanks for all your help and guidance fellas, much appreciated!

http://www.simplystreetbikes.com/201...nesota/6304034