xtz660 vs gs80pd...
 

ive got a problem of sorts, in around six months time i will be riding a bike from london to india. currently i ride a very tidy xtz660 but i was a little worried that this bike may not be suitable for riding two up across the world. yesturday i took a 1986 gspd (nice bike) for a ride as i was thinking this may have been a more suitable option, but ive come away very confused. i really enjoy the way the tenere handles, and with a solid suspesion upgrade i thought this bike would be fine for the job. i found the 80 gspd to be a small bike and the advantages for two didnt seem too obvious (apart from the reliable engine) as the breaks , sloppy suspesion(mono lever shock), riding position and poor electrics seemed allot worse than my tenere. i feel i would have to spend allot of cash to get the bike up to a suitable standard even though this is a very good example of a GS 80PD....hmmmmm...
im really confused.....i hope your experience can ease my worried mind....phil.

There's nothing in the world like a real 660 ! It can do everything. Maybe some things not as well as other specialised bikes, but those can't do everything. When you talk about a reliable engine you mean the XTZ, not the Beamer.
The only problems are the voltage regulator which you have to replace with the new finned one, and you must take off the crankshaft pinion nut and glue it tight, otherwise it will come loose sooner or later.
But indeed two up is no fun if it lasts more than a few hours, simply because there's no space to move around.

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Fred, XTZ660, Holland.

fred, thanks....i think thats what i wanted to hear.the more i think about it the more sense it mkes to stick with my xtz, she hasnt let me down so far , so what the heck ..cheers .phil..

The only problems are the voltage regulator which you have to replace with the new finned one, and you must take off the crankshaft pinion nut and glue it tight, otherwise it will come loose sooner or later.

Hi Fred,
tell me more about voltage regulator. I have not faced problems with it so far, and my 660 has passed a realy huge mileage... What about the oil consumption of your bike?
AnteK

Hello Ante, your voltage regulator is already the new type, that's why. All twin headlight 660's have the finned one. And the earlier models can and should use it too!
My 660 has always used a lot of oil since I bought it with 11.000 km. Finally at 50.000 I opened the engine [not earlier because it was running so well] and the cause was the valve stem seal of the 3rd inlet valve. They had been messing with the valves and the cylinder etc. it in the bike's first years already. Now oil consumption is very reasonable, about 1 l. on 1500-2000 kms.
Especially when the oil is fresh it uses little.
de groeten.


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Fred, XTZ660, Holland.

Hi Fred,
similar situation is also with my 660; when oil is fresh, no oil consumption up to around 1500 km passed. Then it starts to increase litlle up to 0,5 l/ 1000 km, not more. I have realized that using ester blend semishynt oils ( Motul, Silokolene )rezults with less oil consumption than with regular MC shynt oil base. Try that,
Regards,
AnteK

Hi, I recently rode a '94 XTZ 660 two up for a 4 month / 14000km trip around South America. The bike was great - totally reliable, never let us down once. Absolutely bullet proof despite the heavy load and rough roads - nothing broke or fell off. Bike is big and powerful enough to do long hauls on motorways comfortably but can also cope with dirt and gravel roads. I used the standard shock (which had been replaced about 15,000 k before the trip), but with a stronger spring (15kg/mm instead of std 12kg/mm) With damping set up to max this worked fine.
Good luck,Shaun

I can tell you more about the 660 [and also the 600 Tenere] : we did the Raid de l'Amitié in Morocco, more than 4000 kms off-road and lots of them very rough. Of about 100 bikes we were the only ones only to check the oil level and clean the air filter once.

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Fred, XTZ660, Holland.

have decided that with a few serious modifications this bike will be more than adequate. the seat needs to be altered to allow some room for the "jewels",any info on seat mods would be great. im thinking of moulding the seat to our bums, removing the hump from the front and lenghtening the rear by an inch and a bit ....any other mods advice much appreciated ie shocks etc.

My rear element has been modified at a local motocross-specialist, the spring seat has been moved about 1 cm. so I have more preload and the damping is now 6,7,8,9,10 instead of the too weak standard 1,2,3,4,5. I use 7 or 8. Cost € 90,--
Be sure to mount progressive springs in the front fork. I use multigrade 10W20 fork oil which works perfectly.

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Fred, XTZ660, Holland.

Hi Fred,

(an off topic question) Do you any of the road books or gps tracks from the Raid de l'Amitié? if so could you please mail some to me or if not could you point out a couple of places were there is good offroad tracks. I have Sahara overland but was looking for something a little less travelled...

There are good off-road tracks everywhere in Morocco. But make your life easy, do the Raid de l'Amitié. It's every year. And it's cheap. See www.aiofrance.com. The advantages are that you don't carry anything on the bike, there's medical assistance, you don't have to worry about food and lodging, your bike is being watched everywhere, everything is taken care of so you can just ride until you're finished every day, all day long. It's really great fun.

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Fred, XTZ660, Holland.

Futronix...go the XT..you can find Yamaha shops in most big cities in Russia eg Tuymen, Novo...Kazakstan, almaty, and certainly in Asia. BMW car shops dont cope with old BMW bikes. My 1984 GS PD is really sufferring..suspension failing, gearbox bearings and seals failing..bits breaking off...exhaust valve that closes up every 1000k..Rear engine oil seal leaking...really its like giving CPR every time I stop for a piss.
cheers from Almaty

[This message has been edited by simmo (edited 30 August 2003).]