I kinda want a smaller displacement dual sport. My main concern is weight. I think the KLR650 is on the big end of the spectrum as I want to get. I want something more offroad oriented because I plan on going trail riding. Of course this being Florida, that means sand and maybe some mud.
I guess I'll just have to see what I can find. I have been farkle shopping all day. My God, so much farkle, so little money LOL
I'll throw another wrench into your decision making. Kawasaki Super Sherpa.
Lightweight, simple, 6-speed, electric start. It's like having a KLR250, but more civilized.
I had one prior to my KLR650, only reason I switched was that I was using it to commute to work and I felt like it was wound out the whole time, so the KLR650 replaced it for better road manners. I still don't ride the KLR on the street very much so in hindsight I should've stuck with the Sherpa, it was very fun to ride on dirt and around town.
Looks neat but the few I've found for sale are 2-3 times what the going rate is for klr250's around here. Seems like it would be nice and light, 3 inch shorter seat height vs the klr with only about an inch less ground clearance. Air cooled vs liquid even holds more fuel than the klr.
A Super Sherpa would be awesome if I could find one haha. People seem to hang on to those or want ridiculous money for them. I like the lightweight and simple part but would it survive sitting in traffic on a hot Florida day? Do you think a liquid cooled bike would be more robust?
My own experience with bikes overheating and such, usually has involved water cooled bikes. And ATV's. Air cooled are built to a sloppier tolerance, and as such tend to take overheating a bit better.
My father in law commutes on a Yam XT225 in south Florida stop and go and that thing never skips a beat, I've thought about looking for something similar myself especially with the move to oregon coming up
What is frustrating is that the dual sport market is pretty small down here. Most people ride super sports or big cruisers. I can find just a few dual sports on CL. I know I shouldn't buy a new bike but a used one is only about $1k-$1.2k cheaper.
It seems like every big manufacturer makes their own version of a dual sport so there is a lot of flavors of bikes. I found a few Beemers last night but they are too rich for my blood. Nice bikes though!
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