Oops, I did it again

In case you haven't read already, the big Vstrom (DL1000) is up for sale as I've made the decision to get on another machine.

Not a huge leap as it's still a road bike that has a fair dirt road cred. Not big time off road stuff (although some do) but just enough to get me and the mrs to those little picnic spots down some OKish dirt roads without all the fuss of trying to get a road bike down there.

The reason for the change is simple, I came to the realisation that the thou is too much for me on these types of roads, especially when I'm in company with the mrs. Don't get me wrong, the DL1K is a awsome bike, even tho it's about 10 years old technology wise, and a great thing to ride. If I wasn't dabbling in a little light dirt road stuff (and wasn't so crap at it) I'd keep the DL1K in a heartbeat.

Anyways, onto what I'm now mounting.

As the mrs is on a DL650 I've had a good opportunity to give one a go every now and then and I've found while it's not as powerful as it's big brother, it's also not as heavy and it's an easier bike to ride on dirt roads, for me at least. It's also a slightly easier bike to live with when commuting which is a bonus as I ride day in, day out (not that the Thou is hard to live with in traffic)
As luck would have it I found a low km (less then 5k) version for sale with almost 2k in accessories for a good price. Checked it over, all signs pointed to only being ridden on the sealed stuff and well maintained, haggled with the salesman, got a deal I was happy with so I pulled the trigger and home came another one.

I'd post a pick but you've seen it before. See, the new bike is a mirror image of the wifes, colour and all (maybe I'll paint it soon). That and it's pissing down rain right now.

So there you have it, I've changed my undies again

Congratulations dhula, if I was in that market I'd be tempted too. So, I have cast a glance at the 650 Vstrom occassionally and I keep seeing two different looking models. One seems to have a lower oil cooler and the other doesn't - there might be other differences as well but the shape seems to be very similar overall. Am I seeing a 2012 model against older versions? I appreciate I'm not giving you much to go on and I've never bothered to follow it up as I wasn't serious (although a bloke I ride to WSBK with is in this market). In fact, at Phillip Is in Feb, the Suzuki stand had what appeared to be two different 650 Vstroms from memory and I even commented to the missus that I must have missed something.

Ewok, The one with the oil cooler is a 2011 (and earlier) Vstrom. Well respected and well used by many and the ones I have
The one without an oil cooler you can see (it has one similar to the Bandit 1250, a heat exchanger) is a 2012 model.
There are a few differences between the '11 and '12 models and I like the looks of the '12 better but a couple of things put me off it, the price compared to what I could get in a '11 was one.

The '12 comes with ABS, no option, you get it. The '11 is available with or without if you want a choice.
Reports indicate that fuel economy on the '12 is better and range about the same due to a slightly smaller tank.
Power and tork are up compared to the '11
Weight is down by a few kgs on the newer model.
Reports indicate the '12 has slightly better suspension setup and as an overall package when comparing the two, the '12 is the way to go. That's not to say the '11 is a slouch tho

Thanks dhula - I wasn't losing sleep but I was curious.

Well thats a good rap for the 650 then .

i had an 06 DL650 before my Bandit, & loved it. my only complaint, as i don't do any off-road riding, is that it's difficult to get good road rubber for the sizes of the wheels.

I bought a new one in 07 and it was a comfortable and quick bike. I tried the thou, but the 650 is superior except in acceleration.

I fitted a Madstad bracket to sort the buffeting the stock screen causes, but try as I might I always wanted another Bandit. No grumbles about the Strom but just not for me

boomer wrote:i had an 06 DL650 before my Bandit, & loved it. my only complaint, as i don't do any off-road riding, is that it's difficult to get good road rubber for the sizes of the wheels.

Pilot Road 3's just replaced the BT021's (BT020 front I think) I had on my Wee Strom. So more options available now.

Vellies wrote:

boomer wrote:i had an 06 DL650 before my Bandit, & loved it. my only complaint, as i don't do any off-road riding, is that it's difficult to get good road rubber for the sizes of the wheels.

Pilot Road 3's just replaced the BT021's (BT020 front I think) I had on my Wee Strom. So more options available now.

G'day Vellies. You need to drop in to Introduce Yourself and tell us a little bit about yourself mate.

Just posted the introduction. Thanks for pointing me in the right direction.