My mildly depressing minivan purchase has earned me enough sympathy points to procure a new moto.

Question:
I have decided to buy a dual sport for around town riding, fun on country roads 45-55mph and mild off-roading.

I’ve narrowed it down to four good deals locally.

(Listed in order of interest currently)

Choices:
Suzuki DR350
KLR650
KTM 250EXC (yes a plated two stroke)
Honda Grom (Its kind of a wild card as it would not be excellent offroad)

 

Being close to 6 feet tall and weighing a shade over 200, I'd need some fairly serious bike to haul my enormous ass around, so I voted for the KLR.

If you are more...ah..."petite", the 350 Zook would be an excellent choice as well.

I'd be afraid of the KTM only because of dealer/parts availability. If you're comfortable with dealer support, that'd be a kick-ass bike.

Edit to add: The KLR is the 10-22 of motorcycles. There's a cubic assload of aftermarket farkles out there.

I got a KLR650...but for your stated wants I'd go with the smaller DR or KTM.

I like that I can use the KLR on longer trips, but not a concern of yours. It's pretty slow and "piggy" for mild off road and town use.

The KTM is my favorite. I'd look at the 450 4 strokes also.

I’m hobbit sized. 5’9 165 lbs

I have a Grom and a Ducati Scrambler. I also have a Yamaha TW 200. The TW 200 is a great bike for around town, and is like a mountain goat off road. (Maybe not as fast as a mountain goat). It is also freeway legal in Ca, at least. Although maybe sucicidal....It will cruise at 55 all day, in production since '87 so lots of aftermarket stuff. I highly recommend one. Or two.

I voted the KLR. You want to ensure you have enough power on the road.

It’s a tough call because each bike has its advantage.

The DR350 will be good offroad and the 6 Speed will make for a decent street bike.

The KLR will excell on the street and has huge aftermarket support.

The KTM is a street legal two stroke....which is awesome as it’s just perfect for blasting away in the woods but how would it do on pavement?

The Grom would be fun and a low risk way to convert my friends to the thrill of riding.

quote:

Originally posted by 95flhr:
I voted the KLR. You want to ensure you have enough power on the road.

KLR is weak on power (decent torque though), maybe 37hp max and 400+lbs. I just looked up the DR350, says 289 lbs and 33hp so it will be peppier. Some minor mods and I bet it would rip.

What PHPaul said about your size and weight is spot on.

Back in the day I had a Honda XL650r and it had incredible power both on and offroad but was a heavy ungainly beast on any thing off-road that was more than moderately difficult. I was 5'10" 170lbs at the time. It fit my needs well at the time because I mainly used it on road to commute to college and after school we rode the trails. I do remember thinking at the time that I should have gotten the 350 but that was only when I was trail riding and handicapped by the extra weight of the 650 over the 350. On the highway the 650 ruled supreme. I hope you find the right balance for your needs.

I didn't vote as I have no direct knowledge of the models you mentioned.

PHPaul, I will have to check but I believe parts support for this KTM should be ok. It isn’t a terribly old model. For me the gearing and street use is more of a concern.

The reason the KTM isn’t listed higher is that it’s $600 more than the other three which are all priced at $2500. The DR350 and Grom both are super low mile 1 owner bikes.

As a tangent option. KLR 250?
Friend of my dad's had one a couple years ago & it got around town quite quickly with my 6'0" 155lb self on it.
The kick start only was a tiny hindrance while I got used to it & stalled it at a light.

quote:

Originally posted by stickman428:
PHPaul, I will have to check but I believe parts support for this KTM should be ok. It isn’t a terribly old model. For me the gearing and street use is more of a concern.

Gearing shouldn't be a huge issue. Depending on how the front sprocket is accessed, it could possibly be changed fairly quickly - Taller for commuting, quicker for off-road blasts. Worth looking into anyway.

Stickman is correct. I have ridden off road nearly 50 years and for off road the KTM would be my choice. The DR is a great choice as it's lighter that the KLR and is decent off road yet still has enough power to handle the road. There was a group of guys (Mondo Enduro)that road 350's on a round the world trip. Great video to watch by the way.

I’ve been tempted to double my budget and pick up a newer DRZ400SM or a DR650 cheap and supermoto it but the dr350 & KLR650 are both great bases for offroad ADV machines.

Take a serious look at a Beta. It’s an Italian bike and they are awesome. My dad just got a beta 390cc last year. It’s an enduro but really it’s a badass dirtbike that’s street legal, pretty light, tons of power and fuel injected. I like it way more than my KLR

I like your second thoughts there. You would be much father ahead with the DRZ400 or DR650. Both can be found used for $4000 ish. The Yamaha WR250R is an excellent choice also and one I have been looking hard at to do the TAT on. I might be getting my models mixed up here but I thought the KTM 250 EXC was supposed to be pretty anemic.

For buying a minivan you deserve a 2018 BMW R1200GS Adventure.

FWIW, Stick, my neighbor is a KTM guy... loves 'em.

Hey, how many bikes are in the House of Stickman these days?

FWIW
I had both the DR 400 and the KLR 650.
Loved the DR. Was really underwhelmed with the KLR. Best explanation I can give is that the power to weight was far superior with the DR.
The KLR was truly a pig. Both circa 2003.
The DR did start breathing pretty hard above 55.