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Help - I fear I might defect!

As this is probably going to be a once in a lifetime trip around the globe I would let the heart make the choice.
The new engines are very reliable after the recall and the Stelvio is a great bike to ride (had one for two weeks during the recall of my 8V).
 
Sure, Roper is right - a Suzuki DR650 single kitted out would be nice and light and handle sand much better than the Stelvio and parts would be ok but that is about it...
imagine 10,000ks on this :unsure:
12034_0_1_4_dr%20650%20rs_Image%20credits%20-%20roger%20kirkness.jpg


the question is - how much real off-roading will you be doing and importantly your partner, want to be doing, after the first few spills?

ride the Stelvio - by all accounts the weight disappears when moving - then make up our mind.
 
G'day Mike,

Suggest you get hold of a book by Brian and Shirley Rix called "Two for the Road" published by Pan Mcmillian Australia, Well worth the read on this type of adventure and preperation.

Beemer
 
Got the Rix's book a while ago - interesting read even if it was a bit of a then and then and then we did this story.
 
Met a Swiss couple in Canada that had been riding for two years with one to go ! He was on a Honda Transalp and she on a DR 650.

They said the bikes had done very well.

Beating up a $14,000 plus Stelvio with lots of "off road" riding seems pretty extreme.

KLR's, DR's, XR's, KTM's (pricey) might all be better if properly equipped. Most of these have many aftermarket goodies readily available. Parts are probably much easier to find than for a Guzzi as well.

But, an old Loop will do the job too. I met a rider last week who went all over Russia and used naptha for fuel at times. Then there's the fellow from The Netherlands who went from Alaska to the tip of South America on a 35 year old Goose.
 
Well, Hans of GuzziGalore had access to (and need for) lots of fine "bush mechanics", and most of all, all the time he wanted. Not sure Mike and the Minister are going to be in that situation ;)

In defense of E&C, anyone who actually watched the LTR DVDs knows they tried to go with KTM, but it's KTM who bailed out almost at the last minute. Seeing the BMWs try liquid breathing and then start right back up after a bit of reanimation, but also suffer frame failures repeatedly due to too much luggage puts things in perspective. A 33 liter tank can also be a nice feature to have ;)

Now, one can of course try just about any vehicle to go around the world: http://scootfou.free.fr/parou.html

Of course, the real gentleman would follow Phileas' lead, and use the local marques ;)
 
Since when are KTMs reliable ? Not according to the people I know with time on them... ( then again they could be mechanical dunces.) I kinda agree with Pete as much as I like the Idea of that kind of ride on a Stelvio, if it was me I think I'd probably err on the side of caution and end up with a big Jap single. But I tend to be Mechanically conservative.
FBC
 
Oh, forgot one thing. For this kind of trip, it would make sense to pick a version that can still be repaired "at the road side" if you go BMW — 1100GS or maybe 1150GS (or their adventure versions, if applicable).

Daniel Kalal has a KTM, if he could chime in on the reliability ...
 
A bunch of French Ducati enthusiasts made a tour around the world, and faced a bit of the same dilemma: there had to be a Ducati engine in the bikes they'd take. So finally they opted for Cagiva Elephants ... and then facing the loading issue, had them converted into hacks :D

http://www.passagers-du-monde.net/

Sadly it's in French (but with google translation).
 
Often asked myself what I would go around the world on if I had the time and/or funds. Even tho' I have a Stelvio and a Cagiva Elefant 900 I always think back to the original Jupiters Travels book by Ted Simon when he started the ball rolling by riding his Triumph 500 Daytoma around the world in the early 70s.

The thing that appeals to me is having a bike that is simple enough to repair at the roadside and robust enough to carry proper luggage.

I know that a lot of you chaps will have a good laugh but I eventually plumped for a 650/750 Ural. OK OK I will explain!!!

My father had one of the first Urals imported into the UK in 1970. He rode it till he was 82 and loved it to bits. It is now owned by the president of the Cossack Owners Club and is still going strong. It cost £325 in 1970 (20% of the cost of a BMW R65 back then).

Initially used as a sidecar hack he eventually went solo and racked up 96000 kilometeres with minimal trouble. Points ignition that will accept Fiat points. Simple Amal Mk1 Carbs, pushrod engine, no cam chains, a Mechanical Voltage regulator you can adjust with a screwdriver, a frame designed to withstand the rigours of ploughing in Siberia. No electronics to fail. Car type alternator. Shaft drive. Shocks desogned to sidecar loadings (250 pounds of luggage no problem). Kickstart (that is a plus point if a starter motor fails in the middle of the Sahara. Also the original sprung rubber saddle is, by far, the comfiest seat ever fitted to a motorcycle even though it looks prehistoric.

Yes it's crude and you would have to replace all the bearings before setting off (Russian ones were variable to say the least). But the exercise of properly prepping the bike would be just like a crash course in 'knowing your bike'. I stripped the top end once by the roadside to remove a seized piston ring. Try that with a DR650!!

Also think of the time a RTW rider will spend in Russia/Siberia where spares would be plentiful and you could probably pick up a spare engine for £20!!

Having said that, it would be slow going but a decently prepped Ural will cruise at 65 mph. If you are doing day after day of long miles, high speed would tire you out very quickly.

Only a personal point of view but maybe having read Jupiters Travels many times has affected my thinking?

Each to their own!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Grand Mahout.
 
You're logic is sound ackers, the 'built like tractor' approach usually gets the job done. I'm not laughing at you!
FBC
 
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