F650CS or not

I have a friend who is looking at an F650CS, she was riding a
Yamaha 650 V-Star. I have searched this forum, but I did not see
much on the CS.

I have not had any experience with the belt drive before and
am not sure how well they hold up. She will do 90-95% of her
riding on paved roads with the remainder on dirt roads. Will
the dirt pose any problem for her?

I would probably do the GS it was my choice, but she prefers
the CS. Any help you can give me will be appreciated. Thanks.

Gerald

The GS would be much better on dirt roads. However the key is that she gets what she wants.

However as I previously had a 650Vstar and now have a F650GS and have ridden the CS. I like the GS better. Nothing tangible other than aesthetics and feel. Having said that I recommend that she sit on each of them for an hour even if they are not moving. The ergonomics are different. Also don't buy it if you can't take a test drive.

The belt drive seems to work fine, think about the primaries on most of those other motorcycles. It also will require less maintenance and looobing.

However there are more accessories available for the GS. There are some cool niche accessories like the helmet lock for the CS though.

If it was my money... I would get what makes me happy.

Brad, thank you for your post, I'll print off a copy for her to look at.
It will be especially meaningful since you owned a 650VStar.

Gerald

Gerald said:

I have a friend who is looking at an F650CS, she was riding a
Yamaha 650 V-Star. I have searched this forum, but I did not see
much on the CS.

I have not had any experience with the belt drive before and
am not sure how well they hold up. She will do 90-95% of her
riding on paved roads with the remainder on dirt roads. Will
the dirt pose any problem for her?

I would probably do the GS it was my choice, but she prefers
the CS. Any help you can give me will be appreciated. Thanks.

Gerald

Click to expand...

Just sold one that my wife was no longer riding. It is a great motorcycle a hoot to ride. With the belt drive I would not risk going off road because if a stone gets lodged up between the belt and drive it will cause a real mess. So if she plans any off road riding the F650 GS is the better choice>

Not to steal any thunder from this great site, but the poop on F650s is at The Chain Gang
Forums, Faqs, Pictures, Links. You want it, you got it.

Has she test ridden them both?

She has not ridden either yet, the dealer was uncrating the CS
the day we were in the shop. I hope that she will be able to ride
this weekend.

Gerald

Gerald said:

She has not ridden either yet, the dealer was uncrating the CS
the day we were in the shop. I hope that she will be able to ride
this weekend.

Gerald

Click to expand...

Well, did she ride? What's the verdict?

Still no ride, still no verdict. She has been working 14 hours a day
and had to work most of the day this past saturday. I barely
hear from her the past several weeks, so I am not sure what she plans to do.

Will let you know if she makes a decision. Thanks again for the
posts that have been made.

Gerald

Hello

Gerald and All...

Just a quick note to say hello as a new guy on the block and as an ardent F650 CS fan. Our 650CS is a replacement for my wife's K75, which she reduced to nano-parts on the way to Death Valley. I plan to ride the 650 to Spokane this year while our surviving K75 is being "hacked." Incidentally, the CS has one of the best soft luggage systems ever designed. I love this bike. (And hello to Bruce)