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BMW F650GS/F650CS/G650GS/Dakar/Sertao/Scarver

ZanderMan

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Location
Orange Co, NC
Any single of these variants, single- or dual-spark, carb or EFI… Lots of commonalities.

Picked up this ‘07 last July, it’s been a great “compromise” bike for me since I only have time / room in the stable for one. May be changing out the tires for something a bit more off-road but the Metzeler Tourances are doing the job for now. Added an HTP skid plate will probably be adding the Heed bars in a few months.
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Can you add the F650CS / Scarver to this list? I've seen a few of those bikes for sale in the area and am kinda interested in them too. Thx.
 
Can you add the F650CS / Scarver to this list? I've seen a few of those bikes for sale in the area and am kinda interested in them too. Thx.

My wife bought one new in 2003 and still has it. It's ugly as sin, practical as hell, and an absolute blast to tool around on. I wish BMW still made belt driven bikes.

The optional locking hard clamshell that goes in the Stuff Bay is mandatory. :)

edit - oh and a tall seat too. The stock one folds your legs up like a pretzel. Even my wife couldn't stand it for very long and she's 5'5".
 
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I found a clean, low-mileage, one-owner G650GS a few months ago and snapped it up. I plan to keep it as long as I'm able to ride (20ish years?). Have SW Motech crash bars, centerstand, and skid plate on order. Installed some BMW handguards to supplement the heated grips and a Givi Tank-Lock tank bag. Have a set of AX-41s in the dining room ready to replace the OEM Tourances.

But that's not what this post is about. It's about exhausts.

There aren't many options for 650GS exhausts anymore, but one I stumbled on was Dominator. The price seemed too good to be true so of course I ordered one. Got it direct from the factory in Poland and total price including mid-pipe, "hard" db-killer, and shipping to the US was $197. Exhaust arrived exactly seven days after placing the order.

Installation was pretty straight-forward and I'm inept.

Even with the "hard" db-killer it's fairly loud at idle, but from the saddle with ear plugs in it is not loud at all. And the sound it makes is kind of intoxicating.

The Dominator weighed about five pounds and the stock hardware I removed weighed about thirteen and a half pounds.

Quality looks great for the price. I mean, it's not going to compete with an Akrapovic, but is it worth $197? Hell yeah it is.

Here's what it looks like installed. It's the "round" can, which is the cheapest option (they also make an oval and one of those multi-sided jobbies with a carbon endcap).

IC33d3e.jpg


And here's a video comparing the stock exhaust note to the Dominator. You can't use the video to compare volume as the iPhone normalizes sound levels, but the Dominator is significantly louder at idle. It's not too bad holding steady throttle though.

 
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Any tips on cleaning the chain? Best solution?

Plan to just pull the master link and dump it in something for a soak, but not sure what is the best solution to use.
 
I found a clean, low-mileage, one-owner G650GS a few months ago and snapped it up. I plan to keep it as long as I'm able to ride (20ish years?). Have SW Motech crash bars, centerstand, and skid plate on order. Installed some BMW handguards to supplement the heated grips and a Givi Tank-Lock tank bag. Have a set of AX-41s in the dining room ready to replace the OEM Tourances.

But that's not what this post is about. It's about exhausts.

There aren't many options for 650GS exhausts anymore, but one I stumbled on was Dominator. The price seemed too good to be true so of course I ordered one. Got it direct from the factory in Poland and total price including mid-pipe, "hard" db-killer, and shipping to the US was $197. Exhaust arrived exactly seven days after placing the order.

Installation was pretty straight-forward and I'm inept.

Even with the "hard" db-killer it's fairly loud at idle, but from the saddle with ear plugs in it is not loud at all. And the sound it makes is kind of intoxicating.

The Dominator weighed about five pounds and the stock hardware I removed weighed about thirteen and a half pounds.

Quality looks great for the price. I mean, it's not going to compete with an Akrapovic, but is it worth $197? Hell yeah it is.

Here's what it looks like installed. It's the "round" can, which is the cheapest option (they also make an oval and one of those multi-sided jobbies with a carbon endcap).

IC33d3e.jpg


And here's a video comparing the stock exhaust note to the Dominator. You can't use the video to compare volume as the iPhone normalizes sound levels, but the Dominator is significantly louder at idle. It's not too bad holding steady throttle though.



So it turns out the db-killer is a nifty little weapon that you can shoot out the exhaust at the person following you. In my case, at my wife who was on her F650CS. Sadly, I missed.

Also sadly, her reaction to "huh, something expensive looking just came flying off of JAS' bike " was not "I should stop and get it". So, I had to order a replacement from Poland.

Good news: replacement was only $28.

Bad news: shipping was only $28.

More good news: I ordered it Tuesday last week and it is scheduled for delivery tomorrow. From Poland. I can't even get stuff from California in six days.

Anyway, the whole point of this pointless post is this: if you get one of these mufflers, loctite the crap out of the db-killer. Or make sure you don't like the people following you. Either way will work.
 
It's funny how some bikes are just cursed and my wife's CS definitely is one. Ever since we woke up the day after buying it in 2003 to find a puddle of oil under it in the garage, the CS has been a never-ending stream of problems.

So without further ado, I give you "CS Problem #8720: The Fuel Leak."

It is now spitting gas everywhere when you turn it on. As near as I can tell, it's coming from this doohicky that sits between the fuel pump and the engine. My wild-ass guess is that it's a pressure regulator?*

IMG_9310.jpg


Specifically, I think it's leaking from this connection rat cheer:

IMG_9309.jpg


So what sayeth you all about the best way to proceed? Replace the FI hose clamps? Buy new hoses and install them? Replace the doohicky? Bring it to the dealer and let someone less incompetent than me look at it? It's leaking bad enough that it's not safe to turn on, let alone ride.

* After googling the part number printed on the housing, The Internet says the doohicky is a combination fuel filter / pressure regulator
 
It's funny how some bikes are just cursed and my wife's CS definitely is one. Ever since we woke up the day after buying it in 2003 to find a puddle of oil under it in the garage, the CS has been a never-ending stream of problems.

So without further ado, I give you "CS Problem #8720: The Fuel Leak."

It is now spitting gas everywhere when you turn it on. As near as I can tell, it's coming from this doohicky that sits between the fuel pump and the engine. My wild-ass guess is that it's a pressure regulator?*

IMG_9310.jpg


Specifically, I think it's leaking from this connection rat cheer:

IMG_9309.jpg


So what sayeth you all about the best way to proceed? Replace the FI hose clamps? Buy new hoses and install them? Replace the doohicky? Bring it to the dealer and let someone less incompetent than me look at it? It's leaking bad enough that it's not safe to turn on, let alone ride.

* After googling the part number printed on the housing, The Internet says the doohicky is a combination fuel filter / pressure regulator
Start simple and just cut the clamp off and put a regular FI clamp on it
 
You called it. Took the old clamp off (that was fun! fun like self-performed dentistry!) and put one of these thingys on and, knock-on-wood, no leaks!

IMG_9336.jpg
Its been a while since I owned my 2007 F650gs. I put an extra inline fuel filter before the original filter regulator. Better to change a $5.00 filter than the expensive BMW combination filter reg. I cant find the info right now but will keep looking. I sold my 650 at 115,000km with the original filter /reg still installed and maybe changed the inline a couple times. Edit I racked my brain and remembered I put a small FI car filter between the out put of the tank fuel pump and the expensive BMW filter regulator, I was looking for some photos but could not find them. Any way it saves having to buy a $172.00Canadian bmw part during routine maintenance, the manual suggests changing it at 24,000km
 
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