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Vstrom as a motor home grocery getter rig ?

8K views 43 replies 26 participants last post by  scritch 
#1 ·
Do any of you guys use a Vstrom as a go to rig for trips in the motor home ?

Seems to me they would make for a real good bike to have in this situation. :wink2:

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#44 ·
... a scooter or a small light weight 125cc bike would be more practical.
A buddy of mine has just bought a Sprinter camper rig and intends on taking his FJ-09 in the back, driving it up the ramp every time they want to go somewhere. I bet that plan changes really quickly. A 125cc would be much better, I think.
 
#5 ·
I've carried my DR350 on a hitch mounted carrier on back of my motorhome, I would never consider putting the heavy V Strom on it. I think my carrier has a limit of 550 lbs. I've considered trailering my V Strom to Florida behind the MoHo then riding the 'Strom back to NJ.

Here's the Motorhome, towing my Commander which is carrying the DR
 

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#6 ·
Might

I'd probably go smaller than a Burger, just for ease of loading and handling. My SH150 is my main errand runner in town, and between the top box and pet carrier, can handle a surprising volume of goods. Even has a bag hook for extra capacity. Quite a bit smaller, lighter, and easier to handle than a Burgman. It'll go 60 even with my big, tall, and heavy corpus, so pretty suited to city traffic. With the tall windshield, pretty good weather protection as well. Gets around 80MPG or better. If the goal is to have a bike to tour on once you reach your destination, then, yes, you'll want something bigger. But a mid-sized scooter is remarkably practical as a go-getter, and relatively cheap. Won't wake the neighbors when you go out for early morning donuts, either.
 
#21 ·
I'd probably go smaller than a Burger, just for ease of loading and handling. My SH150 is my main errand runner in town, and between the top box and pet carrier, can handle a surprising volume of goods. Even has a bag hook for extra capacity. Quite a bit smaller, lighter, and easier to handle than a Burgman. It'll go 60 even with my big, tall, and heavy corpus, so pretty suited to city traffic. With the tall windshield, pretty good weather protection as well. Gets around 80MPG or better. If the goal is to have a bike to tour on once you reach your destination, then, yes, you'll want something bigger. But a mid-sized scooter is remarkably practical as a go-getter, and relatively cheap. Won't wake the neighbors when you go out for early morning donuts, either.
+1

My tubby self and my wife can both ride her PCX 150 scooter. Not much suspension left with both of us on, but with a 30 liter top box and an even larger storage area under the seat, we can carry quite a bit. Top speed as indicated solo is about 65 mph and with both of us it drops to about 55mph. With the smaller wheels though, 45mph and under is really the sweet spot. Any faster, and the scoot starts to get a little squirrely.
 
#7 ·
Vstrom is a lil on the heavy side for hitch mount.

I would consider Yamaha XT250, WR250R, DR350.
 
#9 ·
A Strom could be put on a trailer behind a motorhome. I see lots of Harley baggers on trailers behind pickup trucks or in the back of the pickups when they go away for weekends. Maybe that's for a different reason? >:)

That said, I spend a LOT of time in Europe and Burgmans (and the others makers' versions) are everywhere - hugely popular as urban bikes.
 
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#11 ·
Seems to me they would make for a real good bike to have in this situation. :wink2:
Seems to me that's what you want, so.... :wink2:

But yeah, tongue weight would be a real issue if you are talking receiver carriers. If you are okay with dealing with a a trailer, no problem. I do have some experience with large scooters though, and can say that they are tough to beat for grocery work. Know why you never see them with panniers? Cause they don't need them! Between the under seat storage and a big generic top case I could easily tote two weeks worth of groceries home on my Majesty 400, or a large pizza under the seat. Great wind/weather protection too. It hated ridng off pavement, though. Dumped it a couple times on my dirt driveway after a little rain made the surface greasy. Strom doesn't care about a little skim of muddy clay as long as I keep it slow.
 
#17 ·
Nope, I'd have no issue towing my Wee this way...in fact, it makes way too much sense. Why trailer the bike when it can be the trailer!? I would, however, take issue with the $694 price tag. Wow. It is a nicely done unit but will have to wait until the market gets a copy or two and drives the price down.
 
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#18 · (Edited)
Wow, Almost $700 ? :confused: Man your right if some knock offs get a hold of this
and lessen the wallet impact it would be IMO a good shorter distance tow option.
Long distance - I would not be comfortable with it. At least with a trailer you have the
extra ilumination of the lights and turn signals.

But to have your bike facing backwards when towed like a knot on a tree limb and no lights
on it, When dark of night falls it could be an issue with vehicles stopping behind you.
Or not stopping behind you. And WHAM mangled mess and damaged moho.
 
#20 ·
Yes - Like man cave garage living. All things riding, wrenching and football. Or ( Insert ) your choice of TV sport...:smile2:
 
#27 ·
I knew there was a device on the market for bigger bikes to be loaded on the back of a motorhome. Thanks realshelby .

The only real downside I can see to this is the when your moho is a pusher (engine in the rear) the bike is in the way of
access to the engine compartment door. But still you could work around that. Might just be more of a PITA. :smile2:
 
#26 ·
I used to have a Piaggio BV250. 329 lbs dry. It was very reliable over about 10k miles. Quick enough to 40 mph and would hold 65 if needed. Definitely keep up with traffic in town. 16 inch wheels made it nicer handling than a Vespa. Same motor and drive. Great mileage. Lots of storage. I wish I still had it and think it would make excellent grocery gitter. Twist n go!!!
 
#28 ·
20 years ago I moved to Phoenix in the winter. I just took my truck. I bought a 1979 Yamaha RD 400 while I was there and ride it all winter. It was great until spring rolled around. 113* in April. I packed up my truck. No room for the bike. I made a tow hook that mounted to the bumper. The front wheel is clamped in it and handle bars tied down to it. Towed the bike back up north no issues. I see someone is selling them now. Pretty handy. I don’t know if I’d want to try reversing a motor home with one behind it though.
 
#29 ·
A couple comments:
We had a diesel pusher with a hitch mounted rack on the back for our DL 1000. Two problems. No access to the engine without removing the bike and the bike is over three times the weight of me and a lot younger:). It did fall off once in the driveway while loosening the tie downs. The rack also drags on steeper driveways and such. Doesn't need to be very steep to be a problem. Takes a long time to get it tied down, too. And it came loose once and banged up the back of the motorhome.
With the newer gas motorhome we have now, it scrapes more easily and is even harder to tie down, due to the shape of the back end of the motorhome. Also, it has a standard hitch which sags a little with the bike hanging on it. Hitches are rated for tongue weight, not torque weight.
The cruiser carriers use two or even three hitches installed on the motorhome or truck. They are expensive plus a very intensive installation ($$$). There are also some platform trailers that do not swivel at the hitch but have a swiveling wheel on the back of the "trailer". We've about decided to just get an old Jeep or other smaller vehicle to tow on long trips.
 
#30 ·
There is a reason I mentioned "safe" when I posted about the Cruiser lift. Not sure why you need access to the engine? I can stick my hand through the grill and pull out the dipstick to check engine oil. That is about all there is to do. Beyond that you can have the lift down or if that isn't enough take the bike off quickly.

The Cruiserlift install entails welding large C channel to the motorhome frame. There is NO other way to safely hold that much weight with no support under it. The load floor is maybe an inch off the ground when down. Ride or push on, put down kick stand to get all the straps in place. Straighten bike, put up kick stand and then cinch down straps. I use 6 good ratchet straps. I have hauled the V STroms, the BMW RT on it for longer trips. You MUST set it up right with the tension rods or they do move too much! My neighbor hauled a Gold Wing on the same cruiserlift as mine.

You can easily tow your toad with the bike on the lift. I do that a LOT. Much easier to load and unload than if using a trailer.
 
#31 · (Edited)
in response to post #30 -- That makes sense, In some situations for some people the carry the bike with you profile might not work anymore.
And when your safety is targeted trying to load or unload a rather heavy motorcycle it's wise to shift to a tow behind
4 wheeler.
 
#32 ·
The beauty of the cruiserlift is that you can forget the bike is back there. Need to back up? Put it in gear and have at it. Want to pull in a restaurant parking lot? Don't worry, nothing behind you to worry about when in sharp turns.

But the biggest reason the cruiserlift is the only way for me, is that it allows you to tow the Jeep as well as have the bike on the cruiserlift. I have a bike to ride, the Boss has the Jeep when I am away on a ride. There is no replacement for that convenience. If you are investing the money a diesel pusher requires, the cruiser lift is simply $4500 or so you figure in.

I have on occasion thought a nice aluminum trailer might be a good solution. Put a small car and the bike on it. But it costs more than the cruiserlift and the tow bar setups. The big drawback is storing it when on location.
 
#34 · (Edited)
I love it . Is that a trailer or the back of a motorhome ? You even have room left for the tv and generator, beer fridge ,
All the comforts of home and then some. Nice !
 
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