Used vstrom 650 Gen1 Vs Gen 2 Vs Gen 3

2415 Views 19 Replies 10 Participants Last post by MixalisGR, 2 mo ago

MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · 2 mo ago (Edited)

Hey all . I will upgrade my 185cc bike to a 650 vstrom in couple of months and i would like your input on what its worth getting. I was thinking of getting a gen 2 2012 650 with low miles but they are getting more and more expensive here in Europe.

Prices for used stroms right no
Gen 1 (2008-2009)with abs and 40-60k kms at around 4200-4500 Euros.

Gen 2 5500-6500 Euros with 30-40k miles.

Gen 3 7500-9000 euros with 20-40k miles..

In the past when the prices were lower i would pick a decent mileage Gen 2.. however now i struggle to understand why a 10+ year old mid sized bike costs so much.. I feel like its a bad deal ..

I know the basic differences of the gens, and i know they aren't that big. But i would like to hear your thoughts especially if you ve ridden all gens. Whats the pros and cons of each?

Ps: gen 3 doesnt have a slipper clutch,does it?

Thanks ib advance

Edit : there are cheaper options for gen 1 and 2 but with more than 70.000+++ kms.

I lforgot to mention that I LOVE looks of gen 3 and ALSO the speedo. GEN 2 Is meh for me and gen 1 is good.

Would you get a gen 1 ,a gen 2 ,or a gen 3 based on those prices? What about mileage? Is the increase in price justified when going to newer gens?

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OCL

· #2 · 2 mo ago

Since the Euro currency is nearly on par with the US$, I can understand your concerns.

A new Gen 3 in the US, fully loaded as an XT with bags is around US$10k. A base model can be had for US$8.5k. So you can see how those Europe used prices are not a good value. If it were me, being based in the US though, faced with those used prices, I would try to get new bike and finance it at a good interest rate. That is the most sensible financial decision due to the inflated prices of used bikes.

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Solo

· #3 · 2 mo ago

70 K km is not bad for these engines, if cared for.

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Cal

· #4 · 2 mo ago

my 2012 now has 109,000km and runs excellent. I hear you on the stupid prices used motos are getting these days!! I paid 4500.00 canadian for mine with 37,000km back in 2016. I just saw a 2012 sell for $6500.00 with 17,000km crazy!
Do not be afraid of higher km bikes.

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dmfdmf

· #5 · 2 mo ago

OCL said:
That is the most sensible financial decision due to the inflated prices of used bikes.

Financing a toy is not a wise financial decision especially in the current economic disruptions cause by the covid panic and now the war.

OP should buy an older model if he can't afford the newer models. I'd recommend a Gen1B (2007-2011) with ABS and preferably a 2011 Wee (youngest of the bunch) with around 50K miles or less. If OP rides 5000 miles a year and the bike lasts for 100K miles it will be 10 years before he has to worry about replacement. These bikes run a long time and while 50K is a lot of miles for other bikes it isn't as crucial for the 'Stroms. My 2007 Wee has 95K miles, burns a little oil but other than that still solid and runs great.

If the OP wants to go with a Gen2 (2012-2016) I'd skip the 2012 or early 2013 model years if possible as there were some problems in early production. The ABS is suspect and tends to seize which is very expensive to fix (do a site search). The ABS part number changed sometime around 2013/2014 so I think Suzuki modified it to fix whatever was causing that issue. Regardless of the year, if you own a Gen2 Wee you should bleed the rear brakes annually to minimize this risk.

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MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · #6 · 2 mo ago

OCL said:
Since the Euro currency is nearly on par with the US$, I can understand your concerns.

A new Gen 3 in the US, fully loaded as an XT with bags is around US$10k. A base model can be had for US$8.5k. So you can see how those Europe used prices are not a good value. If it were me, being based in the US though, faced with those used prices, I would try to get new bike and finance it at a good interest rate. That is the most sensible financial decision due to the inflated prices of used bikes.

Yeah thats what a relative of mine suggested. Initially i was put off by the price of a used one,and i was looking for a different bike other than vstroms !

Reactions: 1

MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · #7 · 2 mo ago

Solo said:
70 K km is not bad for these engines, if cared for.

Hmm i know that vstroms engines can go so many kms before having problems but isnt it a bit off putting to pay so much money for such an old and used bike?

MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · #8 · 2 mo ago

Cal said:
my 2012 now has 109,000km and runs excellent. I hear you on the stupid prices used motos are getting these days!! I paid 4500.00 canadian for mine with 37,000km back in 2016. I just saw a 2012 sell for $6500.00 with 17,000km crazy!
Do not be afraid of higher km bikes.

Ohh so the prices are going up like crazy in Canada too i see.. I thought it was only a problem with vstroms in Greece,cause here its one of the most popular bikes ,if not the most popular.

Reactions: 1

theayn

· #9 · 2 mo ago

I traded my gen 1 650 for a gen 2 650 two years ago, I've yet to ride a gen 3 bike. For an extra 1,000 euros I'd go gen 2. As you say, there aren't any really big differences, but I found all those small differences added up to a bike I'm happier riding. My only complaint with the gen 2 bike is the lack of a switch to turn off the rear ABS on trails, and there are instructions on this board for adding one of those.

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OCL

· #10 · 2 mo ago

dmfdmf said:
Financing a toy is not a wise financial decision especially in the current economic disruptions cause by the covid panic and now the war.

You misunderstood what I mean. I guess I should clarify: If the choice is to buy or not to buy, the wisest is to not buy a toy. But if the choice MUST be which to buy, then my point stands. If a used Gen 3, which is what he wants anyway, is that close to the price of new, get the new.

OCL

· #11 · 2 mo ago

MixalisGR said:
Yeah thats what a relative of mine suggested. Initially i was put off by the price of a used one,and i was looking for a different bike other than vstroms !

Here in the US, the Yamaha Tenere 700 is the hottest thing. So the prices of those are over inflated both new and used. The VStroms are not so popular (because everyone here needs to get the latest craze in YouTube). The VStrom is too sensible and too perfect I guess.

So new VStrom prices are not being inflated as much and dealers are more willing to sell them at a fair price.

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Cal

· #12 · 2 mo ago

MixalisGR said:
Ohh so the prices are going up like crazy in Canada too i see.. I thought it was only a problem with vstroms in Greece,cause here its one of the most popular bikes ,if not the most popular.

So you are from Greece! Back in 2018 I rode my Suzuki Bandit 2006 for 3 months in the Balkans and rode in Greece for 2 weeks of that trip! Loved Greece!

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ImLostAgain

· #13 · 2 mo ago

If properly cared for the 650 Vstrom motor is strong and lasts a long time. I bought my 2012 650 Vstrom with 59,000 kms and it now has 80,000 kms and runs as well as ever. The prices are much higher now than they were when I bought mine in 2018 (like almost double) so understand your hesitancy. Financing is a PITA as rates are high enough that serious consideration is needed. What happens if circumstances change and you have a loan to deal with? What if there is enough change in circumstances and you need to sell? Always a serious consideration.

If I were looking now and saw these prices I would certainly be tempted to buy new over used for the price difference. I have been in a similar quandary as I wish to add another bike to the stable and want to try a KTM. That said, if a good used one looks to be well cared for it will likely be a good bike for a long time. I chose the Gen 2 as I liked the small differences. Is a Gen 3 worth the price difference? Good question and only you can answer that.

As for ABS, I bought the Easter Beaver kit to disable the ABS when I want to and it has worked flawlessly.

Good luck and enjoy your new ride when you get it!

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Hans471

· #14 · 2 mo ago

I rode a Gen 1 650 for may trouble free years. I skipped the Gen 2 and went to a Gen 3 when they came out in 2017. There is no comparison between a Gen 1 and a Gen 3, its like a different bike. Feels lighter, handles better, brakes seem better (but...maybe that was my imagination as the bike just felt so much better). Engine was much nicer, I think they changed the cam, that may be true for Gen 2 also. Also the transmission was "nicer", likely due to a change in ratios or something.
I don't have a list of the actual technical specs to compare but my five years of "seat of the pants" testing tells me Gen 3 is the way to go.

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PeteW

· #15 · 2 mo ago

Gen 1 I'd avoid, Gen 2 and up is better. (I owned a Gen 1 DL650, still have a Gen 2). No idea how much better Gen 3 is than Gen 2 but it won't have gone backwards.

Gen 1 had a few issues, the only advantage it had was the lights were better. But power, power delivery, handling, engine life were all better on Gen 2.

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PeteW

· #16 · 2 mo ago

Also. I never disabled the ABS, never needed to, never wished it wasn't there and I did some gnarly offroad riding.

UTBirdMan

· #17 · 2 mo ago (Edited)

As someone with two gen 1's in my garage, I can say that they can do pretty much anything you ask of them. Everything I have heard is there are incremental changes and improvements by generation, and that there really wasn't a bad generation. That being said, I would lean towards as new as possible. The only real advantage I see of an older bike is it could have some upgraded components that you might want. The '08 I purchased had full suspension work done, madstad bracket, center RAM mount, luggage, crash bars, bash plate, and many other items that made it worthwhile to me, if I were to get a stock 3rd gen, I would probably end up spending an additional $2k to get it where I wanted. However, a lot of people are happy with the stock bike.

Regarding miles/kms, both of these bikes have around 40,000 miles on them and run fine. The '06 burns a bit of oil and is slightly stronger than the '08, but I would not hesitate to take them to Alaska (again) this year if I could.

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Hans471

· #18 · 2 mo ago

UTBirdMan said:
As someone with two gen 1's in my garage, I can say that they can do pretty much anything you ask of them. Everything I have heard is there are incremental changes and improvements by generation, and that there really wasn't a bad generation. That being said, I would lean towards as new as possible.

For twelve wonderful years of ownership I felt my Gen 1 '05 Wee was just a great bike. Then in 2017 I got a Gen 3 and saw the light. I loved my Gen 1 but have never spent a day missing anything about it.

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MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · #19 · 2 mo ago

Cal said:
So you are from Greece! Back in 2018 I rode my Suzuki Bandit 2006 for 3 months in the Balkans and rode in Greece for 2 weeks of that trip! Loved Greece!

Yeah , it must have been a nice trip. I wish i could do this one day!

MixalisGR

Discussion Starter · #20 · 2 mo ago

Thanks people! I lean towards buying a lightly used gen 3 xt (2021+ for euro 5) for 9k(new is 10k) but with 1500+ worth of extras. Seems like the best deal imo.

Gonna try to try some bikes before buying,650xt,tiger 660 etc.. but kan
Gotta love that 650 xt !! Now time to decide what color i want lol. I heard that fuel economy,suspension and brakes are not that good,but at least you can fix 2 of those by adding ohlins and brembo later on.. After all its a bike to keep!

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