New addition to my profile signature: 2016 BMW 650 GT

I am taking a train across Florida today to pick up a 2016 BMW 650 GT tomorrow morning. I will spend my birthday rolling home over 302 miles of US-1, my favorite road. She's a beauty, white with less than 1,000 miles. I've wanted this bike for a long time.

I tried Ol' Lardy and love the big, smooth ride, but it's a beast to push around and put on the center stand. I tried three Wings and love the reliability and nimbleness, but they're reliably buzzy. Maybe this time, like the Three Bears, the porridge will be jussssst right. I'm happy I have the chance to find out.

If I sell my Silver Wing I'll post it here. I'm a little pressed for space as far as keeping two bikes.

Nice looking ride good luck on the new adventure.

Yea, good luck. Had a c600 sport. Happy Birthday!!! Paul

As BMW owner since 1958----plan to spend lots of money if anything goes wrong. I test rode one of them and found wind/air management better than SilverWing, performance/riding just fine, engine Kymco, rear wheel easy to get off.

Good luck with the new ride. Should be a good scoot.

Interesting, I've already posted I went out on long test route on a brand new 2018 C650 GT this time last year at a BMW Motorrad Demonstrator Day up here in Yorkshire.

My findings were the complete opposite of Mr Grinsel, I found the BMW's electric screen pretty useless whatever setting I tried it on. Additionally in the cold, wet, and drizzly conditions of that day, wind and weather protection were lacking too. I didn't like the not too visible indicator repeater light either. 

I'd have liked to have done a night ride to see how good the BMW's lights were, and had a rummage round under the seat to check out the storage area as it doesn't have the rubbish drop down Flex Case of the C650 Sport and both the newer C400 models, but that wasn’t possible.

Riding home in the same weather conditions really brought home how much better all round the Silver Wing was, although with both the C650 GT and the Yamaha XMax 300 crossed off the list it made my decision so much easier to go for the new Honda Forza 300 a few weeks later.

I'm quite surprised that the OP actually wants a C650 GT after mentioning he never rides the super slab/motorway/autobahn type of roads where the C650 GT would excel on if you sorted that screen out.

It's not really a shorts and flip flops type of scooter, but hey I've just returned from a weeks holiday in the small country of Montenegro, next door to Croatia on the Adriatic coast. Despite the low wages there, somehow the most popular bike there seems to be the latest BMW GS and GS Adventure bikes. Fitted of course with the big alloy panniers and topped up all the usual RTW junk to complete the look. While the weather was hot and sunny most of the time, it can seriously rain there too. Rider seem to be split 50/50 between the shorts, flip flops, and I can't be bothered to fasten the helmet strap guys, and the ATGATT touring types.

Mr. Grinsel comment=stock SilverWing with its crappy windshield does not offerl the wind/weather protection as good as the BMW stock.

SilverWing with Givi adjustable shield offers good protection/comfort/adjustability....about as good as you can get on maxiscooter.

I've found every the OE windshield of every maxi scooter I've owned to be barely adequate at best. I've replaced every one with a Sprint, Biondi, Givi, Secdem etc at the earliest opportunity. . I wasn't interested in the BMW C650 GT enough to buy one, if I had then that BMW screen would have been changed ASAP.

With the Forza I have now being so new I had to wait for aftermarket screens to go from development into production. While I was waiting for Puig to get their act together I bought and fitted their bar mounted hand guards. They were OK and not near as good as the Givi bodywork mounted hand guards I have installed now, they work perfectly with the Givi screen, and of course my Wunderlich wind spoiler.

Meldrew wrote:

It's not really a shorts and flip flops type of scooter,

Well shoot.. here I have been using the wrong “kind” of scooter to ride in shorts and flip flops!!!!  Being I’m new to scooters maybe you could help me with some more appropriate types of scooters for shorts and flip flops, and what advantage they would offer over the swing or the bmw.  
I often ride over 80mph, night and day, 2 up and single rider and find my swing to work very well….

I look forward to you sage advice on this kind of riding and the proper scooter for it……

[Admin edit]

Dan

Delray, Good luck with your new scoot. I've never seen one in person but it looks like a nice bike. I hope you have lots of fun and miles on it.

Shorts are appropriate for kick scooters. Flip flops are beach wear

Here in Hawaii, where flip-flops started,  we call them slippers. I have been wearing them since the early fifties. We wear them all the time and every where, even to church. I do use my Wolverine ankle high boots when riding. Keeps my feet dry in the rain.

I think you'll like the C650GT. I owned a '13 for a few years and just sold it to go back to a Silver Wing. Contrary to some others I found the electric windshield to work very well. That includes riding through a pretty heavy snow shower coming back from Crater Lake. The heated seat and grips are great too. My main reason for moving back down is that I was really 'over scootered'. With and artificial knee and increasing arthritis the lower seating position on the Silver Wing and it's lesser mass appealed to me. Now I can put both feet flat on the ground.

They made some nice improvements to the GT in the past couple of years, a better center stand lever which makes the big scoot much easier to get on the stand. They improved the exhaust system so that now it sounds much better, more like the Silver Wing. The Silver Wing is easier to handle, the GT is better in acceleration and has a stiffer frame that's noticeable in the twisties.

All in all both scooters are great machines, I wish I could have had both. Or be a few years younger.

DLK wrote:

Meldrew wrote:

It's not really a shorts and flip flops type of scooter,

Well shoot.. here I have been using the wrong “kind” of scooter to ride in shorts and flip flops!!!!  Being I’m new to scooters maybe you could help me with some more appropriate types of scooters for shorts and flip flops, and what advantage they would offer over the swing or the bmw.  
I often ride over 80mph, night and day, 2 up and single rider and find my swing to work very well….

I look forward to you sage advice on this kind of riding and the proper scooter for it……

Or was this just a dig at another member who chooses to do something you don’t approve of?

Dan

Hello mate, if you're wanting sage advice from me you're wasting your time, Your skin maybe be OK for shorts and flip flops but doesn't seem to be thick enough for forum comments.

[Admin edit]

Inappropriate comments are being deleted. Please play nice boys.

And here I am with my big stupid grin on my birthday, yesterday, right after I took ownership.

The bike is a 2016 BMW 650 GT with 825 miles. It's a version 2 with enhancements to the CVT and drive train for more torque and power at lower rpm's ... 647 cc's and 60 hp.

I bought it for $5,000 and rode it 311 miles home down the length of Florida on US-1.

The previous owner is a sweet, 66-year old grandma. She's a feisty one from the hollers of West Virginia. I asked her, "How fast have you gone on this?" She smiled, put her hands over her husband's ears and whispered, "Over 100 ... once."

My overall reaction to the bike in one word: Specf**kingtacular.

With my first BMW, an 1150R, I remember thinking, "The damn thing practically corners itself." I had the same sense with the 650 GT. Engineering and build quality are top notch. It's great to ride with modern technology ... live TPMS right on the dash ... ignition key opens the seat and gas lid ... LED lighting, including a courtesy LED in the trunk that lights for 30 seconds when you open the seat ... traction control ... heated seats and grips ... a bright light switch positioned next to where my index finger stays curled over the rear brake lever -- pull for "on," push to flick the brights. Also like the double rotors in the front; the brakes are amazing.

"I found the BMW's electric screen pretty useless whatever setting I tried it on."

Totally agree. At my first rest stop, I ordered a GIVI replacement screen from my phone. Even at the tallest position, the wind hit me smack in the face. It blew off my ball cap twice and I had to circle back to fetch it. The GIVI is a touch short of 4" taller. I already can tell that will be perfect, enough to send the wind over my head and still see over the screen.

"I'm quite surprised that the OP actually wants a C650 GT after mentioning he never rides the super slab/motorway/autobahn type of roads where the C650 GT would excel."

Half of that is shying away from high speed environments and the insane drivers in Florida. The other half is never feeling entirely solid on the bike, whether it was a Wing or my Burgman 650.

I felt rock-solid on the 650 GT, entirely confident about accelerating unto an on ramp (during non-crazy times). Alas,  wasn't dressed for the occasion, and Birkenstocks and shorts aside, every time I've ridden on an interstate I have had a quality helmet, proper shoes and some sort of protective clothing, usually a beloved black leather riding jacket.

"They made some nice improvements to the GT in the past couple of years, a better center stand lever which makes the big scoot much easier to get on the stand.

The 650 GT weighs 25 lbs. more than the Wing but it's WAY easier to put on the center stand. The first time I went to hoist the bike up, it flew backwards so fast I felt like I'd have to go chase it. What I don't like is you can't have the side stand down as a security blanket backup, because the side stand locks the bike in place. That created a little anxiety but I'll get used to it.

"They improved the exhaust system so that now it sounds much better, more like the Silver Wing."

It sounds growly and throaty, like a serious bike (it is, in fact, a serious bike). And it sounds like that both idling and accelerating. Not sure how it sounds more like the Wing. To my ear, they sound like big lawnmowers, but I have some tinnitus.

When I bought the BMW, I truly wasn't sure if I would keep it. I have room under a roof for one bike. Maybe the BMW  wouldn't have enough legroom (Corbin seats for this sucker are $900 because they're heated). Maybe it would be too tall. Maybe I'd hate the handling. At worst, I figured it was worth a seven-hour train ride and Uber to buy it and ride it home. Now I can keep it or sell it for 50% more than I paid.

But on the ride home, I drank the 650 GT Kool-Aid. Gallons of it. Bring on the expensive BMW repairs! Bring on the 24,000 service interval that's damn near as expensive as a belt break on a Burgman 650! Well, not really. I'll see how it goes and be wary of costs. I may eventually buy my fourth Silver Wing, but for now, I'm loving the 650 GT.

The Silver Wing is up for sale if anyone's interested. Three guys responded within a day so I don't think it will last long, but real money from a real buyer is the only thing that matters. Here's the ad ....

https://miami.craigslist.org/pbc/mcy/d/delray-beach-2012-honda-silver-wing-600/6985536927.html

UPDATE 10.2.19: Bike and seat are sold.

Glad they improved them. Enjoy! By the by, I bought a new 2019 Indian Scout "60'' with a.b.s. a week ago Monday, really a sweet bike, however, that is merely my opinion. Not to worry though, still have my 2013 & 1981 black Silverwings. Enjoy the day all! Paul

Delray wrote:

... snipped ... And here I am with my big stupid grin on my birthday, yesterday, right after I took ownership.

Yup ... you got that toothy, silly, ear-to-ear grin for sure. Couldn't beat that off of your face with a stick.

Happy Belated B-Day and Congrats on your new ride Mike!

You look well pleased with your new scoot.

Delray
Congratulations  on your new scooter!! Happy belated birthday, and may you live long enough to own every scooter you wish to.

Dan

Thanks for the good words, Gustav, Len, 'Mudge and Dan.

"and may you live long enough to own every scooter you wish to."

The 650 GT was the only one I really wanted. Although if BMW can shave some weight from the C Evolution electric scooter ....

I was just moving bikes around the patio to figure out a new parking arrangement and noticed the BMW is significantly easier to push around than the Wing. It continues to impress.

Hope you ride with proper boots/pants

Congratulations on your new set of wheels. Sure looks great. May you always be as happy with it as you are right now.

Mike

Be ready to have people tell you there's one head light out. With the stacked headlights on the SW no one notices only one is on when on low beam but  with the side by side arrangement on the GT people think one is out.

Enjoy the BMW, I did. But money is a bit tighter and most of my riding is local these days so the SW was my choice. It's almost cheating to call that bike a 'scooter' it handles like a motorcycle. Take a look at those two little sacrificial pegs down near the top of the center stand. Those are like curb feelers, they tell you when you're about at the limit for leaning in the curves. I replaced mine twice.
If and when you need a drive belt BMW want's $300 plus labor. You can get one from the same factory for $90 on line. Check out the BMW scooter forum.

BTW - The GT has miserable mirrors! And no practical way to extend them.

But don't abandon us here on the earliest and best maxi scooter forum!

Easyrider wrote:

Here in Hawaii, where flip-flops started,  we call them slippers.

Nice try but they started in Japan. The early ones were rectangular made from hard rubber, I remember wearing them on Okinawa in 1953. The local name for them was 'zori'. Often worn with tabis the two toed socks.

"Be ready to have people tell you there's one head light out. With the stacked headlights on the SW no one notices only one is on when on low beam but with the side by side arrangement on the GT people think one is out."

I drove in front of a large store window at night and went through all the lights to see what others are seeing. The brake lights look small (but they are LED). And I wasn't a fan of the headlights. It DOES look like one light is out in the side-by-side format. And when the bright is on, it's noticeably brighter, which looks peculiar next to the dimmer regular lamp. Not so easy to fool other cars and leave your brights on when you really need them in a pinch.

"It's almost cheating to call that bike a 'scooter' it handles like a motorcycle. Take a look at those two little sacrificial pegs down near the top of the center stand. Those are like curb feelers, they tell you when you're about at the limit for leaning in the curves. I replaced mine twice."

I'll be damned. I didn't notice those. No worries here about wearing them out. A lean like that is way too close to going down in my head.

"If and when you need a drive belt BMW wants $300 plus labor. You can get one from the same factory for $90 on line. Check out the BMW scooter forum."

Great tip, thanks. I saved a good belt-changing tutorial but I want the full service manual before I tackle that (every 12k vs. 16k for the Wing). Apparently service manuals are hard to come by and it's a pipe dream to think I'll ever have a printed copy in my hands (BMW wants you to go to a dealer). Manuals are available on DVD for PC only and I'm an Apple guy. Gonna have to buy a cheapie laptop PC if I want the manual (and hope it's not in German).

"The GT has miserable mirrors! And no practical way to extend them."

They're ugly as sin but I like the visibility.

Know what I really like? NO TABS. I removed the right front faring to charge the battery and it went back on flush, with three screws into three machined holes. Bingo bango boom. German engineering.

Congrats on the new Beemer.  They aren't like Hondas, and that can be good and bad.  I have an R12RT and I think the fit and finish and overall quality of the bike are great.  But they like to over engineer things and parts can be stupid expensive.  Glad you were able to sell the Swing so fast, mine hasnt gone anywhere, though I cant say Im that distressed over it as I still like riding it, especially on the commute to work.

I'm glad you like it. Myself, I prefer my Silverwing to the 2013 c600 sport I had. Was installing the factory luggage rack, was getting a bit frustrated, had to slow down and think like a German engineer. I got it! Paul

"Glad you were able to sell the Swing so fast, mine hasnt gone anywhere, though I cant say Im that distressed over it as I still like riding it, especially on the commute to work."

Sold the Wing in 4 days and had 14 guys contact me. The first one to show up couldn't buy it fast enough. Which tells me, a) I had a quality bike for sale, and b) my dumba** underpriced the thing by a lot.

I sold it (2012) for $2900 with 8800 miles. I could have asked $3700 and sold it for $3500. Ah well, we live, we learn. I liked that it sold quickly because I have zero room for two bikes (my first choice would have been to keep it, just for fun). I sold the Corbin seat to a member of this forum.

Then the buyer calls me tonight and says he prefers his 2011 Burgman 400 so he's going to turn around and sell the Silver Wing. Go figure.

"The heart has its reasons which reason knows nothing of." (Blaise Pascal)

The GT I had came with the Highline kit. That included the matching top box with it's liner bag and a few other bells and whistles. Much better overall to my thinking than the Sport model. The underseat space was half again larger than the SW. I wish I could have kept mine and added a SW to my garage as well. But if I had the money I'd still have a Goldwing 1800, a BMW K1100LT, A Cessna 180 and my Kettenburg 38 sloop back. Oh well, better to have once than never have.

One thing I'd warn against on the C650GT is don't put a Corbin seat on it. They did a good job on the Corbin I put on one of my past Silver Wings but the one they made for the GT just didn't fit all that well. The fit and attachment on the front of the seat that straddles the fuel filler didn't fit well at all. I mainly ordered it because it was a bit thinner which I wanted due to the original seat height.

The main problem was they did a bad job or making a fiberglass seat pan.

"The underseat space was half again larger than the SW."

I sense there is more cubic space in the BMW but it doesn't feel that way because of the cumbersome wheel well in the middle of the floor. With the Wing, I could lay a big, full bag of groceries in there easily.

"One thing I'd warn against on the C650GT is don't put a Corbin seat on it."

Luckily, the seat fits me well and I get full leg extension. The knee-buckling $893 cost from Corbin is also a good dissuader (+ tax + $65 shipping). Looks like Corbin just raised the price of a Silver Wing seat by almost $100.

I Installed a 12V coaxial socket on the plastic under the handlebars on my GT. I used it as a convenient connecting point for my batter tender. I'll be doing the same on my Silver Wing, installing a regular 12V cigarette type socket in the left cubby for phone charging as well as plugging in the battery tender in the off season. There's already a rubber plugged hole in the left cubby for a 12V outlet which make the job easier.

UPDATE on the white '16 BMW 650 GT ....

It's now someone else's white '16 BMW 650 GT.

I sold it 16 days after I bought it for 3 reasons:

1. I found a better buy on craigslist.

2. It was a bit rough around the edges with scratches and scrapes from the previous owner, a West Virginian mountain woman.

3. The "CHECK OIL" warning and scary looking yellow pyramid light with an exclamation point kept coming on. This drove me crazy. I checked the oil 100 times on the bike and it was always fine, right in the middle of MIN and MAX. So I knew the bike was fine mechanically. Apparently, my 2016 model is not the first to experience random CHECK OIL warnings.

I listed it on craigslist for $1500 more than I paid and delivered it in less than 24 hours. A gay couple from Wilton Manors in Fort Lauderdale said it was their dream bike.

Got a ride to the Gulf side of Florida to buy a 2017 650 GT in Black Storm Metallic with 2,000 miles and over a year of warranty left. The owner had said, "Not a hint of a scratch on it" and he was correct.

Plunked down $7,000 and rode it home 200 miles across Florida (wearing Schuberth helmet, shorts and Birkenstocks, to touch on another thread).

The bike is perfection. Some people fit a little Forza. This feels like I sat there and they designed it around me.

Might also pick up a Silver Wing as a fun second bike. All the good lessons learned from belt + oil + coolant + plug + pad changes on Silver Wings will help me keep the maintenance costs down on the BMW. I will be riding it for a long time.

Well, congratulations again!!! Birthday 2.0…The black one looks so much sexier…. Very good choice.
And you must be the luckiest guy I ever heard of with your instant buying and selling going so smooth!!!!

Dan

Thanks, Dan. I definitely got lucky. I wouldn't have bought the black one without sellling the white one first. The color is growing on me. I really liked the white -- I thought it made the bike look bigger somehow. The black has subtle metallic flecks in it, an effect I always loved.

My '08 Silverwing has the metallic black paint. Looks black inside but a bit grayish in the sun until you get close to it then it looks black with glittering metallic flecks. Wear a black leather jacket and a white helmet and cage drivers are a bit wary of you.

Delray, If you go to the BMW scooter forum you'll find helpful information for that scooter. The forum is nowhere near as active as this one but there's good information for your particular machine including a source of an identical CVT belt for two hundred dollars less than the one BMW sells.

You won't be able to find as much good information on the bike or service manuals or as many parts sources for the BMW, that was one of the reasons I went back to the Silver Wing. Which made the Silver Wing the superior bike to me. Both are great but the BMW is more like an Apple phone compared to the Silver Wing being an Android. Just has more options, costs less and parts are more available at lesser costs.

https://www.bmw-scooters.com/forum/forum.php

"If you go to the BMW scooter forum you'll find helpful information for that scooter."

Thanks. I signed up for the BMW scooter forum but unfortunately it's a ghost town. Maybe three posts a week. But you're right, there is great information documented -- I picked up on the Mitsuboshi belt already.

As for the service manual, I got one today on DVD but it's only readable on PC's and I'm an Apple guy. Maybe I can find a cheap old PC laptop on craigslist to play it.

I'm about to sell a house and am thinking some of the proceeds may go for a Silver Wing, for the exact reasons you mention. Service manual ... easy to maintain ... cheap and simple (and fun). I can use the BMW for longer trips (more house proceeds may go for a Corbin seat).

The way I look at it, the BMW was a great bike, excellent performance and handling. Maintenance not as easy as the SW and a bit harder to find parts for without going through a dealer. Plan to spend more bucks on it.

Silver Wing not quite the performance of the BMW but parts are easy to come by, service manuals on paper which are a heck of a lot better to refer to in a shop are available, even lower priced ones on eBay are usually plentiful. No need to go for a dealer for much of anything. Which is good since some dealers won't work on them due to their age.

I have owned multiple BMW motorcycles and loved them. The issue I have had in all electrical issues. Once you get a gremlin in the system its a problem. Form meets Function with a BMW.

I have owned several Honda's and for $$, parts $$ and overall ride/reliability I give it to the Honda. After having left wrist problems I'm on my second Silver Wing.

I have an 04 Silver Surfer Wing and love this bike, a barn find with 2K miles sitting for 10 years due to driver wrecking on the left side, So some plastic, new tires Michelin's and fuel sending unit. I only have $2,000. into it and lover every minute I ride it.

Good commuter and excellent bike for long trips. I do recommend the GIVI windshield.

One thing the BMW scooter is different in is that it has a CAN bus electrical system like modern cars. every thing that draws current is connected to that bus and a failure of anyone of them or a short in wiring sends an alarm signal to the scooter's central processor and shows an engine signal on the dash panel.

Adding any additional electrical parts causes a fault to show up to the CPU which shows up on the panel. I added a couple of air horns to my BMW 650 and it continually showed a fault that wouldn't stay cleared, every time you hit the horns the fault showed up on the panel. It was surprising to me as I added the horns and wired them to the relay that originally was installed on the bike. Apparently that upset the CAN BUS and I had a continuous fault. That little light on the panel is a major irritant after awhile.

Add to that problem the fact I had to spend about $300 for a suitable code reader to plug into the bike. Once you have that you can clear faults and make some adjustments but of course one doesn't have a decent manual to cover those actions.

I prefer to leave the CAN BUS system on my car but not on my bikes it just makes things too damn complicated for the simple electrical system of a motor scooter.

BMW makes some fine bikes, one of my favorites was the K1100LT. Four cylinder in line engine, fuel injection and wonderful handling. I sold mine when I had my knee replacement. Now that a couple of years have gone by and my artificial joint is finally fully healed and working I sure wish I hadn't sold it.

exavid wrote:

Easyrider wrote:

Here in Hawaii, where flip-flops started,  we call them slippers.

Nice try but they started in Japan. The early ones were rectangular made from hard rubber, I remember wearing them on Okinawa in 1953. The local name for them was 'zori'. Often worn with tabis the two toed socks.

Going further back there was the Geta, which are a form of traditional Japanese footwear that resemble clogs and flip-flops. They are a kind of sandal with an elevated wooden base held onto the foot with a fabric thong to keep the foot well above the ground. (From WIKI).

Delray wrote:

Thanks, Dan. I definitely got lucky. I wouldn't have bought the black one without sellling the white one first. The color is growing on me. I really liked the white -- I thought it made the bike look bigger somehow. The black has subtle metallic flecks in it, an effect I always loved.

Black vs White and the appearance of size, correct on the White appearing larger it's an eye / brain relationship there are eye tests that show folks will pick the White vehicle over the Black when asked to chose the larger one.