XT660R or DR650SE?

[WesternPacific]

Hi everyone! I am about to get into some DS riding with maybe a little camping etc thrown in for good measure.

About me. I am 40, 185cm/85kg, in reasonable shape and have owned 10 or 12 bikes in my lifetime, ranging from sports to motox, although I am not a great dirt rider. I live in a relatively (by WA standards. oh and thats Western Australia, not Washington for the septics out there) hilly area with access to dirt tracks only a few kays away and being WA, running for thousands of kays if you wanted to follow them.

I have this idea that I might try doing my 500km commute to work every three weeks (I usually fly) on this bike over a mix of highway and dirt roads, which can get a bit sloppy in winter. But mostly I want some fun for my R&R week and something that will let me taste ADV riding to see if it grabs me.

So what I have found for sale is a decent 08 low kays XT660r or I could get a similarly decent 2011 DR at around the same price of about 6k (no farkles or anything, just stock). Or a new DR is also an option.

I rode both today and the XT is snatchy and surgy on a neutral throttle (pretty annoying but I believe there is a O2 sensor fix 0r something similar) but otherwise pretty good. The seating position is nice and comfy and there is good power and the bike looks good.

The DR is ok too, bit small and feels cheaper but is nice to ride if not a bit down on power. The DR looks pretty lame too but that is pretty low on my priorities.

Anyway PRICES BEING EQUAL what is the best bike for what I want to do? Is it best to go tried and tested with the DR or go with the newer tech and bargain priced XT and hope that the FI can be sorted with the aforementioned fix?

Whatdoyareckon?

I have also posted this question at advrider but I think this is the more appropriate place

[PieterStrydom]

Its prob to late for you Mate, sorry, but here go's:

If you buy the DR, you will always be happy. Its gonna do a great job, every time, all the time. On dirt, its probably better, being lighter than the XT. Its not an oil painting, but its neat and spartan and solid.

But... Now that you know the power a 660 makes, you may miss it. Not on dirt. Not inside the speed limit! But once you packed your adventure gear plus your 85 kg's frame on a bike, and you take the route to Broome or the Kimberly's... Its then that you will realise, cruising at 120 km/ h is something the XT can do better. Because it has more power than the DR. Vibrates less than the KTM, is more fuel efficient than the KLR, is sexier than the BMW, and is the only bike in this class for which a 26 litre tank can be fitted without it looking like an afterthought.

If you buy an early (pre-2009) XT, you are going to want to set aside some funding to fix the FI.

[Qqqqqqqqqqqq]

The DR is an underrated bike , they are tough and reliable .