BMW G650 X-challenge

It looks like an overweight enduro bike, skinny though it may be. And it IS a little on the heavy side for such things.
So what is it? Is it a tourer? Not on your life, but it CAN tour.



Sales figures of the X-challenge in South Africa have been less than galactic. I guess we antipodeans just didn’t know what to make of the bike.
But most of those who were sufficiently intrigued to buy one sing muted praises. Only a few of us owners are completely satisfied with the bike because, let’s face it, it is not one bike for all men.

It has a terribly small 10liter fuel tank, delivering 260km in laboratory conditions but realistically only about 200km in real life conditions. In Africa where distances between fuel stops can be vast, this can be a problem. Australian owners can probably forget about ever attempting the Outback on an X.


The Air suspension is a contentious issue. Some love it, most hate it. Chiefly amongst the drawbacks is the tendency to leak air. Park your bike up for two weeks and you will likely discover that your suspension mysteriously softened.
The damping and compression is also not consistent. Warm and cold air behave differently and you will notice the difference between heading out in the morning and playing during the afternoon.
And to add insult to injury, the shock is incorrectly fitted by the factory. The roost deflector rubs against the rubber shock ‘bag’, eventually causing it to explosively decompress, not good.
On a positive note; the suspension is rather good at absorbing bumps and thumps. With the suspension set up correctly you can make some amazing jumps that would kill other Dual Sport bikes in the class.

The seat is not butt friendly. This I know because my ass blisters tell me so. The German designers must not have intended for it to be used at all, because it sucks. There are Motocross bikes with better seats. My record distance in the saddle (at the time of writing) was about 600km, spread over ten hours. Although I didn’t die, my posterior wouldn’t speak to me for days (no big loss, it has limited verbal skills anyway).

But allow me some positives before I run the bike down too much.

The construction is SOLID. I wish all bikes could be made like this. The materials used are above par.
No signs of rust even after leaving the bike mud caked for weeks. The plastics are thick, well moulded and strong. Panels line up perfectly and decals are tasteful but a little too understated.
It really is a well made machine.

Speaking of well made machines; that engine is a darling. It lacks the KTM 640’s brutal power but it is still great. It was inherited from the F650GS but it suffers none of that bike’s drawbacks yet boasts all of its graces.
This incarnation feels much, much more lively. It is smoother, spins up faster, makes more horses and can power more toasters. And yet it doesn’t compromise on endurance, being a very dependable power plant.

The handling was quite scary at first. After around 130km/h the front wheel started to go all weird. It would shimmy and wobble and I would wet my pants little by little. Fearing a tank slapper I would either tap down or lean back and relax. Either would do the trick. Sometimes pushing against the bar would also work but the fact remains that the bike was unstable at speed, made much worse if the road was bad or the wind howling.
Eventually by pure chance I got the suspension set up perfectly. There is a sweet spot in the adjustments, dependant on the rider, where the bike just starts to work perfectly.
Now I frequently push the bike up to 150km/h and the wobbling has not plagued me again.


Another improvement over the F650GS is the lighthouse bulb installed as a headlight. Brilliant...


The instruments are Spartan but modern. I would have liked a rev counter but BMW decided that I should ride the bike by ear. That would have been fine if they installed a muffler that would actually allow sound through.
Pressing the ‘mode’ button brings up the following information: Odometer, Trip 1, Trip 2, Time, Battery charge and Distance elapsed since low fuel warning.
The assortment of pilot lights encircling the digital screen gives the rest of the idiot info.
There are reports of instrument cluster failures. It is true. My own clocks are being replaced under warranty as we speak. The ‘high beam’ pilot light winks on and off after each trip through the car wash.
Other owners have complaints of weird digital displays and condensation behind the glass.

My ABS sensor broke (my fault) early on so I am unable to comment on the efficiency of the system. The cost of repair is not horrendous but I can’t be bothered to do so. So far I have not missed the ABS at all. Why just the other day I performed an emergency stop on tar. The front shocks compressed hard but the calliper did not lock up. The single front disc didn’t provide enough stop so I had to step on the rear brake as well. That one locked up quite quickly and the wheel dragged and fishtailed a bit but released immediately when I eased off the pedal. No danger, no fuss.
...and I made the stop, which is always a relief!

But now we come to the fun part. Bling. Farkles. Accessories. Call them what you will.
I will explain why I installed the various items as I go along.

Hyde Developments frame, swingarm and engine protectors.
Little or no explanation is needed. I wish to keep my bike looking good. Despite my claims that “This is the Bike that I’m going to keep forever”, history has shown that I rarely keep a bike for more than a year or two. I’d like to preserve the bike for the next owner. Not only for pride’s sake but also financial reasons.

The OEM aluminium bash plate is still there but now covered by this tough plastic protector. The prone sump plug is also spared injury by the double thick engine protector.

BMW hand protectors
These OEM parts look nice and I got them at cost so why not. There are no doubt better hand guards out there but these fit 100% and suit the bike’s look.

Kappa wind shield (Kappa 245A Universal Screen)

Amazingly enough, this little piece of polycarbonate has an enormous benefit. It is angled just right to deflect the wind over my head. There is no cavitation behind the screen so none of those insane head shakes (did anyone else see the movie Jacob’s Ladder?).
Even after long and hard rides my shoulders and neck feels completely relaxed.
Before you ask; Yes, I did experiment to see if the screen caused the front wheel wobbles. No, removing it had no effect. The cause could only be attributed to suspension setup.

Tool tube

I like to play far away from home. In the event that I break something I need to be self sufficient. BMW-on-call promised to come get me if I get stuck but I prefer to sort out my own problems.
The tube contains cable ties, Pratley Steel epoxy, various spanners, two short tyre levers, a shifting spanner, a leatherman, a few sockets and ratchet wrench, all of this wrapped in a cloth.
It is amazing what you can stuff in there.
The tube itself is made from an aluminium slip on exhaust for a car. One of those pimp-mobile Fast-and-Furious jobs.
Two plastic ferrules cap it off and bolts with wing nuts and split washers secure it.





Hidey-hole

I made this little trap door to house either one standard front wheel tube or two pairs of tie down straps.
It works brilliantly as longs as that bolt stays in. If that door opens and pokes into my wheel there may be trouble...



Handlebar risers

Being an ABS equipped model, the lines limit the height to which you can lift the bars. After much tinkering and adjusting I found that 24mm is just about the safe maximum. I would have liked an extra 10mm but Cest la vie.

Extra power outlet
The bike already has a Hella type socket below the seat next to the Air shock. But as you well know 12v appliances are rarely made to fit those sockets. An adapted was one answer but I decided to add this large diameter (cigarette lighter type) socket as well. Now I can power my cell phone or GPS straight off the bike battery.

Tübliss Core & slime in the rear

More information can be obtained from their website. Suffice it for me to say that I prefer tubeless tyres to tubed.
Neutech does not make a core for my size rear wheel yet, so I am forced to use slime in the 6mm heavy duty tube.
No punctures so far, touch wood.

Scorch Designs exhaust

That enormous WWII torpedo had to go. Fitted instead is this slim and light pipe made by my good friends at Scorch Designs.
It’s louder as can be expected but it is still not too loud. At idle it does not upset the neighbours not the gate keeper at the Game Reserve, but when I open up the tap...oh dear lord what a sound.
I’m nursing a semi just thinking about it.

Mascot

My baby girl donated her tiny puppy. I will return it to her when I sell my bike. Whether I will wash the mud of it is still being considered. Hopefully some of the dirt will rub of on her and she will grow up to love bikes just like her old man.

Other items

I fitted a large tyre lever to the frame. The holes were already there so I thought; why not?
I have a carrier rack but the darn thing keeps on breaking. The back end of the bike is rather vibey so the bolts keep coming out. When I glue them down they sheer off. Either I start working on an alternative design or I start taking it easy on whoopsies when I have luggage on the back.

The rear tyre needs to be replaced. I have a little problem with traction and will probably invest in a more aggressive pattern soon.
Pillion foot pegs- I have ‘em. Can’t use ‘em though because the rear part of the seat is not made for humans and certainly not the female variety.
I plan to fit two-finger levers. They will replace the standard gear and clutch levers and give the bike and better feel. Who uses four digits to pull a lever anyway!?

Final thoughts:
Yes I love this bike. No it’s not perfect. But with all my modifications it is pretty close. All I need is an Air-Hawk seat and I’m good to go the distance.
Once I have sorted out a better luggage system for both my saddlebags and duffel, I will have a killer DS bike.
Fuel capacity is less of a problem than you think. On all my trips, however remote, I have not suffered the long walk to the pumps.
When the route takes me into really remote parts I will just tie down a 10liter plastic jerry can or one of those 8liter collapsible fuel bags.

I wish this bike sold more units and didn’t sit in the shadows like it does. It deserves more fans.
I intend to enter an Enduro race one of these days. It will be fun to ride to the venue, sign up, race, complete and ride home. All on the same bike! Awesome!