France is very large user of scooter of all kind, second after Italy, I read many BMW posts on different scooter site, some post are horror stories of all kind of problems with the BMW product, these machine just not up to reputation of BMW and have many many more problem than Burgie ever have.

Here one I just read and use on line translator, translation good enough to understand general comment, such comment are very often on French site for mechanical and electrical peoblem:

I made error to believe in it! My C650 GT totals a little more than 3000 km. Balance sheet: Oil leak motor (pomp has oil changed), oil leak of transmission, very worrying vibration from 140 km / h, Controls pressure of tyres absolutely wrong and to finish, does not start any more for 15 days. The dealer does can not find breakdown. According to BMW, it is the tree in dope who must be changed. They go well see so that's right. Escapes have being repaired, control pressure still do not work and this vibrates always dreadfully. I informed the dealer that as long as everything is not perfect, not need to return it to me. I fear that I never see it again snif. The worst in all this is the pitiful service of BMW France. ANY answer of their separate part that they took well notes. Each of my calls to the centre Relation Customers BMW they answer me that mister Marlikowski (who manages my file) cannot take my call. BMW refuses therefore any debate allowing to find a resolution. Then, BMW Assistance dispatch a breakdown truck, but leaves me on place at the side of the road.
At the end of one hour of negotiation, they send me a taxi, but ' inform me ' that with this, not trouble to ask for a vehicle of replacement. My dealer is nice and lends me when he can another C600. I left my Tmax which had a single breakdown, taken care immediately and without any debate by Yamaha (guaranteed had expired for 2 years). And today I fight against BMW which answers 'absentee ' for a paid vehicle 13.000 € and that crosses the summer on the bridge of the dealer while me, I am on foot. If I can give you the single advice, especially do not buy scooter BMW. I am not a rare case and BMW FRANCE makes fun of it completely that you are discontented, offer you no resolution, no vehicle of loan and no monitoring of your file.
A scooter been very badly born, dangled on the market without being tested followed by a service after sale nonexistent (it is not the error of the dealer). This scooter is fantastic, but between serious technical problems and catch in nonexistent load, I have impression to have bought Lada of the seventies. Today, C600 Sport which lent me yesterday my dealer does not start any more either. Road Assistance, breakdown and 40 km of bus to go to work.

 

I was not impressed when my buddy's 650 top box came off while riding it, very soon after he bought it. He found an internal memo instructing the BMW dealers NOT to replace it until they had a chance to redesign and manufacture replacements. It took a couple months before he got one.

I mean a simple top box! Jees how poorly did BMW design this thing? He loves it though. So to each his own.

 

Isn't the C650's engine actually made by Kymco?

 

I always thought/heard the tmax was supposed to be the performance king but maybe not.

http://majestyusa.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=7382

 

I think the bikes in that video were a tad modified. I saw a NOS bottle on the Burgman. Perhaps not a standard option for most riders.

The B650 is the fastest 0-60 and I think in the quarter mile, mostly due to the transmission. Flat out fastest top speed, not sure. That takes the Burgman's tricky tranny out of the equation.

But my BMW 650GT riding friend and I were riding spiritedly out near Palm Spring a couple months ago and we were going past the century mark. I kept up, just barely, had we gone much longer I think the Beemer would have had a slight advantage.

But I'm a bit bigger than my friend and his bike much newer, so not an equal race exactly.

 

I read all these bad story on the BMW scoot on line and can just not understand why anyone would purchase one these, there is no quality in these so call BMW scoot, I can purchase BMW badge or sticker on line to put on Burgie but refuse to destroy the best maxi-scout in the world by put on such item on my Burgie.

Even if faster, it not much use if it spend so much time in shop, you purchase a machine to ride not to talk to dealer because always something wrong with bike or it too often in shop.

 

The BMW might be able to trade a bit of acceleration for a bit more top end with some variator or final-drive gearing mods (or vice versa). But it'll risk the warranty on an $11,000 motorbike to do it...)

@Liamjs: How much luggage did each bike have installed?

At top speed, the key factor is aerodynamic drag. A 10% increase in power gets you a 5% increase in top speed, but a 10% reduction in drag gets you a 10% increase in top speed. Liam's comparison was using the classic body and stock non-adjustable windscreen; the 2013+ models might have a slightly lower coefficient of drag due to the narrower aft section and the ability to drop the windscreen to present a lower profile. And, of course, the top and side cases might make more difference than any of this.

Bottom line? The top speed difference (if any) isn't large enough to brag about, and the 0-60 and roll-on acceleration advantage goes to the Burgman. Tweaking the BMW to match the Burgman in those categories will make it slower at the top end.

Unless you need the bragging rights (and, I suppose, the "MY bike is a BMW and yours isn't" bragging rights might well suffice), speed isn't the deciding issue here.

 

Bottom line? The top speed difference (if any) isn't large enough to brag about, and the 0-60 and roll-on acceleration advantage goes to the Burgman. Tweaking the BMW to match the Burgman in those categories will make it slower at the top end.

+1. After my forays into top speed land, it is an almost completely useless stat. No one is going ride a scooter, on public roads, that fast for very long. It's fine for anecdotal purposes, I'm asked "How fast does that 'thing' go?" all the time. It's nice to say "triple digits", "century mark" or whatever. But usefulness? Anything over 90 is overkill, IMHO.

0-60 and roll-on acceleration performance is infinitely more useful and practical. And the Burg wins hands down on that one.

 

Burg 650 is faster to 60 mph than the BMW. Top end is within 1-2 mph of each other.

My point is that the BMW of scooters isn't any faster than the Suzuki. This doesn't bother Suzuki owners but it may bother BMW buyers who see their scooter as more of a motor bike in scooter clothing.

 

Sorry to be a pedant folks, but "fastest" refers to the highest top speed, whilst "quickest" refers to the highest rate of acceleration.

Having ridden the Aprilia Mana, I suspect the Aprilia SRV850 will be the overall performance king - both fastest and quickest. However, given it seems not be available in the North American market, and having ridden all the other contenders, I would suggest the Suzuki would be fastest, with the Yamaha and Suzuki both equal quickest.

 

Recent test showed the burgman 650 is quicker by a hair than the Yamaha Tmax 500 from 0-60. That said, the new TMax 530 is likely quicker by a hair than the '14 Burg 650.

But, neither the Aprilla SRV850 or Yamaha Tmax 530 are sold in the USA. This leaves the Burg. 650 as the quickest scooter sold in the USA.

 

Agree about "quick." My old 650 K4 was "quick" enough on the freeway yesterday, thanks to the CVT's "passing gear," to get me far away from the dumba** SUV-driving yuppie b***h who insisted on inspecting her transverse colon while behind the wheel.

 

After answering several bystanders' question of top speed with "nearly 160 kph /100mph" only to have them exclaim "well, then it's not a motorcycle" I now tell them it's a "45 kph/30 mph moped.

 

Depends on if your going downhill or uphill.