Hi All, I am new to the forum and considering purchasing a 2011 650 exec with about 10k miles. I was a silverwing owner until about a week ago when I dropped it due to the lady in front of me stopping short at a YELLOW light. Still frustrated. Well anyways, I wanted a Burgman from the get go and now considering purchasing one. I dont have a lot of money and it will be my sole transportation for my round trip commute to work which is about 60 miles round trip. All Highway. Please let me know about the pros and cons that I can expect please before I make this commitment which could sink me into financial ruin if it goes bad. I cant really afford a big expense for a repair. Thanks all and I hope I hear all good things like I expect.
Newbie question - 2011 650 Exec
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The Good - power, transmission, comfort, protection, storage, low maintenance, handling, touring capabilities.
The Bad - suspension, smaliish windscreen, weight, mirror position, seat.
The Ugly - premature cvt belt failure. You should be fine with a later model. Mostly occurs with 2003-4 models.
Most of the bad can be resolved with after market stuff, except weight.
The Bad - suspension, smaliish windscreen, weight, mirror position, seat.
The Ugly - premature cvt belt failure. You should be fine with a later model. Mostly occurs with 2003-4 models.
Most of the bad can be resolved with after market stuff, except weight.
You'll find the 650 a great step up from the SWing....I started on the SWing but moved to a Burgman 650 and it's a whole new world.
This is the review that got me into the maxi-scoots.
http://www.onewheeldrive.net/2006/10/04/scoot-touring-the-honda-silverwing-and-suzuki-burgman/
Pretty accurate including the bit in the twisties about "if this were a race there would be no losing the 650 Burgman" .....that from the VFR800 rider.
It is a bit heavier at slow speed but crazy nimble in the twists and does not track highway joints the way the SWing does ( worst part of the Honda for me ).
Also Honda expects frequent belt changes which are expensive unless you do your own work...that was a major reason I sold.
I have now some 75,000 km exceptionally trouble free riding on two Burgman 650s. My orginal 2005 and is still going strong. Deal on the 2009 Exec was just too good to turn down.
I'd stick with 2005 and up ...mine was just soooo smoooth. Took it all the way up The James Bay Road a 1,000 km north of Toronto and had a caribou running in the bush beside me. even at 140-150 kph on that very bumpy road it was solid ( if occasionally teeth jarring ).
On the slab it is just plain stable.
A slightly wider windscreen like the Clearview is a nice upgrade.
Best bike I've owned in 45 years of riding.
I sold my somewhat similar ST1100 in Australia as I liked the Burgman much better....the ST was a bit heavier and storage was the same and acceleration to 110 or so and few places the ST could stretch its legs.
Buddy's Burgman 650 and my now sold ST1100.
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Storage about the same.
ST was hotter and more difficult in the city.....slightly better wind control at high speeds ( touring screen on the ST is state of the art ).
Both far better than the SWing on the highway.
BUT ....if you are doing city only ....The Swing and Burgman 400 are fine and bit lighter.
This is the review that got me into the maxi-scoots.
http://www.onewheeldrive.net/2006/10/04/scoot-touring-the-honda-silverwing-and-suzuki-burgman/
Pretty accurate including the bit in the twisties about "if this were a race there would be no losing the 650 Burgman" .....that from the VFR800 rider.
It is a bit heavier at slow speed but crazy nimble in the twists and does not track highway joints the way the SWing does ( worst part of the Honda for me ).
Also Honda expects frequent belt changes which are expensive unless you do your own work...that was a major reason I sold.
I have now some 75,000 km exceptionally trouble free riding on two Burgman 650s. My orginal 2005 and is still going strong. Deal on the 2009 Exec was just too good to turn down.
I'd stick with 2005 and up ...mine was just soooo smoooth. Took it all the way up The James Bay Road a 1,000 km north of Toronto and had a caribou running in the bush beside me. even at 140-150 kph on that very bumpy road it was solid ( if occasionally teeth jarring ).
On the slab it is just plain stable.
A slightly wider windscreen like the Clearview is a nice upgrade.
Best bike I've owned in 45 years of riding.
I sold my somewhat similar ST1100 in Australia as I liked the Burgman much better....the ST was a bit heavier and storage was the same and acceleration to 110 or so and few places the ST could stretch its legs.
Buddy's Burgman 650 and my now sold ST1100.
Storage about the same.
ST was hotter and more difficult in the city.....slightly better wind control at high speeds ( touring screen on the ST is state of the art ).
Both far better than the SWing on the highway.
BUT ....if you are doing city only ....The Swing and Burgman 400 are fine and bit lighter.
Greatful for the input
I did purchase the 2011 this weekend and the one pet peeve that I have and it almost cost me today was the darn parking lights key setting. I almost was stranded at work today as I thought it drained the battery all the way down after a 9 hour day. I will have to remember to check that daily as I always lock the handlebars. My insurance does not jump motorcycle batteries so I almost had to have it towed. My Silverwing did have a problem with tracking the grooves on the highway but I also thought it accelerated much better when at higher speed. I could just twist the throttle and I was gone past a semi truck in a split second. I could go from 70 to 90 in a blink. When I tried that today the RPM's shot way up and it didnt jump quite like the other bike. I then tried it with the power button and it did move quicker but still not like the Silverwing. Overall, I am happy for now. I just hope that maintenance and repairs are easy to handle on my own. I did all the oil changes on the swing and basic other maintenance like the coolant change and the plugs. It looks like getting to the plug is a chore on this bike. I am about to get the repair manual unless someone can provide me with a link where it might be online???
I did purchase the 2011 this weekend and the one pet peeve that I have and it almost cost me today was the darn parking lights key setting. I almost was stranded at work today as I thought it drained the battery all the way down after a 9 hour day. I will have to remember to check that daily as I always lock the handlebars. My insurance does not jump motorcycle batteries so I almost had to have it towed. My Silverwing did have a problem with tracking the grooves on the highway but I also thought it accelerated much better when at higher speed. I could just twist the throttle and I was gone past a semi truck in a split second. I could go from 70 to 90 in a blink. When I tried that today the RPM's shot way up and it didnt jump quite like the other bike. I then tried it with the power button and it did move quicker but still not like the Silverwing. Overall, I am happy for now. I just hope that maintenance and repairs are easy to handle on my own. I did all the oil changes on the swing and basic other maintenance like the coolant change and the plugs. It looks like getting to the plug is a chore on this bike. I am about to get the repair manual unless someone can provide me with a link where it might be online???
You don't need a service manual if you go here. http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcX1QcSqYFqFIE2IbxKhAyA and https://sites.google.com/site/testburgmancenter02/
Awesome thanks. Just wondering if anyone can tell me if there is much difference technically between the 650 and the 650 exec? Would the repair manuals be the same? I know the exec has some other bells and whistles but for the most part I assume that everything is the same except the mirrors, adjustable windshield and the back rest am I correct?
The 650 weighs almost a 100 lb more than the Silverwing and you likely will learn to pre-load the throttle a bit as the ECVT sort of "reads your intentions". It will reduce RPMs dramatically if it can for highway.
The Power button is not all that effective above 60 mph. I suggest it's the difference in weight and how the ECVT works that gives you a different "response" for passing.
In some shootouts with my buddies Swing the 650 would best it but not by a whole lot - he also weighed less.
With the Power button on the 650 is exceptional in the 20-70 range - drive mode is effectively an economy mode and the ECVT will keep the revs down when it can.
I considered a serious step up from the SWing if only for highway stability and twisty performance.
While the suspension is stiff, that's an advantage in the twists and I found the stopping power much better than the SWing. A single brake on the SWing front I thought was inadequate and since it did not engine brake the way the 650 will ( tho I think the later 650s models it is less ) - I was far more dependent on the brakes than with the 650.
•••
AFAIK the differences are entirely feature set - power screen ( great ), power mirrors ( useful ) heated grips ( fantastic ) , heated seat ( dunno I have a Daylong ).
All the rest should be he same for the years they made both models.
The Power button is not all that effective above 60 mph. I suggest it's the difference in weight and how the ECVT works that gives you a different "response" for passing.
In some shootouts with my buddies Swing the 650 would best it but not by a whole lot - he also weighed less.
With the Power button on the 650 is exceptional in the 20-70 range - drive mode is effectively an economy mode and the ECVT will keep the revs down when it can.
I considered a serious step up from the SWing if only for highway stability and twisty performance.
While the suspension is stiff, that's an advantage in the twists and I found the stopping power much better than the SWing. A single brake on the SWing front I thought was inadequate and since it did not engine brake the way the 650 will ( tho I think the later 650s models it is less ) - I was far more dependent on the brakes than with the 650.
•••
AFAIK the differences are entirely feature set - power screen ( great ), power mirrors ( useful ) heated grips ( fantastic ) , heated seat ( dunno I have a Daylong ).
All the rest should be he same for the years they made both models.
I think that is the only differences.
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I was told (in 2009) that the Executive came with heated seat and grips and with ABS. I have heard since that the Exec is the only model sold in Canada and that it is not generally available in the US. The ABS feature has since becaome standard on all Burgmans, AFAIK.
There are subtle differences between models sold in different places. Canadian bikes are metric, and cannot be switched to miles. Annoying, that. British bikes are in miles but can be switched to kilometers. I don't know about American or Australian models.
There are also different engine setups to comply with different regulations here and there. These are all described in the shop manual. If you plan on doing your own work, the shop manual is indispensible, even with LeDude's excellent tutorials. (Thank you again, LeDude!)
All the noise about imminent CVT failure is just that — noise. It has happened to a few unfortunate owners who have made their stories known, but the bolts used for the last seven (?) years are stronger and do not wear to the same degree. The design has also been improved in newer model. I replaced the bolt in both my Burgmans at 25,000 miles as a matter of course, and there was very little wear on them, not even enough to justify replacing them. I'd already bought the bolts.
There are two known points of failure to beware of.
Firstly, the starter switch can get stuck with all the gunk inside. The symptom is that your headlights become erratic or fail. There are two sets of spring-loaded contacts in the switch, one to disengage the headlights and the other to engage the starter motor. The gunk prevents the headlight contacts at the back of the switch from returning all the way. The quick fix is to shoot it with WD-40, but the permanent solution is to dismantle the switch, clean it out, bend the rear contacts slightly and replace them, using a lighter dielectric grease.
The second point of failure, particularly for 2009 models, is the rectifier, also called the regulator. It's a cheap part, poorly manufactured, and forced the recall of the 2009 Burgman 400s. Some (if not all) of the 650s have the same crappy part, including mine. When it went, it took my stator with it. Ugly.
I recommend getting some kind of backrest. We have the 3-brothers one, but there are others. I find the additional lumbar support greatly increases the comfort of the ride. That's true of any bike, btw.
Anyway, enjoy your bike. The Burgman is truly an awesome machine in its own element, which is motoring down the highway. You will find out. Moreover, once you get used to the engine braking and feathering the throttle to control the transmission, you can rip through the twisties at an outstanding rate. The Burgman will amaze you more than once, I promise.
Ride safe
Scott Fraser
Clagary
Thanks all for the input. I got plenty of compliments on my Silverwing but even more now with the Burgman. I am getting a Bestem top box to add to the storage as I barely have room for my gear. I am going to look into a back rest for sure as it would be easier on the back. I just changed out the grips as the originals were pretty worn. I went with the black Iso grips. My son talked me into going with the Black ones instead of the chrome. I am not so sure now after they are installed, oh well. I am also going to look into some LED riding lights at some point, maybe as a birthday or Christmas gift to myself, lol.
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6,178 Posts
I thought the 2011 650 came only as a Exc.
Just installed the Bestem 929 Top Box tonight. I spent the $60 and bought the mounting plate from Bestem also. If you are a good machinist I am sure you could make one but for the money it made it a quick job. Took off the rear backrest, put in the three spacers, put the plate on top and screwed it down and voila that was it. It also came with four bolts and nuts to mount the top box plate to it. The whole install took about 20 minutes. I havent hooked up the lights yet. I bought the model with the LED lights as well. Looking for an easy way to connect them. Does anyone on this forum make a plug that just plugs into the back of the brake light connector? On the Silverwing forum there was a guy who would make connectors specific for your needs. All you had to do was connect the box wires to his plug, disconnect the plug to the tail light and plug it into his plug which would then connect to the tail light. Kind of like the old Christmas lights where the plug would have an open top where you could plug another strand right into it.
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