My Recently Acquired, 2005 Honda XR650L

[SpudRider]

Today I took my recently acquired, Honda XR650L on one of my favorite rides to Idaho's Blackfoot Reservoir. Here are some photographs of my "brand used" Honda, in its natural environment.











The bike runs great, and I am happy I bought it. However, I will shortly begin modifying the Honda to better suit my riding needs. The stock fuel tank is a meager 2.8 gallons, so I have decided to install a 4.7-gallon, Clarke fuel tank.

http://www.clarkemfg.com/cart/index....products_id=73



Which color should I choose: red, or black? :?:

Spud

[MICRider]

Sweeeet!! Ty for posting the pics Spud, the XR is pure awesomeness! Definitely go for the black tank, break up the red a bit and give you much much more range over the stocker. Looks great and I`m sure you will get tons of good service from it. Grats again!

Cheers,
Stew

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by MICRider

Sweeeet!! Ty for posting the pics Spud, the XR is pure awesomeness! Definitely go for the black tank, break up the red a bit and give you much much more range over the stocker. Looks great and I`m sure you will get tons of good service from it. Grats again!

Cheers,
Stew

You're welcome, Stew. Thank you for the kind words, and thank you for your input!

The bike's cooling fins, a.k.a. "elephant ears," will disappear with the old tank. I am pretty sure I will also replace the front fender with a supermoto fender, of undecided color. In addition, I am considering changing the color of the headlight cowl, or even substituting an entirely different headlight, such as the Trail Tech X2.

http://trailtech.net/x2.html

Therefore, I am interested in gathering input from our forum members regarding the final color scheme of the bike after all these modifications. I am definitely not married to "Honda Red."

Spud

[MICRider]

Black one looks kind of cool... Though it might be a little too much black

[FastDoc]

Awesome Spud!

I bet it's a rush having that kind of power! As wonderful as the Zong is, I'ts a rush to roost.

[FastDoc]

It will look much better without the ears!

Nuts.

I'd talked myself outta the DR and not you have to do this!

[FastDoc]

What year is that beauty, Spud?

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by FastDoc

Awesome Spud!

I bet it's a rush having that kind of power! As wonderful as the Zong is, I'ts a rush to roost.

Thank you, Doc. Yes, I enjoy the extra power, and the safety it provides while riding among numerous, aggressive drivers. However, I also enjoy the lightness, agility, low seat height, and low operating costs of my Zong! I think the two bikes will nicely complement each other. My XR650L is from model year 2005; I bought it with 7,800 miles on the odometer.

Which color fuel tank do you think will look best: red, or black?

Spud

[TurboT]

Nice Spud!

I am partial the red fuel tank, to keep it looking like a Honda.

That shot of the long 'road' with the little up and downs on it just looks like a hoot. I kind of long to go WOT on my YZ there. :(

Thanks for sharing of course.

[beardo]

On mine, I had a 4 gallon IMS tank, Corbin seat, hybrid R and L exhaust, jetted to suit. Great torque!!! First bike I ever did a 12 o'clock on (didnt mean to) and will top out about 100 mph. Also get pretty darn good gas milage. The bike was too much for me off road around here (western pa) but looks like the perfect environment out your way!!!

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by TurboT

Nice Spud!

I am partial the red fuel tank, to keep it looking like a Honda.

That shot of the long 'road' with the little up and downs on it just looks like a hoot. I kind of long to go WOT on my YZ there. :(

Thanks for sharing of course.

Thank you for your kind words, and your input, Turbo.

After my experience with my Zong, I have learned to enjoy personalizing my motorcycles. Therefore, I don't mind deviating from the Honda Red color theme, but Honda doesn’t make the job easy. The white plastic panels complicate adding a black fuel tank, since I don't want to produce a "zebra.” I also don’t want a completely black motorcycle. A white fuel tank might appear nice at first, but the white fuel tanks tend to discolor with age. :(

Besides a larger fuel tank, I also need to add a luggage rack, and a skid plate to this motorcycle. As I ponder my options, here are a few more photographs of the bike in its current configuration, before I start modifying it.





[IMG]





Spud

[SpudRider]

Originally Posted by beardo

On mine, I had a 4 gallon IMS tank, Corbin seat, hybrid R and L exhaust, jetted to suit. Great torque!!! First bike I ever did a 12 o'clock on (didnt mean to) and will top out about 100 mph. Also get pretty darn good gas milage. The bike was too much for me off road around here (western pa) but looks like the perfect environment out your way!!!

Indeed, this bike has a lot of torque, and it requires judicious application of the throttle! I agree, the XR650L is well suited to cover the miles in the wide open spaces of Idaho, but it really needs a 4.7-gallon fuel tank to do it safely. I got about 55 mpg on this trip, which is quite acceptable, but the fuel pumps are few, and far between, in the rural areas of Idaho. Do you have a preference regarding the color of the fuel tank?

Spud

[Cal25]

If the red stays RED, I like that better than black. The side panels dont need to stay white however, so you can really go any flavour you enjoy.

Quite envious of the the new steed, Spud.

[Cal25]

Looks like a rear rack is in order. Any plans for another trunk?

[katoranger]

I vote red.