1997–2013 BMW F/G650 Singles | SMART MONEY - Motorcyclist
If you’re looking for a BMW for your bucket-list around-the-world ride, odds are you’ll start by checking out the company’s boxer-twin adventure-touring models. It was a joint venture between BMW and Aprilia, built by Aprilia in Italy with an Austrian Rotax engine. The company’s first single since the R27 in the 1960s, the carbureted F650 was also the first BMW with chain final drive. In 2000 the Funduro—along with its silly name—was replaced by the fuel-injected F650GS, which was now strictly a dual-sport, with a taller, more off-roady Dakar variant sporting a 21-inch front wheel instead of a 19-incher. The GS got a catalytic converter, an underseat gas tank (the faux tank housed the dry-sump engine’s oil tank, as well as the battery and the airbox) and a dual-plug cylinder head. BMW also brought assembly back to Germany but retained the Rotax engine. It wasn’t until 2009 that BMW revived the 650 single and renamed it the G650. Its engine was assembled from Rotax parts by Lorcin, in China. Source: www.motorcyclistonline.com
