Considering a Burgman

Hi All,

Sad to say I dropped my swing due to the lady in front of me stopping short and I locked up the front tire and took a dive. I am fine but my bike slid into her back bumper impacting on the windshield and dash. Bike is being totaled by insurance so now I am looking for a new ride. I had great times and really enjoyed the swing but I am wondering about trying something new like the Burgman. Please dont call me a traitor but would appreciate anyones honest input or knowledge. I love being on two wheels and will not go for a motorcycle even though my co workers and friends say they are more manly. LOL. I live in South Florida and I use it for commuting and pretty much everything.

Thanks.

The new Burgy 650's ('13 and '14) are really nice rides. They have been re-engineered to answer most complaints from owners of older models. They have much more modern engineering than the Silverwing, which results in a smoother transmission and more power. The downside would be more expensive repairs when you reach very high mileage. They have lots of really nice features, like electrically adjustable windscreen, power folding side mirrors, heated seats with separate controls for the passenger, heated grips, and a standard 12V accessory plug.

On Craig's list Theres a 12 with 2k miles for 6k.I can't remember what town but was south Florida .I heard there great if it doesn't have any trany problems.

Glad your ok n moving on!

I found a 2011 Burgman w/ 12k miles for 6k. Any known issues?

We had a 2007 400 and gained a good bit of knowledge from the folks on the Burgmanusa site.
http://burgmanusa.com

If you are still looking or comparing prices this may help.
http://www.scooterfinds.com

Sorry to hear about your SWing and glad you are ok. Don't worry you aren't a traitor either. Many of us rode other bikes as well. I went from the SWing to the CTX700 and like it so best of luck to you with any bike you get. On the www.burgmanusa.com site they did talk for a long time about replacing the 'stopper bolt' with every other oil change. It is only a $5.00 part so it isn't much. They say that might have been 1 reason some of the CVT's have failed. But I would feel very comfortable buying a 2011 B650. Hope you stick around and if you get the B650 please give us a comparison. I hear they are smooth but just a bit more effort is needed to push them around.

#1 buy only new----If I remember right my last new Burgman 400 was $6500 or so plus tax. leftover.

#2 only ABS

#3 I have had both new SilverWings (2) AND Burgman 400 (2)

#4 NEW--allows you to get to know bike and not be correcting somebody else's screw ups.


Differences: scooter, scooter handling, Burgmman has more little features, lighter than SilverWing

Burgman 650--heavier....new I am sure no transmission problems-----I feel people who complain most have bought used....and expect Suzuki to fix transmission problems free on old machine. Ain't the way it works.

Trying various machines is good idea=FUN. I have purchased over 75 new bikes/scooters since 1955. Would like to buy Burgman 650....or another 400?? or another Vespa?

Just returned from 4300 mile trip to CA on SilverWing----Burgman 400 maybe a little more comfortable for me?

I rode both a 400 and 650 Burgman and both ran well, handled well and were memorable. Im at a point where I too say ABS only.

I'm glad you weren't hurt. Safety gear does work. Here in Tucson the new news release says the local police will no longer give 5mph over to write a speeding ticket, Actually they would give 10mph unless the speeder was completely lacking in good manners on the side of the road. Traffic is dense anymore and the limit is 50mph. When traffic stops it is often a cluster. I don't need a cage parked on top of me. 2 (or 3) second rule works.

Cheers every one, stay safe.

Currently have both in the family stable, 07 Swing and a 07 650 ex. two of the three riders prefer the burgie, better ride, better manners ie, the rpm needed to engage the cvt is lower. both get north of 50 mpg, both are simple to maintain. however, the Swing has the advantage of the belt change vs what is needed in the burgie. Love both rides, everything being equal, I'd pick up another Bergman 650, standard or Executive! either one has great support from their forum members!

Hi All,
been a while since I posted. I did make the switch and picked up the 11' with 12k miles. It rode great until the internal clutch went at 45k miles and $2200 to repair it. Got $1000 for it as a trade and now ride a Concourse 1400. Big boy bike but heavy as hell but has ABS which is a must but I am considering going back to a scoot as I mainly only use it for my commute

Had a Burgman 400 loved it but struggled braking as we are always two up. Bought a Silverwing 600 owned for almost 5 years but never took to it. Now own a Burgman 650 and just love it. I dont find it any more heavier at all. Definately try out a Burgman.

Don't plan on the Burgman lasting past 50k miles. I heard that in the newer models they did something with the hill braking or deceleration which was supposed to help with the wear and tear on the clutch system. I liked mine alot but if the clutch goes you are screwed.

Burgman 650--in my book, bought new with warranty, probably would last the 50,000 miles I usually ride a bike, until I trade.

I think most complaints are from people who bought them used and complain when they go bad with no warranty.....and you have to pay.

Had 2 new Burgman 400's----liked them. Second one drive line blew up at 20,000 miles--Suzuki paid.

Problem in dead US scooter market, buy one and take a giant hit on depreciation!

I had a Burgman 650 for awhile. It was an interesting scooter though pretty massive seeming. Big in the rump so to speak. I thought the plastic was flimsy compared to Honda or BMW. The deceleration thing was a bit unpleasant, if you shut down the throttle quickly it feels like the brakes came on... hard. I thought the transmission system was unnecessarily complex. The CVT is operated with an electric motor with nylon gears operating the CVT pulley instead of simple fly weights. It provided a "manual" shift function mainly to have something to play with since the CVT system did well enough on it's own. My reason for selling my Siverwing for the Burgman was for it's greater carrying capacity. With me and my wife on the SW we were somewhat over the stated maximum weight.

With my BMW I got everything the Burgman had plus more, better performance in the curves and straights, features like electric windshield, heated seats and grips, single sided swing arm, excellent brakes with ABS. I'll admit the BMW comes at a goodly price but my 2013 has performed excellently and gives me the and weather protection as good as my Goldwings did.

bigbird wrote:

The new Burgy 650's ('13 and '14) are really nice rides. They have been re-engineered to answer most complaints from owners of older models. They have much more modern engineering than the Silverwing, which results in a smoother transmission and more power. The downside would be more expensive repairs when you reach very high mileage. They have lots of really nice features, like electrically adjustable windscreen, power folding side mirrors, heated seats with separate controls for the passenger, heated grips, and a standard 12V accessory plug.

Somehow when it was originally posted I missed reading this nonsense from ex-member bigbird. Most of you may remember him, he knew everything about Silver Wings (apart from riding any distance on them). A failed forum starter, and an even shorter lived Moderator who's greatest achievement was banning me.

Now I owned an ’08 650 Burgman Executive for a couple of years and all the nice features he mentioned were standard on my Burgman even back then. The electric adjustable screen, power folding side mirrors, heated seats for rider and passenger (and yes they had separate controls but it was only the rider that could switch them on and off) and heated grips.

As for him saying the newer Burgmans have been re-engineered to answer complaints from owners of older models. One major complaint was that the older beast was far too heavy and needed a major slimming down. It's no surprise that current models still weigh about the same.

One thing for certain there's no "perfect" motor scooter or motorcycle. Also we all have our likes and dislikes. If I hadn't been treated poorly by our local Honda dealer and if Honda hadn't ceased imports of the Silverwing I definitely would still have one now. They are a great combination of handling ease, sufficient power and good handling in my opinion. Especially if one was lucky enough to have an ABS model.

exavid wrote:

One thing for certain there's no "perfect" motor scooter or motorcycle. Also we all have our likes and dislikes. If I hadn't been treated poorly by our local Honda dealer and if Honda hadn't ceased imports of the Silverwing I definitely would still have one now. They are a great combination of handling ease, sufficient power and good handling in my opinion. Especially if one was lucky enough to have an ABS model.

Well stated.