I need help guys xr650l? xl600?

[eyeofth3b3hold3r]

Hey everyone, I have been reading a lot lately... and it scares me and confuses me on what to do!!! currently i have a 2001 xr400, i bought for 2000. I was trying to make it street legal in ga and I have given up, its not worth my time and i want a little more top speed. So i am on track and have arranged a trade with a guy who is asking two grand for a 1994 xr650l with 4 thousand miles and its in good shape. I have been reading about what a good bike the old xl600 is... how its about 41hp vs the xr650l 33hp or so? my question is, what do i need to be looking for? the suspension seems better on the xr and the brakes and maybe reliability and aftermarket selection,and also i have one available and its ready to hit the street. so should i be looking for an xl600 because of the engine or are there some faults i'm missing? thanks everyone and i absolutely love thumper talk!

[FORMA MOTO]

The XR650L is better in every respect to the XL600R. Buy the XRL.

[suzukisupermoto]

The XR650L is better in every respect to the XL600R. Buy the XRL.

More isn't always better, as in, weight and height. I had a 2008 XR650L and now have an 86 XL600R. I like the old XL600R better. Why? Many reasons. Less weight, lower seat height (much lower), more power stock for stock and my favorite reason (for those of us with crappy luck), a kicker. No need to rely on the battery.

Don't get me wrong, the XR650L is a great bike, but try both out. One may be better for you than the other.

[XR650L_Dave]

The XL has more power and is faster (where it's smooth), the 650L is a better dirt bike.

Dave

[akarob]

Yea, the 650L is good for a lot of dirt riding. Local short street rides are fun but gets old fast. It's not great for longer road rides.

I'm impressed by how well the bike goes through wheel high water and up rocky hillclimbs with no complaints. Torque monster.

Also, figure the rating is de-tuned. Uncork it and the 650L is a lot better. Still impressive stock though.

Here's a pic of mine from Sunday in it's element.

[exdirtbiker]

you can really mod the 650L into a monster....the XL600R is a little old for that.

and the XL frame will not like anything that looks like a jump. it will bend/break.

and a magic button is nice.

and the forks on a XL suck eggs.

and they are usually "used up" before they change hands.

But I loved mine......... my son is killing me for selling it.

[HeadTrauma]

What exactly do you want to do with the bike? If all you want is "a little more top speed," then the XL600 will do it. If you want a bike with better brakes and much better suspension, the 650L is a better choice.

Think of it this way: the 650L is kind of like your XR400, but with ~80lbs more weight, no kickstart, the same amount of power, and a pile more torque. The XL600 is lighter and more powerful than the 650L, but has archaic suspension a rear drum brake, and about 10 years more use on it than the 650L.

[kpatrick]

Yea, the 650L is good for a lot of dirt riding. Local short street rides are fun but gets old fast. It's not great for longer road rides.

I'm impressed by how well the bike goes through wheel high water and up rocky hillclimbs with no complaints. Torque monster.

Also, figure the rating is de-tuned. Uncork it and the 650L is a lot better. Still impressive stock though.

Here's a pic of mine from Sunday in it's element.

I took mine for a 2400 round trip to Alaska just a couple of months ago. I have access to 990 Adventures, ST1300's, Triumph Sprints ST's or Tigers, FJR's etc. and I took the old XR650L. There is just something simplistic in taking an air cooled 35 hp single on long adventure rides and having locals look at you and say "you came all the way up here on that?" Anyone can do it on the above mentioned bikes.

The strange thing is that it was a piece of cake with the 650L seat and 60-65mph cruising speeds. I really thought that it would be more of a challenge with being comfortable.

Your tank looks good with the stickers on it. How have they (stickers) held up?

[MetricThump]

Besides the 50cc difference. What does the XL engine have over the XRL?

[HeadTrauma]

Eight horsepower and dual carbs with better response than the 650L's CV. Also a kickstarter, much lighter flywheel, and lighter overall weight due to not having the e-start parts.

It's also a 55cc difference, to be exact.

[MetricThump]

Eight horsepower and dual carbs with better response than the 650L's CV. Also a kickstarter, much lighter flywheel, and lighter overall weight due to not having the e-start parts.

It's also a 55cc difference, to be exact.

So what is the major choke up in the XRL, is it the CV carb? almost 10hp difference is a lot. The lighter flywheel itself wouldn't really rob the engine of power a whole lot. Just applying some common sence, if the carb is the choke and the exhaust I am sure pretty much the same since Honda has been using it since dinosaurs roamed the earth, I should see about the same HP as the XL just with a carb swap, like using a 42mm Mikuni pumper. Now open up the air box, jet the bike to match a performance exhaust, alone that should push a XRL to well above lets say 47hp since a stock XL is supposed to be somewhere around 43hp. What about the cam? Just having a little trouble wrapping my head around how the numbers play out.

[HeadTrauma]

Well, the XL600 has a shorter stroke, longer conrod, more compression, more carburetor throat area, and more intake port area than the 650L. I haven't seen any flow numbers, but the twin carb heads(XL models in particular) are generally better for making power. I suspect the CDI has a more aggressive timing curve as well. The XL also wasn't jetted as lean or corked-up as badly. Differences in cam specs are negligible.

[lateapex31]

The kickstart only bikes use a CDI that runs off of a dedicated pair of coils on the stator and run on AC. The XR-L stator runs on DC from the battery.

[MetricThump]

Whether the coils input is ac or dc, the output is ac, If the R's cdi a hotter spark? If the L modifiyable to get a better curve?

[HeadTrauma]

He meant that the XL600's CDI uses high voltage AC input directly from dedicated windings on the stator. The 650L's CDI uses rectified and regulated DC from the charging system. None of the stock CDIs can be easily modified and AFAIK, no one is more powerful than another. They do, however, have different advance curves.

[MetricThump]

So is there anyone out there that really has the goods to make an L into all it can be? There has to be something. The bike has so much potential, and its been around forever.

[HeadTrauma]

How do you mean?

[MetricThump]

Does anyone really make great products to unleash the XR650L's full potential?

[HeadTrauma]

[valvesrule]

My L would tear the heart out of a stock XL600. There's plenty of stuff to make an L run very strong. The XLs run better stock because the big ports and carbs combined with the shorter stroke and more aggressive spark curve that short stroke allows make for a much faster accelerating motor than the L. The crank weight difference of the 2 motors is substantial, also slowing acceleration on the L. Personally I think the XL hp was a bit overrated. My 79 XL500 with Mugen cam, 37mm carb, Venolia 530cc piston and WB Supertrapp would blow the doors off every XL600 I ever ran into. I was pretty disappointed when I bought my 85 XL600 and found it would only pull around 90 mph compared to the XL530s 110+.