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Motorcycle Investor mag

Whining gears and hitting the dirt

Sunday shed wrap

July 06, 2025, by Guy 'Guido' Allen

Gear whine and reshaping the dirt end of the shed

What do a 1975 BMW R75/6 and a first-model Honda Gold Wing of the same year have in common? At first glance, you would think it's a mixed bag and, if anything, the Honda could be interpreted as an exercise in one-up-manship for the touring scene. It too has a 'flat' motor, but with four cylinders instead of two, liquid cooling, and about 80hp versus 50.

Just to rub salt into the commercial wound, the Honda was priced at Au$2470 (US$1600, GB£1200), compared to $2870 (US$1870, GB£1380) for the BMW. Of course BMW had the R90 series in play, and its pricing started at Au$3045 (US$1980, GB£1460). The differences may now seem petty, but they were significant at the time. Back then the average weekly wage in Australia was around Au$140 for men and (somewhat shamefully) Au$90 for women, before tax.

Anyway, this isn't about comparing the virtues of the two motorcycles. They co-exist in my shed and were on the riding menu for Sunday, which included my 2001 BMW R1150GS runabout which mostly does workhorse duties, partner Ms M's 2017 Suzuki SV650, my 1995 Triumph Daytona 1200, plus the R75 and the Wing.

While the latter pair are very, very, different to ride, they're fabulous company. I've already done a long spin on the Honda to celebrate its 50th anniversary and will do something similar later this year with the R75/6.

What intrigued me, when I rode them briefly back-to-back, is they both have a (by modern standards) robust gear whine as you bumble through the ratios at suburban speeds. It is loud enough to potentially drown out the engine sound at low revs – close your eyes, and you just might mistake one for the other. (Never say I fail to provide you with an abundance of worthless trivia...)

Speaking of which, we're in the throes of reshaping the dirt end of the shed.

At the moment there is just one dirt bike, or light adventure tourer, which is the lovely 2013 Suzuki DR650SE. I bought this on the spur of the moment at Gassit Motorcycles, my nearest and often-exercised workshop. Blame a sudden rush of blood to the wallet.

Here's the thing: the bike is great. It runs well and has lots of adventure touring gear on board including a giant 30lt Safari tank, tapered handlebars, Barkbusters, Lectron carburettor, the 'right' sump guard and rear rack – you get the idea. Oh, and a set of Avduro bags from the wonderful Mr Andy Strapz.

But then I worked out I'm not all that interested in hard-core adventure touring. A romantic concept but, really, give me a decent road map, a large and interesting motorcycle, plus a credit card and a toothbrush and I'm pretty happy. So the DR has this weekend found a new owner who wants to tackle Brisbane to Bourke via backroads, for which it will be perfect.

Nevertheless, a bit of easy off-road cruising appeals. We had a trail bike fleet when the kids lived at home, including an early Yamaha TT600 and XT250, a pretty nice Suzuki TS185ER and (for a little while) a swarm of Hodakas. They got used, rather fitfully, and were eventually seen off the premises.

Partner Ms M and I, along with some other folk, want to revisit the whole trail riding gig. The plot is simple: pick some quiet back roads and trails, drop in somewhere for lunch, then amble back to home base. If there were to be rules, they might include: 1. The first person to break down buys lunch; 2. No Medivac helicopters. If you're badly injured, we may end your suffering on the spot. Nevertheless we will mourn you and will have to spend a fortune on good-quality whiskey to dull the emotional pain.

Obviously, we need motorcycles. Given the criteria, we're looking for simplicity, reliability, something that's easy to handle and shove on to a trailer at the end of the day. To that end the DR650SE has funded two replacements, with change. They are a 1999 Yamaha XT225 (shown above in Serow form and now sold overseas as an XT250) and 2000 Honda SL230 (below).

What I love about them is they cost not much (Au$3k and under) with low miles and have near-as-dammit identical specs. Look for 20 horsepower – which is sod-all and will do the job. Weight is about 110kg dry. They have the same wheel sizes and relatively low-spec suspension. In essence, they're all about low-cost and low-stress fun.

Their fuel tanks carry about 10lt each, and I'm a little surprised I haven't yet ridden either during one of the many tours in Vietnam across the years – they would be perfect for the job.

We're evidently not alone in liking these simple machines – which are no longer on the local market thanks to the absence of ABS. The Swedish Army has just ordered 1000 XT250s, which are in fact a rebadged 225.

The plot is to dust off our 1979 Holden Kingswood (the family pet) and use it to grab the Yamaha in Mansfield, Victoria. Then, the week after, we're off to Sydney to shoot a couple of classics for Unique Cars magazine. We'll use that trip to pick up the Honda. Watch this space...

Meanwhile we have (what's the collective noun?) a kaleidoscope of projects to be attended to for various reasons: the 1975 Triumph T160, the 1985 Ducati MHR Mille, the 1952 Vincent Rapide and Doctor Gange the 1980 Suzuki GS1000G outfit.

Yamaha XT225/250 series specs

Honda SL230 specs

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