noob touring

[tackle]

hi all,following the recent demise of my marriage & impending house sale,thought i might drop out of the rat race for a year or two & hit the road........thinking of starting off in the usa as i have family there and ending up god knows where.
currently i have a '97 cbr600fv which obviously is totally unsuitable,kind of drawn to the at xrv750,test drove one many years ago and loved it,but bought a us import '89 xr600 in the end(which is in about 100 bits in my garage if anybody is looking for a project),anyway,few questions as follows:

1. is it worth me looking for a late as poss xrv750 in the uk,and shipping it to the usa(very expensive i imagine) or waiting 'til i get there & seeing whats about.

2. any issues on fuel qualities,insurance & any document issues i might fall foul of taking a uk registered bike over.

3. any other advice would be gratefully recieved,have checked out the other threads but not much relating to the usa.

thanks............mark

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Welcome Tackle. Your trip sounds interesting - hope you send/bring back lots of photos - but sorry to hear the reason for the trip.

There's quite a bit of information in the Wiki http://www.xrv.org.uk/wiki/index.php/Travel though not much specifically about the USA. The Horizons Unlimited (Hubb) site probably has some information.

If you buy a bike over there you'll have to register and insure it, and that will be tricky as a non-resident. You might have to ask a relative to register/insure it in their name with you as a named driver. Renting might be cheaper!!!

No known problems with fuel. I think they know a bit about how to make it, and use it, over there.

[GOG 007]

Hi Mark Sorry to hear your news, but the trip sounds great, if you take a bike from the UK to US check this link out http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/trade/bas...orting_car.xml

you are looking for form EPA 3520 and HS 7, and 'Know before you Go' hope all goes well Mark

[1gear1brake]

Hi tackle, and welcome to the site. Sorry to hear about your woes, I hope things get better for you.

The XRV750 is a great bike for touring on (I expect that you're not surprised to hear that on this forum ). It's pretty simple to maintain and a well kept bike will last for 100k miles and beyond.

You'll get lots of advice here but I'll start with the shipping question. There's a UK company called James Cargo (jamescargobikes.com) which transports bikes around the world. Try them for a quote first and get an idea of what you're looking at.

Best of luck.

[Dee Duble Yuh]

I've heard that shipping by sea can take months. The general advice is to send it by air, and use (cheaper) sea transport for return to UK.

[Steve T]

If your hoping to find an @ in the States forget it - they were never imported into the little old US of A.
A couple of yanks have them, but not many.
Even the mighty Transalp was only imported Stateside until 1989/90, so finding one of them to tour on will be easier. The only down side there is the machines age.
Good hunting and enjoy yer freedom.

[tackle]

thanks guys,im very gratefull for all your replies,didn't know where to start,now thinking find the bike over here,and sort out all docs on this side of the pond,hiring in the usa prob no good for me as once done the rounds there thinking of doing canada & then on to sunnier shores.

[maxstu]

Hi Tackle,

If you've got family in USA then use their address for insurance. Very simple. Then head off to local registration office for your new plate. That's a killer. I had to queue for three hours. None of this take a ticket and sit down lark. Stay in line or miss your chance. Probably better now.

Buy over there and buy a bike with spares back up. I did this many years ago and covered 15000 miles on a Honda XL600. Totally unsuitable bike for journeying but could always find parts and someone to fix it. Even in the remotest areas.

Get family to sell steed on your behalf at end of journey. Do not rent. You'll have a sheet of restrictions the length of your chain. Don't go here, don't go there. Service schedules. Limited mileage blah blah blah!

Personally I would pick a shafty for the job. dare I say BMW . See I said it!
Use eBay USA to judge the cost of buying whatever make & model fits your needs.

Below is a list of BMW dealers throughout good ol USA. Just to show you theres gonna be help nearby...wherever you decide to travel

http://www.bmwmotorcyclesus.com/deal...dealerlist.pdf

Wish I could come along too

[maxstu]

One more thing!

1989 XR600 in bits in garage. Hmmm! Do I need another winter project? Single or twin carb version? Rear disc or drum?
Got a price in mind ?

Go on ring me! In in Kent. Got a van and some cash in the bedside drawer.

Regards
Stuart 07961 423324

[LEOPARD]

Have'nt got much time to write but what I can tell you is the USA/Canada and Alaska love the Africa Twin and are exchanging large amounts of Dollars for good ones.
Take your own bike and one that is well kitted out for the trip.
If you want to call me over the weekend as to how I know this feel free.

Dave. 07968169038

PS. I just happen to have the bike you want for sale.