VOL. 54 ISSUE 48 DECEMBER 5, 2017 P63
Visiting
An
Old
Friend
I
n its day, the Honda XR650L
was the bike to have. Off-roaders
loved it for its above-average sus-
pension, versatility, license plate
and its torquey, forgiving and low-
compression engine that was more
reliable than an anvil. Okay, so
the 650L was a little (okay, a lot)
on the heavy side and ridiculously
tall, but if you wanted the freedom
to go almost anywhere and have
the confidence that, wherever you
did go, it you would get you home
safely, those downfalls were easily
overlooked. It was just a great bike
for so many reasons. Funny, when
you think about, it still is, and that's
why it is still around.
Since the XR650L's introduc-
tion in 1992 as a 1993 model it's
virtually unchanged. That, right
there, goes to show you just how
good a motorcycle it was—and still
is (but in a different kind of way).
The original XR650L was basically
a street-legal version of the off-
There is a reason why the
Honda XR650L has been around
all these years
BY KIT PALMER
PHOTOGRAPHY BY KIT PALMER
