BSA 650
Real ownership data from 160 UK 650 motorcycles — mileage, MOT pass rates and the faults that actually come up, taken from DVSA test records rather than opinion.
Most common 650 problems
Ranked by how often each fault appears in this model's MOT history.
| Fault | Severity | Share of faults |
|---|---|---|
| Lights and indicators | major | 9.7% |
| Brakes | fail | 7.4% |
| Other | user entered | 4.8% |
| Tyres | dangerous | 3.7% |
| Steering and head bearings | fail | 2.5% |
| Fuel system | user entered | 1.6% |
| Electrical | fail | 1.6% |
| Controls and cables | prs | 1.6% |
Advisories (wear noted but not failed) are excluded above; the most common is suspension.
650 mileage and reliability by year
Use this to judge whether a specific bike is high or low mileage for its age.
| Year | Examples | Median mileage | Miles/year | First-time pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1973 | 7 | 10,871 mi | 518 | 93.33% |
| 1972 | 5 | 22,301 mi | 62 | 100% |
| 1970 | 8 | 8,110 mi | 461 | 84.38% |
| 1969 | 6 | 13,819 mi | 158 | 90.63% |
| 1968 | 5 | 9,454 mi | 277 | 86.49% |
| 1965 | 6 | 3,162 mi | 95 | 90.32% |
| 1962 | 6 | 2,324 mi | 152 | 96.67% |
| 1961 | 9 | 12,487 mi | 104 | 87.88% |
| 1960 | 18 | 14,836 mi | 208 | 95.9% |
| 1959 | 13 | 23,078 mi | 154 | 97.37% |
| 1958 | 9 | 7,820 mi | 66 | 90% |
650 questions, answered with data
What are the most common problems with the BSA 650?
Across 160 UK examples, the most frequently recorded MOT faults are lights and indicators (9.7% of all recorded faults), brakes (7.4% of all recorded faults), other (4.8% of all recorded faults).
What is average mileage for a BSA 650?
The median BSA 650 in the UK has covered 7,891 miles, and typically rides about 173 miles a year. Half of all examples fall between 1,761 and 26,315 miles.
Is the BSA 650 reliable?
91.75% of BSA 650 MOT tests are passed first time, with an average of 0.46 faults recorded per test. This is measured from DVSA MOT records, not owner opinion.
Based on DVSA MOT test records for 160 BSA 650 motorcycles registered in Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.