GS LC v Honda Cross Tourer

Brodie13

Active member
UKGSer Subscriber
Joined
Dec 2, 2014
Messages
181
Reaction score
58
Location
Surrey/Sussex border
Does anyone out there have experience of both please? I have only ridden the GS and love the way they feel, except the gear change, which could be better IMHO. Looks are very subjective of course, but I think they both look great. Pros and cons for both please?! :beerjug:
 
Make sure you try the DCT, not the manual, love mine, its my 3rd!
 
Blimey John, didn’t know you’d owned three of them! You must like them �� Can you expect a deal of any sort?
 
Did 29k on my Crosstourer before coming back to a GS
The Honda has a fantastic V4 engine and great build quality. The suspension is not the best they have ever put on a bike and tends to wind itself in knots if you are throwing it in to corners. It carries its weight a lot higher up than the GS, you notice it at slow speeds. The linked brakes were a pain at slow speed as the front was always on making the bike unstable.The gear ratios on the manual were not great either, it had a long first gear and if you tried to ride it in 3rd gear in town you could feel the backlash through the final drive as it tried to fuel properly. That was all the downsides IMO.

The positive was the finish on the bike and that it never missed a beat. It comes with a 3 year warranty not that you will probably have to visit the dealer other than for servicing. If you buy new take out the Honda service plan as it will save you a fortune. It was more comfy then my old 1200GS but not as good as my Triple Black. The Honda can keep up with a GS on the twisties but its a lot harder work and you feel the limitation of the suspension and the extra weight.

The Honda depreciates a lot more as well, I took a big hit on it compared to my last GS. The Crosstourer is a great bike and very under rated, if you take passengers then the DCT is fantastic, but the price of it pays for a lot of add ons
Best thing to do is take one a good run, it took me about 50 miles to start to really enjoy it.
 
Did 29k on my Crosstourer before coming back to a GS
The Honda has a fantastic V4 engine and great build quality. The suspension is not the best they have ever put on a bike and tends to wind itself in knots if you are throwing it in to corners. It carries its weight a lot higher up than the GS, you notice it at slow speeds. The linked brakes were a pain at slow speed as the front was always on making the bike unstable.The gear ratios on the manual were not great either, it had a long first gear and if you tried to ride it in 3rd gear in town you could feel the backlash through the final drive as it tried to fuel properly. That was all the downsides IMO.

The positive was the finish on the bike and that it never missed a beat. It comes with a 3 year warranty not that you will probably have to visit the dealer other than for servicing. If you buy new take out the Honda service plan as it will save you a fortune. It was more comfy then my old 1200GS but not as good as my Triple Black. The Honda can keep up with a GS on the twisties but its a lot harder work and you feel the limitation of the suspension and the extra weight.

The Honda depreciates a lot more as well, I took a big hit on it compared to my last GS. The Crosstourer is a great bike and very under rated, if you take passengers then the DCT is fantastic, but the price of it pays for a lot of add ons
Best thing to do is take one a good run, it took me about 50 miles to start to really enjoy it.

Will do, cheers :bounce1
 
Does anyone out there have experience of both please? I have only ridden the GS and love the way they feel, except the gear change, which could be better IMHO. Looks are very subjective of course, but I think they both look great. Pros and cons for both please?! :beerjug:

Which GS did you try as my 2018 Euro 4 model has a much better gearbox than the MY2016 I had before:beerjug:
 
Which GS did you try as my 2018 Euro 4 model has a much better gearbox than the MY2016 I had before:beerjug:

I have ridden models from 2013,2014 and 2016, but not a recent (post 2017?) version. It’s the cost of a brand new one that’s putting me off I think :nenau
 
I am now on my second Crosstourer after owning a couple of GS’s and a Yamaha S10.
First was a manual 2013 Highlander version, bought new, as it was the Highlander it came equipped with all the kit, panniers, top box, pannier and top box bags, crash bars, spot lights, tank pads and touring screen.
Bike proved ultra reliable and as to that V4, it’s an absolute peach, super smooth and just pulls and pulls. It had wonderful all day comfort for both rider and pillion and just chewed up the miles in a relaxed manner.
Suspension could be improved, best described as adequate, weight could be an issue when man handling but once on the move was un-noticeable, fuel consumption was around the 50 mark giving a 200 mile tank range.
There was a drive shaft re-call on older models as apparently a couple of very high mileage bikes (60,000+) had suffered shaft problems so Honda promptly replaced with an updated design and have had no issues since. There was also leaking issues with the older style stupidly designed zipped top box.
After 3 years of trouble free and thoroughly enjoyable ownership I have changed to a 2015 Highlander DCT version which has proved a complete revalation. The DCT box works seamlessly and just makes the whole riding experience a joy.
As previously mentioned, depreciation on new bikes can be a little harsh but there are some excellent second hand bargains out there and Honda do usually have great PCP deals on new bikes if that’s your thing.
I would highly recommend you try the DCT version on a lengthy test ride as I’m sure you’d be very impressed with the DCT box.
Try this website for any other info.

https://www.crosstourer.com/index.php?action=forum
 
Had a DCT for a couple of years, they grow on you and are excellent tourers

The engine is excellent, brakes are good but not in the GS league

Suspension can be set up to work pretty well but from the factory it’s not great, check out Veejay’s settings on the Crosstourer forum and work from there
https://www.crosstourer.com/index.php/topic,5053.msg50645.html#msg50645

The DCT is fantastic, better than a quickshifter, smooth for two up and great for steaming into bends coming down the box on the brakes like a loony

Having said all that I prefer my GS if only for the superb ESA and telelever set up, nothing else comes close
 
The DCT is fantastic, better than a quickshifter, smooth for two up and great for steaming into bends coming down the box on the brakes like a loony

Having said all that I prefer my GS if only for the superb ESA and telelever set up, nothing else comes close

Spot on , I really miss the telelever, it makes an average rider like me capable of maintaining a higher average speed cross country. Everything else about the CT, bar the excessive weight, is so much better than my last GS.......the completely seamless shifting of the DCT combined with that lovely V Four is just sublime. Pin it in sport mode and the acceleration is relentless. :thumb
 


Back
Top Bottom