Comparing with an S1000XR

I owned a GS LC for 3 years and 24,000 miles and had the Wilbers ESA upgrade fitted by Revs. My current steed of awesomeness is a S1000XR Sport, this time with fully manual Wilbers suspension (I decided I didn't like ESA!).

The GS is an easy bike to ride with very stable and predictable handling (albeit a bit slow to turn in) and the advantage of lots of twin cylinder grunt coming out of slow corners. It carries weight very well and won't scare the crap out of you in wet slippy conditions.

The XR is a scalpel by comparison, with much quicker, precise turn in, higher corner speeds and loads of power on tap on corner exit (providing you ride it like an in line 4 should be ridden!). It's a very quick bike!

HOWEVER

We're all different, and we judge our bikes on how they feel to us when out on the road. I did most of my early riding on in-line fours and like riding them, other folk will much prefer the feel of a twin. The saying "it's 20% bike and 80% rider" applies to most of us mere riding mortals, so if you find a bike you're completely comfortable with then you'll naturally be smoother and quicker in any given situation.

The quickest bike for me down a slippery, twisty B-road with crap Tarmac would be my CCM 450 with supermoto wheels on! For everything else road based it would be the XR! :D
 
Are you really saying that the GS handles better and corners faster than XR ?

If you are then that is absolute tosh !

Having owned both i can with some level of experience say that the XR will out brake a GS and with 17 inch wheels and because of different tyre size and profile its higher entry speed means it will out grip and out corner a GS every day of the week in all weathers on any road

Exactly.
 
I'm with you on that point Boxerlust. I put it down to that darned stifling exhaust system. I was wary when they said they'd given it more horses in 2017. However, I ordered one and still have it. It is sleepier mid-range, but it still is a quick machine. I also have the LC GS, and like most others I reckon the GS a better bike for many reasons. But modern bikes are very good as what you ride.

Try getting on a 1970's machine today and compare lights, brakes, suspension, power, comfort, luggage systems, tyres, servicing, lubricants etc. etc. etc. Let's face it, if it's got two wheels …… it's wonderful.
 
Roger you talk E-3 vs E-4 I suppose...E-4 killed mid-range on all engines...ride a E-3 2015/2016 S1000RR with killer mid-range and then a E-4 2017/18 that feels like a 600 compared to it until you reach 9000 rpm...EU-5 will be the kiss of death for motorcycling as we know it...:(
Hopefully Brexit will be the end of the EU and E-5...:thumb2
But I'm with you guys the XR is the finest machine for fast ROAD riding currently available !
But I still prefer the clean driveshaft,boxer protecting my legs,Hoovercraft like Telelever on todays bad and bumpy roads and top-loading boxes over the excitement the XR gives...must be getting old and wise...;)
Like I said before we need the 150 hp "R 1250 XR" to solve this dilemma - like Freddy Mercury sang , I want it all and want it NOW...:D
 
How would Brexit have any impact on EU 5 bikes or the end of the EU. You do realise that BMW is German and Germany are the powerhouse within the EU. BMW and all manufactures will be making bikes for the EU for a very long time, and we will have to put up with them.
 
I owned a GS LC for 3 years and 24,000 miles and had the Wilbers ESA upgrade fitted by Revs. My current steed of awesomeness is a S1000XR Sport, this time with fully manual Wilbers suspension (I decided I didn't like ESA!).

The GS is an easy bike to ride with very stable and predictable handling (albeit a bit slow to turn in) and the advantage of lots of twin cylinder grunt coming out of slow corners. It carries weight very well and won't scare the crap out of you in wet slippy conditions.

The XR is a scalpel by comparison, with much quicker, precise turn in, higher corner speeds and loads of power on tap on corner exit (providing you ride it like an in line 4 should be ridden!). It's a very quick bike!

HOWEVER

We're all different, and we judge our bikes on how they feel to us when out on the road. I did most of my early riding on in-line fours and like riding them, other folk will much prefer the feel of a twin. The saying "it's 20% bike and 80% rider" applies to most of us mere riding mortals, so if you find a bike you're completely comfortable with then you'll naturally be smoother and quicker in any given situation.

The quickest bike for me down a slippery, twisty B-road with crap Tarmac would be my CCM 450 with supermoto wheels on! For everything else road based it would be the XR! :D

I didn't know reasoned posts were allowed on this forum. Has there been a change of policy?
 
All I'm saying if the U.K. exits and like it looks Italy will follow the EU will collapse and no more stupid and fun killing regualtions for motorcycle engines that pollute less than cow farts do...:thumb2
As motorcycling and working people will be better off without the regulations and taxes put upon them by a few banksters in Brussels.
Look at the S1000XR mid-range E-3 vs E-4...;)
E-5 in 2020 for all new models in 2021 for remaing models will be worse and in 2024 noise regulations will be so bad bad that the engines might have to be enclosed...:(
 
The GS with its long travel, supple suspension and Telelever - despite the 17" wheels - flatters the average rider. It makes it a formidable bike for most 'interesting' roads. A fireblade would do well, but only in the hands of a real racer.

Somewhere in the middle is the S1000XR. I've only had the GSA (2006 and 2010 models) so have limited experience of the more nimble GS - and on roads where the surface has irregularities, that suspension will give me more confidence than the hard suspension of the XR - but for those who can get their heads round that, the XR could be as quick (or quicker?).

After 10yrs of 1200GSA ownership, which I enjoyed thoroughly ------- The XR is more my kind of bike. Is it faster on French alps in my hands than a GS? Not sure - but it puts a smile on my face.

Al
 
Al did you not also have/had an R Nine T as also R 1200 S ?
How do you rate those compared to the TL-GS as also XR ?
 
I am sorry but thats just rubbish. It may need to be ridden in a different way, be in different gear granted, and the GS is a very lazy bike to ride. It has the torque to pull away without changing gears in the same way but that does not mean that its better it is DIFFERENT. It will require more in the way of input changing gear, and ability to judge what gear for what road speed etc, that is competence, torque just makes up for a lack of ability ;-) thats why yanks ride Harleys bags of grunt no competence required
 
Bowser yanks ride Harleys because they think a) they are American made even if most of the parts come from Taiwan, b) they think they are rebels with their cookie cutter conformity dressed up as gay pirates which c) helps them to attract the opposite sex...;) Of course in country were everything above 100 mph can land you in jail Harley performance is good enough and you can call a 1200 ccm lump weighing in at 550 lbs wet putting out a paltry 65 hp a SPORTSTER...:D
 
The S1000XR is one of those bikes that the more you ride it the better it gets. When I took delivery a few weeks ago I thought what have I done and bought a 2003 R1150 GSA because I missed the R1200GSA LC I no longer owned. The S1000XR has proved brilliant for commuting, 80 miles a day in all weathers, deceptively fast and very easy to get through the traffic and control at low speed. Blisteringly quick in Dynamic mode. Downsides - mpg 10 miles per gallon less than the R1200GSA and R1150GSA, engine revs a lot higher still getting used to that, chain a bit of a pain to lube up!
 
It’s plenty-fast in ‘road’ mode, and might save you in these cold mornings - as it brings in the electronic controls earlier.

It should still be ‘almost’ as economical as your GSA, when you aren’t using all the performance.

I have the Electronic Scottoiler and it really keeps the chain in tip-top condition. Not sure if it is justified on cost/benefit basis in real terms, as replacement chain/sprocket sets can be had for as little as £99.
 
Al did you not also have/had an R Nine T as also R 1200 S ?
How do you rate those compared to the TL-GS as also XR ?


Nope - not me. Went from 10yrs of GSA ownership, with some R1100s usage thrown in.
 
The S1000XR is one of those bikes that the more you ride it the better it gets. When I took delivery a few weeks ago I thought what have I done and bought a 2003 R1150 GSA because I missed the R1200GSA LC I no longer owned. The S1000XR has proved brilliant for commuting, 80 miles a day in all weathers, deceptively fast and very easy to get through the traffic and control at low speed. Blisteringly quick in Dynamic mode. Downsides - mpg 10 miles per gallon less than the R1200GSA and R1150GSA, engine revs a lot higher still getting used to that, chain a bit of a pain to lube up!

All Dynamic mode does is sharpen the throttle response a bit speed up the suspension adjustments ( Makes it feel firmer) and back off the traction and abs some !

It does not make it faster per se as the HP is not increased

Rain mode backs off the HP by about 20 softens everything up and strengthens the interference of the abs and traction

On a commute i cant see the benefit of using dynamic TBH ( although i get that it is more fun

As for MPG mine was hilltoped and was giving me 50MPG average although that could drop into 30s if really spanked on a sunny sunday
 
And yet, on twisting undulating B roads with a mix of surfaces in the middle of Wales (relevant to me at least because it's where I ride often) an XR will not keep up with a GS, the lack of supple long travel suspension (sorely lacking on the XR.....see what I did there......) and low down grunt means it cannot soak up the terrain as well or punch out of corners like a big twin can, granted when the roads open out the XR comes into it's own, horses for courses but for me and the type of riding I enjoy the GS is the better choice.

Don't let it drop below 7 and it will keep up with anything; all modern fours will; that's if you can keep the front down when you twitch the throttle.:D
 
I’ve had both, in fact all three (GS, GSA and XR). I really wanted to like the XR but couldn’t get past the vibes, which on my 2016 bike were very intrusive at bars, seat and pegs, the heavy clutch which made slower riding and commuting a PITA and the overly hard suspension - it never felt plush except on super-smooth roads. It’s a shame as with a few tweaks in the design I probably would have kept it. I think it probably suits riders who prefer sports bikes over touring. Oh and I never got better than about 43mpg no matter the type of riding.
 
I’ve had both, in fact all three (GS, GSA and XR). I really wanted to like the XR but couldn’t get past the vibes, which on my 2016 bike were very intrusive at bars, seat and pegs, the heavy clutch which made slower riding and commuting a PITA and the overly hard suspension - it never felt plush except on super-smooth roads. It’s a shame as with a few tweaks in the design I probably would have kept it. I think it probably suits riders who prefer sports bikes over touring. Oh and I never got better than about 43mpg no matter the type of riding.

I’ve also had all 3, but noticed more vibes in every GS I’ve had, compared to the XR. And I had 2 LC Adventures and a handful of LC GS’s. It makes me chuckle when GS owners complain about vibes on the XR! :D
 


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