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
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!
I didn't know reasoned posts were allowed on this forum. Has there been a change of policy?
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 ?
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!
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.
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.