Bare with me if this has been covered already.
Bought my first GS a few weeks ago, an 07 1200GS and so far am very happy with the way the bike handles, stops, turns, the luggage, the wind protection, comfort etc in fact everything (yes you've guessed it there's a but) BUT the f*ckin dog rough engine
. I've ridden all sorts of bikes from 650 singles, V4 Vmax and my last road bike which was a TDM850 with the twin engine and I've never been worried that an engine is about to let go-until I rode this bag of sh!te.
The bike itself has only 6800 miles (500 of which are mine), is in immaculate condition and was serviced by a main dealer prior to me collecting it (actually bought private). The engine pulls great and is very quiet upto approx 3750 revs at which point it suddenly sounds like the bottom end is about to let go but then gets a little quieter and smoother at about 5000 revs. Above 5000 revs it really pulls like a train and although still a bit noisier than I'd like it isn't too bad. Consequently when I'm riding it I either pootle around below 3750 revs or I have to go through the 'pain' barrier before enjoying the power. Having spoken to a mate who has a 1200 he says his does the same and he thought it was normal but surely they aren't meant to sound like this. I've read loads on here about software upgrades, how bikes are different after being serviced and to be honest it doesn't really inspire confidence in any one bike being the same. Having not ridden this bike before it was serviced or any other GS then I've got nothing to compare it to, all I do know is that if this is it for the rest of it's life then it ain't gonna be with me for long
Does this sound about right or do I send it into the dealer?
Tony
Bought my first GS a few weeks ago, an 07 1200GS and so far am very happy with the way the bike handles, stops, turns, the luggage, the wind protection, comfort etc in fact everything (yes you've guessed it there's a but) BUT the f*ckin dog rough engine
. I've ridden all sorts of bikes from 650 singles, V4 Vmax and my last road bike which was a TDM850 with the twin engine and I've never been worried that an engine is about to let go-until I rode this bag of sh!te.The bike itself has only 6800 miles (500 of which are mine), is in immaculate condition and was serviced by a main dealer prior to me collecting it (actually bought private). The engine pulls great and is very quiet upto approx 3750 revs at which point it suddenly sounds like the bottom end is about to let go but then gets a little quieter and smoother at about 5000 revs. Above 5000 revs it really pulls like a train and although still a bit noisier than I'd like it isn't too bad. Consequently when I'm riding it I either pootle around below 3750 revs or I have to go through the 'pain' barrier before enjoying the power. Having spoken to a mate who has a 1200 he says his does the same and he thought it was normal but surely they aren't meant to sound like this. I've read loads on here about software upgrades, how bikes are different after being serviced and to be honest it doesn't really inspire confidence in any one bike being the same. Having not ridden this bike before it was serviced or any other GS then I've got nothing to compare it to, all I do know is that if this is it for the rest of it's life then it ain't gonna be with me for long
Does this sound about right or do I send it into the dealer?
Tony
. But all in all cant say I've experienced what you have on any 12GS I've ridden.... 
Have you ridden others for comparison?
. I know vibration and noise is a personal thing and very much depends on your previous experiences so some people may be more accustomed to it than others, my roadbike experience is only really super smooth Jap stuff. I'm off to Scotland next week and there are about 5 or 6 boxer engines amongst the group so will try and blag a couple of swaps during the trip to get some feedback from other owners. I'm hopeing they say it's bloody terrible so I can send it in to the dealers for a fiddle and smooth it out a bit because apart from the vibs/noise I think it is THE bike for me.
