1200GSA LC ESA harsh suspension

At the weekend I rode two-up with some luggage so I turned the pre-load knob to almost max and rebound to one click off max.

This morning I road to work solo with a little luggage so I took one click of the re-bound damping and turned the pre-load to about half way.

This lunch time I am going solo to the bank with empty panniers so I'll leave the suzzys at the previous setting.

I don't need active damping as I am not racing and I don't care about the odd bump in the road.

Don't need traction control because I am like Rossi and have realised that the twist grip can add and reduce the power to the rear wheel by using the power of the human brain and a bit of fine motor control :D

Don't need 'modes' for the same reason as above.

Don't really need ABS either but I had no choice with the LC.

All is fun in my biking world and I don't feel embarrassed because I haven't got a computer to think for me and I am not too lazy to twiddle a few adjusters from time to time.
 
Timaloy said:
I'm on my 3rd bike with ESA & have never noticed a difference on any of the settings on any of the 3 bikes.
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Sorry but if you can't notice the difference then you don't have a clue what your bike is doing, there is a massive difference to each setting, I also change the setting as do the others on here depending on how I'm riding or the road condition.
It's a brilliant system, my bike is the first time I've had this option and I love it, I had standard suspension on my 2013 but have the ESA on my 2014 GSA and although the standard was very good it's even better with it

Terry
 
Schtum said:
And tonight's dream is that a wheezy old traction engine could live with a new *Glitter Bike*......
Avatar.gif
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I've ridden with plenty of good riders aboard "wheezy old traction engine's" and more than a couple this year who were not easy to keep in sight, or lose from my mirrors especially on fast and challenging roads, I calculated I was roughly 35 bhp ahead of them on the GSA LC but you can't always deploy all of any horsepower advantage you might have in these conditions, good fun trying though ;)
 
Timaloy said:
I'm on my 3rd bike with ESA & have never noticed a difference on any of the settings on any of the 3 bikes.
Click to expand...

Funny you say that, as I couldn't really tell the difference between ESA settings on my twin cams, but really can on the LC.
 
The bike still catches me out Rich, almost had me off a couple of days ago.

Tried different tyre pressures but still no improvement.

Just read that link, my issue appears to be a different problem.

The ESA appears to function normally, there are no warnings etc. The problem with mine is the bike is always too stiff.

The rider/rider luggage/rider pillion settings do seem to function, and there is a noticeable difference between hard and soft in different modes.... but the bike is always so stiff that traversing a cats eye (or similar bump) at anything other than upright is a very frightening sphincter twitching experience :eek:
 
Have the same issue with my bike, going to try reducing the tyre pressures but this seems like a bit odd way of sorting the issue! The rear end feels awfull.... hit a bump/ripple with the bike cranked over can be a little scary!
It'll be interesting to see if BMW come up with a fix?
 
Fit some Ohlins or Wilbers electric suspension................I bet the ride improves after that

It must be down to spring rates or inadequate damping, from a cheap build OEM shock...............rather than the control mechanism at the handlebars
 
DAEDALUS said:
Have the same issue with my bike.... hit a bump/ripple with the bike cranked over can be a little scary!
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What tyres do you have and how many miles have they done?

Lowering the pressures in my Michelin Anakee 3's made no difference.

In your profile it says:-
Motorcycles owned currently::
R1200GSA 30 Year

Is this still the case?
 
JohnnyBoxer said:
.... It must be down to spring rates or inadequate damping, from a cheap build OEM shock....
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Oh dear me, you're basing that on what exactly :blast

If that was the case they would ALL be like that.

Shouldn't you down at the local WI meeting today ;)
 
Paul G (BHT) said:
Oh dear me, you're basing that on what exactly :blast

If that was the case they would ALL be like that.

Shouldn't you down at the local WI meeting today ;)
Click to expand...


WI is this afternoon:D.................conjecture, like all oem BMW suspension my dear fellow

12GSA WC's ......are they all hugely different then?

Was the Vines one ok?

Suspension is all very subjective and once (like your good self) someone has been used to performance suspension then the OEM stuff will always be a poor second

Cookie too is a big exponent of quality aftermarket suspension

I had ESA on a 1200 GSA and whilst it was ok, plus you can feel the difference between Sport/Comfort/Normal (and I know the latest awesome ESA on the new GSA must be even better:D)................it was fairly underdamped and crudely sprung

Maybe not a patch on the Ohlins on a bike, that you've just sold perhaps:nenau
 
Paul G (BHT) said:
It has been to a dealers and they say there is nothing wrong with it. While it was in there I had their GSA demo which was a totally different bike to ride, it just smoothed the road out like a magic carpet.

I would say mine now feels so bad that it is detrimental to the bikes handling.
Click to expand...

JohnnyBoxer said:
.... 12GSA WC's ......are they all hugely different then?

Was the Vines one ok?
Click to expand...

I would say the ride quality of the Vines demo was on par with my Ohlin shod 1100.

The only visible difference were the the tyres.
 
Paul G (BHT) said:
I would say the ride quality of the Vines demo was on par with my Ohlin shod 1100.

The only visible difference were the the tyres.
Click to expand...

There you go then...................time for the local BMW area rep to ride your bike against the dealers demo bike to see if he can detect what is wrong with yours

If he notices the same as you, then he can suggest a solution.................best to straight to the top, via the dealer of course

If it can't be sorted to your satisfaction, then reject and get a new one:D
 
I can feel the difference between settings when adjusting ESA, but I also feel the suspension on my TE GS is "harsher" than it was on my TC GS and my TC GSA, really noticeable in comfort mode where when plodding on a motorway it was like riding along in an armchair on the TC, but whilst it feels "plusher" than the other modes, still feels "harsh". To me it feels a little like the rebound is not as well sorted as it used to be.

Had mine serviced and mentioned it last Saturday, but they said from a service perspective, everything is operating fine.

It's just a different feel, and it's something I will get used to.
 
JohnnyBoxer said:
Cookie too is a big exponent of quality aftermarket suspension
Click to expand...

i like to think so :D

i've slated BMW OEM struts in the past, but have ridden the GS/GSA LC and found the suspension pretty good :eek:

maybe it's not in the wilbers/ohlins league, but then it wasn't tailored to my personal tastes and usage. it certainly wasn't anymore crashy than my old GSA wilbers setup. i'd have specced ESA if i'd bought an LC.
 
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