Back again

[stick]

Well its been a while but decided the V4s was not for me so traded it in for the 100 Ultimate 1250 , looking forward to safe waters of the Bmw harbour again. Enjoyed the V4 Multi but after 3 ( long story) , decided that its not as good as I had hoped for me and the wife.
Well , promise to behave myself and not upset anyone.

 

[Engineer]

Well its been a while but decided the V4s was not for me so traded it in for the 100 Ultimate 1250 , looking forward to safe waters of the Bmw harbour again. Enjoyed the V4 Multi but after 3 ( long story) , decided that its not as good as I had hoped for me and the wife.
Well , promise to behave myself and not upset anyone.

I have considered the Multistrada but I'm unsure about the pillion and luggage capability, how does it compare to the GS?

 

[stick]

I have considered the Multistrada but I'm unsure about the pillion and luggage capability, how does it compare to the GS?

My wife gave me following feed back.
Comfort , not as good as Gs as tight , less room , lower position than the Gs so pillion view restricted .
Seat was uncomfortable as the tight position allowed little movement with the top box on. ( she is a size 8 )
Stability was okay but not planted like the Gs magic carpet.
Vibrations all the time and on off due to needing to use the gears more as less torque making it jerky ( as a foot note it made being the rider more intense to give a good ride)
She felt that 1 to 2 hrs max at a time , so a long tour would be very hard. ( done 1000s of miles on the Gs two up , days ranged from 220 to 400 + miles mountain roads etc , no issues with the Gs apart form the normal time in the saddle feeling)
Generally as a one up bike its good , very good , factor in a pillion who has toured for may years on a Gs , its a no go , thats the reason I let the bike go..
Luggage wise the plastic side boxes are small , thats why I got the aluminium ones with the top box , they would have been perfect as they held a realistic amount of gear.
Oh 2 up the fuel is a bit of an issue , not a problem if you splash and dash but fuel stress is not much fun.

Hope this helps

 

[Engineer]

My wife gave me following feed back.
Comfort , not as good as Gs as tight , less room , lower position than the Gs so pillion view restricted .
Seat was uncomfortable as the tight position allowed little movement with the top box on. ( she is a size 8 )
Stability was okay but not planted like the Gs magic carpet.
Vibrations all the time and on off due to needing to use the gears more as less torque making it jerky ( as a foot note it made being the rider more intense to give a good ride)
She felt that 1 to 2 hrs max at a time , so a long tour would be very hard. ( done 1000s of miles on the Gs two up , days ranged from 220 to 400 + miles mountain roads etc , no issues with the Gs apart form the normal time in the saddle feeling)
Generally as a one up bike its good , very good , factor in a pillion who has toured for may years on a Gs , its a no go , thats the reason I let the bike go..
Luggage wise the plastic side boxes are small , thats why I got the aluminium ones with the top box , they would have been perfect as they held a realistic amount of gear.
Oh 2 up the fuel is a bit of an issue , not a problem if you splash and dash but fuel stress is not much fun.

Hope this helps

Thanks that helps a lot - I know how good the GS is for long distance with a pillion and luggage, we have done long days in Europe many times without any discomfort. Seems like the Multi is not for me, as I suspected.

 

[ymfb]

As I wrote on the Ducati forum, we went the other way, GSA to V4S. There is no doubt both bikes have pros and cons, I miss the fuel range and shaft drive or more accurately I still don’t like the chain.

My wife prefers the Ducati seat, the aluminium luggage is comparable with the BMW although it hasn’t (so far) become stained as the BMW system did.

Having good dealer support is also key. BMW lost their way in our area when CW stopped, Bahnstormer and Dick Lovett didn’t cut the mustard. Hopefully the New dealer at Brockenhurst is better, certainly heard positive news.

Snells are great so Ducati is in good hands and I’ve had great service from Bournemouth Ducati.

 

[gateway77]

Interesting to get that feedback Stick - much appreciated.
How about from your perspective as a solo rider?
Can't remember if you had the 1250 before or not.

 

[stick]

Interesting to get that feedback Stick - much appreciated.
How about from your perspective as a solo rider?
Can't remember if you had the 1250 before or not.

Thanks , had the 1250 before 2018 Exclusive , great bike . Prior to that many 1200 s . As a solo rider the bike is very good , fast precise and fun. But ..... you need to work the engine a lot harder than the Gs as its less torque and the power needs to be found and exploited , bit like riding a 250 2 stroke . not a 500 2 two stroke.
It loves being revved , but at the cost of lots of gear changes. Its addictive on the power but also its wanting on instant pull , which the Gs has , the V4 just fires you out shakes it head and goes. But a well ridden Gs will stay with it until you start to get over the 120 mark say , which to be honest is fast enough on b B roads .
Rode it on a great Spanish road C-462 at pace but found it unstable at around 140 , where the Gs at 135 to flat out was always steady as a rock , but is rare to get to that point on regular basis. Tyres , Uk roads it will do a rear in 1800 to 2000 miles as its brutal at times.
But saying all that its a great solo bike , but if that was all I wanted I would look at a naked as no need for the extra room etc. But again my points.
I loved the bike , but due to planned trips coming up with the wife , the package just did not work and we have decided to make many more trips again. and need the surety and comfort which I felt was lacking.
To add the V4 handles well , but the gs just seems to stay poised all of the time in all situations , its a close one , but Gs two up trumps the V4 , solo , about the same .. ish

 

[gateway77]

Thanks , had the 1250 before 2018 Exclusive , great bike . Prior to that many 1200 s . As a solo rider the bike is very good , fast precise and fun. But ..... you need to work the engine a lot harder than the Gs as its less torque and the power needs to be found and exploited , bit like riding a 250 2 stroke . not a 500 2 two stroke.
It loves being revved , but at the cost of lots of gear changes. Its addictive on the power but also its wanting on instant pull , which the Gs has , the V4 just fires you out shakes it head and goes. But a well ridden Gs will stay with it until you start to get over the 120 mark say , which to be honest is fast enough on b B roads .
Rode it on a great Spanish road C-462 at pace but found it unstable at around 140 , where the Gs at 135 to flat out was always steady as a rock , but is rare to get to that point on regular basis. Tyres , Uk roads it will do a rear in 1800 to 2000 miles as its brutal at times.
But saying all that its a great solo bike , but if that was all I wanted I would look at a naked as no need for the extra room etc. But again my points.
I loved the bike , but due to planned trips coming up with the wife , the package just did not work and we have decided to make many more trips again. and need the surety and comfort which I felt was lacking.
To add the V4 handles well , but the gs just seems to stay poised all of the time in all situations , its a close one , but Gs two up trumps the V4 , solo , about the same .. ish

Many thanks for the extra detail here - I found the 1250 to have pretty much all the power I need or want but was curious about a real world comparison from someone who's had both and rides a full spectrum of scenarios.
Sounds like the MS was fun in many ways but the GS/A probably remains the bike of choice for longer European tours - for me anyway.
Happy travels

 

[littleade]

Thanks that helps a lot - I know how good the GS is for long distance with a pillion and luggage, we have done long days in Europe many times without any discomfort. Seems like the Multi is not for me, as I suspected.

And the Ducati forums breath a collective sigh of relief.....

 

[Rockred]

Welcome back Stick......

 

[Schtum]

Interesting and thank you for the comparison. I went to my local Ducati dealer at the weekend, convinced that I wanted a new Pike's Peak.

Having just turned 70, I thought it might be a final extravagant flourish on two wheels. Maybe not, then...

 

[stick]

Welcome back Stick......

Cheers , its been a while in the wilderness , glad I still had 4 Gs mates to hold my had thro it lol.

 

[stick]

Well , I had the PPv4 for around 1000 miles and gave it back as it was full of issues for the record.

 

[The Other PaulG]

Well , promise to behave myself and not upset anyone.

Very funny! Great to have you back.

 

[stick]

Good to be back , just need to careful lol

 

[Engineer]

And the Ducati forums breath a collective sigh of relief.....

I got banned from the MOC years ago for saying that Ducati's were less than perfect - they accepted no criticism whatsoever, think that they were supported by Ducati so had to toe the line absolutely.

 

[yoda1965]

Last March I went into my nearest Ducati dealer {in Dublin). As I browsed through the bikes down in the corner, on its own, calling out to me was a BMW R1250gs HP.
I just couldnt believe it. I had just sold my R1200gs thinking id try something different. But this bike was really nice, I love the HP colour and it also had all the milled option 719 farkles on it.
After chatting to the salesman we came up with a decent price and the rest is History. Love it !!!

 

[slimpickings]

Good to see you back.

 

[stick]

Collected the bike Saturday , out today again so should be up to 700 miles , first service booked for Friday unless I can get a cancellation, wow , forgot how good the GS is . Very happy with my decision to change . In my head I said wtf was I thinking , but you have to scratch some itches .

 

[Morety]

We've all been there stick, in my case thinking that a move over to a newer Harley might be interesting...it caused me no end of grief and was sold in under a year, and I went back to a GSA. Now on an RS which I love