OK, as most of you know, I'll defend the 1200 to the hilt and I think with very good reasons
Some would say I have rose tinted specs but I just speak as I find.
On the 2 Alaska trips I've just done we have the following bikes:
15 1200's of all ages from 04 to new TC's and with various mileages and histories.
4 1150's of various vintage
1 F800GS
Mileage for each trip was around 8500 per bikes which translates to 127,500 miles for the 1200's and 34,000 miles for the 1150.s and 8500 for the 800.
The road conditions varied from flat smooth twisty tarmac right through to very rough with potholes, gravel and mud. The Dalton in particular will find any weakness as it's 500 miles of incessant banging and crashing at 50mph plus. The weather varied from 40 degrees plus to just above freezing in heavy rain so we covered just about everything.
Guess what? We had no real drama's with any of the bikes. We had 2 punctures and replaced 3 headlamp bulbs for the whole group. My ignition barrel started playing up so for the sake of good order I changed it. It's was just wearing out. One 1200 had a misting rear outer seal on his final drive which we could have changed in 10 mins but decided not to and 3000 miles later, it didn't cause any concern. I would think we used no more than a litre of oil on both trips. The only real potential nightmare was fuel pump sticking on the 800 which after a judicious tap on the pavement by Murdoch solved the problem for the rest of the trip. You can't just ring BMW assist out in the sticks so you have to solve it.
No FD's exploded, no fuel pumps gave up, no bearings collapsed and the bikes just took it all in their stride I put this down to good preparation, riding the things and letting them do what they were designed for instead of having them as sunny sunday toys hooked up to a battery tender and polished half to death. I know not everyone has the time etc but they need riding regularly and miles putting on them. All bikes, cars etc need the same in my opinion. They will all need a good clean and check over on return and there are sure to be some bits that have broken or fallen off but that is the nature of a hard trip.
I'm not sure any other bike could cope as well with the different conditions that a trip like this throw's at you. I really can't think of another bike which will take you 400 miles in comfort and then do a gravel track fully loaded with no adjustments or worries and all of them doing 50-55mpg The S10, EXP etc etc are not proven yet on trips like this so there is no real comparison. The KTM is close but not as comfortable on the long road sections and fuel consumption is dire in comparison.
My 2006 GSA has just hit 88,000 mile and is going better than ever and will be back doing this next year I wouldn't dream of changing it.
I know there are some problems out there and some bikes seem to suffer but in my experience, it doesn't matter what's on the badge, nothing is bomb proof despite what people may think. If you know the potential pitfalls you can work round it and prepare.
So, to all you nay sayers and 1200 slaggers, these are staggering motorcycles which do a fantastic job if you get out and ride them.
I'm sure there will be the usual crowd of "I don't trust mine", "mine's falling apart" or "they aren't as good as my 11**" but the truth is they are as good as if not better than anything else out there
Some would say I have rose tinted specs but I just speak as I find.On the 2 Alaska trips I've just done we have the following bikes:
15 1200's of all ages from 04 to new TC's and with various mileages and histories.
4 1150's of various vintage
1 F800GS
Mileage for each trip was around 8500 per bikes which translates to 127,500 miles for the 1200's and 34,000 miles for the 1150.s and 8500 for the 800.
The road conditions varied from flat smooth twisty tarmac right through to very rough with potholes, gravel and mud. The Dalton in particular will find any weakness as it's 500 miles of incessant banging and crashing at 50mph plus. The weather varied from 40 degrees plus to just above freezing in heavy rain so we covered just about everything.
Guess what? We had no real drama's with any of the bikes. We had 2 punctures and replaced 3 headlamp bulbs for the whole group. My ignition barrel started playing up so for the sake of good order I changed it. It's was just wearing out. One 1200 had a misting rear outer seal on his final drive which we could have changed in 10 mins but decided not to and 3000 miles later, it didn't cause any concern. I would think we used no more than a litre of oil on both trips. The only real potential nightmare was fuel pump sticking on the 800 which after a judicious tap on the pavement by Murdoch solved the problem for the rest of the trip. You can't just ring BMW assist out in the sticks so you have to solve it.
No FD's exploded, no fuel pumps gave up, no bearings collapsed and the bikes just took it all in their stride
I put this down to good preparation, riding the things and letting them do what they were designed for instead of having them as sunny sunday toys hooked up to a battery tender and polished half to death. I know not everyone has the time etc but they need riding regularly and miles putting on them. All bikes, cars etc need the same in my opinion. They will all need a good clean and check over on return and there are sure to be some bits that have broken or fallen off but that is the nature of a hard trip.I'm not sure any other bike could cope as well with the different conditions that a trip like this throw's at you. I really can't think of another bike which will take you 400 miles in comfort and then do a gravel track fully loaded with no adjustments or worries and all of them doing 50-55mpg The S10, EXP etc etc are not proven yet on trips like this so there is no real comparison. The KTM is close but not as comfortable on the long road sections and fuel consumption is dire in comparison.
My 2006 GSA has just hit 88,000 mile and is going better than ever and will be back doing this next year
I wouldn't dream of changing it.I know there are some problems out there and some bikes seem to suffer but in my experience, it doesn't matter what's on the badge, nothing is bomb proof despite what people may think. If you know the potential pitfalls you can work round it and prepare.
So, to all you nay sayers and 1200 slaggers, these are staggering motorcycles which do a fantastic job if you get out and ride them.
I'm sure there will be the usual crowd of "I don't trust mine", "mine's falling apart" or "they aren't as good as my 11**" but the truth is they are as good as if not better than anything else out there
