Has anyone regretted trading in their 1250 GSA for a 1300 GS?

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richardbd said:
Therein lies the problem. Would you fancy taking on a 10,000 mile trip overseas?

The GS used to be a proper adventure bike. Now it’s no more an adventure bike than my MV Agusta Turismo Veloce. Just a sit-up road bike. Lots of fun to ride but you wouldn’t trust it too far from home…
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It's a fair comment - I went up to the top of Norway last year and it was a concern.
Thankfully nothing went wrong and the bike was a fantastic place to spend a month on.
Eastern Europe this year so my confidence is good. (y)
 
richardbd said:
Or second if you read most of the reviews.
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I've tried the MS several times - but just can't get to love it.
For me it's too top heavy, sounds like a bag of spanners idling and all the extra power is simply in the wrong place for my riding.
The electronics are good but I don't want the faff of a chain on a long trip.

If I was going for a smaller / lighter bike the V2s would be my first choice without doubt.
 
gateway77 said:
It

It's a fair comment - I went up to the top of Norway last year and it was a concern.
Thankfully nothing went wrong and the bike was a fantastic place to spend a month on.
Eastern Europe this year so my confidence is good. (y)
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Yea, Nordkapp for me next year with some mates. This year is Estonia!
 
jetjock said:
No not at all . Just that we hear the bad stories and not the good stories .
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Exactly. People are quick to post about issues but not when they have had none.

My new 2006 1200GS had a couple of issues in the first few months (ring antenna and fuel pump) but they were quickly resolved and I still have the bike 20 years later. I'd happily set off around Europe on her tomorrow.
 
Like most forums, many of the posts are related to negative aspects of ownership. That’s fair enough as we all have those. You can’t test ride a bike whilst yours is being serviced for a couple weeks of hours though and make an informed opinion of its reliability and what the bike is like to live with. Other than the very early GSs, I’ve owned and ridden them all. They’ve all had minor foibles, just like all the cars I’ve owned and the women I’ve dated - that’s what comes with ownership of an incredibly complex machine (wife included). I’m no Dakar rider, or Moto GP pilot but I put in the miles on my bikes and they get used as intended. I mix roads with off roading, green lanes as well as the TET, which for a huge bike, my 1200GSA performed very well and beyond my expectations. Everyone is entitled to have an opinion of course, but the constant unqualified dripping by folk who don’t even own the bike is a bit lame.
 
tw99 said:
Only you can answer that. The 13GS definitely feels smaller, sportier and more agile than either the 1250GS or GSA. If that's what you're looking for, you won't be disappointed. On the other hand, if you like the more relaxed comfort and all-round-ability of the GSA above anything else, you might be disappointed.
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yeah, i kinda want both!!
 
Thanks for all your views guys... I didnt mean to re-start a war.

I am still no surer of what to do so will do a few more test rides on the 1300 before I make any calls. I have a big trip to Picos and Pyrenees planned for May so I will take the 1250!
 
Personally I don’t find the 1300GS feels smaller than the 1200/1250GS, the ergonomics are nigh on identical

It does look smaller, but the wind protection is actually a lot better on the 1300 with the electric screen

It is sportier, which for me is a good thing, maybe it has lost some of its GSness, but I find it’s a better bike in many ways and still the best bike for the touring I do, otherwise I’d have bought something else

I did look at a goldwing tour, I tried a bagger and had a tour for 4 days but decided it wasn’t for us, there’s a post somewhere with my impressions and reasons for not getting one
 
leadfarmer said:
Personally I don’t find the 1300GS feels smaller than the 1200/1250GS, the ergonomics are nigh on identical

It does look smaller, but the wind protection is actually a lot better on the 1300 with the electric screen

It is sportier, which for me is a good thing, maybe it has lost some of its GSness, but I find it’s a better bike in many ways and still the best bike for the touring I do, otherwise I’d have bought something else

I did look at a goldwing tour, I tried a bagger and had a tour for 4 days but decided it wasn’t for us, there’s a post somewhere with my impressions and reasons for not getting one
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The wind protection , as you say is second to none .
 
I bought my 1300GSA in Nov last year, it’s not my ‘daily’ so only done 1500 miles on it so far, but having rode most iterations of the GS/GSA over the years, I think this is the best version - a level up in being really well balanced, joy to ride, good wind protection, muscular presence, enough tech but without being too much!

On the matter of reliability, I too would be annoyed if a new bike (regardless of price) in this day and age had those sports of issues. That said, I haven’t had a new bike in the past 30yrs that hasn’t had some sort of issue. My last Adv bike (2017 CRF1000) had lots (rusty frame, rusty spokes….). In fact, those bikes still have issues now - not what you expect from the big H! It is where we are at with bike manufacturer, and it is why I never buy a bike in the first year or two of its inception……it amazes me people haven’t figured that out yet, or maybe they have and they are so desperate to be the first group to own one they ignore common sense?

I have heard people complain about the issues (rightly so if you have personally been affected) and they cite the cost of the bike - it’s a BMW, it will never be priced low regardless! You pay for the development, and all that it entails being a European brand.

As for the looks, those launch pics were hard to take in at first but I have grown to like it more and more……ultimately, I don’t give a rats arse what people think - I am happy!
 
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I know quite a lot on here don't like their blogging style, but Sean and Emily seem to be doing alright with their 1300GSA. It's got them to Kuala Lumpur, via part of China, and Thailand without any major issues (that they've reported), and they are soon to start touring NZ (if they haven't already). Although looking at Sean's height, theirs probably doesn't have the self lowering suspension, so it's one less thing to go wrong.
 
Exiledinaus said:
Thanks for all your views guys... I didnt mean to re-start a war.

I am still no surer of what to do so will do a few more test rides on the 1300 before I make any calls. I have a big trip to Picos and Pyrenees planned for May so I will take the 1250!
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I think in your first post you where comparing a 1250 GSA to a new 1300 GS, which isn't entirely even it seems. The GS has always been a little smaller, imo.
So I myself rode an airhead up to 22", although I wasn't riding it a lot toward the end there. Bicycles did interfere a little. Then I bought an 1250 RS new, knowing that the the GS isn't a real trail bike like say Bultaco sherpa T or an Alpina. Colorado does have some very serious trails .... And I was close to road racing for a spell.
So after I had the RS for a couple of years I started to wonder if I had made the right choice. I also had some dirts roads to explore so I started shopping for a GS. I finally found one with a boat load of farkles and all the ride modes and bought it. But I went with a used bike with 30000+ miles because if I'm going ride in the dirt a lot I don't want a new bike for that, used is much better for that imo. And I kept the RS, which is utterly fantastic BTW.
So I bought a used GS with the GSA suspension on it and it sits tall for sure. Then I realized that there are almost no dirt roads nearby where I live anyway. There was a big push to pave all them to reduce particulates in the air, years ago. So, I have to take the GS much further out to get to dirt roads out east or fire roads up in the mts. The RS really shines here with great handling and is much smaller but with a strong version of the 1250 motor. And RS's don't have good resale in these parts and are in fact quite rare. So I will have to keep the RS for quite a while, no decent resale on it.
When the 1300s came out I thought the green 719 24' GS looked pretty good, And could make a dirt capable bike that would still be as good on the road as an RS. But, I didn't want two new bikes at all so I went with a used GS 1250 for dirt roads. So far very good. I have wilds on the GS and it reminds of a large desert racer of sorts. It seems to be very solid at 32000 miles. Great bike for when road conditions don't suite the low miles RS.
Right now I'm looking at Harley's little as I have many friends here with those, and riding the RS with them is a little awkward it seems, and same with the GS. They still let me ride a long though. Also looking at a much more serious dirt bikes like the 701 husky or the 501 ..... not much room in the car hole it seems though lol ... I really couldn't be happier with my 1250 BMW's ......
 
Lupo said:
I bought my 1300GSA in Nov last year, it’s not my ‘daily’ so only done 1500 miles on it so far, but having rode most iterations of the GS/GSA over the years, I think this is the best version - a level up in being really well balanced, joy to ride, good wind protection, muscular presence, enough tech but without being too much!

On the matter of reliability, I too would be annoyed if a new bike (regardless of price) in this day and age had those sports of issues. That said, I haven’t had a new bike in the past 30yrs that hasn’t had some sort of issue. My last Adv bike (2017 CRF1000) had lots (rusty frame, rusty spokes….). In fact, those bikes still have issues now - not what you expect from the big H! It is where we are at with bike manufacturer, and it is why I never buy a bike in the first year or two of its inception……it amazes me people haven’t figured that out yet, or maybe they have and they are so desperate to be the first group to own one they ignore common sense?

I have heard people complain about the issues (rightly so if you have personally been affected) and they cite the cost of the bike - it’s a BMW, it will never be priced low regardless! You pay for the development, and all that it entails being a European brand.

As for the looks, those launch pics were hard to take in at first but I have grown to like it more and more……ultimately, I don’t give a rats arse what people think - I am happy!
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Totally agree here, they are a step forwards in development, comfort, tech etc.

I agree about the analogy of not getting the first of a new bike but I got one of the last 1250s and loved it and thought the 1300 will be better so why wait. My reality is we are now 2.5 years in and my second bike is still at the dealers getting sorted! I can laugh that I seem to have got more issues in the last two years than most get in their lives so hopefully mine will be good from now on.

Others have correctly said (a bit like Tripadvisor) people typically only post if they have issues. My fingers toes everything are crossed. I have down about 500miles on the loaner in the last two weeks and they are cracking machines.

Barry Beta Tester No.1
 
Smartbazza said:
Totally agree here, they are a step forwards in development, comfort, tech etc.

I agree about the analogy of not getting the first of a new bike but I got one of the last 1250s and loved it and thought the 1300 will be better so why wait. My reality is we are now 2.5 years in and my second bike is still at the dealers getting sorted! I can laugh that I seem to have got more issues in the last two years than most get in their lives so hopefully mine will be good from now on.

Others have correctly said (a bit like Tripadvisor) people typically only post if they have issues. My fingers toes everything are crossed. I have down about 500miles on the loaner in the last two weeks and they are cracking machines.

Barry Beta Tester No.1
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Took BM 6 years to sort out the LC when it came out in 2013. Rejected 2 bikes, but the 1250 engine I recon is the sweet spot. After 4 GS I have now the RS. After 3 test rides I just can't justify moving to the 1300RS. However I do like the ASA....
In fairness BM UK were good, on the third GS I had an amazing deal ;)
 
zoltan said:
Took BM 6 years to sort out the LC when it came out in 2013. Rejected 2 bikes, but the 1250 engine I recon is the sweet spot. After 4 GS I have now the RS. After 3 test rides I just can't justify moving to the 1300RS. However I do like the ASA....
In fairness BM UK were good, on the third GS I had an amazing deal ;)
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interesting. i have had an ASA on loan for c.500 miles and love it when using it like a quick shifter but i hate it as an auto. Having had a Honda dct I dont think the BMW is as good imho.

Barry
 
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