Is a no-frills GSA the way to go?

[Kit monster]

I did see that ebay add and was a bit tempted. However I've now just put a deposit down on a private sale 2012 Triple Black GSA, with all the 'packs', 3 piece Plastic vario luggage, Zumo 660 in a Touratech bracket. It's showing 23k which was a bit more than I'd hoped. However it has been dealer serviced since new, used for mostly European touring and most importantly it has been looked after and is showing virtually no signs of any corrosion.

Mine for the princely sum of . . . . . £8700

The only downside is that it desparately needs 2 new tyres and will be due its 24k service asap.

I don't want the Vario bags so they'll all be going on fleabay sometime soon, complete with mountings, and three BMW liner bags. I'd better sign up to subscribe so I can try flogging them on here first!

 

[tanneman]

The 12 model is better. You don't have to deal with that pesky fuel strip. Mileage doesn't matter but condition is important. Few on here is now over 100K mark. Congrats is in order I think.

 

[elefantman]

The only things I had on my GSA was boxes because they came free and I opted for the enduro gearbox with lower 1st ratio , keep it simple

 

[Bendy toy]

To be fair the "tat" is just the luggage. If you don't intend to go camping it's probably not needed.
Mine does not have the low first gear so can be hard work in heavy traffic.
My brothers bike was treated with kid gloves resulting in a tight engine that took at least 10K miles to free off. Mine has more miles but feels more fluid. The engines improve with age.
The GSA looks good with gloss black cast wheels and minimal add-ons. I've also taken off the TUV wheel shovel and centre stand. I'm now looking at dumping the crash bars. Just need a way to protect the fuel tank.
It benefits from front & rear fender extenders and a Mudsling.