Howard Millichap
Registered user
I test rode a GS1200 on 1st Feb at SPC Alton. My conclusions are as follows :-
ENGINE ; quite pokey with lots of “get up & go” between 4.5K & 7K. It red lines at 8250rpm. Not a lot below 3K. In fact I stalled it a few times trying to pull away gently. Let the revs drop too low and you’re greeted with the BMW shake & judder. At 4K (70mph in top) it’s dead smooth but everywhere else it vibrates a bit. I think it could get annoying on a long ride. The clutch is very sudden which contributed to the stalling.
HANDLING ; the steering is very light but without any stability problems. Neutral in corners. The suspension is too stiff making the ride very jiggly at slower speeds. The salesman described it as “sporty”. I prefer the suspension to absorb bumps not crash into them. I didn’t notice anything wrong with the Paralever rear, which means that it must work OK. Of course you get the “anti-dive” effect with the Telelever front end which is a good thing because the brakes were very good at speed. However, at slow speeds they were very sudden, meaning that it was difficult to stop smoothly. The lever has no give in it, which means that there is little feel to the brakes. It’s a good job ABS is an option. The whole bike feels quite light so doing a bit of off-road should be OK.
COMFORT ; ergonomics were good. The seat was comfortable over the 50 miles I covered. The reach to the bars was typical trailie. The poor ride quality would spoil a good ride for me. I still don’t think the switchgear is right i.e. the designer who assigned the lower LH button as the indicator instead of the horn, needs to be shot. The clocks were easy to read with lots of info in the LCD panel. Aerodynamics is OK. There is no buffeting but there is still a fair amount of wind roar. No wind hits your chest.
The cost of all this with Heated grips, ABS, luggage...£10500 OTR.
Comparing the above to my Tiger ;
ENGINE ;
If the GS has any advantage it is power and torque but it’s not by much if at all. You'd really have to get them side by side. The Tiger has more and is useable between 1K and 3K.
The Triumph engine is smooth everywhere. The GS is not.
The Tiger clutch is more progressive and easier to control. The GS’s is lighter.
HANDLING ;
I prefer the Tiger suspension. It has more give in it and thus gives a smoother ride but is still well damped and controlled. Not much in it going round corners.
GS has the better brakes at speed but the Tigers are less grabby at low speeds.
GS feels, and is, lighter.
The steering is lighter on the GS.
COMFORT ;
The Tiger has the better ride quality. Also has standard switchgear so it’s easy to switch (sic) between different bikes.
Can’t read the Tiger clocks under street lighting. Couldn’t try the GS at night but has to be better.
Aerodynamics better on the GS. The Tiger has buffeting problems.
The cost of a Tiger with heated grips and luggage (no ABS yet)....£6999 OTR.
CONCLUSION :-
So that’s a difference in cost of £3501. 50% more!
Is the GS better? In some areas, yes. Is it £3500 better? No way!
Is it a significant step forward? No.
I’ll be keeping the Tiger for the foreseeable future. I’ll wait to see what Triumph do in 2006.
ENGINE ; quite pokey with lots of “get up & go” between 4.5K & 7K. It red lines at 8250rpm. Not a lot below 3K. In fact I stalled it a few times trying to pull away gently. Let the revs drop too low and you’re greeted with the BMW shake & judder. At 4K (70mph in top) it’s dead smooth but everywhere else it vibrates a bit. I think it could get annoying on a long ride. The clutch is very sudden which contributed to the stalling.
HANDLING ; the steering is very light but without any stability problems. Neutral in corners. The suspension is too stiff making the ride very jiggly at slower speeds. The salesman described it as “sporty”. I prefer the suspension to absorb bumps not crash into them. I didn’t notice anything wrong with the Paralever rear, which means that it must work OK. Of course you get the “anti-dive” effect with the Telelever front end which is a good thing because the brakes were very good at speed. However, at slow speeds they were very sudden, meaning that it was difficult to stop smoothly. The lever has no give in it, which means that there is little feel to the brakes. It’s a good job ABS is an option. The whole bike feels quite light so doing a bit of off-road should be OK.
COMFORT ; ergonomics were good. The seat was comfortable over the 50 miles I covered. The reach to the bars was typical trailie. The poor ride quality would spoil a good ride for me. I still don’t think the switchgear is right i.e. the designer who assigned the lower LH button as the indicator instead of the horn, needs to be shot. The clocks were easy to read with lots of info in the LCD panel. Aerodynamics is OK. There is no buffeting but there is still a fair amount of wind roar. No wind hits your chest.
The cost of all this with Heated grips, ABS, luggage...£10500 OTR.
Comparing the above to my Tiger ;
ENGINE ;
If the GS has any advantage it is power and torque but it’s not by much if at all. You'd really have to get them side by side. The Tiger has more and is useable between 1K and 3K.
The Triumph engine is smooth everywhere. The GS is not.
The Tiger clutch is more progressive and easier to control. The GS’s is lighter.
HANDLING ;
I prefer the Tiger suspension. It has more give in it and thus gives a smoother ride but is still well damped and controlled. Not much in it going round corners.
GS has the better brakes at speed but the Tigers are less grabby at low speeds.
GS feels, and is, lighter.
The steering is lighter on the GS.
COMFORT ;
The Tiger has the better ride quality. Also has standard switchgear so it’s easy to switch (sic) between different bikes.
Can’t read the Tiger clocks under street lighting. Couldn’t try the GS at night but has to be better.
Aerodynamics better on the GS. The Tiger has buffeting problems.
The cost of a Tiger with heated grips and luggage (no ABS yet)....£6999 OTR.
CONCLUSION :-
So that’s a difference in cost of £3501. 50% more!
Is the GS better? In some areas, yes. Is it £3500 better? No way!
Is it a significant step forward? No.
I’ll be keeping the Tiger for the foreseeable future. I’ll wait to see what Triumph do in 2006.
