Newbie GS Questions

[rivercatch]

Hi everyone, just joined the site so please accept a virtual beer on me. Cheers!

I've just come back to the UK after 2 years and after a test ride ordered the new GS (in red) and delivery is in 2 weeks. Prior to the two year gap I had an R1150R for 8 years so I'm familiar with the whole BMW Boxer bit but not the GS specifically. So I've got a few questions I was hoping you could help me with.

1) Luggage
I was going with the BMW Vario panniers and top box almost by default. Is there any significant advantage to Touratech or other equivalents? The prices seem broadly the same. What other options should I consider? I don't plan to ride to Timbuktu - mostly touring in UK and Europe.

2) Protection
I haven't ordered the Engine Guard (because I'm not likely to do much off-road in the near future). However did spot that the front of the engine would get mucky so I went looking for a shield (which is why I ended up here!). I will order the Cymareng touring plate crud collector. But is this pointless without the bottom plate? (Having said that, I would like to start the off road thing so was going to try to get to the Off Road School in September).

3) Corrosion
I did use ACF50 on my R1150R, but only in the last few years and mainly for winter salt. I was planning on getting an application more profesionally done by allyearbiker.co.uk on the new GS within a week or so of delivery. Good idea? Bad idea?

4) Rear Hugger
Is it needed or recommended?

5) GPS
BMW Navigator at ~£600 or Zumo 660 at about ~£350. The only difference is that the BMW version is integrated with the left wheel control - correct? Is the wheel operation good quality - does it make an appreciable difference?

6) Battery Optimiser
Advice here seems to be to ignore the BMW CAN-bus tender and get a fused lead fitted direct to the battery - correct?


I'm mostly comuting from one side of London to other in all weathers plus a few weekends and longer trips in the summer in UK & Europe.

Many thanks for any help.

 

[Dario]

First off hello and welcome.

Luggage:- Divides opinion. If most touring one up and no off road stuff i would say get the vario side panniers and the BMW duffel bag (cheaper bigger and cooler looking than a top box).
Protection:- Crud catcher excellent(ordered one myself). Confused about the bash plate as the big comes with one as standard.There is a bigger optional extra one but again if you are not doing serious off road no need. Personally i have went for engine bars.These again have pros and cons.
ACF 50:- Buy a can and spray it on yourself
GPS:- If you like getting pumped by BMW buy the Nav IV. If not go for 220, 350 or 660. Yes the wheel this works the sat nav ( limited function) but do you really want to fiddle with the thing on the move.
Charger:- Buy an Optimate 4 connect direct to the battery job done.
Hope this helps. Enjoy your new bike. Get mine on Saturday

Hugger:- Had a mudsling on my previous GS. Worked well will probably get something similar.

 

[edwgordon]

Panniers: top loading touratech more functional and more robust. Varios look better and work well enough.
Acf50: do NOT do it yourself. It needs to be atomized and the can is crap. Plus allyrbiker do an amazing job. Getting mine done soon.
GPS I bout the nav iv but s don't think the extra money is worth it as the wheel does sfa.
Protection. Plate Plus crud catcher from Mark.
Battery: using BMW just plug it in

 

[steveh]

if you commute through London (like me) then the fact you can collapse the varios to half there size is a real advantage...great for filtering.

 

[Yellow Peril]

Panniers top loading of some sort, had varios for 3 years,, bloody pain in the arse when touring unless you have the liners too. As soon as you open something is bound to fall out. Top loaders you can stuff more in. Varios as mentioned do have the ablity to shrink, but unless filtering alot waste of time and that mark quite easily.

GPS depends on whether you are going the whole hog with bluetooth etc etc, BMW Nav 4 has been developed to work with bluetooth, so the cradle covers up all the ports for using hardwired autocom. 660 does the same as Nav 4 plus and the money you save would buy an autocom of some type. Oh and there is thread about the mirco SD card slot on the Nav 4 being blocked off.

Rest of you stuff as above comments although I think i would go with infill panels instead of mudsling.

 

[Count]

The NAV IV is worth it, the integration works well and IMHO makes the premium easier to justify. The SD card works fine btw, the slot is inside the battery compartment so no idea where people get the idea BMW have "blocked it", exactly why they would do this is a mystery anyway.

The Vario panniers are fine for me with the liners which shrink as well. The bike with varios doesn't need scaffold poles adoring the back and the ease of use is fine. If you want lots of loose items, get the bags for sure. I've used the bags as so much easier to stop the bike and take the liner bags out and go from there.




Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[Wrinkly]

Welcome,

Luggage..Ordered TT zega pro myself. I like the top loading,much easier,plus they make a good table when camping.Downside is you need another set of keys.
Vario's seemed very heavy and complicated.

Engine guard..If your off touring there are going to be places when the sump guard offers some protection,a crud catcher would seem like a must on the new bike.

Corrosion..Never bothered with any ACF 50 or the like myself,just give it a good clean and polish twice a year,make sure you rinse it in cold water after riding during the winter.

Hugger..The new bike looks as though it may not need one to keep the backs of your legs clean and dry but time will tell.

Gps...Shant be changing my 660 ,not to bothered about being able to change it on the fly,to much of a distraction,no different to using a phone whilst driving IMHO.

Optimiser..I've used the standard BMW one on my last 1200 which has a canbus system,no problems.

Enjoy your new bike.

Steve

 

[Count]

I think the Varios are pretty simple? If you think they are complicated then the bike controls must be nightmare

One key for everything and ease of fitting to the bike are a real bonus for me. I like the fact I keep them in the smaller setting and still have extra space for stuff I may pick up on the way. They are quite heavy but they don't have any extra hardware penalty so overall, probably not that bad. I understood on the previous bike there was a need to brace the panniers and that is sorted now which probably explains why they are a bit beefier.

 

[bellyboy]

Welcome!,

Well Panniers not my thing, I use a mix to suit my need, either Kriega bags or overboard waterproof holdall or a touratech Tail/seat bag (I got one that fitted an 800GS as shape matched rear seat well,,

Ive gone for engine bars on mine,, I have them on my airhead and they serve a purpose if needed ( even if its a little topple,,)...

GPS... After chatting to the Count (Thanks for Bluetooth info) Im going to stump up the extra and have a NAv IV,,, might as well make the most of the toys on the thing,,, its breaking the bank already..In for a pound etc and I have heard that the Wheel intergration is subject to softwear update for some units?... but dont quote me..

ACF50.... I dont bother,, just regular dowsing of WD40 / GT80 and regular washing has kept my airhead sparkling,,, I fitted a Pyramid fender extender (They tell me 5-6 weeks before they have one for 2013 GS) from new and early on got a fantastic inner mud gaurd thing from wunderlich (mudslinger??) stops lots of crap on bike and more importantly me...before lots of spray up back of thighs.. (heard new one does the same)


hoping mine here in a week or two..

Happy riding..

 

[Count]

I'd also say the engine guards are not just for off-roading, useful if you had the bike on its side and wanted to protect things, I've ordered the Touratech offerings as prefer the black colour for these. Ironically, the bike on its side off road is likely to suffer less than a drop on tarmac so engine bars are a must imho. I have frame sliders on my other bikes as well for the same reason.

The top box I don't like, my recent running in trip I had the panniers which is all I went for and I also use a mix of soft luggage on the back, mostly Kriega as I just link up whatever I need - their bags are bulletproof and recommended.

Don't visit the Touratech website, it will cost you a fortune if you start down the route of radiator guards and the like....

 

[Count]

Should have said, if you want ACF50 sorted, see my other thread on allyearbiker treatment, the timescales might suit when you take delivery and I'm not far from you either so that would work well.

 

[RedRick Esq.]

Vario paniers are just fine as long as you have the inner bags and wunderlich do some nice strap on bags that fit nicely on top of these
A decent dry bag is a better option than trhe top box for me !

I use the 660 and its great works the phone and plays tunes through the autocom and as said the change will buy other goodies

crud catcher is a great thing

crash bars are a must as sooner or later you will drop it

 

[rivercatch]

Thanks for all the advice. Great tips.

I'll probably stick with the Varios. I'm also suspect about the top box on trips but it's convenient around town. My daughter quite fancies the backrest and me as the limo bike chauffeur (no chance).

I have ordered the crash bars although I didn't say so. I'll go with the ACF50 - worked for me in the past.

And I think I'll probably get the Navigator. I am a bit ambivalent about the cost but if it was pure price or value for money I probably shouldn't be in BMW dealership in the first place.

Roll on delivery and some summer weather.

 

[Beemerman59]

Re ACF50, I have never used the cans but instead buy the 1 litre bottle with hand pump spray. The trick with this so the ACF50 atomises properly is to warm it up first - I place the container into a bucket of hot water to achieve this. Once a year, usually in October, I will clean the bike, strip all the plastics off and cover the brake calipers, discs and tyres then spray all over the bike. The reverse will happen in March/April to clean it all off as the bike won't get cleaned in between.

This works for me and is also an ideal opportunity to have a good close up look at the bike in general, tighten bolts, check connectors etc etc. For me its not aout saving money, its part of the joy of bike ownership

 

[PDiddy]

GPS - I went for the Enduro spec as it had what I wanted and I didn't take the integrated GPS as an option, what I did do though was to order the bar that comes with the integrated option and fit my trusty 550 via a Touratech mount _ The bar plus nuts and bolts cost me £40 -

 

[mcinlb]

Re ACF50, I have never used the cans but instead buy the 1 litre bottle with hand pump spray. The trick with this so the ACF50 atomises properly is to warm it up first - I place the container into a bucket of hot water to achieve this. Once a year, usually in October, I will clean the bike, strip all the plastics off and cover the brake calipers, discs and tyres then spray all over the bike. The reverse will happen in March/April to clean it all off as the bike won't get cleaned in between.

This works for me and is also an ideal opportunity to have a good close up look at the bike in general, tighten bolts, check connectors etc etc. For me its not aout saving money, its part of the joy of bike ownership

Re ACF 50 in cans, I tried warming the can in a bucket of hot (not too hot) water for several minutes. This improves the spray no end, a finer wider spray is achieved.

 

[Engineer]

I have the Varios and they are nice, fit neatly to the bike with a clever securing system - I decided against the top-box because it has a 5kg capacity and requires extra gubbins to attach it to the bike which looks slightly out of place when the box is removed.

I went for the Small Sport Bag 2, it holds up to 36 litres and attaches neatly to the existing rear rack with a couple of the supplied straps, it has a hard back and when stuffed with luggage gives the pillion the security of a backrest too.

 

[853275toddy]

SD Card Slot being Blocked off !

I collected my bike plus nav 4 yesterday. I had a 2 gig sd card loaded with mp3 for the sat nav. Opened up the battery cover and tried for 20 mins to insert the card. It turns out that here was a 4 gig card already in the slot. Having Shrek like fingers had to get the wife to get it out with her long fingernails.

 

[853275toddy]

Panniers top loading of some sort, had varios for 3 years,, bloody pain in the arse when touring unless you have the liners too. As soon as you open something is bound to fall out. Top loaders you can stuff more in. Varios as mentioned do have the ablity to shrink, but unless filtering alot waste of time and that mark quite easily.

GPS depends on whether you are going the whole hog with bluetooth etc etc, BMW Nav 4 has been developed to work with bluetooth, so the cradle covers up all the ports for using hardwired autocom. 660 does the same as Nav 4 plus and the money you save would buy an autocom of some type. Oh and there is thread about the mirco SD card slot on the Nav 4 being blocked off.

Rest of you stuff as above comments although I think i would go with infill panels instead of mudsling.

I collected my bike plus nav 4 yesterday. I had a 2 gig sd card loaded with mp3 for the sat nav. Opened up the battery cover and tried for 20 mins to insert the card. It turns out that here was a 4 gig card already in the slot. Having Shrek like fingers had to get the wife to get it out with her long fingernails.

 

[Flipfly]

I have had varios, tt zega, home made ali jobs and verns.

For me the verns wordbeaters are without doubt the best panniers available, but, all the panniers I've had have done the job well. Varios were very good for ease of use and perfectly good for road work. The worst were actually the zegas. Expensive and not particularly well made, look good though. The varios were good when not touring for a day to day pannier.
The biggest problem with ali panniers is the size on a day to day basis, varios win hands down for this.
Top loading panniers are better in most respects, but a pain when something small drops to the bottom and you have to take everything out to get to it damhik