R1300GS / the good the bad & the ugly

Morety...Of course we dont need 160 hp but we dont need motorcycles either ! And Torque is great and makes the bike pull hard in the rev range you ride inaka 3 to 8000 rpm but a little rush on top is fun...And that is what people want...Fun ! 160-170 hp is good enough for the street above it becomes irrelevant on a upright bike because the traction control to prevent wheelies kicks in...Want no need and FUN are the keywords here...And for a travelling bike aka Sportstourer like a GS a 19 liter tank is a non starter...The ADV will solve the problem but while 30 liters might be too big it might be still 4 liters too small on a trip around the world...I think 24 liters are the perfect compromise !
If you can't have "fun" on a 1250, then there's something wrong with you, honestly. The mid range shove is enormous, or do you regularly like to pop it onto the back wheel and well into 3 figures? Where might you do that? Public roads?

The 1250 remains one of the most rapid bikes to 60 thanks to that "fun" torque. The GS does the 1/4 mile in about 11.7 seconds, or are you saying no bike not capable of 150mph terminal speeds and sub 11 second quarter miles is one you can have fun on?

FWIW, I've ridden the 1260 Multistrada Enduro and whilst it does have a top end rush, it was the only thing I really liked about that bike. I didn't have any less fun on my old GSA tractor. I've had an S1000R for a short while and it left me bored to tears despite 167bhp. I rode an MT10 which besides scaring the be-whatsit out of me with the most insane top end rush I've experienced on any other bike, the novelty wore off pretty quickly and the reality of what ownership might be like put me off it (my licence would have lasted a week if I was lucky).

I've owned fireblades, hairy chested Aprilia superbikes, Ducatis, kwacker sports bikes and many others. I've had fun on them all. What you seem to want is a track bike, so why even bother looking at a boxer? I don't care how big and meaty they make the boxer, even if it continuees it's growth spurt like some spotty teenager until it reaches 1400 CC and becomes a 160hp fire breathing monster, it will still never compete with lighter IL4 sports bikes or something like the lighter KTM Superduke, so why bother? Why continue to berate bmw about their "abject failure" at producing a pocket rocket and just go and buy one of the alternatives? There's plenty of sporty fast bikes out there. Plenty of large capacity uber smooth uber powerful tourers (1600GT?) but the second you add sticky out cylinders and shaft drive to a boxer config you're into a comparatively heavyweight bike.

Seems to me what you really want is a KTM or perhaps a new Tiger1200 or perhaps a multistrada. So serious question, why keep slagging off bmw when you can have your cake and eat it with a KTM? A boxer has a lot of fans because of its torquey smooth power delivery, its low CoG and excellent touring credentials. FWIW, I'd fancy my chances on a 100 mile cross country jaunt against many riders on sports bikes they can't use or handle. I've seen advanced police riders on that ol' frump the RT1250 put sports bike riders to shame but of course, they weren't having any fun at all....
 
This post serves no purpose , like many of mine .
But a fully loaded X factor 1300 is about £23k.
For a couple of grand more I could have my new FULLY loaded Tracer 9 GT+ AND one of these

55ecded55a03b3a7870907abcb272aa2.jpg



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This post serves no purpose , like many of mine .
But a fully loaded X factor 1300 is about £23k.
For similar money I could have my new FULLY loaded Tracer 9 GT+ AND one of these

Having recently bought a s/hand MT-09, I'm with you on the Tracer but could you really fold yourself on to that kitted XSR900...? :D
 
Having recently bought a s/hand MT-09, I'm with you on the Tracer but could you really fold yourself on to that kitted XSR900...? :D

Dunno . Possibly not but will find out in two weeks


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This post serves no purpose , like many of mine .
But a fully loaded X factor 1300 is about £23k.
For a couple of grand more I could have my new FULLY loaded Tracer 9 GT+ AND one of these

55ecded55a03b3a7870907abcb272aa2.jpg



Sent from my Nokia 3310 using Thetwatcantalk
Sorry . no .. looks shite,, would like to like it but comparing that to a GS is like comparing a wife to a hooker . A hooker keeps you happy for the stroke , a wife keeps you happy always .. the new 1300 is a Hybrid lol Its 23K stop being a tight C..t
 
Sorry . no .. looks shite,, would like to like it but comparing that to a GS is like comparing a wife to a hooker . A hooker keeps you happy for the stroke , a wife keeps you happy always .. the new 1300 is a Hybrid lol Its 23K stop being a tight C..t

I wasn’t comparing it to a GS .


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Going to test one tomorrow, triple black version, will be coming back as a triple brown version.

Is the torque that good ?


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This post serves no purpose , like many of mine .
But a fully loaded X factor 1300 is about £23k.
For a couple of grand more I could have my new FULLY loaded Tracer 9 GT+ AND one of these

55ecded55a03b3a7870907abcb272aa2.jpg



Sent from my Nokia 3310 using Thetwatcantalk
The Tracer is fantastic value and has a Stella engine....underrated bike.
 
The Tracer is fantastic value and has a Stella engine....underrated bike.

Agreed . I think the current deal offering £1500 of free accessories on the GT+ is brilliant.
Fully loaded bike with active cruise, heated grips, main stand, fog lights, comfort seats , 3 box luggage and every accessory you want for £15k in UK.
Similar GS would be £23k


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Morety...A bike that is really fun is a S1000XR...It has power in spades and is as practical as a GS...BUT you need to keep the revs above 8000 and have to live with a chain and the fork is not as good as a Telelever and in case of a mishap the cylinders wont protect your legs...Hope you get my point ! Despite the XR being more fun I still ride a GS...I hoped the GS would get close to the XR on the fun level and then still beat it with the house wife attributes...LOL
 
Morety...A bike that is really fun is a S1000XR...It has power in spades and is as practical as a GS...BUT you need to keep the revs above 8000 and have to live with a chain and the fork is not as good as a Telelever and in case of a mishap the cylinders wont protect your legs...Hope you get my point ! Despite the XR being more fun I still ride a GS...I hoped the GS would get close to the XR on the fun level and then still beat it with the house wife attributes...LOL
Then why not just buy a second "fun" bike? The GS is not an X1000R. They are two completely different animals. Plenty of Japanese candidates for probably less than £6K used would tick the boxes.
 
a boxer that protects bike and legs ,
what, like how the GS gouged my shins to the bone in an RTA necessitating a plastic surgeon to pick at it over a week, replacing tissue one tweezer at a time, and enabling it to granulate over a few weeks? Sadly, you talk like a TopTrumps kiddo with verbal diarrhoea.

IMG_4162.jpeg
 
what, like how the GS gouged my shins to the bone in an RTA necessitating a plastic surgeon to pick at it over a week, replacing tissue one tweezer at a time, and enabling it to granulate over a few weeks? Sadly, you talk like a TopTrumps kiddo with verbal diarrhoea.

View attachment 289495

15 Love.
It’s 0900 in La La land so Boxerbollox will be tucking into his Fairy Puffs soon and thinking how to reply to such evidence that sets fire to his usual rhetoric.
 
Well took one out today, was a TB, not my first choice but all that was available. First impressions. Riding position good, seat the best yet on a GS. Bike felt very stiff which I liked, typical shift cam feeling a bit flat below 5 and a bit, over that it pulls very well, not as strong as the Multistrada but more than enough for the road. This had the electric screen that worked well and considering how small it is was very good at keeping the wind off. When I stopped at the traffic lights and took my hands off the bars they shook loads more than my LC, probably do to the isolator on the top yoke.
But the engine on this sounded very rattly, other people commented on it, noisier than my LC.
I preferred it way more than the 1250 and off road I think it would be a real weapon, I did bring at back dirty and the enduro mode worked well, not as intrusive as on my bike, the electronics seem a lot more sophisticated.
If I had the cash I’d probably get one but will wait for a year or two and let someone else take the hit, I don’t change my bikes very often and swore I would 100000miles on my current bike.
 
Well took one out today, was a TB, not my first choice but all that was available. First impressions. Riding position good, seat the best yet on a GS. Bike felt very stiff which I liked, typical shift cam feeling a bit flat below 5 and a bit, over that it pulls very well, not as strong as the Multistrada but more than enough for the road. This had the electric screen that worked well and considering how small it is was very good at keeping the wind off. When I stopped at the traffic lights and took my hands off the bars they shook loads more than my LC, probably do to the isolator on the top yoke.
But the engine on this sounded very rattly, other people commented on it, noisier than my LC.
I preferred it way more than the 1250 and off road I think it would be a real weapon, I did bring at back dirty and the enduro mode worked well, not as intrusive as on my bike, the electronics seem a lot more sophisticated.
If I had the cash I’d probably get one but will wait for a year or two and let someone else take the hit, I don’t change my bikes very often and swore I would 100000miles on my current bike.

took one out today

engine clatters a fair bit at tick over and you can hear the valve train a bit whilst riding but still found it a lot more refined than my 1200

power and torque are improved very nicely and the gearbox and quick shifter are in another league

handling is a lot sharper, the screen is as you say surprisingly effective for its size

I’ve ordered one :bounce1

https://www.ukgser.com/community/threads/who’s-ordered-one.369406/page-8#post-5338443
 
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