The 1300GSA - Looks That Only A Mother Could Love…

Would have mentioned that in the original post, I call bullshit
What?

have you never gone into a motorcycle dealer and seen a bike you thought was really ugly and then asked for a test ride on it. Not once... TWICE! 🤣

No, i haven't either lol

I have test rode a few ugly women though... but that another story and i blame the beer!
 
Jesus Christ there's some serious, sensitive and touchy comments here.
Sneldog , shame on you :nono

(As an aside to Mr Sneldog, not to you TaskMule or Martin, so keep ya snecks out, 😉 spookily enough I was also at Vertue Rotherham a few months ago and had the same reaction to the GS. The GSA seemed to have better lines but the GS certainly fell off my ugly tree . I too am a childish twat, please accept my apologies, I can't help it.

🤗
 
It's called the 1300 GS, it's upgraded, faster, and better in every way. Not liking it is a you problem
Test rode one on Saturday, got to say whilst it was ok it wasn’t as nice to ride as my KTM 1290SAS. Not trading also saved me £13,000. Don’t mind spending the money but I’d at least like a better bike.

Things I liked:

The ride height adjustment, surprising as it’s not something I would have considered.
Engine flexibility
Headlight

Things that were disappointing:

Suspension
Gearbox
Power
Navigating the menus, not intuitive.
 
Ugly or beautiful - that's all very subjective.
Out on the road the GSA 1300 looks totally fit for purpose.
But as said already the GS line was never made to look pretty.

But whether it's good or not is a completely different matter.
It's brilliant at doing what it's intended to do. Fabulous in fact. Personally prefer the GS but GSA looks and rides superbly well in all conditions.

But if the OP wants a nicer looking bike - nothing wrong with that either. Try the RS - looks real pretty.
Same block but different purpose.
 
I much prefer the looks of Multistrada V4 or even KTM 1290/1390 Adventure. I love symmetry in my life, Multi has that Italian design flare too. 1300 GS/A just don't do it for me, so much so that I do not have any interest in test riding it either. GSA looks much smaller than outgoing 1200/1250 variant, and GSA just looks bloated now. 1200/1250 were big, but 1300, just disproportionately too big. I too prefer the scaffolding on 1200/1250 GSA compared to 1300 cast aluminium mounts, that look like they do not belong to the bike.
 
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Spent the day on the loan GSA from Vertu Shipley.

Nice bike. Felt slightly smaller on the go than my R1250GS.

Slightly quicker maybe.

Not night and day though. And certainly not worth an extra £15k to swap.

I do like the ally tank with the welded seams.


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Tempted to buy another.
But resisting up until now.

I have spent a lot of time and money getting my R1250GS TE Trophy exactly like I like.
It would be madness to change.

However. Still looking for something nice with gold wheels and radar. Not sure about ASA. Going to have to give it a go sometime soon.
 
Jesus Christ there's some serious, sensitive and touchy comments here.
Sneldog , shame on you :nono

(As an aside to Mr Sneldog, not to you TaskMule or Martin, so keep ya snecks out, 😉 spookily enough I was also at Vertue Rotherham a few months ago and had the same reaction to the GS. The GSA seemed to have better lines but the GS certainly fell off my ugly tree . I too am a childish twat, please accept my apologies, I can't help it.

🤗
My mistake. It was the GS that didn't look too bad. The GSA was the very fugly one to me. Apologies..😬
 
The GSA looks strange initially, and on photos. But somehow, doesn't seem as bad in the flesh.

It's certainly a strange one. But then BMW's have never been beautiful bikes in the traditional sense.

Parked on Whitby front, they were practically invisible. A stark contrast to a few weeks previous when we went on the Nortons. But I prefer the anonymity to be honest.
 
Would have mentioned that in the original post, I call bullshit

Jesus fucking wept. Give a rest you screamer.

First time I rode it was when I went to buy one at launch and I decided not to because it was such a gigantic disappointment, a bit like Canadians eh? I felt it was too small, too firm a ride and uncomfortable compared to a 1250. It also felt unfinished like every new BMW bike.

The second time was when I still hankered for a replacement so when my bike went in for a service several months later, they lent me another 1300 for the day which confirmed my initial view. Not for me.
 
Some of the posts to this thread are unreal. I wish I’d been more blunt with the original.
 
40987d29047aa98e8e2936abb7db1847.jpg

Spent the day on the loan GSA from Vertu Shipley.

Nice bike. Felt slightly smaller on the go than my R1250GS.

Slightly quicker maybe.

Not night and day though. And certainly not worth an extra £15k to swap.

I do like the ally tank with the welded seams.


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It would seem what was Allen Jeffries are still more generous with their test rides than what was Cooper’s in Sunderland, despite them both now being Vertu.
 
The GSA looks strange initially, and on photos. But somehow, doesn't seem as bad in the flesh.

It's certainly a strange one. But then BMW's have never been beautiful bikes in the traditional sense.

Parked on Whitby front, they were practically invisible. A stark contrast to a few weeks previous when we went on the Nortons. But I prefer the anonymity to be honest.
I like anything ugly enough to shift the attention from my fizzhog; :D
 
Put any generation GS against a Ducati 996 and they'll win no beauty contest. That's not their point.

Not liking how it rides is the serious point. I had a 1250GS for nearly 40,000 miles. With lower crash bars and luggage /top box racks, that must have been knocking on 260Kg fuelled up. My 1300GSA seems to ride the same as that GS, pretty much. I had a 1250RT in between. Never settled into that bike and immediately felt at home when I tested the GSA. I expect the GSA's road handling to be identical to my old GS after I change the original tyres to Road 6s.

I haven't ridden a 1300GS, but am told it's stiffer and sportier than the old GS. I think BMW have set the GS up to try to compete with the sportier Ducati and KTM bikes, with the GSA as the tourer. Suits me.

And, even though this might come across as defensive, I got used to the 1250GS 's looks and it didn't stop me loving the bike. The same is true for me with the 1300GSA. Both are ugly luggaged up anway, which is probably 75% of my mileage. There is one thing I miss, the 1250GS 's little farty burble when you slow down to a junction in 2nd gear. That used to make me smile. Don't miss the gearbox though. Nothing's perfect.
 
They’re ugly as fuck! There’s no other way to put it.

But so is my 1250. I never bought it because I thought it looked pretty. I thought it would grow on me and it probably has a bit but they’re still ugly.

Thing is I love riding it, it’s the best bike I’ve ever ridden and once I’m sat on it and can no longer see it I absolutely love it!
 


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