Upgrade, ya or nay?

[Deleted account 251212001]

Having had about 11 boxers now, the 1300 is an absolute beast performance wise, it combines big power and low down torque and it does like to rev if you want to. if you start holding the gears at full throttle the tacho flashes white in a blur and you're doing 90 plus in no time and deciding should I wind it on more or try be a bit sensible. It has to be sampled before saying ooh its only another 15 bhp.

It does make a weird mini esque whine in town but you get used to it and i also dont now notice with ear plugs.

 

[leadfarmer]

Brilliant! When you say noise at tick over... is it just start up?

Unfortunately no, in fact it’s quieter at cold start and then gets worse when the engine’s hot

It’s only at tick over but it sounds atrocious, a real clacking sound like something’s broken

Happily, as soon as you get above tick over the engine is quiet and smooth which makes the tick over noise acceptable

The whining noise seems to have got better on mine or I’ve got used to it, either way it never bothered me, bikes make noises

Apart from that the motor is fantastic, smooth, perfect throttle response and more power and torque than you’ll ever need

 

[IrishGaucho]

Having had about 11 boxers now, the 1300 is an absolute beast performance wise, it combines big power and low down torque and it does like to rev if you want to. if you start holding the gears at full throttle the tacho flashes white in a blur and you're doing 90 plus in no time and deciding should I wind it on more or try be a bit sensible. It has to be sampled before saying ooh its only another 15 bhp.

It does make a weird mini esque whine in town but you get used to it and i also dont now notice with ear plugs.

Engine noise is definitely on my priority list to check, seems to be a common agreement on it, yet a non issue.

15hp might not sound like a lot in a vacuum but it's about 20% more power from my bike that I already don't feel like I neeed more, so quite sure that it will feel like a lot. Also, the power curve posted earlier tells the whole story which is much more than just the final number.

Unfortunately no, in fact it’s quieter at cold start and then gets worse when the engine’s hot

It’s only at tick over but it sounds atrocious, a real clacking sound like something’s broken

Happily, as soon as you get above tick over the engine is quiet and smooth which makes the tick over noise acceptable

The whining noise seems to have got better on mine or I’ve got used to it, either way it never bothered me, bikes make noises

Apart from that the motor is fantastic, smooth, perfect throttle response and more power and torque than you’ll ever need

Atrocious sounds as if something is broken is most definitely not what you want to hear about your brand new pride and joy, that's for sure. But if it's normal and you get used to it, it feels like the "pros" outweight that by quite a bit.

Already sent a test drive request to my dealer, can't wait (but will wait, because that's how time works, LOL)

Thank you!!

 

[TaskMule]

Engine noise is definitely on my priority list to check, seems to be a common agreement on it, yet a non issue.

15hp might not sound like a lot in a vacuum but it's about 20% more power from my bike that I already don't feel like I neeed more, so quite sure that it will feel like a lot. Also, the power curve posted earlier tells the whole story which is much more than just the final number.



Atrocious sounds as if something is broken is most definitely not what you want to hear about your brand new pride and joy, that's for sure. But if it's normal and you get used to it, it feels like the "pros" outweight that by quite a bit.

Already sent a test drive request to my dealer, can't wait (but will wait, because that's how time works, LOL)

Thank you!!

Don't get too worked up about engine noise, some people on this forum tend to exaggerate it to the absolute max. It's not "atrocious" and nothing is broken ffs. Don't make your decision on narrow opinions, go for a test ride.

 

[Gloop]

Ha! Good man, best of luck with your purchase. I'm excited for you.

Ya, one of the main things I hear is that she feels a bit more cramped. But then again, being a small rider myself that should be a pro. Although, I've never felt or wished my own GS was smaller.

Ya, I agree. I thought that I would wait until a revision but I think financially now is the moment. Otherwise, I'll be sticking with my own girl for a few more years...

Which I wouldn't mind at all, she does everything I need but eventually she will start to get old.

Define old… I have a Varadero, it is 15 years old, I was going to take it to France this year, but I bought a 1250. 50k on the clock, well maintained and it should see another 50k with some money spent on maintenance over the years as you would expect.
I bought the 1250, because I wanted one and I did not feel the Varadero offered me the same smiles per mile as the GS does. Hence my decision.
If your bike does what you want, then, unless you want to change it because you have extra cash and fancy a change, then I would stick with what you have. I bought the 1250, cos I thought the 1300 was way too expensive. But then, the wife is from Yorkshire.
Good luck with your choice.

 

[IrishGaucho]

Don't get too worked up about engine noise, some people on this forum tend to exaggerate it to the absolute max. It's not "atrocious" and nothing is broken ffs. Don't make your decision on narrow opinions, go for a test ride.

I asked for opinions and that's what I've got, it's fair game.
Like I said before, some might like some things, others would like other things. It's just pointers to pay attention to and make my own decision.

I'm booked for next Saturday, I'll go for a ride and see what's what.

Define old… I have a Varadero, it is 15 years old, I was going to take it to France this year, but I bought a 1250. 50k on the clock, well maintained and it should see another 50k with some money spent on maintenance over the years as you would expect.
I bought the 1250, because I wanted one and I did not feel the Varadero offered me the same smiles per mile as the GS does. Hence my decision.
If your bike does what you want, then, unless you want to change it because you have extra cash and fancy a change, then I would stick with what you have. I bought the 1250, cos I thought the 1300 was way too expensive. But then, the wife is from Yorkshire.
Good luck with your choice.

Age is just a number, isn't it? Sure, my 2018 is not old by any stretch of imagination... I just asked my 34 year old K100 and she said she still feels young, lol.
No one "needs" a GS or any fancy bike for that matter, any 125cc would cover all your transportation needs. It's very clear that there's no logic other than having a better toy to play with.

 

[botus]

they will likely set it up all boring for your test ride - and the LCD dash is mental

many 1300s will have lots of toys for the demo - make sure you get at real modes for power and nannies and likely find the new well hidden damper settings and winds it back a bit softer on the suspension side

the new forks with real triple clamps add a few iron bridges worth of stiffness to the front end - so the suspension can be allowed to operate (but BMW haven't noticed this yet)

 

[Derekjhutton]

I’m on my second 1300GSA as I made the mistake of not ordering the clever dropping suspension. Being 6ft plus and over 18st I didn’t honk I’d need it. A few quid spent and a red full height bike is now a blue one with the clever lowering suspension.
Faults:
1. Headlight(top spec one) is very poor on main beam. £1400 of Denali spot lights has cured this. Shouldn’t need to spend on a £25k+ bike to get acceptable headlights.
2. Seat is diabolical. 800 miles round Devon and Cornwall during a seven day tour and in agony after second day resulting in creams from chemist to alleviate the chaffing. £400 seat from Wunderlich coming as Sargent are still “coming soon”, fingers crossed this solves the problem or long term ownership prospects may need reviewing.
3. Engine drone. I’m nearly sixty and after forty plus biking years I’m wearing earplugs for the first time, and that’s with a fairly good quality (Shoei) helmet.
4. Brakes. Both my GSA’s have had very poor brakes when using bar lever, only improved if I stuck in a big load of rear pedal. Shouldn’t need to do this and strangely if I use footbrake only the braking is noticeably better. I’m waiting for ebc front pads to try although mechanic is a bit less than convinced that they’ll make much of an improvement- time will tell. Failing that we’ve sourced a supplier who will change front discs, callipers and pads to give the desired improvement.Cost £1800! Ouch and I can’t help but think if BMW were buying decent brake components by the hundred they’d get a proper discount and customers would benefit.

My second bike is now two weeks old and 1200 miles and had its first service having suffered two clutch malfunctions (asa model) and an ABS failure last week. It’s in next Tuesday for two days to have an overnight ecu reflash to (hopefully) solve this and a leaking rear hub seal replaced.

A few gripes I know on what is really a pretty good bike but parting with £25k+ for a supposedly cutting edge top of the range bike I didn’t expect to be faced with laying out possibly £5k+ to get it right but I’m sure there’s plenty of us that are more than happy with the dealer supplied item.

 

[leadfarmer]

It's not "atrocious" and nothing is broken ffs.

In my defense I said it sounds like something is broken, not something is broken

You’re right about some people being susceptible to noises, I myself am not, I don’t care about noisy tyres, I don’t care about the engine whine on the 1300 or the rattly top end on the 1200/1250. I think the exhaust note of the older bike is slightly nicer than the 1300 but not by much

The 1300 is better in almost every way, apart from the death rattle at tick over

I absolutely love the bike, it’s fantastic, I’m very pleased with it, but it does sound feckin’ ‘orrible at tick over

 

[leadfarmer]

Brakes. Both my GSA’s have had very poor brakes when using bar lever, only improved if I stuck in a big load of rear pedal

What mode do you usually ride in ?

I ask because I don’t like the way the brakes act in road mode, there is far too much electronic balancing for my liking, sometimes you’ll use the back brake and the front feels like it’s blocked and you can’t pull the lever, it’s pretty unnerving when you’re coming into a corner a bit sharpish

I always ride in Dynamic mode now, the brakes feel natural, like a normal bike if you like, that way you get what you expect when you use the front or back brake

 

[Derekjhutton]

What mode do you usually ride in ?

I ask because I don’t like the way the brakes act in road mode, there is far too much electronic balancing for my liking, sometimes you’ll use the back brake and the front feels like it’s blocked and you can’t pull the lever, it’s pretty unnerving when you’re coming into a corner a bit sharpish

I always ride in Dynamic mode now, the brakes feel natural, like a normal bike if you like, that way you get what you expect when you use the front or back brake

I’m using current bike in dynamic pro. They feel slightly better but, as of yet, they’ve not had a spirited run over a Welsh A road, that’s the use that highlighted the poor front on previous bike. I’ll stick in the ebc pads in the next week or so and see how they shape up. The mechanic races classic bikes so his demands and expectations from pads might be fairly high but at the moment he can’t find any race spec pads that fit the current bike. Dunlop race pads sorted the braking on 1250GSA’s over last few years but none available (that he knows of) for 1300’s.

 

[Bubb]

I too prefer to ride in dynamic mode ( 1300gs, not gsa) as the front brakes feel better in dynamic than in road mode….
In road mode, there was a dead/wooden feel which goes away in dynamic mode.

As for the engine noise…I ride with ear plugs most of the time..

 

[botus]

I’m on my second 1300GSA as I made the mistake of not ordering the clever dropping suspension. Being 6ft plus and over 18st I didn’t honk I’d need it. A few quid spent and a red full height bike is now a blue one with the clever lowering suspension.
Faults:

anyone watching MotoGP rider's throwing their junk down the road - as the active ride height plays up and or changes the geometry on mid corner entry ?

first test ride a year back on the 1300GS I kept thinking there's a huge fault with this bike - it kept doing something stupid as I slowed down - plus I had suspension gone mad errors on the dash all the time... then I found out it had the crazy mess up my bike option - goodness know why any one wants it

Brakes. Both my GSA’s have had very poor brakes when using bar lever, only improved if I stuck in a big load of rear pedal. Shouldn’t need to do this and strangely if I use footbrake only the braking is noticeably better. I’m waiting for ebc front pads to try although mechanic is a bit less than convinced that they’ll make much of an improvement- time will tell. Failing that we’ve sourced a supplier who will change front discs, callipers and pads to give the desired improvement.Cost £1800! Ouch and I can’t help but think if BMW were buying decent brake components by the hundred they’d get a proper discount and customers would benefit.

one of the road testers mentioned this on his R1300GS - the dealer cleaned some gunk off the discs and the tester was happy afterwards... if you ever get ACF50 on your discs you'll be without brakes for at least 6 months to a year - it may have been factory gunk they cleaned off !

 

[botus]

As for the engine noise…I ride with ear plugs most of the time..

no biker should ever ride without ear plugs - a 30 minute ride at 80 mile per hours gives more hearing damage than a 8 hr shift in a noisy factory (that falls under the threshold to mandate the use of ear plugs for the shift)

pre smart phones and retards online listening to mind rot trash constantly - a farmer in the sticks, at 50 years has twice the hearing of a person that grew up in a busy city

and if you have children - you'll need your ears well into your 70s and 80s, as they'll have none by the time they are 40 (if UK Germany and France haven't nuked us of the planet by the end off this year - which is their goal)

 

[IrishGaucho]

100% agreed, I always wear my earplugs. It's just the wind noise that needs blocking. I can still talk in my intercom, hear the bike, traffic, etc ...

Would highly recommend proper bike earplugs.

 

[pbbanks]

Purchased the first 1200 GS LC in 2013, from may experience I would not get a new model until 2/3 years passed. I rejected twice due to faults, but the 1250 is a fine bike. I see no point upgrading unless I go for the ASA version, but it looks like they have problems with the system. So I am out. Going from 1200 to 1300 is a upgrade worth having.
Have as many test rides as you possibly can in good weather and in rain.

What problems with the ASA system are you refering to?. Just curious.

 

[roundincircles]

The 1300 just grunts at any revs....I'm surprised it has a gearbox.

 

[botus]

What problems with the ASA system are you refering to?. Just curious.

the one most people have

 

[IrishGaucho]

the one most people have

That's horrendous. I would have left the bike there and told BMW to come and collect "their" bike at their earliest convenience.

I really hope they have a manual for me, besides this video, ASA is not my cup of tea.

 

[pbbanks]

the one most people have

But most people don't have this problem.
Why do you keep repeating the same old thing about one person who has a problem and done a video of it.