1200lc to GS urban

GB.

GB.

Well-known member
UKGSer Subscriber
Joined
Feb 4, 2011
Messages
1,542
Reaction score
85
Location
Redneck Norfolk
I'm lucky that I have a really well sorted 1200GSlc which has been superb for the last three years. Its been kitted with full akro, remapping and a load of other mods to make it a real nice bike to ride on and off road. It has all the performance I will ever need and a silky smooth gearbox. Its not the spotless,super clean shiny bikes most of you guys own but I do like to ride it off road, and it really does drive well. Kevin, the instructor at Adventure bike training rode it and said its one of the nicest GS's he's ever ridden, a well sorted bike.

But here is my problem, I love the look of the GS urban, I really wanted a R80 G/S when they first came out but never had the money back then (and still don't now) the thing is my GS makes long distant rides really easy and cruising on the german autos at three figure speeds is no problem to get down to the good roads in southern Europe, I don't get much holiday a year so often have to nail it to get where i want in a day.

So do i swap out my GS and get an urban and scratch my itch or keep the best bike Ive ever owned which I really do love?

Will the urban be a good long term bike over the GS? Or am I looking at this through rose tinted glasses?

Has anyone gone to a R9T from a GS?
 
I’ve not gone from GS to Turban as such but I’ve owned both.
Make sure you get an extended test ride on the Turban.I didn’t and it turned out to be the most uncomfortable bike I’ve ever owned.
The suspension was crap and certainly not what it should be on a bike that isn’t cheap ! But the main issue was riding it gave me very numb bollocks .May well have been the cause of recent bladder issues. A few others on here found the same and also sold theirs.

Not that you want an alternative but I now have a Triumph Scrambler XE and that is so much better ,for me, than the Turban.
Not as much power but much nicer riding position and the Showa/Ohlins suspension is sublime.
 
Arsey said:
I’ve not gone from GS to Turban as such but I’ve owned both.
Make sure you get an extended test ride on the Turban.I didn’t and it turned out to be the most uncomfortable bike I’ve ever owned.
The suspension was crap and certainly not what it should be on a bike that isn’t cheap ! But the main issue was riding it gave me very numb bollocks .May well have been the cause of recent bladder issues. A few others on here found the same and also sold theirs.

Not that you want an alternative but I now have a Triumph Scrambler XE and that is so much better ,for me, than the Turban.
Click to expand...

I had that seat issue with an F800gs I had, I didn't test ride that either, big mistake. I've ridden a r9t pure while mine was in for a service and really liked the engine but only rode it home and back which is not far.
 
I own a GSA LC and had a GS Urban as a loan bike for a day. It was great fun but uncomfortable after about 30mins, a very numb bum. It looked great though.
 
Mine lasted 2,000 miles - awful suspension - and I mean awful and the numb nuts and cock after 50 miles drove me crazy...

Budget £1k to get the suspension sorted - and if you don’t get numb nuts in 50 miles then perfect!!

Engine is great in the package - looks fantastic... but check out you can live with the problems

I’ve had an R100RT R1100GS R1150GS R1200 GSA Hex and a R1200 LC Rallye - and none of these gave me numb nuts...
 
I made the swap from my GSA LC to an Urban GS earlier this year and don't regret the change for a second.
I was finding the GS too large when moving it around and just bulky generally. Loved the looks of the UGS from the first time I laid eyes on it.
I had an R9T pure as a courtesy bike and loved it but knew it wasn't viable for my type of longer rides.
I did some reading on how people had fettled their UGS's and knew I could make it into what I wanted.

The suspension woes are real, I tried a hyperpro spring which helped a bit but not as much as I'd hoped and so went for a Wilbers shock which cured it for a touch over £400.
The Wunderlich screen makes the tiring buffeting at >50mph all but vanish.
Bar risers and footpeg lowering kits made the geometry right for me and weren't expensive.

All other mods I've made were cosmetic or luggage related and weren't needed but have improved the bike.

I knew this was all needed when I bought the bike and factored it into my budget so it wasn't a nasty surprise.

I've ended up with a bike that I absolutely love, and that is comfortable for all day riding. I may get an aftermarket comfort seat at some stage, but it's in no way a priority.
 
twizzle said:
Mine lasted 2,000 miles - awful suspension - and I mean awful and the numb nuts and cock after 50 miles drove me crazy...

Budget £1k to get the suspension sorted - and if you don’t get numb nuts in 50 miles then perfect!!

Engine is great in the package - looks fantastic... but check out you can live with the problems

I’ve had an R100RT R1100GS R1150GS R1200 GSA Hex and a R1200 LC Rallye - and none of these gave me numb nuts...
Click to expand...

If i did get one I would change the suspension to raise it up, blunderlich do a better seat which is 20mm higher, and may be a bar change to change the position a fraction.
 
Do any of you take a passenger on the urban? The wife likes to go on the back of the LC now and again, not long trips just days here and there.
 
Not the Urban but the R9T Scrambler which is basically the same with different styling. Had it now for 2 1/2 years and still loving it - engine is a real gem.

Yes suspension is crap but a Wilbers rear is not that expensive and went for a ht adjustable version for the rear and added YSS emulators to the front forks which have sorted it for me.

Never had the Arsey/Twiz numb nuts problem and happy to ride all day - did in the end get a standard seat rebuilt by Tony Archer as wanted a bit more ht. Bar risers and SW Motech adjustable ht footpegs have sorted the comfort for me.

For me though I see this type of bike as being more of a second bike (have the 1290 SAS for serious touring) than a main/only bike.

Best bet is to get a demo for a minimum of 2 or 3 hours and see how you get on :beerjug:
 
I went from a Yamaha Tracer to a R9T, then to a GS, then back to a R9T, and now come to my senses and have a 1250 GS. Both times it seemed like a good idea but soon regretted it.

You have to accept that a R9T is nowhere near a GS. It’s uncomfortable and not for distances. Great for scratching around or short trips. You’ll find most people buy one then spend time and money making them more ‘acceptable’.

As others have said, go for a very long ride, including some motorway miles. Be prepared for the numb bum and backache!
 
So in summary

You need

Bar Risers
SW Motech foot peg lowering kit
Willburs +something Shock
YSS Emulators
Seat - replace/Rework...

Then you are sorted

Or buy a Triumph 1200 XE and get it all from the factory as standard.
 
twizzle said:
So in summary

You need

Bar Risers
SW Motech foot peg lowering kit
Willburs +something Shock
YSS Emulators
Seat - replace/Rework...

Then you are sorted

Or buy a Triumph 1200 XE and get it all from the factory as standard.
Click to expand...

Exactly !!!

Only ended up with an XE by chance but if you are 6’ or over , the XE fits like a glove and everything just works.

09795256b0a3d6e9c8d268738a7594a4.jpg
 
twizzle said:
So in summary

You need

Bar Risers
SW Motech foot peg lowering kit
Willburs +something Shock
YSS Emulators
Seat - replace/Rework...

Then you are sorted

Or buy a Triumph 1200 XE and get it all from the factory as standard.
Click to expand...

Talking to a mate of mine with the Triumph 1200 XC and recons the seat is only good for 1 to 2hours max :nenau

Given the deals you can get on a Turban compared to a Triumph you can afford to pay for the extras to put it right ;)
 
That’s most likely correct - cheapest new XE is £11k - but can be found from£9.5k with low miles.

Not certain what a Turban can be had for.
 
GB. said:
Do any of you take a passenger on the urban? The wife likes to go on the back of the LC now and again, not long trips just days here and there.
Click to expand...

I had a turban for a few days whilst my GS was in for surgery

Sounded good and went nicely but as already mentioned it was extremely uncomfortable

I didn’t like it and wifey absolutely hated it, and she’s done a lot of kms as pillion over the years on some very different bikes

In the end I left the turban in the garage and used my Bonneville which I prefer by a country mile

One thing is certain for me, it’s not a replacement for a GS
 
I borrowed an Urban for a few hours when they came out, and up until then was very tempted to get one. But, I also found it extremely uncomfortable. I’d heard that a different rear shock, bar risers, lowered foot pegs and a decent seat would sort all of those issues, but on a bike that expensive wasn’t prepared to start throwing big money at it to make it what it should have been.
 
GB. said:
I'm lucky that I have a really well sorted 1200GSlc which has been superb for the last three years. Its been kitted with full akro, remapping and a load of other mods to make it a real nice bike to ride on and off road. It has all the performance I will ever need and a silky smooth gearbox. Its not the spotless,super clean shiny bikes most of you guys own but I do like to ride it off road, and it really does drive well. Kevin, the instructor at Adventure bike training rode it and said its one of the nicest GS's he's ever ridden, a well sorted bike.
Click to expand...

Re-read this....again and again.

This isn't a logical decision....else you wouldn't asking.

And BTW.....I'd love an Urban X... love the 80s replica colour scheme.....but It would have to be as well as the GSA, the super tanker is just too bloody good at what it does. I did see an R ninety at the taffy dakar with TKC80s on fair play to the owner. Seemed to run quite low though so you need some major lower protection for anything gnarly and deep ruts would be even more of a problem.
 
You are correct, its not a logical decision, if it was we would all be in electric cars. The GS is the logical choice, as someone said, the urban needs quite a lot of outlay to get it how I would want it and they do seem to hold their value more than the other R9ts do for some reason??
 
The other aspect is the "bond" if you've spent a lot of time getting your GS right and then having a laugh on it off-road I suspect you will struggle to recreate that...even if you got an Urban hated, sold it and got another GS it wouldn't be your GS. I say this as when I had my 1150gs and 1150GSA I didn't bond with the GSA like I did with my blue and white GS. That one will always be mine because of the sentimental value attached to it.
 
I switched from a very well sorted Hexhead to my Turban. GS was better at everything except making me grin. That overrun, looks, burble, people stop and chat wherever you park up.... it's bloody lovely. SW-Motech bigger pegs, bar risers, Rear rack, better rear shock on mine. Sorted.

Did Scotland, three 250 mile days then home on mine. No issues
 
Nippy Normans supply Touratech, Wunderlich, Desert Fox and many other makes of accessories.
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

norbsa99
R Nine T Urban GS for sale
Replies
2
Views
296
norbsa99
norbsa99
Nice 'n' Fat
Have BMW Dropped the R-Nine T Urban GS ?
Replies
8
Views
399
Santa-2512
Santa-2512
Bigcats
Bloody Exhaust Flapper Valve
2
Replies
34
Views
2,798
Bigcats
Bigcats
Lumpy
Urban seat
Replies
0
Views
224
Lumpy
Lumpy
Lumpy
Urban seat
Replies
7
Views
464
Guru Gora
Guru Gora


Back
Top Bottom