Tell me why I shouldn't buy a 1200GS

[Skub]

I will add that one of the reasons i didnt take the deal i was offered on a GS1200 LC engined model was the complete bollocks i was told by the sales bloke when i asked about warranty work and problems. I was told there were no issues at all yet i knew of 2 owners who currently had claims going through that dealer for flaking engine paint on new bikes (cant repaint so new engine job and well documented on UKGSer) and another who had a gearbox issue. If they had been honest i might have taken a punt.

They dare not be honest about any one particular fault,or they'll have to admit to them all.

[mangocrazy]

and wasn't the 1200GS the bike that killed Kevin Ash?

I seriously doubt you can blame a model of bike for the death of a journalist on a press launch of a new model. I know a few other journos on the launch said they didnt see what happened as it was on a dusty off road section but they all survived.

There was an element of tongue in cheek about that remark, but I remember at the time that BMW put a lockdown on any information about the incident and that Kevin Ash's widow had great difficulty getting any answers. This was also about the time that paralever swingarms were snapping randomly. I've seen too many photos of catastrophic failures on GS models to be convinced by the assurances.

[Wossname]

I'm not aware of ANY information that explained Kevin's crash, and I've always thought that to be odd. I know - conspiracy theories. Did his wife get an explanation from the inquest?

[Bigyin]

I'm not aware of ANY information that explained Kevin's crash, and I've always thought that to be odd. I know - conspiracy theories. Did his wife get an explanation from the inquest?

As far as i recall BMW did an inspection on the bike and reported everything was as it should be but have never released the information in the report despite requests from his wife.

Others on here with more journo past or connections may know or be able to shed more light or not

[Hairybiker84]

And after all that grief, you STILL bought another BM!

Won't get fooled again

[Wscad]

Buy the shaft drive triumph explorer. It was launched May 2012 . It sold more bikes that year then bmw gs did.

I know 4 die hard gs guys who flogged them to get the explorer .

I have the triumph trophy. Same engine as the explorer. I chopped in a rt for the trophy

[Bigyin]

Buy the shaft drive triumph explorer. It was launched May 2012 . It sold more bikes that year then bmw gs did.

I know 4 die hard gs guys who flogged them to get the explorer .

I have the triumph trophy. Same engine as the explorer. I chopped in a rt for the trophy

Funnily i tried the Explorer when i had the 1150GS and was looking to change the bike. I didnt like the way it rode, felt as if it carried the weight too high which may have been down to the way the boxer engine felt with its weight so low. Had a test ride for about an hour and just didnt gel with the big Triumph unlike the Ducati which i felt at home on within 15 minutes

[Funners]

I Had my 07 model Adventure for 10 years, never let me down, never went wrong, sum total of warranty claim, a clutch switch
paint was good, final drive was good, zero problems for me on it.
service costs are about dealer standard, if you can do it yourself its very easy
down on power really especially these days, but the handling was far far better than it had any right to be, especially with Wilbers uprated units fitted..Im obviously "slightly" heavier that the universal German Motorcyclist
my bike still looked good at near 40K miles when it was sold
However.....there are also bikes I know of that, broke for fun, the paint fell off, and looked like they had been used as a boat anchor all their lives, inspite of the owners looking after them, it seemed to be the luck of the draw whether you got a good un or a bad un, which is sad
all that said I'd look at another, but Id look carefully
its quite a turn around when Ducati bikes are better finished and more reliable than BMW's tho innit ?

[KungFooBob]

Buy the shaft drive triumph explorer. It was launched May 2012 . It sold more bikes that year then bmw gs did.

I know 4 die hard gs guys who flogged them to get the explorer .

I have the triumph trophy. Same engine as the explorer. I chopped in a rt for the trophy

I know two guys who traded Explorer's in after 6 months for GS'. They didn't like the top heavy handling. The cylinder head recall annoyed them too.

[Wscad]

Must admit I did have a test ride on the explorer. Both myself and the missus weren’t impressed. Don’t worry said the salesman, triumph are launching the trophy late 2012. I had a test ride and was impressed. 2 very different bikes with the same engine though they have different maps

[KungFooBob]

I've just been looking as GS', S10's and even V-Strom's on t'internets.

I still can't see how any of them provide any more bang for buck than a Varadero

I might buy another.

[Rockburner]

Must admit I did have a test ride on the explorer. Both myself and the missus weren’t impressed. Don’t worry said the salesman, triumph are launching the trophy late 2012. I had a test ride and was impressed. 2 very different bikes with the same engine though they have different maps

I've tried both the Explorer and the Trophy, and yeah the Trophy's the better bike. Didn't like the Explorer tbh.

[Taipan]

After our ride out last Sunday, I was chasing a bloke on one, and to be honest I really had to push to keep up.
Ok, he knew the road and I had never ridden it before, but he was still tramping on.
Got me thinking however. I like boxer power delivery, happy with a telelever front end. Knocking on a bit now and the seating position seems sensible enough for my shagged back.
Don't know if my tena supply is up to date though!

The only reason not to buy one is it's not an 1150GS

(The 1200 is lighter and has more power but I actually prefer the old engine - having had both engines - and thought they'd skimped on a few things on the 1200GS to get the weight down, Flash, of Flash Tours would probably say that the older 1100 was even better The 1200 is though provided you avoid the first ones which had a few issues which they ironed out inc the new, lighter, rear drive unit).

You'll probably have decent BMW support where you are too, although I imagine you'll be doing all the service/maintenance yourself.

I'd agree with Monsieur flash as I too preferred my 1100 to my 1150...

[Cousin Jack]

Never ridden a GS, but I've looked at them, heavy tall beasts.

Had a few spirited rides with several 2 years back. On bumpy bends they cope better than a 800VFR (it easily caught up on the straights), but on long smooth bends the VFR left them struggling to keep up. Horses for courses, if you want to ride roughish roads it is good, if you want real off road it is too heavy, if you want it for smooth tarmac there are many better bikes.

[wheelnut]

Never ridden a GS, but I've looked at them, heavy tall beasts.

Had a few spirited rides with several 2 years back. On bumpy bends they cope better than a 800VFR (it easily caught up on the straights), but on long smooth bends the VFR left them struggling to keep up. Horses for courses, if you want to ride roughish roads it is good, if you want real off road it is too heavy, if you want it for smooth tarmac there are many better bikes.

Do we have any smooth tarmac these days?

[Supermofo]

GS's are odd things. Every test I read is glowing, lots of owners rave about them, I've seen them properly getting a hoon on and they do seem really well equipped etc.

But I just don't want one at all. Not even on my radar. Too big and too heavy for me. I'm sure they are great bikes but in the same way most people don't get the 690 I don't get the GS.

Having said that I do like the R12R and the R12S. So maybe it's just the SUV on 2 wheels thing that I don't get. I used to lust after a black R12S in the local bimmer dealership in Hertford when it was there.

[Cousin Jack]

Do we have any smooth tarmac these days?

Not in the UK, but this was in Europe. The French do smooth roads, as do other foriners.

[Count Steer]

After our ride out last Sunday, I was chasing a bloke on one, and to be honest I really had to push to keep up.
Ok, he knew the road and I had never ridden it before, but he was still tramping on.
Got me thinking however. I like boxer power delivery, happy with a telelever front end. Knocking on a bit now and the seating position seems sensible enough for my shagged back.
Don't know if my tena supply is up to date though!

The only reason not to buy one is it's not an 1150GS

(The 1200 is lighter and has more power but I actually prefer the old engine - having had both engines - and thought they'd skimped on a few things on the 1200GS to get the weight down, Flash, of Flash Tours would probably say that the older 1100 was even better The 1200 is though provided you avoid the first ones which had a few issues which they ironed out inc the new, lighter, rear drive unit).

You'll probably have decent BMW support where you are too, although I imagine you'll be doing all the service/maintenance yourself.

I'd agree with Monsieur flash as I too preferred my 1100 to my 1150...

Any enlightenment on why? Lighter? Free-er spinning engine?......

I do think the 'beak' on the 1150 was better looking than either the 1100 and the 1200+s.

Just to add my own experiences...5 BMWs, (1150, 1200 flat twins, old K12, new K12, 850 parallel twin, no issues, no warranty work, no post-warranty problems. The only bump in the road was the ABS light came on on the K12LT when riding home after buying it from Big Nige. IIRC it either didn't happen again or it was solved at first service.

[Taipan]

The only reason not to buy one is it's not an 1150GS

(The 1200 is lighter and has more power but I actually prefer the old engine - having had both engines - and thought they'd skimped on a few things on the 1200GS to get the weight down, Flash, of Flash Tours would probably say that the older 1100 was even better The 1200 is though provided you avoid the first ones which had a few issues which they ironed out inc the new, lighter, rear drive unit).

You'll probably have decent BMW support where you are too, although I imagine you'll be doing all the service/maintenance yourself.

I'd agree with Monsieur flash as I too preferred my 1100 to my 1150...

Any enlightenment on why? Lighter? Free-er spinning engine?......

I do think the 'beak' on the 1150 was better looking than either the 1100 and the 1200+s.

Just to add my own experiences...5 BMWs, (1150, 1200 flat twins, old K12, new K12, 850 parallel twin, no issues, no warranty work, no post-warranty problems. The only bump in the road was the ABS light came on on the K12LT when riding home after buying it from Big Nige. IIRC it either didn't happen again or it was solved at first service.

I’ve no idea if the 1100 is lighter, but it felt it? I always felt the 1150 was a bit more ponderous! It felt that compared to my Rockster as well! Maybe there was something wrong with it lol!

[Beancounter]

I'd agree with Monsieur flash as I too preferred my 1100 to my 1150...

Any enlightenment on why? Lighter? Free-er spinning engine?......

I do think the 'beak' on the 1150 was better looking than either the 1100 and the 1200+s.

Just to add my own experiences...5 BMWs, (1150, 1200 flat twins, old K12, new K12, 850 parallel twin, no issues, no warranty work, no post-warranty problems. The only bump in the road was the ABS light came on on the K12LT when riding home after buying it from Big Nige. IIRC it either didn't happen again or it was solved at first service.

I’ve no idea if the 1100 is lighter, but it felt it? I always felt the 1150 was a bit more ponderous! It felt that compared to my Rockster as well! Maybe there was something wrong with it lol!

I seem to recall my R1100RT feeling smoother than my 1150GSA. The 1100 didn't feel lighter but was/is easier to manoeuvre if you've got stumpy legs like myself.