[DavidR8]

Hey everyone, we currently ride an '06 Triumph Tiger 955i.
We've been looking around at bigger bikes more suitable for LD.
We've ridden two '06 R1200RTs and an '07 Honda ST1300.
Both were great in totally different ways. The BMW felt more agile while the Honda has a very powerful engine. Both had great wind protection.

I'm wondering if any of you are former Tiger 955i riders and switched to a GS. What has been your experience?
How are the GS's in terms of pillion comfort?

 

[802mike]

I traded both my '02 K1200RS and Tiger 955i for an '09 new GS back then and never
looked back. The Tiger was lighter and lots of fun, but wasn't a long ride/two-up haul
all the gear bike the GS is. I've since moved to a lowered '15 GSA/w and find no need
for anything else. No complains from the passenger either.

 

[OldButNotDead]

Triumphs to GS

I had an 02 Sprint ST, an 05 Sprint RS (kind of an ST with new cloths), and an 1050 Tiger. IMO, those older Triump triples were vastly underrated bikes. BUTTT, they ain't a GS! I had a 2011 GS and now have a 2016 LC. If you are not into cruising at 100+ mph, a GS will tour with about anything. IMO, an FJR beats the Honda and maybe the RT too but I don't have any experience with RT's except looking at them in my rear views. LOL
'

 

[DavidR8]

Thanks

I traded both my '02 K1200RS and Tiger 955i for an '09 new GS back then and never
looked back. The Tiger was lighter and lots of fun, but wasn't a long ride/two-up haul
all the gear bike the GS is. I've since moved to a lowered '15 GSA/w and find no need
for anything else. No complains from the passenger either.

Thanks for your reply Mike.
I think if it were just myself the Tiger would be fine. However I'd rather ride something that is as I've read elsewhere a "Swiss Amy Knife".
A bike that can tour, carve, and commute is what I'm aiming for. The RT is brilliant but I wonder if I'd tire of it's bulk on the day-to-day. I'll need to ride a GS to see if I can deal with its height.

 

[DavidR8]

I had an 02 Sprint ST, an 05 Sprint RS (kind of an ST with new cloths), and an 1050 Tiger. IMO, those older Triump triples were vastly underrated bikes. BUTTT, they ain't a GS! I had a 2011 GS and now have a 2016 LC. If you are not into cruising at 100+ mph, a GS will tour with about anything. IMO, an FJR beats the Honda and maybe the RT too but I don't have any experience with RT's except looking at them in my rear views. LOL
'

Thank OBND, I have two hesitations about the Honda:
1) it's now out of production. My Tiger is out of production and aftermarket stuff is almost non-existent. I don't want to be in the same boat with my next bike.
2) its weight - it weighs 730 lbs wet. That's 230 more than a 2006 GS, 215 lbs more than my Tiger and about 160 more than an RT. I'm actually a bit freaked out by the weight of the Honda to be totally honest.

Underway the Honda is fairly nimble but I imagine moving it around my less than level gravel driveway would be a bear.

Looking at the weights got me thinking about the HP to weight ratio. The RT, GS and the Tiger are about equal on at ~5 HP/lb, however the RT and GS have 85 ft-lbs of torque which stomps all over the Tiger's 67 ft-lbs. The Honda is ~6HP/lb and produces about 86 ft-lbs of torque. By the numbers the RT and GS are going to be more sprightly.

The wet weight for the GS is actually about 15 lbs less than that of the Tiger. I have to say I'm rather surprised by that as the GS appearance lead me to think it was heavier.

I haven't ridden an FJR yet so don't have any comparison there. There's one at a local dealer so I might have a go at that.

 

[OldButNotDead]

Thank OBND, I have two hesitations about the Honda:
The wet weight for the GS is actually about 15 lbs less than that of the Tiger. I have to say I'm rather surprised by that as the GS appearance lead me to think it was heavier.

I haven't ridden an FJR yet so don't have any comparison there. There's one at a local dealer so I might have a go at that.

On the FJR front: good news is that the market is flooded with them. I just sold a 2014 for $8500 with a boat load of farkles. Yamaha is selling NEW one, two and even three year old showroom left overs. Almost new, like mine, are everywhere. Bad news is, when you buy one new or used, don't plan on any decent resale value.

On the weight thing, I've listened to that GS's are heavy stuff for a long time. You figured it out, look at the numbers, it isn't all that heavy. I bought mine as a MONO-SPORT, ride solely on mountain twisties, usually 350-500 mile day trips and multi-day runs from SC to Ohio with a lot of WV in the middle. Even with a lot of "stuff" on the back, it feels light and maneuverable.

 

[DavidR8]

On the FJR front: good news is that the market is flooded with them. I just sold a 2014 for $8500 with a boat load of farkles. Yamaha is selling NEW one, two and even three year old showroom left overs. Almost new, like mine, are everywhere. Bad news is, when you buy one new or used, don't plan on any decent resale value.

On the weight thing, I've listened to that GS's are heavy stuff for a long time. You figured it out, look at the numbers, it isn't all that heavy. I bought mine as a MONO-SPORT, ride solely on mountain twisties, usually 350-500 mile day trips and multi-day runs from SC to Ohio with a lot of WV in the middle. Even with a lot of "stuff" on the back, it feels light and maneuverable.

On the FJR front this one is a local bike for me: 2011 Yamaha FJR1300A Malahat (including Shawnigan Lake & Mill Bay), Victoria

 

[802mike]

Check out the lowered GSA, not with the lowered seat though.
As far as being top heavy with all that fuel, I don't top off unless
I want the extra range.

 

[DavidR8]

Thanks for the recommendation. I wonder if my local dealer has one...
+1 on the filling tip. I do the same thing on El Tigre!

 

[DavidR8]

Stopped by my local BMW dealer to look at a 2009 GS.

http://islandbmw.ca/pre-owned-view/item:656/2009-BMW-R1200GSA

I didn't ride it however the salesperson was very helpful in showing me how the ESA worked and how much it affected ride height.
At its tallest I was on the balls of my feet.
Brought down, I felt more secure.
We talked about wind protection and he said the GS are not far behind the RT in wind protection.

I didn't have time to ride it today however I'm really curious about it.

 

[DavidR8]

Took a 2009 GSA for a test ride today.
http://islandbmw.ca/pre-owned-view/item:656/2009-BMW-R1200GSA

Bike has 38K kms. Did some highway time and some tight backroads.
General impression are very positive.
Has lots of get up and go, handles really well two-up. Stops on a dime and gives you change!
Really liked the ESA. Started on comfort mode over the rough stuff then switched to normal and sport to try them out. Definitely can feel the differences between the modes.

I was really impressed by the wind protection. The screen was in the middle position for angle. I could ride with my visor open no problem.
My lady was super comfortable on the back. Very little buffeting. Much more comfortable than on the Tiger.

Not quite ready to buy but the Honda ST1300 is no longer on our list of candidates and the GSA has leapt to the top.



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