TDM v. 1200GS Options

[dbninja]

ok
as you may know, i sold my Yam XJR1300 and my TDM850 and have bought myself a BMW 1200GS

so how does it compare?

well i loved my TDM850 it was a cracking bike a real " do anything - go anywhere" sorta bike but i had to move on
i considered replacing my TDM with a 900.......... BUT
i tried 3 different 900's and the fuel injection was a pain, it was nowhere near as good as my carbed 850 so i made the decision to look at somethin else!
did the usual Honda varadero, V-strom, Capo-nord things and to be honest they were just "big, Heavy, cheap lookin (aprila) too tall in the seat (most of em) and i kept coming back to the 1200GS BMW
its a cool bike! it has an adjustable seat height! BUT its hideously expensive!

so i test rode em and did all the research and it just sucked me in....... took me 12 months to make my mind up!
well i now own a 1200GS
it is superb! its like i big "grown up" TDM ........ it aint perfect tho.....

it is very noisy mechanically
i will never hear a word said against TDM gearboxes..... EVER!
and as for the beemer indicators? why use one switch when THREE will do?

will it prove a worthy replacement for my trusty TEDIUM? i hope so! its a hell of a financial investment to find out
lets hope Yamaha get their sh*t together soon and build a really good replacement for the TDM 900, you know the sort of thing....... 1200cc on/off road, expandable luggage without unsightly racks and scaffolding!

damn! sounds like i am describing the GS

all the best everyone, will stay logged on for a while if thats ok
ta
Dave
dbninja

[ROB1]

ok
as you may know, i sold my Yam XJR1300 and my TDM850 and have bought myself a BMW 1200GS

so how does it compare?

well i loved my TDM850 it was a cracking bike a real " do anything - go anywhere" sorta bike but i had to move on
i considered replacing my TDM with a 900.......... BUT
i tried 3 different 900's and the fuel injection was a pain, it was nowhere near as good as my carbed 850 so i made the decision to look at somethin else!
did the usual Honda varadero, V-strom, Capo-nord things and to be honest they were just "big, Heavy, cheap lookin (aprila) too tall in the seat (most of em) and i kept coming back to the 1200GS BMW
its a cool bike! it has an adjustable seat height! BUT its hideously expensive!

so i test rode em and did all the research and it just sucked me in....... took me 12 months to make my mind up!
well i now own a 1200GS
it is superb! its like i big "grown up" TDM ........ it aint perfect tho.....
best of luck,i too wouldnt know where to look for a replacement.had a ace run out today & i dont think a 10k bike would have made it anymore enjoyable.nice bike tho..................
it is very noisy mechanically
i will never hear a word said against TDM gearboxes..... EVER!
and as for the beemer indicators? why use one switch when THREE will do?

will it prove a worthy replacement for my trusty TEDIUM? i hope so! its a hell of a financial investment to find out
lets hope Yamaha get their sh*t together soon and build a really good replacement for the TDM 900, you know the sort of thing....... 1200cc on/off road, expandable luggage without unsightly racks and scaffolding!

damn! sounds like i am describing the GS

all the best everyone, will stay logged on for a while if thats ok
ta
Dave
dbninja

[Emmett]

Best of luck with the new bike, my dad's got one and after 35 years of riding he reckons it's the best bike he's ever owned

Keep us informed of how it's going, good points and bad, I might end up making that investment at some point too and it'd be good to know what I would be getting into. It is a big financial investment, but they hold their money like nothing else (well maybe a H*#^&y Dav*~#on ).

Have fun.

[Tempest]

Yes, very interested in your long term thoughts.

Only 1 thing annoyed me about BMW and the GS.

An article I read where is said BMW admitted they could make the bike a lot cheaper, but don't want to as pricing it cheaper would hurt their upper market brand image.

Talk like that makes me want to tell them to stuff it then!

[ROB1]

Yes, very interested in your long term thoughts.

Only 1 thing annoyed me about BMW and the GS.

An article I read where is said BMW admitted they could make the bike a lot cheaper, but don't want to as pricing it cheaper would hurt their upper market brand image.

Talk like that makes me want to tell them to stuff it then!

dont forget people are obsessed by IMAGE.they think they have the best by spending more.i dont know what my choice would be given a load of money.i had a great run out today but i dont think a 10k bike would have made it anymore enjoyable.i do quite like the gs tho mainly for its oditties but they are sooooooooo common now

[dbninja]

Tempest said........ they are soooooo common now
you are correct! why is a bike that costs 12k (with abs,grips, and luggage) so damned popular?
it beats the hell outa me i coulda bought a brand new capo-nord with abs,heated grips for half that! (£6k at a few places) varaderos are £6.5k !

Tempest said...... BMW could charge less but dont want to effect their image!
well the BMW marketing division have got it right cos its the best selling motorcycle over 1000cc for the second year running in the UK and its the best selling BMW model EVER by a big margain!

like i said its a great bit of kit, its "odd and quirky" in a few places, isnt particularily fast either, i'm sure any of the current crop of 600's would leave it for dead!

i am being objective about ownership! and not saying its the best bike ever or anything, my TDM 850 is the best all-rounder i have owned in around 50bikes i have had, it wasnt perfect either, nor are they common as muck ........

we are a fickle fasion consious lot for certain! oh my brother and i parked our GS's at the end of a row of sports bike today, funny how joe public are drawn to the beemers and not the crotch-rockets! got my first "oh they are just like those bikes on the telly" (re long way round) and i doubt its the last time that will be mentioned.

they look fecking cool with all the kit on,
whose was the red one on this years lakes weekend?

i didnt buy one cos i am a fashion victim, i bought it cos it ticked all the right boxes

time will tell
dbninja

[Emmett]

whose was the red one on this years lakes weekend?

That was Wrex's, I like it with spoked wheels though, and the yellow one is the fastest

[Tempest]

Tempest said........ they are soooooo common now

Ohhhh no I didn't say that.

ROB1 said it..... not me!

[Emmett]

Ohhhh no I didn't say that.

ROB1 said it..... not me!

He's right though.

[Pict]

Yes, very interested in your long term thoughts.

Only 1 thing annoyed me about BMW and the GS.

An article I read where is said BMW admitted they could make the bike a lot cheaper, but don't want to as pricing it cheaper would hurt their upper market brand image.

Talk like that makes me want to tell them to stuff it then!

It's exactly as Sony have stated quite openly about their electronics business. Also that they will create markets where there are none (e.g. the Walkman) - we're all just sheep really, except of course us TDM rebels....?

[laughin in a win...]

The BMW GS is common because a lot of people are buying them purely because the motorcycle press say they are fantastic and they are too timid to disagree, then they are just repeating to everyone the same stuff that they've read in magazines, I know there will be many genuinely pleased buyers with the GS, but I've heard people stating it as the best bike in the world and yet when I've asked them how many bikes they have owned or ridden they proudly proclaim their vast experience of as many as 6 to 10 bikes, well no arguing with that then.
I have had a short go on one and didn't like it, it felt as engaging as sitting on a dustbin waiting for a mate to turn up, I may have felt differently if my brain had not been filled with hype over it, but I doubt it.
It is also a bike that I couldn't own purely on looks, I think it's horrid, and no amount of customising could ever make that engine look good, maybe they should fit their new in line four into it instead.
This is only my opinion and everyones will differ, but best of luck to you and remember that you can admit to buying something wrong regardless of how much you spent .

This post has been edited by laughin in a windstorm: Sun 30th Jul 2006, 07:32 AM

[ChrisG]

I had a go on the 1150 some years back and loved it, I would consider one as a TDM replacement as well, but like you say the cost is horrendous compared to the competition. I do wonder if KTM hadn't pulled out of the Low Way Round how many currently GS riders would be on KTM Adventurers instead (though probably with a custom seat).

[JBX]

I did a report about a test-ride of a GS some time ago :

http://www.carpe-tdm.net/ipb/index.php?showtopic=967

IMHO this ugly thing is far from being a good bike, and for sure it's not worth the money it's sold.

Of course if i was the owner of this bike i won't tell the same story.

[wicklamulla]

I had a go on the 1150 some years back and loved it, I would consider one as a TDM replacement as well, but like you say the cost is horrendous compared to the competition. I do wonder if KTM hadn't pulled out of the Low Way Round how many currently GS riders would be on KTM Adventurers instead (though probably with a custom seat).

aye very nice looking bike imo DBNinja, the missus and i were looking at a secondhand yella wan in a dealers yesterday, not with a view to buying though. i would like to test ride wan though and then i cud make up me own mind as it is difficult to ignore the motorcycling press (good point there LIAW) as Chris said above about the Long Way Round it would be interesting to see how KTM's would have fared on that RTW trip regarding comfort, reliability etc etc and would everyone be breaking down the KTM dealerships doors to buy them ??? did u consider buying or test riding a KTM ??

[alunl]

the two cylinders in front ready to break both legs in case of a collision.

How?

Has anyone had any first hand experience of this or is it another 'urban myth?

[Emmett]

How?

Has anyone had any first hand experience of this or is it another 'urban myth?

My dad had a serious accident on an old air-cooled gs, and the cylinder heads burned stripes onto the toes of his boots, but he didn't break his legs, just both his arms

[alunl]

My dad had a serious accident on an old air-cooled gs, and the cylinder heads burned stripes onto the toes of his boots, but he didn't break his legs, just both his arms

Both arms... ouch! But was that because of the boxer engine layout?

[wrex]

Yes it's ugly. Yes it's expensive. Yes KTM dropped a bollock. Yes it's a beemer! Yes it's the bike everyone loves to hate! Yes it's mine

Butttt............... I wouldn't change mine for all the tea in China. It's got the balance of Nijinsky (the ballet dancer not the horse). It will go for miles with no complaint on motoway/through town and no Scottoiler! You can use the brakes in corners! The luggage is brilliant and when you take it off there's no scaffolding left behind! You get a two year warranty and the nice little man from BMW is only a phone call away! No diving on the front forks, set the back to hard for a better ride and change your rear pads every 6000m. Otherwise it's just like everyother bike except that everyone seems to have an opinion about it!

Just ride it, but be careful when you've got the panniers set to extend cos a lot of drivers can lose their wing mirrors when your trying to filter!

Oh! by the way Emmett the red one is faster than the yellow one by at least 10mph as proved on the M56 yesterday

[alunl]

Nicked this from the GS forum...

video big trailie test +hp2

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

just posted these on a thread and thought it amy intrest you all ..

hp2 off road ..
and a test between gs v strom ktm usleseys ect

http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/Video_Player...ap=2006+BMW+HP2

http://www.motorcycle-usa.com/Video_Player...Touring+Comparo

This post has been edited by alunl: Sun 30th Jul 2006, 11:54 AM

[nitram]

I love the look of the new 1200GS, it's sleeker than the 1150, which looked a massive beast.
I just can't get my head around the look of that flippin' engine, it's just plain WW2

The popularity of the GS is in no doubt down to the Long Way Round, O.K they had some structural problems with the rear subframe, but I bet them panniers were overloaded
The way they stood up to the flooding and falling over so much was very impressive

If it were a car I wouldn't even consider one, where I live image is everything and the little blue and white badge is oh so de-riguer, it's why I drive a Fiat Bravo and an old Corsa Van. I refuse to conform

And yes they are common, I would say apart from Bandits, the GS is the second most commonly seen bike for me on the commute into London.

Would I buy one? If money was no object, then yes I think I would. As money is an object then no I wouldn't. I could not justify the expense when my 5 year old TDM has managed in excess of 120,000 miles, albeit not trouble free, but pretty damn well.

The 2 year warranty, well whoop de doo (sorry to sound rude) The TDM comes with a 2 year warranty, well it did when I got mine back in 2001.

I'll bet over 3 years including running costs a 1200GS will still have cost more than a TDM, Vstrom, Varaderro etc. If you include the initial buying price and subsequent trade in that is.