New touring bike - BMW or Gold Wing?

I've owned and ridden BMW's since the early 70's. My last one was an '04 GS. They're not the bikes they once were and have lots of problems. Rear drive units on the new ones fail far more often than they should. If I were buying a bike for touring today, I'd look at Honda or Yamaha - I think you get a lot more value for your money.

 

Not owning a touring bike myself, I'd think that the Honda would be the most popular, have the most aftermarket parts/accessories available, and have the largest dealer network for warranty and repairs along the road. Not that you'd need repairs, the final point is, that it's a Honda, and there's a lot of old Gold Wings rolling down the road.

 

I've been eyeballin' another tourer for the last few months. I've owned a few FLH Harleys and they served me well.

If I were to buy a bike today it would probably be the Gold Wing. They had a few issues early on but '06 seems to have addressed them. It is now available with the heated seat and grips as well as nav. I have also noticed you can get a new one at a real price on eBay.

For some reason I just can't pull the trigger on a BMW. I like them but.....I don't know...I just can't do it. Same with Ducati.

And hey.....it's a Honda! Is that a bad thing?

 

The rear shaft drive problem on BMWs are primarily attributed to the cheap skates who ride Bavarian's finest yet don't want to shell out the money for new shocks when the old ones are worn out. Yeah, yeah, spline lubing and all that. It's all bunk. Are there problems with shaft drives? Sure. Just like there are problems with chain and belt. The factory will put out lemons and that's that. However, most of the rear drive problems are stemmed from people running on shocks that are worn the heck out and cause the paralever to tilt at an angle it wasn't meant to be at.

The Goldwing is a deluxe tourer and then some. It has power and handling PLUS the kitchen sink. Can't say anything bad about the 'Wing. The K1200LT is sportier if that's your swing.

I would recommend the new K1200GT with the new I-4 and chassis. It probably may not be as luxurious (I don't think that it has CD player), but it has heated seat, heated hand grips, adjustable handlebar height, blah, blah, blah, and most importantly - 152-HP.

Or if you still prefer the V-twin (180-degree V-twin ), check out the R1200RT. 110-HP and plenty of torque plus luxury and sportive handling.

 

Falman, my wife is pissed bacause I've got a boner now, and only her to take it out on...

 

Nice visual DC.

My last streetbike was an R1150rt. It was an ok ride. The handling was quite good for such a big bike, but the transmission was distracting. It took way too much attention to shift smoothly while trying to run hard in the twisties. The K-bikes might be better, but that was a sore spot with me. For more relaxed touring duty it was a sweet ride.

Ps. The linked/power/ABS brakes take some time to get used to. The ABS seemed to release a lot sooner than necessary on rough pavement. It's a weird feeling to be bracing yourself against hard braking and then have the bike seem to take off again.

 

Here's my $.02 worth..
I'd opt for the 'Wing if for no other reason than they are the most comfortable bike after several hours in the saddle that I've ever been on. Hands down. Of course the reliability and great color choices don't hurt either...







I want to see pics when you do buy.

 

Put new shocks on what? A bike with a couple of thousand miles? This isn't an old bike issue. It has been a problem on recent bikes and mostly while in warranty. It just seems the BMW guys don't want anyone to know their bikes are less than perfect.

 

Had a 2000 K1200LTC purchased very lightly used. Dealer about 50 miles north of me was pulled by BMW. Sold the bike because I didn't want to have to go to Baton Rouge or Birmingham for service (too far).

Otherwise, I'd still be riding that bike. You can't go wrong with a Wing either, I've got no experience with these. If you buy one used, check the frame welds, there was a recall on those.

The K1200LTC was comfy. Could cruise 100+ very smoothly all day long. I'm 6'2", and installed the J-pegs to give me some room to stretch the legs. If you park on the sidestand for extended periods, you'll get some smoke on the next startup. But I used the centerstand most of the time. Heated grips, heated rider and passenger seats, 4 speaker stereo, CD changer, power adjustable windshield, cruise, reverse gear. The new K1200LT's have a power centerstand option, and hopefully better headlight performance, and a little more power.

 

I haven't ridden a newer model Gold Wing, but its a proven design. Honda products aren't perfect, but you can see the extra touches on the Big H bikes you just don't see on other brands.
I would especially lean toward the Wing if you really plan to ride long distances, or if you usually ride two up.
There are plenty of Honda dealers to service your bike too.

 

BMWs are far from perfect, and I read a lot of these shaft drive problems on the internet but somehow I don't see any showing up at the various dealerships in SoCal for this problem. There are more BMW riders and BMW dealerships in SoCal and Bay Årea than any where else in the US much less the world. We all meet up and we all swap lies. If this problem is as pervasive as the internet claims make them out to be, I would have seen one or two by now.

The big issue with current model right now is the electronic speedo on the R1200GS that goes into a funk. That's a real issue. BMW also issued out ABS inspection recall on some of the new flat twin and I-4 bikes. I have a close connection with a certain person who's working for BMW Motorrad USA. He gives me scoops about my bike even before they dealerships know about the scoops. He also works on bikes that are "unfixable" by the dealerships. Some of these bikes are truly sick while most of them can't be fixed due to the incompetence of most dealership mechanics. It's sad to say but the many BMW dealership mechanics are found wanting.

The current stock BMW shocks aren't all that great. They get worn out by around 15,000-miles. That's like half a year for most BMW riders. It's almost understandable that you don't want to shell out for new shocks on a bike that's barely a year old, but if you value your bike at all, change out that shock for something better (Ohlins, Works Performance, etc.). I have a minor shaft drive seal leak at 19,000-miles. It's like a five minutes fix.

It's a known fact that the cheapest thing on a Beemer is the rider.

My Aprilia had already eaten a chain and a rear sprocket at 9K. I think that I'll stick with shaft drive for serious riding.

 

Gold Wings are fun in the twisties.
http://videos.streetfire.net/hottestvideos/2/D3E1DEDD-48F8-4493-A2D4-EE14ADDCA774.htm

 

I'm a BMW guy and currently have an '05 R1200RT. In spite of that, if I was going to do some serious touring, I'd prefer to do it on a GoldWing. My dealer let me (and my wife) take a new K1200LT out for a several hour ride. It was very nice, but if I was going to rack up thousands of miles, I'd rather do it on the Honda.

My 'RT' is perfect for my kind of riding - a little of THIS, a little of THAT.

 

Yes, Morton's. I have been dealing with them since 1996 when I bought my first BMW (below pic).

Just personal preference, but if I was planning on doing a lot of highway miles -- like from here to Mt. Rushmore/Sturgis/Black Hills, etc. and back, I'd rather go on a GoldWing because it feels more roomy to change positions, has a bit more plush ride and is quite a bit heavier, IIRC.
I'm not saying the LT isn't a great bike, but I just feel the GoldWing has a slight edge in the creature comfort area.

My first BMW R1100RT from Morton's:

 

Any respectable BMW dealership would let you test ride anything in their inventory.

 

Absolutely!!

Saturdays are rather busy, but if you can deal directly with Jeff Massey (owner), I would suggest it. He is friendly, helpful and accomodating. If possible, take a demo ride up 208 toward Spotsylvania courthouse, snake around and come back north to the dealership on 95. That way you'll get a pretty good feel for how the LT handles the typical roads.

The LT is very high on my list of great touring bikes.

Have fun!