Demo'd the K1600GTL yesterday...

[BMWRider]

Mike Apt opened a new shop in Countryside Illinois...he used to run Chicago BMW but is over there now...pretty nice shop with MUCH more space than his old place. Had a nice selection of bikes and I was able to demo the K1600GTL...

here are my thoughts after riding it in 65 degree weather down mostly straight roads for around 30 minutes...

Styling:

Looks are always in the eye of the beholder but for me I DID NOT like all the dam 6 badges on the bike...you turn the key on and a 6 lights up on the dash info center...it has a 6 emblem on the dash, side fairings and a few other spots...I understand it's a 6 banger but does honda feel the need to do that with the goldwing...just seems a lil "american" with that touch...

Other than that I must admit I prefer the look of the K1200GT better...the bike just seemed busy in certain spots

Handling:

It was set in comfort mode and felt like a 84 cadillac eldorado. It just floated around and when I floored it in second gear the front end came up very very easily. THIS BIKE HAD CRAZY AMOUNTS OF TQ! I used to own a Triumph Rocket 3 and I really love having huge tq on a bike...it wasn't as strong as the R3 tq but it was pretty insane if your not used to that. I tried to spin the dial on the left to set the suspension in sport mode for some of the ride but never figured it out.

This bike is HEAVY feeling when your getting it off it's sidestand and going slower speeds...light years ahead of the very top heavy K bikes from a few years ago but still heavy enough to feel a little intimidated at slower speeds...

Wind Protection:

This was pretty good with the exception of the adjustable windshield...It went up on an angle and when fully up is close to straight up, which cause some buffeting on the top of my helmet...i'm 5'11 and if it was a few inches higher it would have been perfect...legs are well shrouded and so are most of your arms and hands...I did not like the slight bend in the plastic on the windshield as well, as when it was fully up it gave a strange/altered view of the road ahead...just a bit distracting.

Engine/Trans:

The motor has HUGE tq and feels very strong...It did have several flat spots in the powerband, which may just be a mapping issue but on this demo they were there. Motor is very powerfull anywhere anytime but did make some rather strange noises...almost sounded like there was some loose change bouncing around in the valves or something...just not as quiet as I would have expected. Trans was sloppy as hell...just very loose in feel and gear changes were sloppy...I say this after getting off my 03 Yamaha FZ1 which is snickidy snick tight...I have owned several BMW's and know there gearboxes are not as tight as some others but this one felt sloppier than my old R11S which I always felt was a lil bit sloppy. Never missed a gear and had no trouble finding neutral though.

I DID FEEL some decent heat coming off the motor...mostly on the side of my calves and near the knee's...keep in mind it was 65 degrees here yesterday...not sure if in hot weather how big of an issue it would be.

Gas mileage on the demo was 33MPG's....From the way people were leaving out of there, this does not surprise me...lol.

other thoughts...


Throttle by wire...

WOW is a way to describe this...it really takes some getting used to the throttle by wire system. There is very very little resistance in the throttle that most of us are used to with a cable system. It feels as if the throttle cable is completly disconnected which causes you to rev the bike to high hell when you first get on it and go...everyone left out of the lot on this thing at 6-7K rpms...lol.

I personally prefer the old fashioned throttle cable type system but it does not take long to get used to this as well.


Price:

This one was 26K from what the salesman told me...it was NOT fully loaded but close. Personally I could not see myself spending that kind of money on a bike unless Desmodicci was labeled somewhere on the fairing but to each his own.

What other demo riders said and what they came in on...

One rider was there on his 07 BMW k1200LT and much preffered his LT over the GTL. He said he was not interested in the new bike for some of the reasons I stated above and his LT has served him very well and he prefers the LT fairing and wind protection over the GTL.

Another rider was there after he bought a K1600 last week and has since sold it! he was buying a brand new R1200RT loaded to the brim as we were there and told us him and his wife hated the K16 and it was not as comfortable as his old RT. He did alot of 2 up riding and his wife was getting blasted by the wind on the K16 apparently.

So there you have it...I hope the review helps those who want to know...if you live close I hightly rec'd you go to Countryside BMW and ride it.

[cageyar]

Another two wheel Winnebago.
Not interested.

[NakedRider]

Nice to hear first hand impressions. Thanks.

[Guest24]

Originally Posted by cageyar

Another two wheel Winnebago.
Not interested.

Sure glad you let us know that because I had you pegged for a Goldwing wanna be.

[cageyar]

Originally Posted by Nail24

Sure glad you let us know that because I had you pegged for a Goldwing wanna be.

Why is that a problem for you?
I don't like big, heavy bikes that throw off heat.
I've had my fill of those kind of bikes.
Can't say anything negative about a new BMW?
That's worth a eyeroll right there.......

[cageyar]

Originally Posted by Nail24

Sure glad you let us know.....

I'll let you know something else.
Next time you have a question about some useless additive you're using and I do the research for you, I'll be glad to keep the information to myself.
You're welcome too BTW.
Short memory or more likely just old and befuddled.

[Guest24]

What do you expect from a goober. Doesn't it have an A/C compressor on it? Far too much seriousness for a Monday, Kenny.

[cageyar]

Originally Posted by Nail24

...Far too much seriousness for a Monday, Kenny.

You're embarrassing yourself - go take a nap...