S1000XR

[Chad]

As much as I like my RT's I'm seriously thinking of trying something a bit diferrent for a year or two. The question is- what do I get?  Still fancy a GS but it's basically an RT in a pair of hiking boots. Fancy a Ducatli multistrada but reliability is a big concern- in that I would like to ride back from my Germany tours not be driven back in a breakdown truck. So... On to the new multistrada rival- the s1000XR.  What do you think of this bike? I have to say on paper & looks alone it is very tempting. I like the style, like riding position, love that engine:-)  I have to say I t makes my LC look fat, frumpy & ugly (just how I like my women -not).
Has anyone ridden one yet? I need to book a test ride - ideally an extended one for a day possibly so I can get a good feel of the bike- IF I can find a dealer that will allow more than an hour!

[Spencert231]

Chad having come from Triumph Tigers 800/XC I thought I would have a look at the local dealership. I was shocked by its weight. Now I am 17.5 st and not weak, but bringing it off the side stand admittedly the ground was not even and I was lifting from the upside, but it was not something we would not be doing every day it was awkward and heavy. But to look at it is a really good looking bike, but the weight and how it's carried was a big surprise. Maybe I should train harder and give it another go?

[guest2360]

I had one with me last week on a Scotland tour.  Owner loves it.  Unladen weight is 228 kg so not heavy, say 240 fuelled.  It does seem to carry it high though.  Would think the R1200RS would make a better swap and they are good.

[Steve F]

Yes Chad. I took a dealer demo one (with all the bling) for a long ride when I was eliminating various Beemer choices prior to recently buying my RT. It certainly bought a fixed manic grin to my face throughout the ride, as the engine is fantastic. Mind you, so it should be as it's a detuned S1000R lump!! Bl**dy fast and surprisingly good wind protection from what is quite a small standard screen. The Gear Shift Assist feature made gear changes up and down the box seamless and smooth, the instrument cluster not dissimilar to a GS, which is not my favourite layout I must say. However, with all the ride mode choices available, it did  make for confident riding in the wet in RAIN mode, especially with all that torque at the rear wheel. Bike weight ? I'm 6' 2" with a 33" inside leg. I didn't find it heavy, just a bit tall (again like the GS) with my feet on tip-toe when sat astride it (and that was with a low seat option fitted). The chain drive ? Yes, no real issue there, other than I've got used to shaft drive bikes of late, so not a personal favourite of mine. My only real grumble was that of significant vibration throught the throttle twistgrip between 70 and 85 mph. Very annoying and distracting from the ride.
When you add on all the bling/accessories, this is no longer a well-priced adventure bike, but I did much prefer it to the Multistrada which just doesn't cut it for me. All in all, a fun bike, but not a long distance tourer I feel. Yes, it has more than enough power for that purpose, but distributed over the range in a much more frantic way. This bike is the offspring of a mating between an S1000R and a GS1200 !! 
You'll just have to go and try one and see for yourself Chad....!!

[Chad]

I went up to Coopers this PM to have a closer look and arrange a test ride. Would you believe they were too busy to arrange it?! I wasn't expecting to take one out today, but later in the week. Couldn't believe it. Anyhow, the XR looks the business; nice upright riding position but the seat height seems higher than both the RT & GS! I'm not a short arse but I wouldn't feel confident stopping on an uneven surface. I don't like the instrument cluster- the speedo like the GS is too small for my liking (why??). The rack doesn't have the same mounting pattern as other bm's so it'll be interesting to see what boxes they have lined up for the bike (and the typically elevated price). I didn't find it heavy but it was heavier than expected and as others have said, the weight does sit noticeably high. One thing I did notice is that when sat astride the bike with both feet on the ground, the footpegs seem to dig into the lower legs, forcing your legs wider apart. On my RT my legs position slightly behind the foot pegs. Overall the bike is bigger than the photos & videos suggest. Jumping straight onto a GSA, it could be me, but the weight seemed lower. I am bothered by the vibration on the XR, I've heard this time & time again, and that alone could turn me against the bike, especially when it's around the 70-80mph region!! I shall take one out for a run this week if I get time & let you know what I think of the bike.

[fmantek]

As much as I like my RT's I'm seriously thinking of trying something a bit diferrent for a year or two. The question is- what do I get?  Still fancy a GS but it's basically an RT in a pair of hiking boots. Fancy a Ducatli multistrada but reliability is a big concern- in that I would like to ride back from my Germany tours not be driven back in a breakdown truck. So... On to the new multistrada rival- the s1000XR.  What do you think of this bike? I have to say on paper & looks alone it is very tempting. I like the style, like riding position, love that engine:-)  I have to say I t makes my LC look fat, frumpy & ugly (just how I like my women -not).
Has anyone ridden one yet? I need to book a test ride - ideally an extended one for a day possibly so I can get a good feel of the bike- IF I can find a dealer that will allow more than an hour!

Why would you be concerned about the Ducati reliability compared to a brand new BMW bike?

From every test I read in German magazines, the xR has a  serious construction fault, far too many vibrations. Every serious tester (so, not the magazines that just copy the BMW Ads, but those who rode them for a few thousand km.) complained about that. In an explicit compare between the BMW and the new duc in "tourenfahrer" magazine, the duc came out on top. And it is, imo, the much nicer looking bike....

Frank


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[Steve F]

Interesting comments Frank re the vibration issue. Mind you, I'd have thought that the Ducati MS v-twin engine would be a shaky old lump, or is engine damping such that it's been damped down to a minimum??

[fmantek]

Interesting comments Frank re the vibration issue. Mind you, I'd have thought that the Ducati MS v-twin engine would be a shaky old lump, or is engine damping such that it's been damped down to a minimum??

Curious, why would you think that about the Ducati v-twin? I have personally not ridden the latest MS, so i can not say, but, we ride Boxers, and we don't complain easily about vibrations from the engines.... There are no reports about the latest Ducati being a "rough" ride, on the contrary, the variable valve control seems to be receiving high praises for it's behavior. The only v-twin i ever rode that had a lot of vibrations was the MotoGuzzi Stelvio a few years back, that one had "too much" character for my taste


The older Ducatis MS were "race" oriented - you needed to ride them in high revs, which was never my style, but the new engine seems to be a very civilized beast, easily cruisable, but still a lot of fun beyond 7000 rpm.


Anyhow, as usual, one needs to test ride them for a few hours to see how much this effects one self. I would caution though to ride the XR for a few hours longer, otherwise on your first longer trip you might be in for a painful surprise. The reports i am reading over here, by more or less trusted journalists (as far as they exist) are all complaining about painful vibrations after a day on the road. Considering how much Ad money BMW is throwing at those magazines, i do not believe they would print this just for fun.


Frank

[richardbd]

From every test I read in German magazines, the xR has a  serious construction fault, far too many vibrations. Every serious tester (so, not the magazines that just copy the BMW Ads, but those who rode them for a few thousand km.) complained about that.

Interestingly, one or two XR riders beginning to say that adding heavier bar ends - like R&G - appears to cure the problem.


Good news if it does but makes it look like a bit of a schoolboy error on BMW's part if it's true...

[Steve F]

Frank, I only made that generalisation on the basis of a v-twin engine being a configuration that is generally more 'shaky' than in-line or parallel twins. Re the Beemer boxer configuration, I find the R1200 LC variant surprisingly smooth for a horizontally-opposed twin, and BMW appear to have also damped down the familiar side to side oscillation that's synomomous with a Boxer engine.

[Spencert231]

It is strange that heavier bar ends cure vibes yet designers and manufactures are not identifying this and leaving us to spend more money on the bike. Stranger again is the manufacturer of said bike does not manufacture the aftermarket parts. On both my tigers I had to put weighted bar ends and the difference not just for vibes but steering and control was huge, for the better that is.

[Levisp]

Agree Spencer you do wonder what testing takes place. They never seem to get screens right either. Must be a conspiracy ! ;D

[Chad]

Why would you be concerned about the Ducati reliability compared to a brand new BMW bike?

Hi Frank, to answer your question; I said I fancy something different- such as a GS, a Ducati MS, or an XR. I commented on the Ducati because my friends experience of owning one found it to very, very unreliable, hence I am reluctant to buy one. Then I went to talk about the XR, BMW's MS rival.


I agree in that having looked at the XR and Mulitsrada, I think the MS is the better looking bike. However, with regards to boxers being unrefined, as mentioned by another member, I think the LC boxer is surprisingly refined, with very little vibration. I can ride my LC all day with no discomfort at all. Apart from reliability issues, which easily be evidenced & believed from the countless comments by owners on forums, I tend to make my own mind up about a bike in terms of handling, refinement etc. whilst I currently own & have owned many BMW bikes, I certainly don't turn a blind eye to the 'issues' bmw's have (as my previous uploads will show). I agree that engineers 'must' have known of the vibration issues, so why didn't they resolve the problem?? Because some people will buy the bike for the image & badge alone... Just like Ducati, motoguzzi & MV Augusta owners, and ignore the niggles.

Frank

[Levisp]

Not sure there is such a thing as the perfect bike. All the bikes I have owned have had niggles or as some would like to say character.

[mercator1]

Curious, why would you think that about the Ducati v-twin? I have personally not ridden the latest MS, so i can not say, but, we ride Boxers, and we don't complain easily about vibrations from the engines.... There are no reports about the latest Ducati being a "rough" ride, on the contrary, the variable valve control seems to be receiving high praises for it's behavior. The only v-twin i ever rode that had a lot of vibrations was the MotoGuzzi Stelvio a few years back, that one had "too much" character for my taste


The older Ducatis MS were "race" oriented - you needed to ride them in high revs, which was never my style, but the new engine seems to be a very civilized beast, easily cruisable, but still a lot of fun beyond 7000 rpm.


Anyhow, as usual, one needs to test ride them for a few hours to see how much this effects one self. I would caution though to ride the XR for a few hours longer, otherwise on your first longer trip you might be in for a painful surprise. The reports i am reading over here, by more or less trusted journalists (as far as they exist) are all complaining about painful vibrations after a day on the road. Considering how much Ad money BMW is throwing at those magazines, i do not believe they would print this just for fun.


Frank

We rode all the Duc's (except the Pannigale - I'm old and fat), and the new Multistrada is a damn fine piece of machinery.  Being only 5'9", I thought the low seat would be best, but it felt better balanced and handled better with the high seat setup.  Just a joy to ride.  Still, when I have the '15 RT paid off, it's a Diavel for me.  Never had such a crap eating grin on my face as I did after that quite snappy test ride.