Buying New, Demo or Used RT's

[David.]

What are you thoughts, preferences & reasons or other comments on buying either, New, Demo or Used RT's.

New - I've had two new RT's, 2007 & 2010.
Financially I can afford to purchase New,
it's a nice feeling riding away on a brand new machine,
I know how it's been run in,
I can clean & maintain it accordingly from day 1,
it's got a 2 year Warranty.

Demo - I've never purchased a Demo.
As above, I'm not bothered about the perceived savings, some times very small over buying New & don't know how it been run in.
Most of us have probably ridden a Demo Bike, knowing that it's not yours, you're not going to purchase it & you'll be giving it back to the Dealer.

Used - I bought a Used 2012 RT last year (2014).
The reason I bought it was because I prefer the TC over the LC & my 2010 Model had 36,000 miles on the clock.
The 2012 Bike had 3,000 miles on it & had had 2 previous owners.
I was a little dubious about why a Bike should change hands twice in 2 years & 3,000 miles.
It certainly wasn't as clean & tidy as it should have been for it's age & mileage.
I took a chance on it, after all, it came with a 1 year Used Bike Warranty.
After spending the best part of 4 days cleaning it, it's looked like it should do.

[Firenailer]

Most of the time I buy new. I'm always concerned about just how hard a demo or used bike has been run and what kind of care they've had.


The difference in price new to demo has never made much sense to me either, I'd rather pay a tiny bit more and know I've broken the bike in properly.


Used is interesting because like you, sometimes the bike you want isn't made any longer and you have to go find a good one. I'm always scouting Cycle Trader for some bike I'd like to have in the garage that's no longer available, or one I've been dreaming about that might be available at the right price. (As long as it has a full dealer service history to go with it).

[k9doc]

I prefer the TC over the LC

Having never ridden the LC, I would be interested in your reasoning for the above.
Is it a technical thing or more of a riding experience thing.


Thanks.

[David.]

I first viewed the LC when they were launched in the UK, (March 2014).
Went to a local BMW Dealer to look at all 3 Colours together, both my wife & I came away and said we were "underwhelmed" with the choice of colours & it's physical appearance.

Later in September 2014, I had the opportunity to Test Ride the Bike for a full day, covering 100 miles on a variety of roads.
I found that there was more vibration through the Handlebars & Footrests, the Exhaust note/sound was also noisy & irritating.
Whilst riding, I felt the motor had lost some of it's "Boxer Twin" character which I like & feels more like an inline 4 cylinder Bike.

Cosmetically, the Panels don't wrap around nicely like on the TC, with lots of sharp edges & the "door handle" style badge is awful.
The quality of the finish was poor, Plastics felt flimsy & not securely screwed on, more push fit.
The on board storage space is limited.

Please remember that this is only my personal opinion.

[guest2360]

I also first viewed the LC on its launch day but was hooked on K1600s at the time. On closer inspection I discovered it was a K1600 spec wise but 100kg lighter so 3 months later the K was gone. None of the above observations are apparent on my grey rocket ship.

[David.]

So 3 months later the K was gone.

Did you buy a New, Demo or Used RT.

[guest2360]

It was one of the dreaded rejects with 400 miles on the clock, so nearly new used

[Firenailer]

I first viewed the LC when they were launched in the UK, (March 2014).
Went to a local BMW Dealer to look at all 3 Colours together, both my wife & I came away and said we were "underwhelmed" with the choice of colours & it's physical appearance.

Later in September 2014, I had the opportunity to Test Ride the Bike for a full day, covering 100 miles on a variety of roads.
I found that there was more vibration through the Handlebars & Footrests, the Exhaust note/sound was also noisy & irritating.
Whilst riding, I felt the motor had lost some of it's "Boxer Twin" character which I like & feels more like an inline 4 cylinder Bike.

Cosmetically, the Panels don't wrap around nicely like on the TC, with lots of sharp edges & the "door handle" style badge is awful.
The quality of the finish was poor, Plastics felt flimsy & not securely screwed on, more push fit.
The on board storage space is limited.

Please remember that this is only my personal opinion.

I had the opportunity to purchase one of the 2014 buybacks from my Dealer last year. It would have cost me my CamHead and $2500. I wanted to like the new bike SO MUCH as it really was a great deal, but after a few test rides I felt exactly the same way, I just didn't like it. The whole bike felt sort of cheaply put together, buzzy and load. We all know that BMW isn't what it once was for reliability, but I still prefer my CH for many of the same reasons you do.

[David.]

I wanted to like the new bike SO MUCH

Same here, before the launch in March 2014, I'd done all my research etc. & had an idea of the cost to change which I was prepared to pay, I was so disappointed that I didn't like to new LC.

In September 2014, I was offered "Top Book" for my 2010 TC against a new LC, I really wanted to like the Bike & have a new one, again I was happy to pay the cost to change.

Following the Test Ride, I was offered the same for my 2010 TC against the used 2012 TC Model, the cost to change was £2,920 which I thought was very reasonable.

[k9doc]

I first viewed the LC when they were launched in the UK, (March 2014).
Went to a local BMW Dealer to look at all 3 Colours together, both my wife & I came away and said we were "underwhelmed" with the choice of colours & it's physical appearance.
Later in September 2014, I had the opportunity to Test Ride the Bike for a full day, covering 100 miles on a variety of roads.
I found that there was more vibration through the Handlebars & Footrests, the Exhaust note/sound was also noisy & irritating.
Whilst riding, I felt the motor had lost some of it's "Boxer Twin" character which I like & feels more like an inline 4 cylinder Bike.
Cosmetically, the Panels don't wrap around nicely like on the TC, with lots of sharp edges & the "door handle" style badge is awful.
The quality of the finish was poor, Plastics felt flimsy & not securely screwed on, more push fit.
The on board storage space is limited.
Please remember that this is only my personal opinion.

Underwhelmed then.

[David.]

Underwhelmed then.

Exactly & so disappointed.

[k9doc]

^ @David

Do you think your views are widespread or is the LC generally well received? If widely held, do you think any of the issues will be sorted in subsequent incarnations ie by the time I might be thinking of getting one. I've always been a bit wary of diving in too soon after a major model revision.

[guest2360]

My opinion on what's better on the LC.
Engine. Faster, more grunt and BHP, more economical and with 3 modes.
Weather protection. Much better with less back draught
Mirrors. You can see things behind you not just your knuckles.
Panniers. A little larger, lighter and keyless
Dash. In a different league
Electronics. Far superior with much more info available from the on board computer
Height. Lower for us short types
Handling. Much more agile.
Lighting. Again in a different league.
Suspension. Just works better and more comfortable.
Only my opinion of course having owned every variation of the RT since 1996.
Its also worth remembering that much of what's on the bike has come from the 1600 which has now been around for 4 years, luggage, electrics, dash, engine modes.

[David.]

Do you think your views are widespread or is the LC generally well received? If widely held, do you think any of the issues will be sorted in subsequent incarnations i.e. by the time I might be thinking of getting one.

Obviously, my views are my own & I'm sure there are plenty of LC Owners out there who love their Bikes & wouldn't have anything else.

OK, unfortunately, the LC didn't have a great start to life with the Rear Shock Absorber problems.
Generally, manufacturers are quick to put things right on new Models, it's probably a continuous process of improvement.

I'll be looking after my 2012 TC as if it's my last Bike, there's currently nothing out there that I would rather have.

The best thing to do is to Test Ride an LC & see what you think yourself, everyone is different & has their own opinions.

[k9doc]

@RTman10  I noticed a significant difference and improvement with my '11 TC over my previous '08. If the improvements with the LC are as you desribe, then it must be some bike. It seems generally well thought of over on 'other forums' but I suppose a range of opinions is always to be expected and ownership will be subjective. I wonder if the improvements in rider experience are instantly obvious, or do they grow on you over time.


@ DD It'll be a while before I test ride an LC as I've only just got acquainted with my current bike bought with only 6500 miles so barely run in.
When the TCs first appeared, I rode a demo and a very low mileage pre owned, back to back. One buzzed and the other didn't. Didn't buy either as the trade in values didn't stack up.