What have you test ridden lately?

[allrider]

My Oakley sunglasses are on the way since I test rode an FZ8 the other day.

Nice bike. A good all around UJM Compact and unfaired, but nice and light is a nice change. Been quite a while since I rode an unfaired bike. I'm spoiled.

Quick steering, but isn't everything that's smaller than an FJR? Power was OK until 7k rpms, then it lights the afterburners and it flys. The nice fresh brakes on the lighter bike was impressive. It would be a great around town bike and tons o fun in the twisties. All that and they gave me a pair of Oakleys to ride it. They should make that an annual thing.

 

[Geezer]

I test rode a Super Tenere a couple of weeks ago. I was looking at smaller dual sports and they offered me a ride on the S10. After all of the positive chat on this forum about it I decided to take a ride. It is a fun bike, but will not replace my FJR and is way too big for the kind of trail riding I want to do.

 

[Niehart]

2012 Ducati Streetfighter S - holy damn, power to weight ratio - nothing but fun - well, maybe a ticket or two

Used: 9980 miles, Akrapovich exhaust, Speedy moto sliders, Rearsets, ASV Aluminum levers, Ventura rear bag mount, Showroom Condition!!

Thanks God it didn't fit me like my Duc S4RS.

 

[SacramentoMike]

GS 650.

Took it for a little 1300-1400 km test ride in the Alps. Fun bike, plenty of zip, good clearance, great in tight turns (of which we had a lot). Kept up fine with the 1200s (but not so much the Audis and the Mercedes-es) on the Autobahn. Crappy seat, pegs too high. Good bike for the trip, but I'd have to spend a little more to fix those two things, if they're fixable at all. Costs about the same as a new FJR though, so, nah.

 

[iliveforcurves]

I got a postcard from Yamaha to take a rest ride and get a pair of Oakleys. Of all the dealers here in Central Texas the only bike available for a test ride was a Stryker. I really wasn't interested in one of those, I would have liked to try out a 113 cubic inch Raider. I told them it was like test driving a V6 Mustang when you're really wanting to drive a Shelby.

 

[yamafitter]

While Mike was testing the GS I had the opportunity on the same test facility (the Alps) to test ride a BMW F800ST ...

The bike is a mid-sized sport tourer that has a low seat height which would make it very good for folks with a short inseam. I'm fine sitting on my FJR so the bike was slightly cramped to me. Gearing is very tall in first gear and sixth is almost like an overdrive. The only time I used 6th gear was when we were on the Autobahn and I spent most of the time in the passes in the Alps in second & third gears.

The supplied saddlebags are tiny. My running shoes by themselves almost filled one bag. No jokes about my big feet please.

My biggest dislike was the front suspension. The front springs were far too soft and the front end would almost collapse under braking. There was also no compression or rebound adjustment available on the front suspension so to fix the problem would require aftermarket forks which is an expensive farkle.

Unlike other I had no problem with the stock BMW seat but with the peg placement slightly high and the seat set low on the bike I was almost at the limit of my restricted range of motion with my knees.

This would not be a bike that I would consider buying after having spent some time on it.

I also had an afternoon on a Triumph 800 Explorer when I traded bike with our guide ....

Sitting postion was much less cramped for me and I found it was less work to initiate the turn in on the tight hairpins due to the larger front wheel. The suspension is off however. The bike has what I would describe as a very choppy ride. It was acting like there was far too much rebound on the rear shock. The bike also needs lots of rpm to make decent power. The BMW F800ST seem to produce decent torque down low but the Triumph needed to be above 5000 rpm if you were planning on making a quick pass. The transmission on the Triumph however was much smoother than that on the BMW that I rode.

The seat was also wrong for me. I found myself being irritated by the ridge between the rider and pillon positions that was located to far forward for my big butt. I would have liked the opportunity to compare it directly to the BMW GS from which this bike was copied.

 

[gixxerjasen]

Last bike I test rode was this past spring, 2012 Yamaha FJR. This confirmed my suspicions and resulted in the purchase of my 07.

 

[Scooper]

Today I was on a group ride with a good mix of bikes. I was on my Tenere today. Traded with two different fellas on GS 1150 I believe there were. One was a 2001 and the other was a 2003. First time ever on a BMW. Well balanced bikes and I liked them very much but my Tenere fits me better. One coment that was repeated was that the Tenny had more power. Again I liked the GS fine but the Tenere has a lower positioned foot peg and that alone makes it fit me better. I enjoy riding other models and expand my horizons.

Scooper

 

[allrider]

Test rode a VFR 1200 with auto-transmission. It's not just an auto clutch, its a full auto transmission. I own an AE so I have been interested in what the Honda was like.

They really did a great job with this bike. Great motor. Incredibly well behaved at any slow speed, and when you let er rip she's got more than you would expect for such a well behaved bike. Just by my seat of the pants assessment, this bike could walk away from my FJR. Throttle response at take off is perfection. Soooo smooth, so seamless. It goes through the gears without any input if you set it on auto. Down shifts as necessary, and goes back to first from top gear when you come to a stop. Dual clutch shifting is audible but not very perceptible.

Complaints are few. Beside that is not a full on tourer like the FJR with adjustable windscreen and seat position being a bit sporty, the only other thing I could find is the up and down shift buttons are separate, unlike the AE which has one switch you can toggle back and forth. I got used to using one finger to shift while covering the horn or signaling with the other. Talk about lazy.

BTW, got my Oakleys.

Thanks Yama Mamma,

It was fun playing with your new toys, but I'll stick with my current FJR until you do it better somehow. Until then, May the Farkles be with me.

 

[RadioHowie]

The seat was also wrong for me. I found myself being irritated by the ridge between the rider and pillon positions that was located to far forward for my big butt. I would have liked the opportunity to compare it directly to the BMW GS from which this bike was copied.

'fitter, when I got down to this last paragraph, I had to slide the page back up to see who posted this reply. I was thinking with the phrase "...my big butt..." the poster had to be Beemerdons.