edgelett
Well-known member
from our point of view, my husband is more worried about the RIGHT bike for what he wants than horsepower.
The dilemma of choosing a new motorcycle
- Thread starter edgelett
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edgelett
Well-known member
We're going to be taking a Versys for a test ride as soon as he's sold the Roadster - it was surprisingly fine for him to sit on height wise, he was expecting it to be too tall.
The Tracer 9, he just didn't like it. Sat on it and hated the split dash, everything seemed too far away and his arms had trouble reaching the controls etc.
where as the Multi and Versys he could reach everything fine.
Tracer might be great for someone with a longer torso and arms perhaps
Or perhaps a BMW R1250R for more versatility. Slap on some bags and a screen … or don’t and let it rip
edgelett
Well-known member
probably well out of our price range sadly.
acrws
Member
One thing I’d say is be wary of the seating & suspension differences in the Scout/Scout Bobber. Since you mentioned rough roads (tho I have no idea what is “rough” for down under…) I met a couple in my town who were over the moon about their Bobbers but fully admitted they transmit a lot about the road to your butt.
edgelett
Well-known member
it was in the 'long list' and he'll test ride one but is looking more at the 'adventure bikes' now.
still need to sell his Harley first though, the sale he thought he had lined up fell through sadly
edgelett
Well-known member
cool thanks - good to know there's a difference. yeah rough here is ROUGH. lots of pot holes.
cupcake_mike
Active member
Hard to find a ADV (with adequate power above 60 hp) with a seat height lower than about 34", which would seem to be a hanging up point for your old man. I've seen no mention of the Super Duke GT. It has a slightly lower seat height than the ftr and a slightly shorter wheelbase. They are pricy if you go new. I bought one last summer, 3 years old with 4k miles on it for half the price of a new one, I found about a dozen for sale within 750 miles of me that were priced in the same area. Not sure how the market is down under for them. It comes with panniers, a top case/rack is easily fitted. 6 speeds and a 6.2 gal fuel tank add up to 250 miles between fillups if you are riding hard, can stretch it to 300+ if you aren't. It has some power (160hp, 105 tq) but you don't have to ride it like a lunatic to take advantage of it. Its got electronic suspension, wheelie control, cruise control, traction control, blah, blah. If you get a gen1 (through 18) it has a lcd screen and quite a bit less stuff to go wrong, in my opinion. The gen 2s stepped up to a TFT screen and slightly different headlight, otherwise the bikes are very similar as far as the major systems go.
Just another to consider.
Just another to consider.
Max Kool
Well-known member
Agreed, that engine can be ridden super lazy if needed. 🖤
edgelett
Well-known member
Cheers - we actually did look at those briefly.
very briefly lol.
Went to the KTM website to look at a video of it.
it's a Superduke with panniers.
and based on this video on the KTM website (which had us laughing our arse off cause it's a hooligan video - with panniers) Tony said 'um - no way, i'd ride that think like a lunatic'
but Tony said 'that's a good thing cause I can't be trusted on that' lmao.
honestly that video is one of the funniest things I've ever seen haha. If they're trying to sell it as a tourer, they failed.
cupcake_mike
Active member
I get where you are coming from, but I did put 9k miles on mine in the first 6 weeks of ownership (3k of that with my wife on the back), so touring is not an issue. I've toured on much worse equipped machines 🤣
I could have recommended a H2SX SE...
edgelett
Well-known member
True story - 2 weeks ago when we were in the local Kawasaki dealership so he could try sitting on the Versys, we saw a H2 in the store - with panniers lmao!
i said 'oh yeah now THERE's a touring bike'! we just about died laughing haha.
I did suggest to him that now he's 10 yrs older than he was when he got the MV he might ride a bit more sensibly on a fast bike like the Duke, but he's keeping it off the list due to price and lack of availability of 2nd hand ones here.
Heading to the BMW dealership on the weekend to try a few on for size & to check out seating position etc. No test rides organised yet as we've had no bites on the Harley yet.
cupcake_mike
Active member
I actually looked a second hand h2sx right before I bought the duke, if the owner would've come down about 15% (he wanted 17, I wanted to pay 15), I would have that in the shed rather than the gt. Would've ended up costing me about 5 grand more, too (got the duke for 10.5)...I happy it worked out, not the least because of the extra dollars in my bank account.
Breto
Well-known member
My kid just bought an M10 SP…it’s quite a nice bike Tash. Handles really well, similar seating position and feel as the FTR. Fully electronic suspension all done through the dash and can be changed on the fly. He’s put an exhaust on it and even it needs to be tuned but I tell ya what it’s not bad. Food for thought.
Pre exhaust shot…👍😎
Pre exhaust shot…👍😎
edgelett
Well-known member
Appreciate this recommendation mate - had a look at one today.
the height was exactly the same as the Ducati Multistrada, it's a good price (i.e. in our range even when we add on panniers), has a lower seat option, and there's lots of good reviews of it out there.
while we were there we also considered a few other BMWs but due to seat height or overall look/weight crossed them off the list.
But we'll be organising a test ride soon!
