Succumbed to The Dark Side

So it’s 7 years now since I last had a bike we could tour 2-up (Multistrada) and we’re missing our time riding in the Alps and Europe in general. We did a fly ride to Austria 5 years ago and used a BMW test centre at Hotel Weisseespitze , a welcoming and relaxing way to have a riding holiday but doesn’t feel quite so adventurous (plus flight reliability has taken a turn for the worse since then).
So it’s time for a new bike (our Speed & Street Triples are keepers and will still be used in the UK).
S1000XR is ferry bound next spring…

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Gott in himmel :flushed:

My sympathies :blush:

Happy new bike day

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Enjoy the new bike and the European adventures it will provide. Don’t forget to post about your trips for us to enjoy :grinning:

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Enjoy the new bike!! :partying_face:

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As long as you’re happy, that’s what counts! Enjoy

Be interested to get your feedback on it. As a fast do it all bike it looks ideal - better than the usual adventure bike choice?

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I must admit to liking them. Enjoy it, and your up an coming tour.

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Yes, personally I’ve never been sold on the “Adventure Bike” fad, by definition it seems manufacturers must design in some off-road capability, why would you compromise a good road bike design when 90% of owners are never going to leave tarmac (or am I mistaken in my assumption)? And adventure bikes are rarely aesthetically pleasing.
Anyway, my XR is nearly 2 years old, one owner but only 450 miles which was all done in the first couple of weeks before its break-in service, so not many adventures there then. :thinking:
I’ve only had the bike nearly a week and only covered about 100mls so can only give first impressions.
Everything looks well put together and quality, engine is strong but I’m still getting used to going from a 3 cylinder to 4 , need to give it a few more revs. Gearbox and quickshifter is fine, quite a whine from the box but same on the demonstrator so just the way they are (probably just more noticeable as engine and exhaust is quieter than my Triple). Interesting that the BMW manual advises using the clutch at lower revs and gears - perhaps something Triumph should have in their later Speed Triple manual.
Front brake only needs one finger (I’ve always/will use 2) and is electronically linked to the rear. It also has hill hold but so far I’ve found it just encourages me to stall so I’ve switched it off, might give it another try when I’m fully dialled in to the bike.
Handling feels very flickable yet planted at the same time, I think the electronic damping is probably doing a good job of smoothing the road but I’ve yet to test it fully on a road nearby that has me out the seat on the Triple.
It has the usual shed load of electronic rider aids and modes plus a fully customisable one, and linked to an app capable of recording your every move, speed, bank angle etc. Might be advisable to switch speed off when going out to play. :wink:. I’ve also bought the NavVI satnav which integrates well with the bike controls and can display additional info such as engine temp, battery etc etc when not using for nav.
Seat height is higher than it looks, my aging 32" inside leg is about on it’s limit, rider section is well sculpted and keeps you in place (if you like hanging off it’s not for you), likewise the pillion seat, SWMBO commented that she doesn’t slide forwards like on previous bikes we’ve had. The foam is quite firm so I expect we’ll be thinking about a break after a couple of hours.
The main reason I went looking for a gen.2 version (2020>) was the way they’ve designed in the luggage mountings, so much neater than the earlier version. Quality of the panniers is top notch, the negative being they’re not light, you can apparently get a full face helmet in both sides (haven’t checked it out yet). I will be getting the larger top box too (2 helmets in that) but is on back order, should arrive soon.
Another two fold reason for going for the BMW, hopefully it will be more reliable than my previous Ducati experience, however should that not be the case my nearest dealer is only 20 minutes away, Ducati or Triumph are at least 1-1/2 hours away which made the Ducati experience a complete pain.
Any negative comments so far? - the instrument panel is quite large yet they chose not to have a dedicated/permanent fuel gauge, there is a small display across the top where you can scroll between a fuel gauge or “miles to empty” but not both at the same time. Even my old Triple’s analogue & LCD display can manage that. You do get a HUGE amber notice come up on the display when you hit “reserve” - not something you’re going to miss!

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Great initial bike report @Col_C , it provides a good insight to the bike. Thanks for posting. :slightly_smiling_face:

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Hope you enjoy the new bike and find it suits your needs a little better. Just listening to the number of things i wouldn’t want, need or use has convinced me that if it went wrong I couldn’t fix it and i wouldn’t want to have paid for them, im 100% analogue.

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Agree very muchly @Col_C I would rather manufacturers focused more on road baised bikes but I suppose its where the money is? There are a few good options about. If I was in the market for that style of bike it would be a superduke GT for me instead of an adventure bike.

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More pictures please. When you get time that is. :+1::+1::blush::blush:

Probably not what you had in mind :slightly_smiling_face:
Unfortunately she’s stuck there for several days, family wedding up in Nottingham beckons. :roll_eyes:

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That is nice, of that there’s no doubt. Best colour too. :+1::+1:

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…But The Force is with me still :slightly_smiling_face: :+1:

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Phew!:grinning: So glad, was worried for your health there