if the bike is to be used in the winter for your commute and given the three bikes you currently have, which has performed best in the winter?
Does your commute take in city riding? If so the Yamaha might feel a little big for filtering. I had an R1200RT which although very capable, couldn’t touch the Multi for city stuff. If your commute is purely Motorway then the Yams a good buy. I’ve had 2 Z1000s (neither the SX). Great bikes and lots of fun. Great I’m town but hard word on a longer ride. I think you’re either a Twin type of rider or your not. I get great pleasure using the torque and engine braking to ride smoothly. An in-line 4 or Triple never feels as good to me (and I’ve owned bloody loads). However like many have stated, I was smitten within an hour of my test ride. If you’re not....maybe it’s not for you.
I have just bought a new bike after 3 amazing years with a 1200 DVT Multi. Superb bike. I looked at the 1260 but it was just too pricey for me, so I started looking around. I accidentally test rode a Yamaha MT-10 (I was looking for a pair of biking jeans - honest) and that was it. Game over. Ludicrous power, really quite comfy (though not as much as the Multi), sort of practical. The engine is something else. Handling & cornering is exceptional. And I have noticed that it is a lot more manageable in traffic. Smaller, lighter, more manouverable (though less steering lock), easier to filter. Might be an interesting option for you to look at. Only downside is the fuel reserve is at 120 miles so you’ll be filling up (mind you the Multi did 150 before reserve so only 30 miles in it). Anyway, I paid £9999 for a brand spanking new one.
Id a 2017 Z1000sx tourer and it was a brilliant bike. I toured, commuted and scratched on it. Unfortunately i started to get numb left hand and sore knee after a short while, a function of me rather than the bike id say! The Z is quicker than the Multi regardless of what the quoted power levels are. I love my multi, its far more comfortable and the wide bars make it more flickable than the Z. Id tried an S1000XR and loved it, but it was vibes, however that has apparently been fixed. I miss the turbine in line 4 for smoothness and the twin can be a bit lumpy if caught in the wrong gear, but it is so tractable and the engine braking is superb. Try the s1000xr, it might scratch all your itches!
I rode one last week from the dealer and they still vibrate at 'normal speeds' - when you are revving the bike out you don't notice. I think the 'vibe factor' (not vibrations' but your own personal rhythm is most important thing in enjoying riding. The XR felt very planted and the chassis package seemed very, very good (I rode SE - top model) However...The engine...I had forgotten how much I cannot abide the 'vibes' of a four cylinder bike. I went open-minded but really, REALLY disliked the anxious revvvy feel that was there from about 60 mph. I was looking for 7th gear...I am not used to or interested in revving out to the extent that the XR can and wanted me to...however - if you have a 4 cyl BMW already you may well love it. It has the great riding position and an awesome engine...but not an engine I would ever want to have. I can honestly say that I would not want one if it was given to me...unless I could sell it right away
£14500 for new sounds a good deal. Mine was £17400 in 2015 with centre stand, heated grips, tank bag (think it may have been urban lack or something) so sounds like nearly 3k from that.
Great bike on B roads but twitchy at high cruising speeds, pretty awful on a motorway at 90 plus ( mph ) imho
I had this call in December: new 1260 or an unregd 1200S at 14k5. I already have a 2012 1200S Touring, so my decision was a little different. My current bike is just fine, and the 1260 didnt look special enough for me to want it enough. 18k for a new touring is a chunk of change, and I was underwhelmed with the changes, so I chose not to buy either. Personally only you can decide if you will regret not buying the latest and (arguably) greatest. The 1200S is a cracking bike, and if you aren't using the RR to its full potential I don't think you will struggle with what the 1200 offers Having that 3k head start against depreciation will make the 1200S feel all that more a better buy imo.
Just had 3 days at IOM with mates on R1's and S1000RR. 190miles to Heysham, A roads and Mortorway. Out dragging all of them up the mountain and easily staying with them through any corners, then fast A road cruise home in comfort and first home. That was on my KTM Super Duke GT. This is proving to me what RIDE magazine said. One bike to rule them all. Not popular on this forum but for me , the futures bright ;-)
/threadend Don't buy any Ducati for this purpose. It's not a matter of if, but when it will get stolen. 30seconds and counting...
Having commuted into London for over 15 years the only bike I ever had stolen was an R6. That said I have a tracker fitted and park in an NCP car park with an attendant.
Ditto, except I've never had a bike stolen from central London. Half the miles on my old DVT were in central London. It's too big and heavy for the bike thieves who want nice, lightweight, desirable sports bikes, or large capacity scooters to tow sports bikes away with. I think the Multistrada is a physical challenge for them and is ugly enough to slip under the radar. I'm not saying they'd never get stolen, but park a Multistrada next to almost any modern sports bike and the sports bike going to go first ... and an R6 is about as nick-able as they come.
A few thoughts. I've cycled through a number of top "all rounder" bikes over the past couple of years including GSw, Caponord, Tiger, and have test-ridden a bunch of stuff. I commute every day to work (distance varies, in Los Angeles so traffic is always nuts), do weekend rides, often 2-up, in the mountains, and do loaded trips. These days I switch back and forth between a '17 1200DVT and '18 KTM Super adventure S. If you like twins, the Multi is hard to fault. I have a full Termi system with race EDU on mine, and that fixes much of the torque hole. The 1260 is "better" in the low-mid range, but doesn't have the manic pull of the 1200 as you rise in the rage. Whether that is due to not having the hole (so less rush but just linear pull) or retuning to move the torque band lower is a point of discussion. My test ride on a 1260 was brief, but I did feel like the bike had more linear pull while the handling was a bit less-quick than the 1200. They wanted to increase stability, and when you do that, you lose some quickness in handling - no free lunch. Since my Multi is my "sport bike" proxy, I prefer quicker handling. I haven't experienced any instability at speed, even when fully loaded so ymmv. The KTM 1290 frankly is the magic motor of any I've ridden. Pulls everywhere, not vibey, will putter around town no problem, will scream when you want it. The SA-S is a very good all-round bike. The 19/17 wheel combo makes it handle like a GSw (which to me isn't a bad thing), and it is a bit more stable than the Multi. If I could only have one bike it would be a tough choice. Since we try and do some 2-up off-road, then KTM wins there as the Multi isn't ideal in the dirt. If all we did was pavement, I'd likely go Multi. I will say the Multi is more work around town as you need to keep the engine in the right revs if you want peak performance. By contrast the KTM pulls anywhere. Lots of great bikes these days...
So a brief update as the OP to this thread. I made my decision and relatively easily sold all 3 of my old bikes. I bought a 66 plate FJR1300 (current model) which is in excellent condition, with a few extras and was a strong discount to the price of a heavily discounted new model. They also offered me a decent PX for my 09 VFR which was the harder one to shift as it needed an MOT and the expensive valve adjustment service. Delivery, service and buying experience was very good so thumbs up to West Midlands Motorcycle Centre. I also bought one of the last new and unregistered 1200S models with Touring Pack from Metropolis in London. That cost me c.£14.1k plus OTR. I then added the 2 year extended warranty as it's a Ducati! So far, still in the running in period, but really like it. Better than I remembered when I first test rode the 1260S. Seat is a little uncomfortable and it's quite hot during this fine weather we're having but that won't last long. It is wide and a little difficult filtering in parts of London but getting used to it. I'm looking forward to opening it up as I can really feel the power surge just over 5k RPM. The exhaust (standard cans) sounds a lot better than I remember and I also like its lethargic way of starting up - reminds me of old bikes where the battery is on its last legs! Going to add a Scottoiler over the weekend. Now got to wait a couple of weeks for the first service date as that's the earliest I can get it booked in. So ended up going from 3 bikes to 2, instead of 1 but really pleased with them both....
I have a DP seat that i'm going to sell, £300 delivered, if of any use...its plush as hell but lifts it an inch which I cant afford. About £460 new
