My bike is a 2010 non-ABS. So far, I have not had the need for ABS or traction control. I will not claim to be a very skilled rider, just a very defensive one. However, I am contemplating it is better to have traction control and ABS just as an insurance.
Does it justify the cost to upgrade to a newer bike with those amenities?
If I did not feel I was a very skilled rider I would invest the money in track days and track schools like the upcoming Sport Touring track school sponsored by COG.
Reading this thread with all the abs fan's post, I admit a shadow of a doubt crept in, maybe I ca.t really outbreak a computer. Today on a 400 mile ride home from Paris, TX I put that shadow to rest. Breaking hard for a yellow light from 65 mph(I have a habit of practicing threshold braking at yellow lights) the damn abs kicked in for the first time ever on my 08. The damn brakes let go right when I was ready to nail the white line and I ended up 2 feet past. What a clunky, clumbsy mechanism! Now I am convinced I can outbreak ABS by 2 feet.
I believe the ABS in the Gen2 is better/newer design (than what you have in the Gen1). Also, if it has never kicked in before, that means you have never before braked to the limit of grip Perhaps you never needed to, though. It is exceeding rare I have experienced ABS kicking in on my 2011.... I think only twice ever. In neither case I really needed it, since I was almost stopped and still had enough space.I have non abs ZX14 forks on my ABS 08 Concours. After I went to the effort to get the sensor installed on the ZX fork I tried many times to get the abs to kick in to test the installation. I never could get it to kick in because I have trained myself to threshold brake so well. I just could not make myself brake past the point where I KNEW it was going to slide if I pulled any harder. You cannot ride the track without trail braking and If you want to turn good times you have to threshold trail brake in most corners. After 40 track days over the last 12 years I think I am pretty good at it. Won't argue with your vast majority comment.
But, it really depends on condition. I have no doubt that SOME people can manually out-brake SOME ABS systems SOME times in SOME conditions. Fewer still can out-brake it much of the time in many conditions. But, overall, very few people can do better most of the time in all conditions. So the vast majority of people will benefit greatly from a modern ABS system.
Don't believe antilock brakes have ever helped me... ever.me too
Traction Control has just pissed me off when the front tire comes up cutting the engine out, I shut it off
often.
Then again I don't drive on loose stones and drive carefully in the rain.