..and have a place to sleep as well.
(sorry max', I couldn't let Conniesaki out do me when it comes to picking on you.)
Had cruise on my Harley Ultra and I miss it on the connie! I do have a throttlemeister and it works ok, but ok isn't good enough.
Feel free to chime in on that flash from SISF and let me know if you're loving it. Looking for a little "nudge" here
Not sure anyone has done that yet. But if it is even as good as the Guhl flash (which I am confident it would be at least as good if not better), then it is very much worth doing. My bike came alive after I flashed it and highly recommend it as a great upgrade.
Hmmm, have to really consider it now because a flash recommended by MAX who said the bike "wasn't right for him" is a pretty high recommendation !
Say it ain't so, Max. Say it ain't so!
I have owned a good number of BMWs primarily due to Ozzie at Ozzie’s BMW in Chico to include a K1200S. (Ozzie passed and it is still hard for me, I miss him) The C1400 is a brilliant bike. Adding a cruse control, bar risers, a seat, a windshield and a trunk is a minor expense compared to the MSRP of a K1600. The K is in the Goldwing class for Pete sake. The only place where the R1200RT is going to out shine the C14 is on an alpine tour with nothing but switchbacks as far as the eye can see. Not typical American tour riding. (Yes there are places) I was a bit skeptical of the C14s capability in the California countryside. This was quickly put to rest once the break in period was over. 3rd gear is simply perfect! Yes she is big but she is composed and can run! It is a fantastic balance of power, weight and comfort. For about $2000.00 more they could make a better version but is it the market share they are going after?
Dirtwiz Saying that BMW does not make a high mile bike is a bit of an odd statement to me. This is the company that started the sport tour class and was known for high mileage machines. (Despite the fact Yamaha claims they invented the Supersport Touring category) The 1977 R100RS and the 1979 R100RT both predate the 1984 FJ1100. The K100RS “Flying Brick” was introduced in 1982 and by 1988 had ABS. It wasn’t until the 1986 FJ1200 that the bike had a proper faring. Since 1986 The Concourse has been a mainstay in the sport tour class and had the same basic conclusions made when compared to the BMW the year it was introduced in the USA.
(The Concours was introduced into the USA the year after the slightly faster (137 mph) BMW K100LT at less than two-thirds the price of the BMW machine. Both bikes were tested by the magazine Motorcyclist, which came out in favor of the Kawasaki concluding that it was "the most practical, useful and competent motorcycle made" and "superior to the BMW in almost every aspect imaginable. )
(Yamaha…Please)
(On a side note) If you want a bike you can work on quite easily and will run way over 100,000 miles of hard riding get a 2004 BMW R1150RT. Fast? No but it is a proven platform. CHP ran them out to 120,000 miles due to the person that was supposed to deliver the C14 police models to them skipping the country after the first few unit delivery. (As I have been told)
The C14 is a brilliant machine and I am beyond happy with mine.
Nice post ruffuride, good for people like me that haven't owned any other ST bikes and wonder what the others are like. It's nice to hear the comparisons and to hear people, who have had BMW experience, talk about what a great bike our Concours is!
Now, if I can just figure out the WINDSCREEN issue I'd be 100% satisfied! I struggle with finding the right windscreen, it drives me nuts!!
Maybe my expectations are too high?
Mike
Mike,
ruffride stated a lot of good facts. I too started my Sport Touring
on BMW's. I had several posts on the original forum (before they erased it all) regarding my BMW experiences. I had just over 300,000miles on BMW's before the C14 was announced. Way back in 1990 I test rode a C10 and eventually passed it up for a 1984 R100RT BMW 60th Anniversary Edition. I put about 50K miles on that one and ordered a 1993 K1100LT when they were first announced here in the USA. I still
have that LT with around 150,000 miles on it. You'll see it when I get out there in November. In 1996, the R1100RT was announced and after one test ride, I had to have one. The Telelever front suspension was amazing
and the 90 HP was pretty good for a Boxer. I put 85K on that bike and it
still lives in my garage here. In 1999 or so I found a 1984 Last Edition R100RS in Pearl White with 19K miles on it. Still have it and it gets out a few times a year. All my BMW's have been reliable but the C14 was the bike I was waiting for, handling, power and reliability in one package. I ordered my C14 in Oct 2009 and took delivery Dec 5th. I rode it home and tore it apart to install all goodies I had purchased for it's arrival. Full Muzzy exhaust, Starcom Intercom, Garmin GPS, Fuzeblock, Powerlets, Cee Bailey tinted Ultra windscreen, Phil's rack, risers and wedges. Later I installed a Rocky Mayer Leather dual heated seat.
Windscreens: My last long ride was to Canmore, Alberta and we had winds all the way up and back. I had such bad buffeting on that trip that I started hunting when I got home to fix it. I ordered an MRA Xcreen tinted and the touring Xcreen adjustable wing. The Xcreen was OK but too small. I added the two pressure relief holes to my original C14 windscreen and added the adjustable touring spoiler from Xcreen. That is a very good compromise and it's still on my bike a year later.
Mick
PS (Douglas is coming out to give us an estimate Sat)
Mike,
Thank you for the kind words. I have a 7jrock shield on my bike. I had them do a slight alteration at the top to reduce overall surface area at that spot. I am very happy with my shield and the service. They are worth a look.
Did they get Hwy 33 cleared of the mudslide and open? Do you know if they took measures to keep that section from being wrecked by future storms?
The only bike in the BMW line that compares directly to the C14 is the K12 and K1300 Gt. This bike had a few small issues so not a huge risk to buy, but for the most part is as close of a comparison power size and layout as you are going to get. Yes the K12/13 has electronic cruise but beyond that not much more than a heated seat separate the two. The K 12 and 13 GT are now bikes of the past and BMW does not really make a GT any more even though they have the 1600 marked that way. C14 is a fantastic machine worth riding many, many miles.
My list of BMWs ridden and owned*
R75/5* F650cs
R75/7
R100rt* K100R
R850r K100rt*
R1100r* K1100rs
R1100rs* K1200rs*
R1100s K1200gt gen 1*
R1150r* K1200gt gen 2
R1150rs* K1200s*
R1150gs
R1150rt*
R1200c
R1200st
R1200rt
For the record I have also owned a C10
Best,
Jon
I've ridden a lot of BMW's from the factory demo trucks. The BMW I liked the most was an R1200R with the old Tele-lever front end. If I was in the marked for a naked standard and had a lot of disposable money, that would be the BMW I'd be most interested in. A lot of "if's".