Concours 14 Vs. Multistrada S Touring Edition - opinions ?
Royal Tiger:
While my choice would be the Ducati, Motorcycle Consumer News picked the BMW K1600GT over the Concourse 14 recently. Have you considered that one?
Cozye:
Quote from: Kannonball on March 19, 2012, 10:29:03 AM
I had to make the exact same decision you are looking at and finally chose the C-14. My reasons were dealer support during warranty period (Nearest Ducati dealer is 1.5 hours away) and ease of regular maintenance. I am a very experienced mechanic but the fact is, there are many things that can go wrong with a modern car or bike that the best home mechanic either doesn't have the factory training or special tools to handle. You will not be able to diagnose or repair some problems with traction control, ABS, injection/ignition malfunction, etc. on either bike. Adjusting valves on a 4 valve Ducati is much more difficult than on the C-14 (though the C-14 ain't no picnic). So, for me it came down to which bike would I rather be broke down on in the middle of West Virginia or northern Georgia. The Kawasaki won. That said, don't believe those who say weight isn't an issue, the laws of physics don't change 'cause of some magical design that Kawasaki came up with. With the right tires and suspension setup the C-14 is an OK handling bike, but 680 pounds is 680 pounds and it will NOT change direction as quickly as the 505 pound Ducati. On tight twistys the Ducati will eat the Kawasaki alive!
Bruce
Very good points. Sounds like a very unbiased reply too. Did you have a chance to ride the Duc ? I know the C14 isn't going to handle like a race bike, nor do I expect it too. But if it's easy to ride and handles well on a good twisty road I think it would be acceptable to me. I've slowed way down on the street in recent years and dragging a knee on NC28 doesn't interest me. That being said, a good curvy road will suck me in a little and I'd still like to tip the bike in and ride it!
Quote from: Royal Tiger on March 19, 2012, 10:33:40 AM
While my choice would be the Ducati, Motorcycle Consumer News picked the BMW K1600GT over the Concourse 14 recently. Have you considered that one?
The BMW is way out of my price range. The Duc is stretching it, but I'd be willing to part with the extra cash on the Ducati if it's the right bike for me.
atadaskew:
Did you consider the new Moto Guzzi Norge 8V?
Some of the people at Motorcycle.com preferred it to the K16 BMW...
Shaft drive, ABS, hard luggage, Italian V-twin...
http://www.motorcycle.com/manufacturer/2011-moto-guzzi-norge-1200-gt-8v-review-91115.html
The price is between the C14 and MS1200
X1Glider:
Why limit yourself to those 2 bikes. As an ex-expert WERA road racer, why whouldn't you aim for something that is still "a little bit sporty" but also light, so you're not so far removed from the race bike? It's nice to "get it on" when you want.
I commute daily on a Kawasaki Ninja 1000 these days. Got the hard cases for it. Had it on a 4000 mile trip back in Novemeber. I went through rain and snow on the north side of the grand canyon and even did 40 miles of off-roading in Death Valley. Did plenty of canyon carving in SoCal and lots of highway miles, including a 1480 mile butt burner straight back to Houston. Great power, light and agile for a sport tourer where the emphasis is on sport. But I'm also a solo rider. Never had a passenger on it nor intend to so I can't comment on that ability. Wind protection is less than desirable but I like nakeds anyway so I'm not bothered by it. Sure beats helmet buffeting.
There's also the Triumph Sprint ST to look at. Pretty light too, suspension not as good as the Ninja 1k but all day comfy so I've read. That triple is a nice engine too.
You've really went to both extremes for your title. Lightweight duck and a 180 lb heavier Connie, which IMO is a fantastic touring rig. But it is just that...a big tourer. My choice over a gold wing which is way too much much bike and more like a car. Not ridden the Duc. Too much techno crap I'm not interested in using and I'm done with dirt bikes now, so the riding poition is out. But the ergos seemed wierd to me anyway when I sat on one.
Take a look at the Kawi and Trumpet.
Kannonball:
I have ridden the Ducati and liked it very much, as I said, it was a hard choice to make. It sounds like we come from similar riding background so I think I can say you will only be disappointed with the C-14 on the very tightest of roads. Even when its weight is a factor it's still a very predictable bike, just heavy. I live in the mountains and all my riding is mountain roads, the only time I have a hard time with the bike is those rare times when you need to make a rapid mid-corner correction, we have a lot of logging trucks that like to use the whole road and sometimes you gotta' change your mind when you're already committed to a line, here is where lighter is DEFINATELY better! But that aside I really do like the Kawasaki and the reality is in 40+ years of riding I've never found the perfact bike but also never owned a bike I absolutely hated, they all have their good and bad. and really for me the bottom line was dealer support for the few times I can't, or don't want to fix it myself.
Bruce
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