Hello from Dapperdan

[dapperdan]

Hi Ladies and Gentlemen, I have joined the forum to pick your brains regarding the GTR, I currently own a Rocket 3 that is up for sale and I need a replacement bike. The short list is as follows ,BMW K1300gt , ZZR1400 , and the GTR1400. I would like a reliable low maintenance bike capable of 130mph sustained speed on the autobahn , everything i have read to date points at the GTR , ZZR14 is perhaps to fast and too cramped for good comfort, BMW is a good candidate but I hear drums beating about reliability issues and high maintenance costs. To that end its over to you for your unbiased advice. I do have a budget but can stretch it although i dont really want to spend more than is neccesary, i have other projects on the go that need money as well . Which year is better, most new bikes when released have issues, in what year were this issues cleared up ,what mods are good , i would like a good screen, hot grips , raised bars and pegs etc. What are your riding experiences , good and bad, what was the dealership support like and very importantly has your experience in general been good.
  Alittle about me, ex army , settled in Germany, married 21 years , mortgage , shite car , i am 43 years old, time to grow up, selling the Rocket as pretending to be a badass is wearing thin , i work overseas as a security contractor for 8 to 9 months of the year and when i get home i ride in all weathers apart from that cold white stuff.

Anyone fancy a Rocket 3 , become the badass you always wanted to be ;-)

warmest greetings Dapperdan

[Bryn]

Welcome to the site Dan   

Just my contribution.... 85 bikes since 1977..... and I've had the GTR longer than most of the others  ... says a lot about them   

[No73]

Hi Dan

as a newcomer to the GTR1400 I am more and more impressed by it every time I ride it, I originally went to look at ZZR at the dealers and came away with GTR, sat on it and it just felt right, take a test ride and that should help to convince you.

I have been riding on Road since 16 and started of road when I was 12, (53 very shortly - yes getting old - lol)

[Rusty]

Welcome Dan ....
I went to "the dark side" last year .. Triple Black Gs ... but the Gtr is a fine machine believe me. I do however have a soft spot for the K1300 Gt, and apart from that god awful slab fairing that makes it look even more slabby it is an incredible bit of kit that should be seriously considered. Be safe out there.

[Charlie747]

 

[shepster]

hi dan.
get  a versys fantastic bike....

saying that thou i think the gtr1400 is a great bike.and the people are very friendley and informative...
i think they are ex massy ferguson workers.

[bacaruda]

Hi Dan and welcome!

I'm also pretty new to GTR, done 2500 miles on my 2013 since octorber last year. As a Kawaholic I'm a little partial but I love my GTR. Fantastic tourer thats pretty fun to take on a spin down some twisties. As for cost of ownership and maintenance, the 3750 mile service interval is way to short for a tourer. Does less damage to the wallet if you gonna do the service yourself. (depends on how new bike your looking at and if its still under warranty) You can get the warranty extended to 5 years on a newer GTR. Worth considering.

And don't listen to shepster. If you want a bike that looks mean,  and not surprised.  the GTR is in and the Versys is out. Nothing wrong with Massy Ferguson. As with all real vehicles, they comes in green!

[STX1300man]

As for cost of ownership and maintenance, the 3750 mile service interval is way to short for a tourer.

Hmm, my Pan also had a similar 4000 mile service listed in the book. My take on it is that it's a 'kick the tyres and make sure everything is bolted down that should be' ... nothing more than stuff you'd keep an eye on regularly in any case. Mine's out of warranty and will get serviced every 8000. Also dubious of the valve check schedule and definately the plugs!

[Boomer]

You all keep talking about this 4000 mile service interval.
It's 8000 miles between oil changes, not 4000.
The 4000 mile change is optional and the rest of the 4000 mile services is checking that the wires haven't fallen off or the bolts worked loose.
It's just an inspection.
If you choose to change the oil every 4000 that's up to you. I haven't and the service (not inspection) interval is 8000 miles.
600- Service & inspection
4000- Inspection
8000- Service
12000- inspection
16000- Service
20000- Inspection
24000- Service, valve clearances and new spark plugs
etc.

[STX1300man]

You all keep talking about this 4000 mile service interval.
It's 8000 miles between oil changes, not 4000.

Glad someone agrees. The problem is that some dealers try to push the intermediate to almost be a full, including an oil/filter change. Sadly they get away with it because for many riders it equates to more than a year's riding.

[dapperdan]

hhmm interesting , the service intervasl is rather short , my rocket is 10000 miles but the motor is out of a massey ferguson! If i buy a GTR it will be outside of warrantee, i shall do servicing myself i have a good workshop (shed full of tools) , in Germany a dealer has to provide 12 months warrantee that the machine is fit for purpose but i will purchase a warrantee to provide cover for any major mechanical dramas , i like to sleep well and not fuss over repair bills when things go peek tong. This forum is very good , been sniffing around and have been thus far quite well informed , i read that Debs had a shaft drive bearing failure , she traded in for a newer GTR (nice bike Debs the flowers and teddy do it for me ;-) ) , is this a common failure and how do you check for it .

   One more thing, my smileys dont work , what must i do to deploy my emoticons, and thanks for the welcome and feedback so far keep it coming , regards Dan

[Andy]

hhmm interesting , the service intervasl is rather short , my rocket is 10000 miles but the motor is out of a massey ferguson! If i buy a GTR it will be outside of warrantee, i shall do servicing myself i have a good workshop (shed full of tools) , in Germany a dealer has to provide 12 months warrantee that the machine is fit for purpose but i will purchase a warrantee to provide cover for any major mechanical dramas , i like to sleep well and not fuss over repair bills when things go peek tong. This forum is very good , been sniffing around and have been thus far quite well informed , i read that Debs had a shaft drive bearing failure , she traded in for a newer GTR (nice bike Debs the flowers and teddy do it for me ;-) ) , is this a common failure and how do you check for it .

   One more thing, my smileys dont work , what must i do to deploy my emoticons, and thanks for the welcome and feedback so far keep it coming , regards Dan

Ref. smillies, what browser are you using? Try a different one maybe  annual / 12,000 km isn't short...K1300 / 1600 is 10k Km / annual I believe

[Rusty]

Dan .. don't be put off by individual problems or failures that are spoken about on this forum. I think if you go to ANY forum the chaps will slate their bikes for one reason or another .. they are machines and sometimes things break we all know that .. Blimey I bought a Gs, the best selling bike by a country mile for the last few years and the guys bitch about it no end but they still love it.
The Gtr is a fantastic bike in many many ways and I'm sure you will love it.  Get one.

[Debs]

Welcome Dan,

My old GTR had done 56k miles and was serviced every 4k miles.. I think I was just very unlucky having both bearings go at the same time..

Now I have this CAF model Im thinking of having the services done at 8k miles and doing checks myself at 4k

I want to get to the splines and sort them as well.. Once someone has done theirs and posted a video of the process, I will attack mine. 

[Lonewolf]

Dan welcome to the forum.
Reference the smileys, have a look at your personal settings in your profile, make sure the option to use them is ticked.