Triumphrat

Enfield · 10-03-2005, 04:06 PM

I've taken a couple of test rides on the Tiger and it simply hasn't grabbed my imagination. I have recently ridden a 2005 BMW 1200 GS in Europe for around 2,500 miles and am feeling the need to buy one. It is an unbelievable bike to ride and the handling is beyond belief. The only problem I found with the bike is that at highway speeeds (in Europe anyway) at anything above 120 mph it feels a little shakey - probably due to the high riding position. I have had multiple Triumphs and currently spend a lot of time on my Daytona 900 (and sometimes even still break out my Bonneville for a ride) and would like to stick with Triumph - but with the exception of the price difference I can see no reason to bet a Tiger. Any thoughts?

Henski · 10-03-2005, 04:10 PM

Sounds to me like you have made your mind up. If you've riden both and like the BMW surely nothing anyone says will sway you. Go with the one that feels the best or regret it.

BaldEagle · 10-03-2005, 04:53 PM

Watch the movie (Long Way Round) Excellent movie!! the beemer falls apart! Ok it does a lot of miles over some difficult terrain, I wish that they would have taken a Tiger along for the ride! When/where can you do 120mph for any distance? The price diff is huge! Tiger is Better looking! and it is British. Vorsprung durch technick wots all that abart. Never ridden a BMW, "had mi photo taken wi the BMWs from the film at Donnington Moto Gp", owned a Tiger for 8 months and done 6,300miles on it, never let me darn come rain or shine. Been riding since 1987 owned a load of diff bikes. Tiger has given me a new lease of life and the biggest smile I've had for years. Good luck in yer choice, only u can decide. :hammer: :???:

Timian · 10-03-2005, 06:24 PM

Enfield: You do realise that ALL beemer speedos are WILDLY optimistic??

Bald Eagle: First try - then shout...........

djr · 10-04-2005, 03:02 AM

Enfield

if the Tiger does nothing for you - dont buy one. If you like the beemer buy that. They are both good bikes so go with your heart.

chrisn · 10-04-2005, 05:21 AM

I can only assume your preference is based on looks. The 1200GS is certainly a better looking machine and is more modern than the current Tiger. (except for the horizontal shin warmers!). What I can't fathom is you make no mention of the Tiger's triple engine doing anything for you. This, the price tag, and the fact it's British make it my first choice.
Good luck with the beamer

blacktiger · 10-04-2005, 07:11 AM

Quote:

On 2005-10-03 14:06, Enfield wrote:
The only problem I found with the bike is that at highway speeeds (in Europe anyway) at anything above 120 mph it feels a little shakey -

That'll be because it's shaking itself to bits....and they do!
I've ridden the GS12 and it's a good bike. Fast and comfortable. But I've suffered BMW ownership before and would NEVER have another post 1987 one. IMHO the design and build quality has gone way down hill since then.
You should check out the "ukGSer" forums and see all the troubles they are having with them. The most concerning to me being the servo brakes which seem prone to failure. The build at the factory seems rubbish because so many have to go back to the dealers for rectification. But they still charge YOU top $$ for them.
Anyway, I'm more than happy with my 2002 Tiger bought new and now with 28500 miles on it. No reliability probs and no thoughts of changing it for anything else.

120mph? You sure that wasn't "kph"? That's what they have in Europe.

tango · 10-04-2005, 07:27 AM

Quote:

On 2005-10-03 14:06, Enfield wrote:
I've taken a couple of test rides on the Tiger and it simply hasn't grabbed my imagination. I can see no reason to bet a Tiger. Any thoughts?

Well it's grabbed the attention of everyone on here, a few niggles here and there, but I think we're generally happy with our tiggers.
I don't know how many members there are on the forum, a pure guess 200. If it is then that's 200 reasons why you should buy one.

But then this is a trick question, isn't it?

Go get your BMW and enjoy it.

chrisn · 10-04-2005, 10:56 AM

Interesting GS/Tiger comments on the GSer forum here

10-04-2005, 12:18 PM

At the end of the day, it's what YOU think about the bike that is important. One mans meat is another mans poison and all that.
I test rode the BMW and A Tiger. For me, the Tiger was the better bike. I think the BMW is over rated, and over priced.
Each bike has it's good and bad points, and for me the Tiger was the best. But there will be plenty of BMW owners who would disagree!
My last bike was a Yamaha TDM 900. Apart from being a little under powered I thought it was a great bike, but most riders would not even give it a second look. Their loss.
But each to their own.
Go with your gut feeling and you wont go far wrong.