2013 Water Cooled GS Stability Questions?

[Chris Parker]

Well, I got my first crack at the new GS this past Friday at Eurosport in Asheville, NC. Gotta say that it is indeed a step up from the old GS (I had an 2011 for a year before I traded it and the RT on the 2013 K1600GT). All around, impressive. Did not get it up to anything over 85 mph. Smooth, shifting was flawless, clutch take up was butter smooth (and this has a slipper clutch, like my GT). Throttle is better than my GT... just really responsive and smooth. Other manufacturers should take notice. Light as a feather compared to my bike, only 25 lbs heavier than the outgoing GS. The level of finish and detail is just amazing. All the little touches... the dash power port, the screen adjuster, the mini screen under the main screen. The seats and their adjustability are really nice. The model I rode was the base model without the ESA and some extras. But from what I can tell just the 20 miles on it that BMW has a winner. I think I will be adding the GS to the GT in a couple of years.

 

[dduelin]

The latest issue of Bike (June 2013) pretty much puts the question of early reports of instability to rest. This wasn't a press day at the track or a 200 mile chaperoned ride. Bike put 4500 miles on a new GS in 8 days under almost every conceivable load and over every type of road and no road. One goal was to have the bike misbehave in the manner seen in South Africa and only once did it shake its head and that was riding no hands over a stuttering washboard section of a test track and even then it had to be provoked to do it and was no fault of the bike. They absolutely love the new GS in its parts and as a whole. It was the focus of the issue and 26 pages were devoted to it.