So all the things you read were lies? Or inaccurate? Made up? I find that hard to believe. Most owner reports are positive with only about 25% having problems. Significant but not a death sentence. A friend who works for BMW NA owns the '09 GS too. He agrees its the best yet. You got a good one!

Ewan and Charlie were a huge boon for BMW. Sales went off the charts as a result of the series. If they had taken KTM's they would have had a much easier time in Muddy Mongolia ... but would probably have had more breakdowns. Really, their GS's did quite good, but were just too overloaded for some of the terrain and they were inexperienced riding off road.

They only got screwed by a dumb guy trying to Arc weld on the bike and burning out the computers. NOT the fault of BMW.

Too true. If your ride is all about pleasing your wife ... well, so be it. The GS is a great two up bike, not much competition. The Vstrom DL1000 isn't bad, half the price in the USA (not in Germany as Jap imports are taxed heavily to protect BMW) and more reliable. Not bad for pillion but the GS just pips it. Aprilia Capo Nord: No longer made but good two up, great , motor but not perfect. KTM Adventure: Good bike, bit smaller than GS for two. More fun and capable off road by a long way.
A few more like the Multistrada and Tenere'. I just tested the new Multi S.
Not a two up friendly bike, IMHO. Weird seat, too small.

This is simply a case of inexperienced riders.
No fault of those bikes ... trust me on this. The KTM is superb on tight switchbacks. Better than the GS, IMO. Don't judge your bike against bikes ridden by amateurs.

The bikes I listed above (Vstrom, KTM ADV, Capo Nord) have very little electronic gadgets. No ABS, No traction control, No power mode choices, no electronic Ohlins suspension. BMW has all these things (available as options) Lots to go wrong. I would buy an extended warranty.
Don't know if this is available in Germany. Most friends here buy an additional 4 years. So they get 7 years total cover. Only way to buy a BMW.
This is typical BMW. If you really knew their history ... going back to the 60's you would be rather shocked at the long standing patterns of denial/blame here. This is nothing new. David Robb has tried to turn this around but its still going on.

But in your case ... they may have a point. I'd keep those rusted areas coated with WD40 or other anti-rust product. Try some light steel/Alu wool to take rust off?? Or, take them off, sand them down and repaint them with good rust proof paint?

But you're getting off easy. So far you've avoided the more common failures these bikes can have. ABS fault codes, electrical gremlins, Shaft/bearing/U-joint failure, transmission failure.

Wow! That's quite a shock. Do you have an English language link about that story?? That's first I've heard of these problems.
Maybe Yamaha can go back and take off 20 kgs. and lower the price by $3000 USD too!

If you want to see rust !! Get a Suzuki ! Worst finished bikes to come out of Japan !!

Everyone I've had looked like the Titanic. Just as well their engineering makes up for it !

Back to the point, "ARE THEY WORTH IT"... Of course they're not ! They're definately over priced and over complicated ! Its a BMW, they don't make family run abouts do they. They have a name to keep "reassuringly expensive". Its a "prestige" brand isnt it... Do you think their cars are "worth it"?? You pay over the odds for those too but you get that flashy badge and keyfob to flash about at Starbucks.

As for LWR... Their subframes broke on the LWR and didnt the rear shaft bearing go on one of them ?? Didnt the shocks go too ??

LWD.. All their shocks collapsed and failed and they had issues with electrics as simple as side stand switches etc

Why should you spend £12000 on a GSA then have to spend £3000 on suspension just to make it cope with Africa ??? Just not Cricket is it !

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

So you like Suzukis.......

I'm just bipolar !!! Then again, so am I !!!

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Hi TouraTed
Bipolar doesn't mean schizophrenic BTW.

Could mean "very inconsistent"?

Now wot abaat those Suzukis - do ya love 'em or hate 'em? And those BMWs? and those Hondas; and those KTMs? and, and...
Please don't ejaculate over anyone's bike though; he might get nasty...

Anyway, bye for now!

Yeah, stay the hell away from my bike. There's rust all over it already and absolutely no need to make things even worse

__________________
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting GERONIMO!"

You should know I guess

Mental disorders aren't really my strong suit !


If you wan't to know my opinions on all brands of bikes, buy my book which is out at the end of the month !!

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

TouraTed! I truly don't want your opinion on bikes, but very glad to hear you have a book coming out Good man! That's not easy to do, so well done that man!

Tell us more, come on, you're not usually shy about such things! Hope you had a good proof reader for all those spelling and punctuation mistakes.....

But let's have some details on your book.....Send me a copy and I'll review it.....

All lies? Inaccurate? Made up? Can't tell. Every bike has it's flaws and I think we can all agree that the perfect bike has not been invented yet. I am very aware that it's still too early to judge and I might still run into heaps of trouble in the years to come. I promise to keep you up to date

I never said it's all about pleasing my wife but have you ever tried to travel long distances with a pillion that is uncomfortable and miserable on the back of your bike? It's living hell and far from enjoyable, and it makes absolutely no difference if that pillion is your wife, your girlfriend, your boyfriend or just a friend. As the driver you're always comfortable - why wouldn't you be? You're in the open road, you're on a motorcycle and you're possibly in the middle of nowhere. Passengers are a very different topic - I know I could never do what my wife does and sit through thousands of miles on the back of a bike.

Noone forces you to get all the electronic bells and whistles on a BMW. Infact, the base model (in Europe) comes with pretty much nothing on it - no ABS, no traction control, no power mode choices, no ESA, no onboard computer, no tire pressure meter, no heated grips, no nothing. Most owners choose to order one or the other for various reasons - I had to get pretty much everything on my GSA because when I purchased it in November 2009 they weren't building the 2009 model anymore. Thus, it was either a prefabricated 2009 model with all the bells and whistles one can possibly imagine or a 2010 model which I didn't want (again: I don't trust the engine yet). I'm glad I didn't get the 2010 model because it's supposed to be a lot louder and apparantly suffers from a pretty serious case of vibrationitis.

As for warranty: you only get three years in Canada and the USA. In Europe we only get two years warranty (with every brand, not just BMW). I might purchase an additional two to five years depending on how happy I'll be with the bike once the original warranty runs out.

I'll look around. This bit came from my dealer who happens to sell both Yamaha and BMW (which is how I ended up with a BMW - I went there to get a brand new XT660Z Tenere and ended up with a GSA ). He's had nothing but trouble with the Super Tenere and told me that every single one he's sold has been back with minor or major problems.

__________________
"Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in one pretty and well preserved piece, but to skid across the line broadside, thoroughly used up, worn out, leaking oil, shouting GERONIMO!"