Goldwing…….nearly

leadfarmer

He / Him / That Fucker
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Dark Side of the Moon (Haute Loire) France
Thought I might fancy a Goldwing now that they’ve made the top box bigger so they lent me this for four days to try out, I really thought I was going to buy one

Put a few hundred kms on it but decided that it’s not for us

Comfort is obviously brilliant and the weather protection is just right, you can still get some air when it’s hot, it’s been up to 30 degrees here the last 2 days

Slow handling is ridiculous, at walking pace it’s unbelievably stable and you can usually stop at junctions and pull away again without putting a foot down

The DCT box is very smooth and gives lots of engine braking, I like DCTs having owned a Crosstourer

However……..

Tour mode is too soft, it’s OK on flowing A roads where the bike is really at home but open the throttle at 120kmh and absolutely nothing happens, then after a couple of seconds it kicks down a gear and very little happens :blast

It needs a mode somewhere in between Tour and Sport,

Sport mode is just savage :eek , the throttle response is hair trigger and the box holds every gear past the redline, yes it’s quick but it’s also deafening and sounds like it’s going to go bang very soon, it’s as subtle as a drill through the eye which doesn’t really suit this bike :confused:

Rain and Eco mode are as useful as a snooze button on a smoke alarm

The brakes are strong but it really doesn’t like late braking and bungs a big dollop of engine braking at you to let you know you should have given it a bit more warning

This is not a back lane scratcher but I suppose that should have been obvious

The GPS seems better than a lot of folks say it is but programming it is a bit archaic having no touch screen

The radio is shite, when it manages to pick up a station or two you can’t hear the speakers over the wind and engine noise, and then it looses the station after a few kms, I gave up on it

There is a home button which helps to navigate the infotainment system but they should have used a couple of the spare buttons on the center console as shortcuts to go straight to navigation and radio like they have for the heated seats and grips

Wifey liked the comfort for long distance riding but couldn’t see over my helmet and couldn’t really participate in the ride, said she didn’t feel like she was on a motorcycle and just felt like baggage stuck on the back, surprisingly some bumps are quite jarring for the passenger, probably because of the straight back position and maybe more noticeable as most of the time the ride is so plush

And finally for a bike this size and weight there is almost no room in the side cases :nenau WTF were they thinking when they decided this was OK ??? Better pack some soap and deodorant ‘cos you’re not taking many clothes with you :rolleyes:

Oh well, never mind, that’s saved us a giant wad of wonga :thumb2
 

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I used to look at the old Goldwings and think... WOW

I look at this bike and think... NICE

But they missed the mark here. This bike should be something that 'Q' would deliver to James Bond.

Not just another touring bike... that's not enough.

5/10
 
I used to look at the old Goldwings and think... WOW

I look at this bike and think... NICE

But they missed the mark here. This bike should be something that 'Q' would deliver to James Bond.



Not just another touring bike... that's not enough.

5/10

Have you tried one ?
 
When I tried one last year it just wasn’t what I expected. I so wanted not to like it. The whole idea was just to go for a test ride so I had ticked the ‘ride a Goldwing’ box. I then went back with my pillion and tried again and liked it even more. Finally, I took out a full fat DCT model and found the DCT brings another dimension to the bike.
The rest is history and a much lighter wallet as I bought a tour model. It also made me realise that I had become a Victim of the GS brainwashing. I had been buying GS’s even though I knew the quality was getting worse, because the design is good. I now accept there are other suppliers out there.
I’m thinking I may look at a small scooter such as a T max when I can afford a second bike.
 
When I tried one last year it just wasn’t what I expected. I so wanted not to like it. The whole idea was just to go for a test ride so I had ticked the ‘ride a Goldwing’ box. I then went back with my pillion and tried again and liked it even more. Finally, I took out a full fat DCT model and found the DCT brings another dimension to the bike.
The rest is history and a much lighter wallet as I bought a tour model. It also made me realise that I had become a Victim of the GS brainwashing. I had been buying GS’s even though I knew the quality was getting worse, because the design is good. I now accept there are other suppliers out there.
I’m thinking I may look at a small scooter such as a T max when I can afford a second bike.

T-Max is brilliant.
Took mine to S of France. Will cruise all day at 90+ mph.With top box, under seat and bag designed to fit between your feet we had enough two up for 4 days.
 
When I tried one last year it just wasn’t what I expected. I so wanted not to like it. The whole idea was just to go for a test ride so I had ticked the ‘ride a Goldwing’ box. I then went back with my pillion and tried again and liked it even more. Finally, I took out a full fat DCT model and found the DCT brings another dimension to the bike.
The rest is history and a much lighter wallet as I bought a tour model. It also made me realise that I had become a Victim of the GS brainwashing. I had been buying GS’s even though I knew the quality was getting worse, because the design is good. I now accept there are other suppliers out there.
I’m thinking I may look at a small scooter such as a T max when I can afford a second bike.

Stever: you are on the mark here....my scooter (Burgman 400) has been a great supplement to the Goldwing Tour....and probably has more storage space ��
 
Leadfarmer, as for the radio, you can play it through your headset if paired. The 2021 model wing has more powerful speakers as well. Don't use it myself personally.
Re the panniers. Honda used an American customer focus group when designing the current wing. Apparently,Muricans only use it for weekends away. Strange people the Muricans.
 
Leadfarmer, as for the radio, you can play it through your headset if paired. The 2021 model wing has more powerful speakers as well. Don't use it myself personally.
Re the panniers. Honda used an American customer focus group when designing the current wing. Apparently,Muricans only use it for weekends away. Strange people the Muricans.

Yes, there’s a button on the center console to switch between speakers and headset, which is a good feature :thumb2

I found it awkward though listening to the radio through the headset as it cut the intercom to the passenger and I kept having to press the jog dial button on the SENA each time I wanted to talk and then arse about to get the radio back

I didn’t really try so set it up any more to see if I could get the two to work better and my intercom is the bottom of the range SMH5 so it may well work better with other equipment???

The panniers would certainly be fine for a weekend but I also do trips for a couple of weeks two up so I need more space, I also have to take a CPAP machine with me :(
 
Yes, there’s a button on the center console to switch between speakers and headset, which is a good feature :thumb2

I found it awkward though listening to the radio through the headset as it cut the intercom to the passenger and I kept having to press the jog dial button on the SENA each time I wanted to talk and then arse about to get the radio back

I didn’t really try so set it up any more to see if I could get the two to work better and my intercom is the bottom of the range SMH5 so it may well work better with other equipment???

The panniers would certainly be fine for a weekend but I also do trips for a couple of weeks two up so I need more space, I also have to take a CPAP machine with me :(

I used to use a low end interphone model and suffered the same thing when the satnav gave instructions. I now use an Interphone avant which has 2 Bluetooth chips ( iirc ). This cures that problem but the battery life is down to 2 days.
 
“Hi kids.Annoying bell end here.Stick around and stay tuned……”

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“Hi kids.Annoying bell end here.Stick around and stay tuned……”

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/hyP_C7Bv1KQ" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Never understood the animosity towards TMF. :nenau He can be a bit over eager, but he does more than his bit for promoting motorcycling.

Perhaps it's just fashionable to knock people who put themselves "out there." Each to their own I suppose.
 
Never understood the animosity towards TMF. :nenau He can be a bit over eager, but he does more than his bit for promoting motorcycling.

Perhaps it's just fashionable to knock people who put themselves "out there." Each to their own I suppose.

Nothing to do with being fashionable . People like LCR are much better . TMF is very boring .
Take his monthly news item , where he just sits at his webcam browsing copies of MCN. Not exactly riveting but I guess some people like such banality. As you say, each to their own .Enjoy !
 
Nothing to do with being fashionable . People like LCR are much better . TMF is very boring .
Take his monthly news item , where he just sits at his webcam browsing copies of MCN. Not exactly riveting but I guess some people like such banality. As you say, each to their own .Enjoy !

LCR?:nenau
 

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