PLEASE HELP!!!!!
I will (hopefully, and thankfully) be in the position to be able to afford a second bike soon.
I will be keeping the KLR, on which I've spent a significant amount of money to get it sorted as a relatively capable off-road bike, but everyone knows that you can not spend any money on it to make it a better long distance tourer, save for trading it in on a bigger bike ;D I will be keeping it for those trips like our recent one through Lesotho where the 50 kg weight difference over something like an 800 comes in REALLY handy.
However, after doing some pluses and minuses, it absolutely makes sense to get something larger that can easily carry two people and their luggage (and perhaps even camping equipment) over long distances in comfort, instead of having to deal with the 7 km/l in the 4x4, where we hardly ever need all the capacity and capability it offers - or enduring a 650 for hours on end until you get to the point where it comes into its own.
For example, SWAMBO hails from Cradock, and using a bike to do the trip down to visit her family for the holidays (~1800 km round-trip) works out WAY cheaper than either flying or driving, but the KLR is just not suited for doing something like that. But effectively the bike should pay for itself over time! ;D
On the other hand, on any trip, inevitably you need to cover large distances before you get to the parts where you want to start taking it easy and slow down a bit to enjoy the view, but you need a modicum of offroad capability to be able to see what you want to see.
I have my heart set on a Triumph for a handful of reasons, and with the looming release of the Tiger Explorer XC:
It has thrown a bit of a spanner in the works w.r.t. what I am wanting to get.
The 800 XC is attractive mainly because of the offroad ability it offers, but I'm a little worried about it's carrying capacity (both weight and space) and pillion / rider comfort on long days on the highway. I know you get all kinds of accessories like gel seats and the like for it, but how much difference do those really make? I have not ridden an 800 though, so I might be nervous for nothing.
Having spent a weekend with one, the 1200 is attractive to me because of the space, comfort and power it offers. I have no doubts that you could pack it, get on and do a 1000km day without blinking. SWAMBO sez she'll sit on the back of it to Cairo, it's that comfortable. It is heavy though, and a flippin hand full in the dirt - and would be even more so heavily loaded. Keeping in mind that even a KLR is a hand full offroad with a pillion and fully loaded, this doesn't scare me TOO much, as you'd be taking it slow in any case. The 1200 XC would be a little bit more resistant to broken rims, but that's the only real advantage I see over a kitted normal 1200. A MAJOR consideration that the 1200 has going for it over the 800 is that 16 000 km service interval, and shaft drive. Cost of ownership would be WAY lower on the 1200 - so much so that I would probably use it to commute too, where I think the 800 would be a lot more expensive to own.
So, given the option - which would you choose, and why??
I will (hopefully, and thankfully) be in the position to be able to afford a second bike soon.
I will be keeping the KLR, on which I've spent a significant amount of money to get it sorted as a relatively capable off-road bike, but everyone knows that you can not spend any money on it to make it a better long distance tourer, save for trading it in on a bigger bike ;D I will be keeping it for those trips like our recent one through Lesotho where the 50 kg weight difference over something like an 800 comes in REALLY handy.
However, after doing some pluses and minuses, it absolutely makes sense to get something larger that can easily carry two people and their luggage (and perhaps even camping equipment) over long distances in comfort, instead of having to deal with the 7 km/l in the 4x4, where we hardly ever need all the capacity and capability it offers - or enduring a 650 for hours on end until you get to the point where it comes into its own.
For example, SWAMBO hails from Cradock, and using a bike to do the trip down to visit her family for the holidays (~1800 km round-trip) works out WAY cheaper than either flying or driving, but the KLR is just not suited for doing something like that. But effectively the bike should pay for itself over time! ;D
On the other hand, on any trip, inevitably you need to cover large distances before you get to the parts where you want to start taking it easy and slow down a bit to enjoy the view, but you need a modicum of offroad capability to be able to see what you want to see.
I have my heart set on a Triumph for a handful of reasons, and with the looming release of the Tiger Explorer XC:
It has thrown a bit of a spanner in the works w.r.t. what I am wanting to get.
The 800 XC is attractive mainly because of the offroad ability it offers, but I'm a little worried about it's carrying capacity (both weight and space) and pillion / rider comfort on long days on the highway. I know you get all kinds of accessories like gel seats and the like for it, but how much difference do those really make? I have not ridden an 800 though, so I might be nervous for nothing.
Having spent a weekend with one, the 1200 is attractive to me because of the space, comfort and power it offers. I have no doubts that you could pack it, get on and do a 1000km day without blinking. SWAMBO sez she'll sit on the back of it to Cairo, it's that comfortable. It is heavy though, and a flippin hand full in the dirt - and would be even more so heavily loaded. Keeping in mind that even a KLR is a hand full offroad with a pillion and fully loaded, this doesn't scare me TOO much, as you'd be taking it slow in any case. The 1200 XC would be a little bit more resistant to broken rims, but that's the only real advantage I see over a kitted normal 1200. A MAJOR consideration that the 1200 has going for it over the 800 is that 16 000 km service interval, and shaft drive. Cost of ownership would be WAY lower on the 1200 - so much so that I would probably use it to commute too, where I think the 800 would be a lot more expensive to own.
So, given the option - which would you choose, and why??
