Why stop at 650cc? Go straight to the 1250 flat twin with CANbus'd ashtray!

You make it heavier, you lose the advantage.

Andy

I get that , but it would open the bike up to a larger audience. Also some of us have to use a motorway occasionally.......heresy I know . The interceptor sells like hot cakes , a 650 version of the Himalayan would too imho . Its going to be a commercial decision......given the japs/ Italians arent really interested in that market....

Over landing or what ever u call it is a small niche market and bike manufacturers ain't interested. As for the Gs , well it's the range rover of the bike world fully kitted up with cases , crash protection etc etc.....
Looks good , most never go further off road then a car park. A very clever bit of marketing by our German friends . Most of us will buy what we can afford and then modify it to some degree so as to make what ever trips we make easier .
If you disagree feel free to visit the showroom I work at , I'll give u a tour of what sells.....on pcp of course and then u can make ur own mind up

Hi Chris

It would be interesting to see what sells indeed. I’m not in the trade but I know that showrooms only sell newer, low mileage bikes and cars.

Both my wife and I ride GSs and between us we know a few GS riders both male and female, in this country and abroad, mainly through riding rather than the Internet. We are of an age where adventure bikes are much easier on our bones.

The GS was the 5th largest selling motorcycle in the UK in 2019 and I appreciate that some of them are not ridden that far and sold on in showrooms (there’s 2 in our garage ) but it would be interesting to see the numbers. I say this because I’ve never met this mythical beast known as ‘The Starbucks GS Rider”.

Everyone I know that owns a GS uses them for intercontinental touring including light off-road at the very least. Some have business’ or families so don’t have the time to ride on a regular basis but they still have a yearly adventure with a few mates even if it’s just to do the Stella.

I’ve never met anyone, not anyone, who believes the videos of some world champion enduro rider riding a GS (or even a T7) has any relationship to them. I know some amazing riders who take their GSs on green lanes I struggle with on my 250 and even they realise it’s only realistic for professionals.

I may be living in a bubble and a bit naive but I suspect the numbers would not tell the whole truth either.
I bought my current standard GS from a BMW dealership. It was 4 years old and had 18K miles on the clock with all Adventure spec accessories.
The previous owner (who I spoke to) bought a brand new bike every 4 years and went on a 3/4K mile trip every summer then for the rest of the year just rode it when he had time - which wasn’t often. My bike had been to Morocco (which was serendipity because that’s where I took it 2 months later) among other interesting places. He assured me he’d never ridden it to Starbucks.

Of course we have other friends and riding buddies who ride other makes of Adventure bikes and there all pretty much the same - maybe it’s just a case of ‘birds of a feather, flock together’.

I suppose it boils down to how you define "overlanding". As for me travelling all over Europe I don't consider as overlanding. And I must say that when doing long trips in Europe I prefer my big GS, whereas when riding outside Europe the 1150 is too heavy, esp. with luggage. Then I favour my fairly light 650 twin. When it comes to off-road, which is more frequent on other continents, I can still enjoy the trip instead of batteling with the heavy beast

__________________
Only when we pause to wonder
do we go beyond the limits of our little lives.
(Rod McKuen)

Hi flip flop....
Think you need to go to Germany to find the Starbucks gs theres blinking loads of them.....mobile touratech catalogues. As an xtz1200 rider I absolutely get the easier on the back bit.....mines a comfy mobile sofa and it suits me down to the ground . Sounds like you and ur friends are a pretty rare breed , as there arent many riders who take their bikes off road , if our customer base is anything to go by.....certainly not on a multistrada !! I got mine muddy and workshops thought I'd lost it lol
BMW do pretty well selling the dream , looks like Ducati have caught on as the new mutley is ordered and specd at the factory .
What doesnt sell.....sportsbikes , Suzuki's, Fireblades etc , 600 cc race reps . What does sell is Ktm , Ducati and Yamaha........
I ride a tenere cos they dont go wrong.......simple as that , they dont look attractive and arent electronically overspeced but I know it will start on the button, bit like the fi blackbirds . Ride what you like and what suits you , fortunately we are all different but we all love two wheels says an ex benelli owner

As an afterthought our ex Honda salesman , who was their top seller in the UK once told me that if we were all honest the Nc750x is all the bike we ever would need . This was supported by our Kawasaki salesman who rode supersport competitively.....he reckoned he could take the Nc on a number of tracks and Do most of the competition !! Food for thought........owners love them and imho it's more of an adventure bike then my xtz .

Chris that is the perfect analogy for the GS. They are the Range Rover of the bike world.

Expensive.
Large.
Capable of their role.
A RR in the right hands is a formidable off road weapon, as is the GS.

But like the RR, the GS is at home doing big miles on formed roads in supreme comfort - two up, with luggage. There is virtually nothing that matches it for this role.

I said this before - the GS is a VFR1200 for the dirt. But the RR analogy is also perfect.

If the brief is as above, by a GS. If its not, buy something else. Correct tool for the job.

My next ADV bike will probably be the Honda X-ADV 750 to suit my current needs, and damaged body LOL...

Absolutely. And not a speck of dirt

__________________
Only when we pause to wonder
do we go beyond the limits of our little lives.
(Rod McKuen)

The German thing is interesting but, sorry chaps, I’m still not convinced.

If you come to one of the GS meetings I go to you will see lots of immaculate GSs with touratech parts and it’s easy to make assumptions. But when you talk to the riders 90% are adventure riders i.e. long distance with some off-road thrown in. I’m not talking over landing here but Morocco, Nordkapp, Turkey etc. A few also do the fly/hire thing to SE Asia etc...
I’m not a great bike washer but plenty are and keep their bikes immaculate - doesn’t mean they don’t use them.
In fact one good friend took his brand new KTM 1290s on a winter green lane weekend in the Peak District. I lead the ride he took, he did everything and only crashed in the snow once - cost him £200 quid to fix the bike when he got home, he loved it.
The Southern Alps in mid September is full of German bikers, lots of them on, real money, classic bikes. Sure they stop and pose at the cafes but when they’re riding they go for it - not as much as the Italians though

I am not brand loyal but I love the look, feel and low centre of gravity that the boxer engine gives the GS. The Tenere and large KTMs I’ve ridden felt top heavy compared to a GS on the piste trails we do. Both GSs I’ve owned over the last 23 years have been very reliable. I’m hoping to ride the Americas and will consider a T7 - I thought is was brilliant on my, road only, test ride

As I’ve said, all this is just my experience and perhaps I just look through rose tinted glasses or maybe my subconscious recognises and draws me to like minded people.

Oh dear I appear to have gone off topic - a Covid lockdown will do that.

P.S My wife rode a Himalayan in the Himalayas - great bike. Like the GS it’s a heavy bike with a low centre of gravity. I also think a 650 twin will make it too heavy. To make it work they might have to make changes that would decrease the robustness, thus ruining the whole ethos of the bike.

Flip flop
Enjoy what ever you ride and that's all that counts
My boss did a double take when I said I quite fancied a kymco 550...........you arent parking that outside was his response .
We dont sell BMW....however our head salesman rated his and could understand why people buy them . Personally I cant stand them but I really like the benelli tornado and the pulsar 180......so what do i know lol

Slightly off topic....Fortunately I work in the clothing dept......but obviously we get to see and hear about what goes thru the workshops , some of it would put u off bikes for life .....
If u think I'm opinionated about certain makes of bikes then dont ask me for advise on what clothing or helmet to wear......
Honest but brutal comes to mind .Mind u cant be that bad as have alot of repeat customers who won t go anywhere else .

‘Honest but brutal in a caring way’ is how my wife describes me

I don’t even vaguely dislike any motorcycle. Yes it’s strange how some vehicles can go disastrously wrong - I have always been lucky. I had a Honda XLV 750 (import) once for about 2 years which had some kind of intermittent fault, no mechanic could fix it. Still I had a couple of good trips on it but had to sell in the end as it was my only transport and too unreliable - apart from that

Next time I’m visiting friends in Reigate I’ll pop in for some discounted clothing
I really must clean the house now
Cheers for now

You will be more then welcome