The ST/GS Internal Debate

[Dallara]

Hey Dallara... at 67,000 miles through all sorts of conditions, I love my Super Tenere, but yes... it did crack the frame. Disappointing, but I think I'm operating at the outer edges of the design envelope, in terms of types of roads and weight carried. $100 worth of welding and all is well now. If I was in the US the frame would have been replaced under warranty.

This is on the right side swing-arm pivot, top one normal view, and second one with Magnaflux

Oh, I know you cracked your frame, Dcstrom... I just don't think ol' Paul/Big Blu has ever seen a cracked Super Tenere frame up close and in person. He implied he knew a guy who had one with a cracked frame, at least according to his reply # 70, on 04/18/14, from this thread, where he said:

"I know a guy with an S10 cracked frame..."

I think he was referring to you. Do you guys know each other?

I don't think anybody would doubt you've given the Super Tenere a very thorough, intense "road test", and it speaks volumes that you are so happy with the bike and its reliability! ::008::

Thanks for doing the hard work for the rest of us! ::012::

Dallara



~

 

[dcstrom]

Yeah I wondered if he was referring to me - and no we don't know each other... if there is someone else with a cracked frame I'd be interested to hear about it.

"I know a guy with an S10 cracked frame..."

I think he was referring to you. Do you guys know each other?

 

[Koinz]

Maybe he meant that he knows of a guy that has a cracked frame, not that he actually knows you. I read it the same way though. Like he knew you. :question:

 

[GrahamD]

I really don't think any one any where seriously believes that YAMAHA faults are at the zero mark.

It's all a risk analysis thing. You get what you want and if you have done the research you know that there is a higher chance of failure on thing over another.

If you go in with your eyes open, all is good.

I could go out and buy a top shelf race bike and pay huge money if I wanted. I am sure that after 10,00km lot's of shit would be going wrong if I used it as intended. It's part of the purchasing decision. My only beef is with some in the press that continue to propagate the outdated notion that certain brands are super reliable, when they are clearly not.

 

[Big Blu]

~

Looks like he's accustom to the position all long-time BMW owners who do their own work know too well, Blu!

I can just hear him saying - "Oh, bloody hell! What the f*ck has gone wrong now?" ::025::

But ya' know... Andylaser may be on to something there. All too often manufacturers forget what got them there and start screwing the pooch when they start out-tricking themselves!

Dallara



~

He certainly has been in that position many time. Jeeeez, we all gotta put air in the tires once in a while, even on a Tenere. ::025::

It amazes me to no end the amount of effort folks will put into supporting their decisions, and the bashing they lay on the choice of others.
Then when they buy next bike, a different brand, they repeat the same process even if the decision is a different one.

I wonder how many here will own a Tenere , five years from now?

Paul

 

[Big Blu]

Yeah I wondered if he was referring to me - and no we don't know each other... if there is someone else with a cracked frame I'd be interested to hear about it.

Yes, I was referring to your unfortunate incident. It was a poor choice of words on my part, my intent was not to mislead, sorry about that.
I do hope to be able to buy you a beer some day and listen to your tails of adventure. ::026:: ::003::

That's a wonderful adventure your working on. How long do you expect to be on the road and will travel beyond the Americas?

Paul

 

[dcstrom]

Pretty sure I will, since nobody will give me anything for mine! It has always been my way to keep a bike that I like till it dies... Maybe it would be smarter to upgrade at low milage like you do Big Blu, but it's not so easy for me to just cast off a bike that has given me so much pleasure. I had an R90/6 for over 120,000 miles, when it finally dropped a valve. It was a reliable bike for its time, but when I think about all the things I had to do to it to keep it running for that long... by comparison, the work and $$'s put into the Super Tenere is nearly nothing.

I like this bike, so will be interesting to see how long it goes till fixing it is no longer cost effective. I'm guessing a rebuild at 150,000 miles would be about right. But maybe 200,000...

The only thing that will keep me putting that kind of miles on it would be if Yamaha introduces smaller Tenere... 800 triple would interest me a LOT. But I will still keep the big Tenere.

I wonder how many here will own a Tenere , five years from now?

Paul

 

[dcstrom]

Big Blu - my original plan was to get to Buenos Aires and see how I felt... see how the bike's going, see how the money's going... and then decide what's next. Everything is going well, so next weekend it's the Argentina MotoGP race, and then back to Buenos Aires to organise shipping to Europe. After that, there's a lot of country to the east and south...

That's a wonderful adventure your working on. How long do you expect to be on the road and will travel beyond the Americas?

Paul

 

[Dallara]

He certainly has been in that position many time. Jeeeez, we all gotta put air in the tires once in a while, even on a Tenere. ::025::

It amazes me to no end the amount of effort folks will put into supporting their decisions, and the bashing they lay on the choice of others.
Then when they buy next bike, a different brand, they repeat the same process even if the decision is a different one.

I wonder how many here will own a Tenere , five years from now?

Paul

First off, glad to see you cleared up that odd implication that you actually knew someone, first-hand, that had cracked a Super Tenere frame. But hey, what's a little exaggeration and hyperbole among forum members, eh? ::025::

As for your other psychobabble...

Remember, I'm not here trying in any way "support" my decision to purchase a Super Tenere. Far from it. I've owned a lot of Yamaha's... and Honda's... and Ducati's... and CZ's... and Kawasaki's... and a few Aprilia's, Bultaco's, BMW's, HD's, Husqvarna's, KTM's, Norton's, Triumph's, Penton's, Puch's, ATK's, Can-Am's, etc., etc., etc. along the way. Many good, some not so good. I'm an equal-opportunity motorcycle marque owner, period.

Seems to me that it's more like you trying, and trying hard, to justify and support your own predilection for buying into BMW's false reputation for reliability than anything else. C'mon, Blu! Admit it! The real reason you've got a Super Tenere is that you don't trust them thar' BMW's any longer, either! ::025::

Of course, if you only ride your bikes 5,000 or so miles (or was it 10,000? Your previous embellishments and exaggerations, etc. have me a bit confused) before swapping them out then reliability is probably not very high up on the priority list, eh?

Dallara



~

 

[GrahamD]

I wonder how many here will own a Tenere , five years from now?

Paul

If the parts availability and by body keep up, I have no problems with that concept. I take my time deciding on a bike and I usually keep them a long time as well. In fact with the exception of two vehicles, they all have ended up sold for scrap in the end. ::025::

 

[Big Blu]

Big Blu - my original plan was to get to Buenos Aires and see how I felt... see how the bike's going, see how the money's going... and then decide what's next. Everything is going well, so next weekend it's the Argentina MotoGP race, and then back to Buenos Aires to organise shipping to Europe. After that, there's a lot of country to the east and south...

Good on ya!

I keep a bike in Heidelberg and spend July and August riding Europe, mostly in the Alps.
Here's a link to a very good site if you feel the need for help in planning your time in the Alps: http://www.alpineroads.com/phpBB3/

Paul

 

[Mzee]

::026:: I saw nothing on the list that is worthy of making me spend one way or the other. Every bike is a platform onto which we each build and tweak until it is our bike. All these can be address during that process.

Well said mate.

 

[turn312]

I too was considering a new(er) GS. However, tales of service woes got me nervous. Then I came across the following write up. Although one must take it with a grain of salt, it was definitely thought provoking and helped influence my decision to give other brands a look. I think I made the right choice with the S10 and couldn't be happier:

http://www.affordablebeemerservices.com/bmwthoughts/


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[escapefjrtist]

I too was considering a new(er) GS. However, tales of service woes got me nervous. Then I came across the following write up. Although one must take it with a grain of salt, it was definitely thought provoking and helped influence my decision to give other brands a look. I think I made the right choice with the S10 and couldn't be happier:

http://www.affordablebeemerservices.com/bmwthoughts/


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Interesting read, thanks for the link.

--G

 

[markjenn]

Then I came across the following write up. Although one must take it with a grain of salt....

http://www.affordablebeemerservices.com/bmwthoughts/

There are certainly elements of truth in this writeup and it covers many of the weak points of the brand. But always keep in mind the motivations of the writer. This guy has specifically set up a repair shop specializing in the repair of older BMWs and he declines to work on newer models. Is it really a surprise that he thinks the new models are crap? In reality, the old models, while certainly more approachable in repair/maintenance, weren't that reliable either.

- Mark

 

[Koinz]

I too was considering a new(er) GS. However, tales of service woes got me nervous. Then I came across the following write up. Although one must take it with a grain of salt, it was definitely thought provoking and helped influence my decision to give other brands a look. I think I made the right choice with the S10 and couldn't be happier:

http://www.affordablebeemerservices.com/bmwthoughts/


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

This guy has some great YouTube videos under the name of bavarianbomberwrench.

 

[creggur]

Very interesting read - thanks.

 

[VPS1]

I came across that BMW article during my search phase for what bike to buy, and many other stories of broken down bikes with stranded riders developing friendships with tow services. Got the S10 and couldn't be any happier with the choice.

 

[autoteach]

There are certainly elements of truth in this writeup and it covers many of the weak points of the brand. But always keep in mind the motivations of the writer. This guy has specifically set up a repair shop specializing in the repair of older BMWs and he declines to work on newer models. Is it really a surprise that he thinks the new models are crap? In reality, the old models, while certainly more approachable in repair/maintenance, weren't that reliable either.

- Mark

Do you think that he is really working an angle? There are a limited number of people that could own and ride an older BMW, based solely on the number of bikes produced. This, inevitably, will decrease, and as it does his job so to will diminish. Yup, his opinion on the matter is a poor investment. the old old bikes were dead reliable, the late 70's and early 80's carb versions were limited by their electronics. No problem, as there are updates on all of those items due to technology advancements that make them rather reliable, and frankly, they were no worse than the honda stators of that time. Mechanically, though, they were quite sound.

 

[turn312]

Do you think that he is really working an angle? There are a limited number of people that could own and ride an older BMW, based solely on the number of bikes produced. This, inevitably, will decrease, and as it does his job so to will diminish. Yup, his opinion on the matter is a poor investment. the old old bikes were dead reliable, the late 70's and early 80's carb versions were limited by their electronics. No problem, as there are updates on all of those items due to technology advancements that make them rather reliable, and frankly, they were no worse than the honda stators of that time. Mechanically, though, they were quite sound.

When I posted the link, I should have mentioned that I own an older BMW - a 1975 R90/6. It has 60k miles and has been bullet proof so far. And retro cool, too.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk