Buying Decision - Handling

[waltr]

I have a 2005 K1200LT (18K)and have just installed Wilbers Shocks to help with two up handling and the stock shocks were shot. I am not a very agressive rider most of the time and prefer to tour. The LT is known for its quirky low speed handling but I never run into problem except when with a passenger. The bike seems to be of two personalitys, one above about 4-5 MPH and one below. If I have to transition into a gravel or hardpack parking lot from the street I usually come to a complete stop then proceed onto the lot. I rode a few weeks ago to north of Phili along the Delaware river pre Wilbers and we pulled into a cafe filled with Harley riders and a few other bikes and the parking lot was not only gravel but very uneven and potholled. I did my stopping thing and proceeded very slowly and very time I tapped the brakes the front would plow. I thought"I am going to drop my BMW in front of all these Harley Riders" I am not new to riding but and have ridden Harleys and airhead BMW's for years. Can anyone offer insight on how the 1200RT handles in the same situations? For what it is worth I know that for whatever the big Harley touring bikes do pretty dam well on gravel, I know some of this is low CG and the RT is better that the LT in that regard. Thanks

[RTCHIEF]

I have a 2005 K1200LT (18K)and have just installed Wilbers Shocks to help with two up handling and the stock shocks were shot. I am not a very agressive rider most of the time and prefer to tour. The LT is known for its quirky low speed handling but I never run into problem except when with a passenger. The bike seems to be of two personalitys, one above about 4-5 MPH and one below. If I have to transition into a gravel or hardpack parking lot from the street I usually come to a complete stop then proceed onto the lot. I rode a few weeks ago to north of Phili along the Delaware river pre Wilbers and we pulled into a cafe filled with Harley riders and a few other bikes and the parking lot was not only gravel but very uneven and potholled. I did my stopping thing and proceeded very slowly and very time I tapped the brakes the front would plow. I thought"I am going to drop my BMW in front of all these Harley Riders" I am not new to riding but and have ridden Harleys and airhead BMW's for years. Can anyone offer insight on how the 1200RT handles in the same situations? For what it is worth I know that for whatever the big Harley touring bikes do pretty dam well on gravel, I know some of this is low CG and the RT is better that the LT in that regard. Thanks

 

I feel that the K12LT got a bum rap about low speed handling from the internet. It is a very agile for an 800 pound bike. If you lean too far, a little throttle will bring the bike up. The ABS activates/deactivates with speed. I am anxious to see if Harley introduces a Touring bike with a V-rod engine at Sturgis.

 

Jon

1 BMW dealership within a four hours of my house

[rdfrantz]

The LT is tall, bulky, and heavy. It also has a very remote, tiller steering. All this lead it to be "difficult" at low speeds. It does not respond quickly nor easily to control inputs to keep it upright. When diverted, as per a pot hole, that tall, bulky, mass, is soon very close to being "out of control" - very close to anyone's ability to get it back in Balance and moving as the rider desires. Plowing front tires because of its braking system is just one more added, and unwanted, function to overcome.

 

The R1200RT's design holds lesser magnitudes of those drawbacks: It's lower with lower CG, less bulky, less heavy, and has more direct and responsive steering. It also has a rear brake that allows use of only the rear brake, a function much needed a low speeds.

 

While I find the LT acceptably controlable at street speeds and beyond, it's still no prize in my book. Always, the R1100RT, and R1200RT are far more controllable, and thus confidence inspiring, regardless of the speeds they are ridden. There are other more controllable, far more controllable bikes than the RT's. But the bookend RT's are quite good.

 

Best wishes.

[Amac]

If you think that the '05 edition of the LT is a bear below 4-5 mph...don't get within a hundred yards of the pre-'05 bike.

 

Having ridden all three, my impression is that the difference between the pre-05 LT and 2005 LT is as large as the difference between the 2005 LT and the R1200RT.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

I'd really like to know what the problem is. I put about 25K miles on my 2000 LT and never noticed any "handling" problem. Yeah, it is a big motorcycle and you have to respect its mass but it turns just like any other motorcycle.

[johnt650]

Sounds like the fully linked brakes. I read an article by an LT rider who said that the linked brakes saved him during a high speed stop, then dumped he and his wife when they attempted to park on a ferry. The newer RT's have gone away from the fully linked brakes.

[jpsmith]

With ABS front and rear, I don't see a good reason for linked brakes. I had a version of linked brakes on my Goldwing and hated them. You need that independance to have comfortable slow speed response. I spend a lot of time training in the parking lot and that's what it takes to gain confidence and skill. Practice, practice, practice. Don't just climb on and ride. As for two up, same thing. Train with your co-pilot. It's not gonna happen in one afternoon, but over the time it will get easy. JP

[imeyers]

If you ever wanted to know how good a K1200LT could handle, just check out this video. I just took a rider course and learned that it is all about technique. I can now make a u-turn sharper than I ever thought possible before taking the course. Check out the video to see how well the LT can handle.

 

Precision Riding!!!!!

[haddoncoach]

Cool video! Do you have any information about this school?

[imeyers]

It is from another post. Precision Riding School

[waltr]

I spent this weekend getting the Wilbers set up correctly for two up riding. Rode a familiar ride yesterday evening that included some hills and twisties and some more sedate riding along Big Springs creek. I pulled off on a few gravel parking lots without any drama. On the way home I pulled into a school parking lot I have practiced in and did loops and figure 8's with Sandy on the back. In a short while I could not even notice I even had a passenger, it almost seemed easier with the new shocks and a passenger that the old shocks without. I was having fun. I just noticed that the bike handled very consistantly nas long as it was in gear.

Thanks again for the input--I would like to load the bike for touring and do the same thing--should be interesting.

[Amac]

I usually think of a concept that I call the bike's "V". It's sort of like positive and negative stability for aircraft. If you are holding the bike upright within the V, you're ok. If you let it go outside the V, it is going to drop.

 

For me, the V of a Buell looks like this -- ...I can do crazy stuff on a Buell and never pay.

 

For me, the V of an LT looks like this | ...sort of like trying to balance the thing on the head of a pin. Keeping the LT from going to ground is a full time job for me.

 

It can be done - there's a guy who pops wheelies on an LT - just not by me.

[Blue Beemer Dude]

My only positive input to this question is that I have had two RTs and two LTs. The LTs have been dropped a cumulative 5 times. My first RT was dropped once. The current one, never.

 

Of course, the RT had about $500 in damage (mirror, footpeg/bag housing) and the LTs just scraped up the bumpers. There's a reason they put those (replacable) bumpers on the LT. The thing is a pig. Peeeeeg. I rode a 2006, and it's still a pig. Quack, quack.

 

Michael

[rmg08057]

I have nearly 100k miles on a 2000LT. It is certainly harder in the slow stuff than an RT....but how much riding do you do at 1-4 mph.

 

One trick I have is to keep my feet down and sliding along the ground when I have to ride slowly with a passenger and on gravel... this greatly offsets that nervous feeling. I learned to do this when I had to ride the LT a few times in leather-soled dress shoes.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

I'm not going to jump on you as you are new to the board but keeping your feet down and sliding is probably the worst thing you can do. Well, I did jump a little, didn't I. Feet up on the pegs, please. If a bike the size of the LT decides it's gonna go, it's gonna go. The only thing having a foot down is going to do is possibly break you ankle or wrench the tendons there or in your knee. Your balance and control of the bike is far better with the feet on the pegs.

 

There are some tricks you can use to improve things at really low speeds.

 

A little touch of throttle will help, most of the time, when things start feeling a little tippy.

 

Keeping your head up and your eyes on the horizon, not on the ground in front of you is helpful as well.

[rmg08057]

Well, each to his own....I'm not a rider to normally ride with feet down - usually as soon as the bike is about to move or is just moving, both feet up and away we go, head up, all that good stuff...as well if slowing down, my feet don't go down usually until the bike is stopped. I'm talking about the situation I understood was being talked about - travelling very slowly, brakes required, trying to slow/stop, on thick gravel (ploughing), two up, on an LT....been there, done that, not dropped it. So, it was the particular circumstances I was addressing, not the general case, as a "touch of the throttle" does make it a tad difficult to stop.