Halvin
Parking Attendant
Posts: 1
|
posted June 08, 2007 05:52 AM
Goldwing vs. Electra Guide
I acquired my first bike, a Honda VTX-1300C, at 50, three years ago. At the time, the intention was that my wife would learn to ride and get a bike as well and we would go on trips together. She has now decided otherwise and any travelling we are going to do, will now be done on one bike rather than two and unfortunately, while I have certainly enjoyed the bike, the back of a cruiser is not all that comfortable for a passenger when travelling any significant distance.
I am now looking at replacing the cruiser with a touring bike and have narrowed the choices down to the 2006 Honda Goldwing GL1800A, or a 2007 Harley Davidson Ultra Classic Electra Glide.
The Goldwing does have some nice features, such as an electric reverse and onboard Navigation system, but I find that the seating on the Harley seems much more comfortable than the Goldwing.
Comfort is one of my primary objective as I want my wife to "want" to go on excursions with me and for that, it is necessary the she be comfortable. That being said, I am somewhat concerned over comments about Harley's having had a reputation of being "high maintenance" vehicles in the past. As my occupation is one of being a pencil pusher, I am not mechanically inclined and do require reliability in a vehicle.
I would appreciate any input as to whether or not my concerns are justified or any other comments anyone may have to offer on either vehicle.
  
|
worm~hole
Needs a life
Miles to go before I sleep....
Posts: 10623
|
posted June 12, 2007 04:59 AM
...if comfort is important, get the one that you can live with for hours and days at a time...and it sounds like the HD suits you...I've never ridden a GW, but there are LOTS of feedback from the mag-rags and real people about the virtues of the GW as a horizan chasing bike, especially if ultimate speed touring-bike-style is important for you....the HD has a lot to offer as well...if you ask me, motorcycling is a soulful endeavor...the HD has soul with all of its quirks...the GW is a nice and efficient Japanese suit with lots of conveniences...and people buy either for those reasons...the newer HDs are as reliable as any...
|
WrenisPinkle
Expert Class
that's Mr. PINKLE to you
Posts: 110
|
posted July 19, 2007 08:11 PM
I asked the same question 3 years ago. I have owned sport bikes all my life. I still have my trusty 2000 ZX12R and I still love it. But I too wanted a long distance touring bike that the ladies actually liked riding on.
A friend owns an older Gold Wing 1500. About 3 years ago he let me borrow it several times that summer. I was hooked on riding and being comfortable. Also having music while I rode was way cool. This changed riding as I knew it. I mean 100 miles is no longer a half day ride but just the first stop for fuel on a whole day of riding. My longest day so far is 660 miles. I was tired, but really not much worse than I would be in a car for that long.
There are many versions of touring and sport touring bikes out there. I narrowed it down to the same 2 that you have. The 1800 Gold Wing and the Harley Ultra Classic. These 2 seem to be the best long distance tourers and the most comfortable. There are many differences. Price is about the same, so atleast you can choose based upon what you want, not cost.
I have another friend who let me ride his Honda 1800 for a long all day ride with my girlfriend, so I got to check it out pretty well. If you don't know someone, this extended test drive may be difficult but Honda should let you take some kind of test ride. Harley Davidson rents motorcycles and I rented an Ultra classic for a weekend. It seems to me that the rental was a bit pricey, but considering that I was going to be spending around 20 thousand I found it very worth while.
They are both great bikes. There are some differences that I had no idea of until I rode both for a while, and even had the 2 next to each other. I am 5 feet 10 and have some belly. I have a 30 inch inseam. I was 40 then so comfort and fit was getting to be more of a concern. The Honda sits fairly tall. It has great power, and rides more like a sport bike. The Harley sits much lower, and sits like a standard. Not back like a cruiser, but more like a stock honda 750 four, or KZ 1000 if you remember those old gems. The Harley doesn't have the power of the honda. They both corner well, better than I expected! Both have good tripple disc brakes. The Honda has linked brakes and I didn't really like that the Harley has traditional front double and rear single discs.
I bought a brand new (at that time) 2005 Harley Davidson Ultra classic, and I love it. I have 20,000 miles now and it is less than 2 years old.
My decision was based on fit.not being a tall person the HD just fit me better. My feet are flat on the ground with my knees slightly bent and on the Honda I was just touching my toes like on a sport bike. There is a lot of weight there especially with a passenger and a weekends worth of gear. I drag the foot boards often going around curves. I keep up with my friends 1800 wing except under hard acceleration. But I reel him back in through the turns. In reality the Honda probably would out handle the HD with its more modern radial tires and better suspension but the HD has such a lower center of gravity and it is a smaller bike that it just feels more comfortable leaned over to me.
The HD is hotter to ride on because it is air cooled. This is great on cool evenings and not as good on hot summer days. Going down the road at 40 MPH or more they are the same, but stop light to stop light it is hotter. The Honda would probably be fine ideling in a traffic jam on a hot day indefinitely but the HD will over heat after maybe 15 minutes, but if you can move at all it is OK, just hot on the rider. The HD gets a bit better gas mileage. Cleaning the Honda is like washing a car. All plastic painted panels and is quite easy. The HD takes more time with its nostalgic look, options like spoked wheels, white wall tires, and lots of chrome. I find it a labor of love, but that is up to you?
Maintenance is somewhat more on the HD. The wings are the best of the Jap bikes but the HD still holds it value better, so you in effect get some of the maintenance costs back. Oil changes are required more often and some scheduled maintenance too. But the dealer support is WAY, WAY better!!!! HD's are much simpler machines and most of their models use the same parts so the dealers almost always have the parts in stock. However I almost never have found a part in stock for any of my Jappanese bikes. The dealers for Harley are very good about dropping everything to get a rider going if he is having problems. Again something the Jap dealers don't do. Usually a few week wait for service is the norm. I have had 1 mechanical issue on mine. I was out riding around town one evening and the bike stopped charging. I was with a date. We rode directley to a nearby HD dealer, and not the one I bought it at either. They came right outside, looked at it and right away took it in the back. He had a mechanic stop what he was doing, and look at my bike. They determined it to be a bad voltage regulator. He grabbed one off the shelf, and put it on. All in less than an hour total time. We just shopped in the store for a while. It was covered by waranty, and cost me nothing!!! In all my experiences I have never heard of service like that from any Jappanese dealer. To me HD knows that we spend a lot of money on these expensive toys and they do their best to keep us happy and loyal customers. I do think that the newer Harleys are a very reliable product. Harley dealers are located near major highways and almost always have a big billboard sign letting you know when one is comming up so if you need something anywhere along your ride it is easy to find assistance.
If you are a tall person, the Honda might be best for you. If you are a shorter person the HD will fit better.
Both have good electronics. Great stereos, and good intercoms. The HD comes stock with a single CD player in the dash, the Honda has an optional 6 disc changer for about $1000 but only AM FM stock. The 6 disc changer is in the bottom of the trunk so you have to empty almost everything out of the trunk to change CD's. The HD has a stock weather radio and the Honda has none. The HD has a stock CB and it is a $750 option on the Honda. Both have navigation available now, I don't know about cost because it wasn't available 2 years ago. I find that I am almost too busy to use navigation in a car so on a bike it seems dangerous to me?? I would think that a hand held unit that the passenger could use might be best on either?
I hope that I have been of some help to you? Both are great rides, very reliable and comfortable, and of similar cost both up front and down the road. The choice is based on personal preferences and comfort. Take some time to check them out, ride each if you can, and be sure to take your wife along to sit on and check out both.
Happy riding!!
Ted
|
aliveagain
Needs a life
Posts: 5033
|
posted July 26, 2007 04:55 PM
You couldn't go wrong with either.I would offer that you also consider the BMW tourer.For me,the honda seems dated looking after a couple of years.No problem if you'll be trading in every couple, but the Harley would be good for the duration.One problem that I did run into with the HD was picking up a stone in the drive belt.Once it breaks a cord on one side,the same amount break on the opposite side.Most likely a freak occurance.They do rent Harleys so maybe a day or two will give you a better idea if the bike is for you.
____________
I wondered why the baseball kept getting bigger. Then it hit me.
|
sagot
Zone Head
Posts: 779
|
posted August 22, 2007 08:55 PM
Thats like saying Lexus VS Massey Ferguson
|
|
|
|
|
HOME
NEW TOPIC