Re: Potential Triumph Owner

["Marc Cook" <marccook@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I have had two BMW R1100RSes and would not trade my Sprint ST 
back for any amount of money. Here's where I think they differ.

Fun. The Triumph is far and away more fun to ride. It feels about 200 lb
lighter than the RS, and turns more quickly and is more confidence inspiring
on a backroad flog. Its suspension is better sorted over all, although the
fork is too soft for my liking.

Drivetrain. There's no comparison. Triumph's triple flat whups on the boxer,
with more torque in the middle and a fatter top end, too. And the fuel
injection is nearly perfect, which is certainly not the case with the
Beemer. (I grew to loathe the BMW's injection, particularly after spending
so much time synching the throttle bodies and tweaking this and that.)
Gearboxes are even further apart; the analogy might be the ST is a modern F1
car while the RS is a lawn tractor. Chain. Yep, the chain's messier and
takes some routine maintenance; advantage shaft. In the end: so what?

Reliability. Too early to say for my just-purchased Sprint, but my two BMWs
were nothing to crow about. Fuel injection troubles--later cured but still
not as well worked out as the Sprint's--and a crummy fuel gauge on the '96.
Frankly I don't expect either bike to be as leave-it-alone reliable as a
Honda.

Ergonomics. Martin mentioned that the riding position is the same between
the two bikes. Not so. The BMW is more upright, with the pegs lower and
further forward (seat in the middle position) and the bars higher and
further back. It makes the front of the BMW feel huge, which, I guess, it
is. The BMW numbed my hands on every long trip; the ST doesn't. I find the
Triumph, despite its sportier riding position, more comfortable than the RS.

Luggage. The BMW's was quite good if expensive. Standard bags are too wide
for commuting, but I fitted the thinner "city" lids and that worked wonders.
Overall, I'd have to give the BMW the edge on luggage, particularly as it
has transparent mounting hardware. I don't like the way the ST's mounts look
so for now I'm doing without.

Price. That's been said. The ST is a flaming good deal next to the BMW.

Ultimately, you have to look at where these two bikes reside in the great
sport-touring spectrum. On the scale, if sport is 10 and touring is 1, the
BMW is about a 3 and the Triumph is about an 8.5.

- --Marc (red ST)


- ----------
>From: "Don Harville" <rmtt80@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>To: ST@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
>Subject: Potential Triumph Owner
>Date: Mon, Sep 20, 1999, 12:35 PM
>

> If I were to buy a sport tourer it would be between a Sprint ST and a BMW
> R1100RS.

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