Goldwings

[Mountain Cruiser]

You can pick up a five or six year old Goldwing with 25,000 miles or less for half the price of a new one. That's probably what I am going to do.

[JerryH]

I have owned a 1500 Goldwing for about 4 years now. WAY to many gadgets, and most people on the Goldwing forums want even more. I don't know where they could put anymore. This is my second Goldwing, my first was an '82 1100 base model Interstate in Wineberry with gold pinstriping. It was absolutely beautiful, and actually looked like a motorcycle, compared to the 2 wheeled cars of today. It had no gadgets, no stereo, no cruise control, no anything. It was one of the classiest bikes I've ever owned. Honda has simply gone too far with the Goldwing, and needs to get back to basics. But don't dare mention that on any Goldwing forum. I do think the new FB6 is a step in the right direction, though I don't really like it's cruiserish looks. And it still costs $20K. How about something $5K-$6K less? Honda went back to the 1100 air cooled inline four for the new CB1100, why can't they go back to the original 1100 4 cylinder Goldwing engine, and put it in a no frills basic touring bike. BTW, my Goldwing is for sale. Looking for something smaller. Either that or a convertible.

[donmac]

I have owned a GL1100 and a couple of GL1800s.

I bought the older GL1100 purely as a test to see if my broken tailbone had recovered enough to resume riding. I figured the smoothness of the wing would ease re-entry. I found that my tailbone was ready and after commuting on the GL1100 for a few weeks, I decided that I loved the storage capacity of a touring bike.

Tried the K1200LT and while the high speed handling was great, the low speed handling was terrible. So, I tried the GL1500 (GL1800 had not yet arrived) and it felt like a rolling sofa. Not for me. Also tried just about every other tourer out there.

Then I learned that Honda had recognized that the gl1500 market had peaked and the younger guys were buying the LT, so they had their top sportbike guy redesigning the wing to better compete with the LT.

I decide to take a chance and give Honda a shot, and pre-ordered the 2001 gl1800. I was thrilled. Excellent handling at high speed and decent handling at low speed. Comfortable as could be. Bought a 2nd gl1800 (airbagger ;) in 2006. I think the gl1800 is an awesome machine.

Then I moved from NH to DE in 2008, thought the straight roads down here sucked. I also no longer had the time for my frequent long weekend long distance rides. So I got rid of the gl1800 and picked up a F650GS so I could possibly find some more interesting small dirt roads.

The F650GS was too buzzy, so I just picked up R1100GS to see how that is. If this works out well might bump up to the 12.

Anyway, I'm a fan of the gl1800 and could easily see me owning another some day.

[kitesurfer]

ok...my goldwing didn't last but a year :( it did not have enough air flow to ride it in fla. was just way too hot. it was so big and heavy, it was a chore to ride it a few miles.





i rode it to new england/canada for 19 days in july.



it was comfortable trip for the wife and she enjoyed it, but she also said NO MORE.



We both decided that it did not meet our needs--we would be better suited in a corvette convertible (in the future, miata for now).







so she flew home on that trip from boston and left me the 3 day ride back.



i hit the parkway at front royal virgina and rode down to Willville. IT SUCKED!!! the bike was just too big for me to enjoy...got home and sold the wing and bought the vee strom the next day.

[hugemoth]

I rode a 79 GL1000 with a full Vetter setup for a few years and found it to be a great highway cruiser akin to a 70s Buick station wagon. It worked very well for hauling a lot of gear and covering a lot of miles without fatigue but that's not really how I like to tour. I like a lighter touring bike with better ground clearance so I can get off the road into undeveloped campsites next to rivers and creeks, and a bike that's enjoyable on winding mountain roads yet able to do long freeway runs when necessary. I tried a dual sport for a couple years but didn't like the lack of storage, the chain drive, etc.. Now I'm a happy camper with an 81 GL500 Interstate which fits my needs perfectly.

[bmwhacker]

I've racked up a couple thousand miles on this. Picked it up last spring....didn't have much riding time last summer.





Ran a 550 mile day ride through Yellowstone.
Great bike to ride and effortless. Weight is not much of an issue as long as you're moving.

[ANutt]

Just picked up a pristine 2001 GL1800A, 3rd wing I've owned. It's been 5 years or so since the last one, and I forgot just how comfortable, smooth, and easy to ride fast these bikes are. The better half and I just spend 1/2 day on the wing wtih my brother/SIL and another couple on a lunch run to north Georgia, all on wings.
I've had several bikes since my last GL, and they've been fun and entertaining, but WOW, the wing is just so smooth!
Of course, I had a Traxxion Light setup installed this week, since the original springs were toast by now. But just WOW! What a bike!

[Mountain Cruiser]

Originally Posted by ANutt

Just picked up a pristine 2001 GL1800A, 3rd wing I've owned. It's been 5 years or so since the last one, and I forgot just how comfortable, smooth, and easy to ride fast these bikes are. The better half and I just spend 1/2 day on the wing wtih my brother/SIL and another couple on a lunch run to north Georgia, all on wings.
I've had several bikes since my last GL, and they've been fun and entertaining, but WOW, the wing is just so smooth!
Of course, I had a Traxxion Light setup installed this week, since the original springs were toast by now. But just WOW! What a bike!

Nice. How about a picture?





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[Mountain Cruiser]

Originally Posted by kitesurfer

ok...my goldwing didn't last but a year :( it did not have enough air flow to ride it in fla. was just way too hot. it was so big and heavy, it was a chore to ride it a few mile i rode it to new england/canada for 19 days in juthe wife and she enjoyed it, but she also said NO MORE.

both decided that it did not meet our needs--we would be better suited in a corvette convertible (in the future, miata for now).



so she flew home on that trip from boston and left me the 3 day ride back.

i hit the parkway at front royal virgina and rode down to Willville. IT SUCKED!!! the bike was just too big for me to enjoy...got home and sold the wing and bought the vee strom the next day.

I'm hoping to get a late model GL1800 with low mileage from someone just like you...






.

[Mountain Cruiser]

Originally Posted by bmwhacker

I've racked up a couple thousand miles on this. Picked it up last spring....didn't have much riding time last summer.





Ran a 550 mile day ride through Yellowstone.
Great bike to ride and effortless. Weight is not much of an issue as long as you're moving.

Naked Wings are cool too.





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[ANutt]

Originally Posted by Ricemannv

Nice. How about a picture?





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Done!

[Mountain Cruiser]

Originally Posted by ANutt

Just picked up a pristine 2001 GL1800A, 3rd wing I've owned. It's been 5 years or so since the last one, and I forgot just how comfortable, smooth, and easy to ride fast these bikes are. The better half and I just spend 1/2 day on the wing wtih my brother/SIL and another couple on a lunch run to north Georgia, all on wings.
I've had several bikes since my last GL, and they've been fun and entertaining, but WOW, the wing is just so smooth!
Of course, I had a Traxxion Light setup installed this week, since the original springs were toast by now. But just WOW! What a bike!

It looks great. I like the color too. I know the full Traxxion setup is new forks, new steering head bearings and new rear shock. What is a "Traxxion Light" upgrade? Thanks.




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[ANutt]

Originally Posted by Ricemannv

It looks great. I like the color too. I know the full Traxxion setup is new forks, new steering head bearings and new rear shock. What is a "Traxxion Light" upgrade? Thanks.




.

Traxxion Full is new rear shock, and fork rebuild with the AK fork cartridges. Full Monty is those plus the billet triple clamps and the Traxxion fork brace.
Traxxion Lite is the new rear shock and fork rebuild with just the Traxxion coil springs replacing the Honda OEM springs in the fork. Makes a world of difference and about $1k cheaper. I do plan to add the fork brace though.
That being said, the AK fork cartridges are definitely an upgrade over the spring upgrade; wouldn't mind having them instead.
Traxxion also has some billet triple clams for the wing that definitely are stiffer than the OEM cast ones.
They're just up the street from me, so it's tough to resist the temptation to go up there more. Costs me $$ every time I do.
BTW, they're having a sale until the end of the year, when their prices will go up.

[Mountain Cruiser]

Originally Posted by ANutt

Traxxion Full is new rear shock, and fork rebuild with the AK fork cartridges. Full Monty is those plus the billet triple clamps and the Traxxion fork brace.
Traxxion Lite is the new rear shock and fork rebuild with just the Traxxion coil springs replacing the Honda OEM springs in the fork. Makes a world of difference and about $1k cheaper. I do plan to add the fork brace though.
That being said, the AK fork cartridges are definitely an upgrade over the spring upgrade; wouldn't mind having them instead.
Traxxion also has some billet triple clams for the wing that definitely are stiffer than the OEM cast ones.
They're just up the street from me, so it's tough to resist the temptation to go up there more. Costs me $$ every time I do.
BTW, they're having a sale until the end of the year, when their prices will go up.

Thanks for the info. I'm thinking that is the way to go for me. Pick up a used Wing in good condition for a nice price and then do the suspension upgrades.





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[Mountain Cruiser]

How is the audio on the GL1800 bikes?





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