I am new to the forum but have been lurking for a few weeks/months now. I have been spending most of my evenings doing a bit of research on potential new bikes (in the large dual-sport/adventure category), and have pretty much made up my mind to go with the Super Tenere.
A bit of background: my first street bike was an '02 BMW 650GS. Rode it for a while and tried to make sure to develop good, safe riding techniques, and it was adequate for that purpose. But after about a year, as my skills had developed, and after a few rides on some of my friends' more powerful bikes, the little 650gs simply no longer put the silly grin on my face. So I sold it and then bought myself a VERY fun bike (that to this day I could kick myself for ever selling): an '04 BMW R1100S Boxer Cup Replika. Now THAT was a friggin fun bike to ride!!! But not all that great for a long trek, as the riding position was quite aggressive and not too easy on the back/knees after a few hours. So, then I sold it and bought an '04 BMW K1200RS, which really did fit the bill for a while, in terms of speed, power, and long-distance touring capability.
A couple of years later, my 3 sons were old enough to safely enjoy trail riding, and considering that I hadn't been able to take more than just a couple of trips on the K1200RS, I decided to sell it and bought my current bike, another 650GS -- but this time I got the Dakar version. And for the next few years my boys and I had a blast hitting the trails together.
Well, my oldest is now in college, and my other two have simply lost interest... but I haven't! I'm starting to get the "itch" really bad for another big, solid, long-distance bike. So I'm putting up the Dakar for sale, the proceeds of which will be used to purchase my Super Tenere!
As you now know, to date I have been a loyal BMW fan. And I've admittedly dreamed for years about moving up to the 1200GS. However, I also need to be a bit practical, as I don't have an unlimited budget, and also the nearest BMW dealership is at least 3 hrs away from my home town. BUT - we have a great local Yamaha dealership, and I must say I've been gawking at the 3 brand new S10's in the showroom for several weeks now. I've read dozens of reviews of both bikes (R1200GS vs. S10), and frankly I think the performance differences between the two are fairly small. Furthermore, I don't believe that I'm the caliber of rider who would ever push either bike to the point of noticing those differences.
So, I've definitely decided to go with the S10.... (gratuitous applause here). Just makes sense to save lotsa $, and have access to excellent LOCAL service if/when the need arises.
NOW - I would appreciate some input from other members of this forum to help me make a decision. And I must say that I've done several searches trying to get answers, but so far I haven't had any luck. What I'm trying to figure out is whether or not the 2014 Super Tenere ES is truly worth the extra money. I mean, after scouring listings on Cycletrader and Ebay and Craigslist, I know that I can find a very slightly used '12 or '13 model, with very low miles plus some really nice farkles, for around $9k-$10k. WHAT A DEAL! But what I'm having trouble figuring out is just how big of an improvement the new '14 model offers compared to the prior years. In particular, I'm wondering about the cruise control and the ESA. I've never had a bike with a simple throttle lock, so I really don't know if most folks consider them to be "adequate" compared to an actual electronic cruise control (which my K1200RS had, and it was NICE...). I've also never had a bike with ESA... which I'm also sure is quite nice... but is it worth spending several THOUSAND more dollars?
So, would I be wiser to go with a barely used S10 without those 2 options, save LOTS of dough, which could then be used on lots of other cool accessories/mods?
Obviously the 2014 would cost more, and if indeed most of you think it's worth the extra $, then I'll simply be patient and probably have to postpone my purchase until next spring, when the 2015 model arrives, and thus I could get a better deal on the '14. However, if with a few farkles the '12 and '13 models can be turned into an adventure rider's "dream bike," then I will probably go ahead and make my purchase much sooner...
Bottom line: I just don't want to be too hasty with my purchase and regret it later...
Thanks in advance for your input! I look forward to meeting some of you folks in my area in person in the near future. I would love to be able to make the rally in Arkansas in October, but I really don't think I will have purchased my S10 by that time... I've got to sell my Dakar first! But good things come to those who wait, right??
A bit of background: my first street bike was an '02 BMW 650GS. Rode it for a while and tried to make sure to develop good, safe riding techniques, and it was adequate for that purpose. But after about a year, as my skills had developed, and after a few rides on some of my friends' more powerful bikes, the little 650gs simply no longer put the silly grin on my face. So I sold it and then bought myself a VERY fun bike (that to this day I could kick myself for ever selling): an '04 BMW R1100S Boxer Cup Replika. Now THAT was a friggin fun bike to ride!!! But not all that great for a long trek, as the riding position was quite aggressive and not too easy on the back/knees after a few hours. So, then I sold it and bought an '04 BMW K1200RS, which really did fit the bill for a while, in terms of speed, power, and long-distance touring capability.
A couple of years later, my 3 sons were old enough to safely enjoy trail riding, and considering that I hadn't been able to take more than just a couple of trips on the K1200RS, I decided to sell it and bought my current bike, another 650GS -- but this time I got the Dakar version. And for the next few years my boys and I had a blast hitting the trails together.
Well, my oldest is now in college, and my other two have simply lost interest... but I haven't! I'm starting to get the "itch" really bad for another big, solid, long-distance bike. So I'm putting up the Dakar for sale, the proceeds of which will be used to purchase my Super Tenere!
As you now know, to date I have been a loyal BMW fan. And I've admittedly dreamed for years about moving up to the 1200GS. However, I also need to be a bit practical, as I don't have an unlimited budget, and also the nearest BMW dealership is at least 3 hrs away from my home town. BUT - we have a great local Yamaha dealership, and I must say I've been gawking at the 3 brand new S10's in the showroom for several weeks now. I've read dozens of reviews of both bikes (R1200GS vs. S10), and frankly I think the performance differences between the two are fairly small. Furthermore, I don't believe that I'm the caliber of rider who would ever push either bike to the point of noticing those differences.
So, I've definitely decided to go with the S10.... (gratuitous applause here). Just makes sense to save lotsa $, and have access to excellent LOCAL service if/when the need arises.
NOW - I would appreciate some input from other members of this forum to help me make a decision. And I must say that I've done several searches trying to get answers, but so far I haven't had any luck. What I'm trying to figure out is whether or not the 2014 Super Tenere ES is truly worth the extra money. I mean, after scouring listings on Cycletrader and Ebay and Craigslist, I know that I can find a very slightly used '12 or '13 model, with very low miles plus some really nice farkles, for around $9k-$10k. WHAT A DEAL! But what I'm having trouble figuring out is just how big of an improvement the new '14 model offers compared to the prior years. In particular, I'm wondering about the cruise control and the ESA. I've never had a bike with a simple throttle lock, so I really don't know if most folks consider them to be "adequate" compared to an actual electronic cruise control (which my K1200RS had, and it was NICE...). I've also never had a bike with ESA... which I'm also sure is quite nice... but is it worth spending several THOUSAND more dollars?
So, would I be wiser to go with a barely used S10 without those 2 options, save LOTS of dough, which could then be used on lots of other cool accessories/mods?
Obviously the 2014 would cost more, and if indeed most of you think it's worth the extra $, then I'll simply be patient and probably have to postpone my purchase until next spring, when the 2015 model arrives, and thus I could get a better deal on the '14. However, if with a few farkles the '12 and '13 models can be turned into an adventure rider's "dream bike," then I will probably go ahead and make my purchase much sooner...
Bottom line: I just don't want to be too hasty with my purchase and regret it later...
Thanks in advance for your input! I look forward to meeting some of you folks in my area in person in the near future. I would love to be able to make the rally in Arkansas in October, but I really don't think I will have purchased my S10 by that time... I've got to sell my Dakar first! But good things come to those who wait, right??
