Suspension adjustments -- how often?

camardelle

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Sep 7, 2014
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Beautiful Willis Texas
A little about me….old dude, no desire to ride off road…purely street riding around town and some decent distance trips.


With that info, I really want to know how often you guys with ES models actually adjust your suspension. I've got ESA on the GSA I'm trying to sell and to be honest once I set it up to carry me and my luggage I've never used it again, so for me at least I'm wondering if the extra money is worth getting the ES model. I know I want the heated grips but I can get those installed, right? And the shock on the standard model is adjustable so I can set it for my weight, correct?


By the way, if any of you see me in the dirt, please call an ambulance and a tow truck. I'm likely in the process of crashing. ::025::


Seriously, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. All input is welcomed. Thanks and ride safe.
 

JRE

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I have not ridden the non-ES but the consensus seems to be that the suspension on the ES is better in general even without the added benefit of e-adjustment.
 

LJM

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Sonoma County CA
I am also old not sure what that has do with it except we have money to buy nice bikes ! It had a BMW and a Ducati Multistrada with ES and didn't use it much I never carry a passenger and ride a lot of the same roads only had the st off road one time so I don't use the ES a lot but I do use it more than I did with the BMW & Duc. IMO The ES on the Yamaha is a much better system and worth the money. I rode both models on test ride after riding both I had no problem spending the extra money. I also thought at re-sale time the ES would be an quicker sale. I would probably like the non ES as much as I do the ES but since I'm old and have the dough why not spend it ?
 

camardelle

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You have many valid points LJM, especially about the disposable income. My point on age was that I stopped trying to get my bikes airborne many years ago so off road capabilities aren't all that important to me. LOL!

I was hoping to get a leftover '14 but they are getting more scarce. I haven't sold my GSA yet so I have some time I might end up with a used '15 before its all over.

Who knows really?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
 

Goldwing

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Oct 9, 2012
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Lindenhurst, NY
I change it when I carry a passenger and on the days my back bothers me.........Also I don't always carry luggage. When going to work I just use a back pack so no saddlebags but when I teach a MSF class, I carry the saddlebags filled with stuff.

IF you have experience with a ES bike and didn't change it much, save yourself some money and don't but an ES ST. Just get the heated grips as an accessory..................IMHO
 

kevbla

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May 6, 2015
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ireland
I have a 15 es. I don't ride off road. I have set the suspension once since I got the bike and have found no reason to change it. It copes well :) even on the roughest, dilapidated cart tracks on this island. My last number of bikes had Ohlins and, whilst the s10's suspension is not as good, it does surprise me with how good it is. I bought the es because I had one eye on resale but the way things are going I may never let it go. :)
 

vapexpr

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Mar 31, 2015
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Hampstead Hall drive, Ooltewah, TN
I have a '14 ES. I got it because that's the one my dealer had and I liked the color (matte grey). I am constantly adjusting the setup;
Just me long miles on super slab = 1up + luggage & soft -3, TCS1
Twisty mountain roads = 1up + luggage & hard +3, TCS2
Off road = 2up & hard, TCS off
Wife & I (on road only) = 2up +luggage & STD, TCS1

It is great to be able to make all of these adjustments with a few button presses
 

iClint

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Mar 20, 2015
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Sydney
I set the bike up for my weight and then set the compression/rebound presets which gives me 3 modes (while moving) depending on the road.

Preset 1: Soft -3 for dirt and rough roads or even just for most comfort

Preset 2: Standard -1 provides a good compromise between handling during hard cornering and comfort

Preset 3: Hard +3 for best handling at high speed and hard cornering

The preload also gets adjusted for when I ride 2 up.

So to put it in perspective I probably change my suspension settings multiple times on every ride. I assume it is the same most places but in Australia road conditions change dramatically quickly and the ability to adapt the bike without stopping is for me a fantastic feature.

If my Tenere didn't have ES I'd probably have the bike setup for comfort which would be a terrible compromise considering how well this bike handles on good roads with the suspension stiffened up but it would suck to ride around like that on all the rough roads.

The price difference IMO makes it a no brainer, especially if you are going to fit heated grips to a non-es after purchase.
 

Don T

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Mar 11, 2011
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Denmark
I bought a non ES 2 weeks ago.

Prior to the purchase I had the opportunity to test ride both the ES and the non ES version.
It was fun to play around with the ES settings but I decided that to me it was more of a gimmick than a useful accessory.
As I always ride solo and only bring up to 20 kg of gear on long rides I didn't see the need for ES.

When I get a new bike I set the suspension to my liking (which often takes several tries and much testing). After that I hardly touch the settings. That way the bike always behave the same and especially when I ride it hard I like that.

The price difference between the ES and non ES is steep here in DK and besides that the non ES suspension is simpler and therefore less prone to failure (not that the ES seems to be a source for failure on the S10).

For me the non ES was the best choice...
 

fredz43

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camardelle said:
Thanks for all the great input guys. Anyone else with something to add feel free, it's great to hear your impressions. Thanks again and ride safe.
I went from an Ohlins equipped (front and rear) 2012 to a 14 ES and am happier with the ES. I only adjust the preload when load conditions change, but adjust the damping on almost every ride, as in my area, the road conditions change. With the Ohlins, even though I kept a notebook to try to keep track of the settings, I would sometimes stop and do a few twists of the adjusters without getting the notebook out. At the end of the day, in those instances, I wouldn't know just how many turns I had made to the many adjusters on that setup and sometimes ended up worse than when I started, so would get out the book and start over. It also would take 2 people to measure shock sag when changing loads. I can do that now with the push of a button. The general consensus based on experience has been that the OEM shock spring is too weak to get proper sag for even one up, much less with a load and/or passenger. My 12 was a quality piece of kit, but overall I find that the damping adjustments with their memory feature on the ES work much better for me. When you subtract the cost of the included heated grips that are integrated into the dash display, the cost is not that much in the USA.

To each his own and it's your bikes, so the choices are yours, but having spent mucho $$ on suspension on my 12, I am much happier with my ES.
 
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