Rode a BMW nine T last night

[jhwalker]

Thought I already posted this, but here it goes again.

Another rave review http://www.pistonheads.com/news/default ... ryId=29307 with another vid at the end.

From the reviews and the sales, it looks like BMW did make a nice bike... It will be interesting to see the reviews next year. By then the new will be gone, but these are great reviews.
The BMW motorcycle owners that I know love them for their reliability. Most of the touring bikes that I see in town, loaded for travel, are BMWs. My friend Mike Lewis put 60,000 miles on his 1150 GS when going around the world and said it was rock solid.

Even tho I owned and enjoyed a Beemer 730 with a nice 5 speed manual and the limited slip back in the day, it was a purchase mistake. One I could not afford to cure at the time . But I gained new respect for BMWs when I visited Ohio John for the Mid Ohio NASA national championships. I concluded that either the great drivers drive BMWs or the cars really are part of the equation.

[Tetge]

I liked the video and I could see that the BMW would be suited to the kind of road that they were on. The DR-Z SM would be no fun on such roads as they would be way too fast. It was interesting to note that the rider was revving the BMW fairly high as the tach showed in the video view, but, I was impressed that the bike pulled a wheelie. Of course, 110 HP and 88 TQ is a lot. I'd have to see one in action on Little T, or Spunky, or Latigo, etc., to see how they really handle, but, it sounded nice in the video. Strangely, it sort of reminded me of my Guzzi.

But, for me, the DR-Z works just fine. I pushed it out of the garage yesterday, and started it up and let it run for awhile, as I have not ridden it in many months, and it started right up with zero issues. License and full insurance run a bit less than $25 a month, so it doesn't bother me if the bike just sits there on its Battery Tender. There are advantages to owing an inexpensive, small displacement, bike as even my old Guzzi cost twice as much to just sit around, and the Busa cost even more. Of course, money isn't everything, but, when a person very seldom uses something, and it is costing money to own, it can be annoying each time money has to be laid out. This is why I sold the Guzzi, since I did not ride it at all for a full year, or more, so when the renewals of insurance and tags came up, I decided to sell it, as I was not riding it anymore.

But, I digress, other than to note that the new BMW would be beyond my means, even if I wanted one and even if they were available. I did have a new BMW 2002, back in the day, and it was a nice car, but, it was not a V-8 Mustang, and I tired of it pretty quickly.

[Tetge]

BTW. Perhaps they were scarce in Europe when the reviews were written, but, if you check Cycle Trader, there are lots of new ones for sale in So Cal. They show the list price of over $15K for them plus there would be other fees so they are pretty expensive OTD. And, of course, there are not that many BMW dealers around.

[jhwalker]

BTW. Perhaps they were scarce in Europe when the reviews were written, but, if you check Cycle Trader, there are lots of new ones for sale in So Cal. They show the list price of over $15K for them plus there would be other fees so they are pretty expensive OTD. And, of course, there are not that many BMW dealers around.

", if you check Cycle Trader, there are lots of new ones for sale in So Cal. "

I checked and then for fun I called...
The 4 at BMW Riverside being advertised have not arrived yet, and they are all sold. The sales guy said all that they foresee getting are pre-sold and did not encourage me to try for one from them.

The one that pops up for sale at Hollywood Honda does not exist, but they will put your name on a waiting list for a $100 deposit.

Pikes Peak Motorsports in Colorado said they had been allotted 4 and they were sold before they arrived, and the sales guy said there was a rumor that there was an unsold bike somewhere in the NorthWest, but he thought it was wishful thinking. He was very apologetic and said that he could not remember a situation like this.

BMW Tulsa said the two they got were presold and can't foresee when they will get another from the factory.

I have used up my 10 minutes for researching the "lots of new ones for sale" theory... Of course unless BMW is an idiot company they will solve the shortage, but it might not be immediate. One of the dealers said that he was told that the factory was shutting down the nineT line for some minor 2015 retooling.



So, sorry to say, it looks like BMW made a bike that is attractive to a lot of people.

[SonicVenum]

That's a pretty cool looking bike! Bikes like that are about the only things that make me wish I was smaller.

[jhwalker]

That's a pretty cool looking bike! Bikes like that are about the only things that make me wish I was smaller.

Juan, for sure it would need to be a LOT bigger for you. I was a bit cramped on it. But it was the first time that I have ridden a "sort of modern" bike like this and I really liked it.

[Tetge]

You mean that the dealers lied in their advertising on Cycle Trader? I am shocked since why pay to advertise if you already have sold all the product and can't get more? This is not a good business practice, as it smacks of an attempt to bait and switch. And here It thought that vehicle dealers were all really honest, especially the sales people.

The way I look at it is that for the approx., $18K OTD of a new nine T, and the extra insurance and license costs, I could trade in my GT and make a good start on a new 2015, GT350.

[jhwalker]

You mean that the dealers lied in their advertising on Cycle Trader? I am shocked since why pay to advertise if you already have sold all the product and can't get more? This is not a good business practice, as it smacks of an attempt to bait and switch. And here It thought that vehicle dealers were all really honest, especially the sales people.

The way I look at it is that for the approx., $18K OTD of a new nine T, and the extra insurance and license costs, I could trade in my GT and make a good start on a new 2015, GT350.

I asked one of them why they were advertising them. He said he was just a salesman. And since I only called 8** numbers the calls did not cost anything.

For us old guys, the money is a consideration but for the customers who are buying them before they are delivered to the dealer, not so much. It has been interesting to dig into a bike that I had NEVER HEARD OF before taking it for the ride last Saturday evening. I am proud of BMW for making a bike like this. I don't know enough to know if they are simply following a trend, or if this bike moves the trend forward a bit. I liked the various vids, and the bike IS in my head. But, the SPF has to be here, legal, and in the garage, and I am still fighting red tape with the Mexican authorities, Terri's back yard has to get finished (shades of 1 Bell Canyon ), and a couple of other projects need to finish ---- and it will be time to pick up a toy. Just for the hell of it.

We have plans for next year, so I think 2016. Maybe by then there will be the "it was too slow (too fast, too heavy, too simple, too complex) used bikes on the market, cherry for a decent discount. Time flies...

[Tetge]

Of course, for the same money, one could get other interesting bikes. Naturally Bert's shows that they have several of the Ducati's in stock, but, they may be lying as well....

[jhwalker]

Of course, for the same money, one could get other interesting bikes. Naturally Bert's shows that they have several of the Ducati's in stock, but, they may be lying as well....

We will see if I still have any money in a couple of years. This nine T is the first bike that I have ever called on and received the "fuggitaboudit" response from a range of dealers. It is time for me to move back to some of my unfinished projects.