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I'd buy a new Goldwing if ....

6K views 15 replies 12 participants last post by  JerryH 
#1 ·
IMHO we've reaches the end of the road for bigger, heavier, & more complicated.

I'd buy a new Goldwing if ....

it had a simpler and cheaper engine like a horizontally opposed 4 that could be serviced by the owner. 1200cc. would be plenty and maybe you could make it get better than mid 30's for Mpg.

reduce the parts count drastically. the GL1800 is far too complicated. cut the # of parts by a third and you'd cut the cost to manufacture by a similar amount. (note the 4cly immediately gets you the parts count reduction on the engine!)

use the weight savings from the smaller engine and parts count reduction to increase the load capacity.

skip all the plastic that covers the engine, adds cost, and makes it a bitch to service. lots and lots of goldwing owners are old enough to remember the days when the owner could do a lot of his own maintenance and would do it again given 1/2 a chance.

make trunk and bags removable. maybe expandable or 2 sizes.

make the electronics optional and 3rd party friendly to keep the cost down.

give it an electric windshield (which the GoldWing STILL doesn't have!)

make the seat optional. many many gold wings have aftermarket seats. save the new owner the cost of an OEM seat he isn't going to use anyway.

design the frame and suspension so a lowered version is easily accomplished at little or no added cost for short people. lots and lots of short people out there.

go to the big goldwing rallies and study the add-ons. you'll find lots of things Honda could be selling that you are ceding to the aftermarket industry. (examples: air wings, passenger armrests, trunk racks, etc.) you might find some significant additional profit in this market without making the base version expensive.

price should come in around $15k. my guess is you'd sell a lot of them. I'd buy one.
 
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#3 ·
Keeping things simple is a lot easier but it will not keep up with the market. Most riders anymore want the latest and greatest. There are a few things I can appreciate about the simplicity of the earlier models but I don't think I would want to go back.
 
#4 ·
I have had 5 Gold Wings - oil changes are simple. Tires replaced by a dealer - steering head bearings replaced by my mechanic cause I did not to wrench anymore. I bought Gold Wings to ride - not to wrench.

Hardly any maintenance required.

Due to my age and the age of my 2008 Pearl White - I will never need to buy another Wing. :)
 
#5 ·
Due to my age and the age of my 2008 Pearl White - I will never need to buy another Wing. :)
You might be surprised how many times I've said that.
 
#11 ·
Cldryder, wait no longer.

GL1800 owners now have the ability to electrically adjust their windshield while moving WITHOUT CHANGING THE EXTERIOR APPEARANCE OF THEIR RIDE. In other words, it looks stock. Chalk another one off the list of things you wish Honda (Big Red) offered as a feature. Someone beat them to the punch. Thanks to ErgoMot, a company based in Belgium (www.ergomot.be), and their X-Screen system, this shortcoming is a thing of the past.

I purchased the GL version of the ErgoMot X-Screen and installed last week. Not too hard if you like working on your ride. I posted a video of how it looks installed on YouTube

Although I only have about 500 miles of test time so far, I like what I see. IMO, not only is it liberating to adjust the height of the screen without having to pull over but if you didn’t know better, you would think it came that way from the factory. For me, that was key. Yes, I considered the WindBender and yes, they are nice. But I wanted something that looked stock. ErgoMot succeeded in doing what Big Red said was impossible. You’ve got to hand it to creative people that don’t take no for an answer.

The BONUS for me is that the X-Screen, because of how it is made and configured with the supporting electronics and actuator system, actually helped reduce wind noise and buffeting…even better than my previous wind screen which was supposed to be the cat’s pajamas. I could hear the cars around me better, I could ride faster and I can arrive at my destination relaxed rather than stressed. What a difference. If you ever ride up and down I-95 between Richmond and Washington DC on a Sunday night, you know what I am talking about. A quiet air pocket makes a big difference.

It is a bit pricey but, IMO, you get more than what you pay for. Safety, performance, comfort, and stealth. Worth a look.

P.S., now all the have to do is come up with a 6th gear for the Wing.
 
#13 ·
I believe the YouTube videos show you that. Just put in the search word "ErgoMot" and you should be able to see the mechanism in question.
 
#14 ·
I completely understand about this bike being complicated. My GL1500 is way to complicated. There are days I wished they were as simple as a harley. If HD made a machine vtwin as smooth and quiet as the wing have always said I might buy it. Keeping it as simple as the one they currently make. My old Dodge diesel is a harley when you compare it to the current crop of Ford Powerstrokes (goldwing) There is nothing friendly under the hood of a powerstroke which is totally opposite of the Cummins I own. But the days of simplicity are long gone my friend. Replaced by regulation after regulation on epa standards and computer technology.
 
#15 ·
The GL1800 is 100x the bike of a GL1200 for 3x the original cost. What a bargain! Yes I owned a GL1200, and it was no picnic in the park to work on. I cussed it more than once, actually a "few" times, well in reality I really cussed it 600 times. What a piece of utter junk! Well for it's day it was fine, but I WILL take and do take the GL1800. I find it easy to work on for the most part because it needs very little if any work unlike the GL1200. Anyone removed the carbs on a GL1200? I did, like 20 times. No more carbs now, fuel injection on a 1800. It works, I'm happy and ride rather than remove 150 parts to remove the carbs to hope and pray to run for a couple weeks til next recurring ailment.
 
#16 ·
If it cost about half of what it does. I can't afford to spend enough on a motorcycle to buy TWO new cars. A 1200 with no gadgets would suit me just fine, in fact it would be perfect. It doesn't matter how good something is if you cannot afford to buy it. Close to $30,000 for a motorcycle is certainly no bargain IMO.
 
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