Well I done did it... Almost | Page 5 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Well I done did it... Almost

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Bike is home, figured out the infotainment system, updated software etc.
Fantastic ride home, very comfortable, good performance and felt very confident.
Suspension & brakes performed very well under normal riding conditions.

Imo I made a good choice and had an excellent experience.
Saw the new 2023 CVO's while I was at the dealer and they are outstanding.

Today was a good day.
 
Over the weekend I was able to put on a bit of mileage, very pleased with my decision but have few minor gripes.

Positive points on the RA1250S
  • Styling - While subjective, I really like the looks.
  • Power - In sports mode this bike is a beast
  • Braking - Brembo's front and rear perform very well
  • Suspension - In road mode the bike soaks up all our wonderful asphalt.
  • Seat - comfortable stock seat
Negative Points on the PA1250S
  • Side stand - weird placement take some getting used to.
  • Air box placement - you have to remove the tank and some finicky connectors to change the air filter.
  • Stock skid plate - it's flimsy and you have to remove it to remove the oil filter.

All and all I think HD did an excellent job with the Pan America Special and with rumors of a 975cc version coming to market, I hope they plan on staying in the ADV segment and continue to grow and refine their product offerings.
 
Jampy00 said:
Over the weekend I was able to put on a bit of mileage, very pleased with my decision but have few minor gripes.

Positive points on the RA1250S
  • Styling - While subjective, I really like the looks.
  • Power - In sports mode this bike is a beast
  • Braking - Brembo's front and rear perform very well
  • Suspension - In road mode the bike soaks up all our wonderful asphalt.
  • Seat - comfortable stock seat
Negative Points on the PA1250S
  • Side stand - weird placement take some getting used to.
  • Air box placement - you have to remove the tank and some finicky connectors to change the air filter.
  • Stock skid plate - it's flimsy and you have to remove it to remove the oil filter.

All and all I think HD did an excellent job with the Pan America Special and with rumors of a 975cc version coming to market, I hope they plan on staying in the ADV segment and continue to grow and refine their product offerings.
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Glad you're enjoying it. Adv bikes have quite a few selling points that make them great and versatile street bikes.

Your negative points, the PITA of air filter service and skid plate relating to oil service are familiar to me with my KTM.

I imagine it's got a lot more range than your previous big twin?
 
Also good to hear, how is the 1250 evo engine compare to HD's typical vTwin. Must be completely different feel to it.

Any photos! C'mon share.
 
xrljoel said:
Glad you're enjoying it. Adv bikes have quite a few selling points that make them great and versatile street bikes.

Your negative points, the PITA of air filter service and skid plate relating to oil service are familiar to me with my KTM.

I imagine it's got a lot more range than your previous big twin?
Click to expand...
Good to know about the air filter and oil filter is like this on other bikes.
Another positive point is this is a single oil bike, compared to the typical HD that requires two. Engine oil and gearbox oil.

Yes, range is estimated at about 380km per tank, my HD Fatbob 114 was about 200-ish km
 
xrljoel said:
Glad you're enjoying it. Adv bikes have quite a few selling points that make them great and versatile street bikes.

Your negative points, the PITA of air filter service and skid plate relating to oil service are familiar to me with my KTM.

I imagine it's got a lot more range than your previous big twin?
Click to expand...

I think that it is just the differences when coming from the HD cruiser.

Try to look at the positives of the cons:
-air box placement may be harder to access but it no longer gets in the way of your knee when trying to hug the tank with your legs
-Oil filter placement is behind skid plate but does it still spill all over the engine when it is removed like most HDs?
 
sburns said:
Also good to hear, how is the 1250 evo engine compare to HD's typical vTwin. Must be completely different feel to it.

Any photos! C'mon share.
Click to expand...
Yes, very different than the M8 likes to be in the 4-5K range while cruising.
Shifting is smooth (no clunks like a typical HD gearbox) neutral is easy to find.
And in sport mode very easy to get into sport-like speeds
 
woot said:
I think that it is just the differences when coming from the HD cruiser.

Try to look at the positives of the cons:
-air box placement may be harder to access but it no longer gets in the way of your knee when trying to hug the tank with your legs
-Oil filter placement is behind skid plate but does it still spill all over the engine when it is removed like most HDs?
Click to expand...
HA! you're very right. the "negatives" are not real complaints just my "wish they could be easier/better" list.

I don't want to appear to be a HD fanboy and get all the hate.... :ROFLMAO:
 
Jampy00 said:
Stock skid plate - it's flimsy and you have to remove it to remove the oil filter.
Click to expand...

Of all the armor you have on that bike, IMO the skid plate will be the least critical seeing how much ground clearance you already have and if you are only sticking to gravel roads and FSRs. I've taken shelf drops and rode some boulders large enough to scrape the flimsy skid plate on my old 12GS and it was more than adequate. I could see needing a beefy skid plate if you are intentionally jumping logs and needed to hit it with enough speed and momentum to avoid high centering the bike.

I think a good set of crash bars and beefier handguard protectors would probably be higher on the list of priorities for protection.
 
Lightcycle said:
Of all the armor you have on that bike, IMO the skid plate will be the least critical seeing how much ground clearance you already have and if you are only sticking to gravel roads and FSRs. I've taken shelf drops and rode some boulders large enough to scrape the flimsy skid plate on my old 12GS and it was more than adequate. I could see needing a beefy skid plate if you are intentionally jumping logs and needed to hit it with enough speed and momentum to avoid high centering the bike.

I think a good set of crash bars and beefier handguard protectors would probably be higher on the list of priorities for protection.
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Again, not major complaints. Just wish it was a little better than light gauge aluminum for what the bike is worth.
The bike has crash bars already factory installed (excluding the exhaust one) and hand guards but nowhere near something like bark busters, they basically stop the wind from hitting your hand kinda thing.
 
The HD RA1250S has a great feature I was able to test today. Hill Hold. Basically when stopped on a hill pump either brake and hill hold will engage in neutral or 1st gear. I was stopped on a very steep hill and gave it a test, OMG! it worked exactly as stated, I was nervous to release the brakes on the hill (I did so only for 1-2 seconds) and the bike did not budge, then when the light changed I rolled off like I was on flat ground. While I always keep my brakes engaged at a stop (enough to keep brake light on and the not move) this is a great aid I can see it being very useful if the bike was loaded with luggage and/or a passenger.
 
Jampy00 said:
The HD RA1250S has a great feature I was able to test today. Hill Hold. Basically when stopped on a hill pump either brake and hill hold will engage in neutral or 1st gear. I was stopped on a very steep hill and gave it a test, OMG! it worked exactly as stated, I was nervous to release the brakes on the hill (I did so only for 1-2 seconds) and the bike did not budge, then when the light changed I rolled off like I was on flat ground. While I always keep my brakes engaged at a stop (enough to keep brake light on and the not move) this is a great aid I can see it being very useful if the bike was loaded with luggage and/or a passenger.
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Some BMW models have had this feature for a few years now. I agree it's very convenient but you may find there are some situations where it engages when you don't want it to such as over a spot where you can't get a foot down properly when stopping. I have mixed experiences with it and in fact have disabled the feature for a period of time and gone back to old school . So just a word of caution and see what you think after some accumulated kms and maneuvering situations.
 
thwak said:
Some BMW models have had this feature for a few years now. I agree it's very convenient but you may find there are some situations where it engages when you don't want it to such as over a spot where you can't get a foot down properly when stopping. I have mixed experiences with it and in fact have disabled the feature for a period of time and gone back to old school . So just a word of caution and see what you think after some accumulated kms and maneuvering situations.
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+1

I've disabled mine as well.

Right foot on the rear brake for stopping on hills.

Boomer style.
 
It has to be manually activated on the HD (by pumping either brake twice), I assume on your BMW it was am "auto" feature?
So pretty sure I'll not have the same troubles as described above.
 
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Congrats on the new bike, love the look of these!
 
Jampy00 said:
It has to be manually actuated on the HD, I assume on your BMW it was am "auto" feature?
Click to expand...

Has both an automatic and a manual mode depending on what package you have.

Auto mode holds the rear brake if the incline is more than a certain % grade.
In manual mode, you squeeze the front brake lever or rear brake pedal hard and it engages hill hold.

Personally, I like having full control over when the rear brake releases and how gradually, so I can control my take-off speed, if I need to creep forward for a few inches, then stop, or even roll back a bit to move the front wheel off an obstacle, like a large rock.
 
Lightcycle said:
Has both an automatic and a manual mode depending on what package you have.

Auto mode holds the rear brake if the incline is more than a certain % grade.
In manual mode, you squeeze the front brake lever or rear brake pedal hard and it engages hill hold.

Personally, I like having full control over when the rear brake releases and how gradually, so I can control my take-off speed, if I need to creep forward for a few inches, then stop, or even roll back a bit to move the front wheel off an obstacle, like a large rock.
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I get you, but jeez I used it once... Cripes!!!
 
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