Slightly OT: Quick ride R1200GS

[hass]

I left my R for its 1000km service today and rode home on a borrowed GS. Here's my first impressions:

The good:
You sit really high up which gives a great overview of the traffic.
Basically same engine as my R although it did feel somewhat more rough (maybe that's just because mine is so new)

The bad:
It's noisy! I tried putting the shield in both the high and low settings and it was still extremely noisy. I commute without earplugs and it was almost unbareable!
It was only 27.5C (81.5F) and I was toast! The wind protection is adequate but in city traffic that means you bake... I think it was cooler on my K12S.
I didn't feel the bike had the same low CofG that the R has and therefore wasn't as instantly confidence inspiring.
It's heavy and a little work to lift off the sidestand if the ground happens to lean that way.

To summarize:
If you want a 2-up tourer it's a good choice but personally in that situation I would buy the RT instead. As a commuter or weekend carver the R is in my opinion much much better. If I was riding off-road I would personally prefer a smaller lighter bike. So, basically I am happy with my choice and have no desire at all to buy a GS. (Which is good as my wife would kill me if I did!)

[jomo]

Actually, that´s exactly the same differences i've noticed, coming from a 12GS to new-to-me 12R.

The R is simply more fun!! (for my kind of riding anyway...)

[ka5ysy]

It's heavy and a little work to lift off the sidestand if the ground happens to lean that way.

Don't you just hate it when that happens?

[motorradguy]

I had my GS for 1000 miles. In that 1000 mikes I tried 4 different wind screens. None worked. Buffetting and noise made me sell it. Otherwise, it's a great bike....maybe just not for a 6' person with a 31" inseam??