R18 Touring Transcontinental

[R2K]

2021 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special vs. 2021 Indian Chieftain Limited vs. 2022 BMW R 18 B First Edition Comparison Review

Cycle World compares the 2021 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special, 2021 Indian Chieftain Limited, and 2022 BMW R 18 B First Edition.

www.cycleworld.com

- good Review, spot-on IMHO.

I (currently) own two Harleys, one Indian, three Victories, one Buell, two EBRs and one Boss Hoss (all US). Also a Triumph, a BMW (R18), two KTMs and two Ducatis (Europeans) as well as one Yamaha and one Honda. If I got told tomorrow that I could only keep three (it would have to be by God), it would be 1) the Goldwing and a toss-up, 2) between the two Harleys (Twincam Breakout or M8 Electra Glide), and 3) between the EBR 1190SX and the Triumph Rocketr 3R. And I would try to hide the 1190 KTM Adventure somewhere nearby (-:

I have been riding bikes for fifty years this year and have owned more than one hundred motorized two-wheelers. The R18 is my first BMW and will be my last. I have owned several BMW motorcars, and my wife still drives one now. I am not a fan of the GS (not after having owned KTMs), the S1000RR (coming from Ducatis), or the K1600 - no match for the Goldwing, especially not the latest model. I own a 2014 GL1800 - my wife's favourite.

Wow that does not speak very highly of BMW from someone who is obviously a connoisseur

 

[Black Dog]

Wow that does not speak very highly of BMW from someone who is obviously a connoisseur

Sounds like he is a Buyer, not a Rider.
Just another Trailer Biker, Wannabe.
Looka Me, Looka Me.

 

[Cheerios]

2021 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special vs. 2021 Indian Chieftain Limited vs. 2022 BMW R 18 B First Edition Comparison Review

Cycle World compares the 2021 Harley-Davidson Street Glide Special, 2021 Indian Chieftain Limited, and 2022 BMW R 18 B First Edition.

www.cycleworld.com

- good Review, spot-on IMHO.

I (currently) own two Harleys, one Indian, three Victories, one Buell, two EBRs and one Boss Hoss (all US). Also a Triumph, a BMW (R18), two KTMs and two Ducatis (Europeans) as well as one Yamaha and one Honda. If I got told tomorrow that I could only keep three (it would have to be by God), it would be 1) the Goldwing and a toss-up, 2) between the two Harleys (Twincam Breakout or M8 Electra Glide), and 3) between the EBR 1190SX and the Triumph Rocketr 3R. And I would try to hide the 1190 KTM Adventure somewhere nearby (-:

I have been riding bikes for fifty years this year and have owned more than one hundred motorized two-wheelers. The R18 is my first BMW and will be my last. I have owned several BMW motorcars, and my wife still drives one now. I am not a fan of the GS (not after having owned KTMs), the S1000RR (coming from Ducatis), or the K1600 - no match for the Goldwing, especially not the latest model. I own a 2014 GL1800 - my wife's favourite.

I used to have a stable full of ponies but about 4 years ago dramatically down scaled to 1. Would be awesome to see a pic of your battery tender farm

 

[Mr. Efficiency]

The K16 and the R18 are two different animals. I cant discern perfectly; the R18, raw and naked... is gorgeous and fun to ride. More fun than a barrel full of monkeys. But, let's face it, it didn't sell and has some issues. I still love mine but what sold is the bagger versions. They sold really well. So, BMW is doubling down on them.

It would be crazy talk to get rid of the K16. It is some kind of monster. The bagger version... not a fan. But the sport touring versions are amazing travel machines. BMW has a bit of a high class problem. They defined the adventure tourer and have the best sport bike in the world (today). They nibble at the other markets but dont hit home runs. They are not a big manufacturer; perhaps they should stick with what they do best and stop glopping things on their platforms to make up for offering up a niche bike that didn't sell well.

This is not an indictment of the R18. I love mine and I love it the way it was offered up. it is an homage to their bikes of yesteryear with a thumb in the eye to the boys in Milwaukee. It is proof German engineers have a sense of humor and it is darn sure the prettiest bike BMW has made in half a century. If I want a Road Glide, Im gonna go get me one. If I want a GS I'll get another one.

 

[Mr. Efficiency]

I wish BMW well with the touring model, but I doubt that it will be real competition to the existing V-twin touring market. I'm confident that my 2016 1901cc Roadmaster will eat it's lunch in every touring category.
While I have no use for "highway pegs" most tourers consider them essential. And, unless they put a counter-balancer in the tourer, it's not going to cut it at highway speeds, where lots of riders consider 65 MPH just getting rolling.
If the gas tank really is bigger than ours, I may look into getting one for my First Edition.

They dont need to change the motor IMHO. get this thing to 80 and the designed vibration goes away. Keep in mind it was designed to give you some old bike feel at 60 on a back road. at 80 on a slab in 5th gear the thing is amazingly smooth and in 6th it is a gentle reminder you are on a motorcycle. I use the right helmet but the thing that shocks me about my R18 is how good it feels on the slab at 80 with no windshield. but it certainly doesnt vibrate much at that speed.

 

[estoma]

I used to have a stable full of ponies but about 4 years ago dramatically down scaled to 1. Would be awesome to see a pic of your battery tender farm

I keep the bikes in three double garages - two attached to my house and the third at another nearby property that I own. I keep six chargers in each garage, either mounted centrally (as shown below) or mounted on walls. I use Optimate 6 for the AGM batteries and Optimate Lithium for the featherweights. I keep those bikes that I am working on or ride less regularly on lift/scissor-jacks and stands (wheels off the floor) and with full fuel tanks (no Ethanol or similar cr4p in South African petrol despite all our other issues).

 

[estoma]

Wow that does not speak very highly of BMW from someone who is obviously a connoisseur

I took delivery of this Rocket around two months before I did the R18. I ordered a bunch of OEM accessories when I put the deposit down on it, and I received most of it, except for the quick-shifter, even before receiving the bike, and I got that a week later. I downloaded a Service Manual from the R3OWners forum within the first month, and a free Penner TuneECU map has been available on the Net for at least the last eighteen months already. And the sales and service experience is in an entirely different league.

 

[D04011]

estoma: I followed and always enjoyed your R3 R modifications and other informative inputs on the Rocket forum. I plan to install Penner's tune on my R3 GT when I get home in May and look forward to it. I have various tunes on my other Rockets that are appropriate to the modifications and it REALLY woke them up and I believe Penner's tune will do likewise for the GT...

 

[estoma]

estoma: I followed and always enjoyed your R3 R modifications and other informative inputs on the Rocket forum. I plan to install Penner's tune on my R3 GT when I get home in May and look forward to it. I have various tunes on my other Rockets that are appropriate to the modifications and it REALLY woke them up and I believe Penner's tune will do likewise for the GT...

It is a small world. I have likewise been following R2K (aka desserttan) on the Indian Vintage forum. His Chief Vintage is one of the nicest I've seen. I plan to 'refresh' mine as well as my Gen 2 VMax in 2022, hopefully, the Buell XB12Ss too. I only managed to do one bike in 2021 - my 2014 Victory XC Street - but I did a ton of things on it. Arnott air shock, Arlen Ness raked triple tree, 21" front wheel and longer forks (ex-Magnum), 14" Paul Yaffe apes (wiring inside), 600W Arc Audio 4-speaker sound, ALL-round chrome hardware and literally a thousand other smaller mods. I also rubber-coated the fender undersides, fitted Thermo-Tec Heat Barrier at the bottom of the fuel tank ( I do that on all my V-twins) and saddlebags, Nioco sound-deadening inside the saddlebags and fairing, and I lined the saddlebags.

 

[Deleted member 939]

It is a small world. I have likewise been following R2K (aka desserttan) on the Indian Vintage forum. His Chief Vintage is one of the nicest I've seen. I plan to 'refresh' mine as well as my Gen 2 VMax in 2022, hopefully, the Buell XB12Ss too. I only managed to do one bike in 2021 - my 2014 Victory XC Street - but I did a ton of things on it. Arnott air shock, Arlen Ness raked triple tree, 21" front wheel and longer forks (ex-Magnum), 14" Paul Yaffe apes (wiring inside), 600W Arc Audio 4-speaker sound, ALL-round chrome hardware and literally a thousand other smaller mods. I also rubber-coated the fender undersides, fitted Thermo-Tec Heat Barrier at the bottom of the fuel tank ( I do that on all my V-twins) and saddlebags, Nioco sound-deadening inside the saddlebags and fairing, and I lined the saddlebags.

View attachment 4140
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That is 1 Badd A$$ Vic!

thanks for the pics

 

[D04011]

Crap! Now I feel like a piker when I see and hear about your various mods... That is definitely the best looking Victory I have ever seen and I'm sure it rides and performs just as good as it looks. Very well done indeed! I look forward to seeing the other bikes as you complete your planned mods.

 

[estoma]

estoma: I followed and always enjoyed your R3 R modifications and other informative inputs on the Rocket forum. I plan to install Penner's tune on my R3 GT when I get home in May and look forward to it. I have various tunes on my other Rockets that are appropriate to the modifications and it REALLY woke them up and I believe Penner's tune will do likewise for the GT...

I initially tried the $212 DNK Map for the Rocket-3, but it did not kick 4ss as I had expected. I attempted sorting that with DNK, but they got all sn0tty and refunded my purchase. So, I loaded Penner's instead. It adds roughly 8-10% torque and 17-20% power, depending on who's dyno-chart you look at. It breaks that 240-wide rear tire loose up to third gear without trying hard. I initially rode it without TC, but no longer since slightly tweaking and reloading the map. The TuneECU software is roughly $30 and can register on five bikes (Aprilia, Benelli, Ducati, KTM, Moto Guzzi & Triumph). It runs on an Android phone or tab, and one needs an appropriate OBD2 Bluetooth scanner ($70-150) to connect to each bike. An ODB2 Scanner like the ODBLink LX (

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00H9S71LW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

) will also work with a large number of cars and light trucks.

On this forum, we now hope to do a group purchase to only pay circa $650 for a BT-Moto R18 tune and associated hardware that will kill the lumpy idle (not happy about that) while presumably allowing the exhaust flappers to stay wide open (as opposed to manually detaching their cables) and lining up the fly-by-wire throttle-body butterflies with the throttle (like on my 2014 Victory XC fitted with throttle cables) for limited seat-of-the-pants Boxer placebo. Add another circa $400 to that for a GS-911 to reset service reminders and error codes (?). And $100 each time you need an updated BT-Moto map following an OEM ECU flash by the dealer.

I've had a sore 4ss since the day I parked this Bring.My.Wallet (R18C's words) in my driveway, and it is not from the seat. That would have been OK if it had looked like I originally configured it on the OEM website. So, 2023 I guess.

 

[estoma]

That is 1 Badd A$$ Vic!

thanks for the pics

Thanks. Your (work-in-progress) project is pretty bad-4ss too. We need to see more photos, though - especially of the details.

Crap! Now I feel like a piker when I see and hear about your various mods... That is definitely the best looking Victory I have ever seen and I'm sure it rides and performs just as good as it looks. Very well done indeed! I look forward to seeing the other bikes as you complete your planned mods.

Appreciated. The XC is rather tame. It features a Lloydz air cleaner and V&H pipes with a complementing DynoJet PVCX tune. And it runs a smaller Conquest Customs engine pulley. The wife and I ride on it, so it needs to be respectable (-:

I have two more radical (Victory) Hammers - both on lift-jacks at present, though. One, a 2013 Sport, runs a Trask turbo, and I am doing a couple of other things to it on the side. The other, a 2012 8-ball, is a 2023 project. It will get a full Conquest Customs chop with its rear-wheel widened to 280, full repaint - frame et al, Lloydz cams and torque tubes, as well as a nitrouos kit. I will use PC5 fuelers on the Hammers - easier to configure when it involves 'augmented aspiration' (-:

 

[D04011]

estoma - Wow! My mods are merely minor tweaks compared to your upcoming mods on the 2 Victory bikes...

I have a OBDLink MX+ that I regularly use for my own and friends' vehicles. I used TuneECU to load the various Hanso tunes on my Gen 1 Rockets from my Android phone. I bought the Wi-Fi GS 911 for my K1600 Grand America and will also use it for both my own and a friend's R 18. I have a Stage 2 Bren Tune on my K1600 GA and aleady have the BT handheld for the BT tunes. Unfortunately for me, my R 18 is still in New Hampshire at the dealership and I am in South Carolina and won't pick the bike up until I get back to Maine in May. I am seriously considering the Bren Tune for the R 18...

Looking forward to following your various mods and customizations...

 

[estoma]

Best Motorcycles for Long-Distance Two-Up Riding 2022

Grab your passenger and hit the road in style because these 10 motorcycles are perfect for long-distance two-up riding in 2022.

www.motorcyclistonline.com

 

[Gerard]

I went to the dealership this morning for an oil change and by the time, I could try a TC.
It's really a different bike.
The rear suspension is higher , and probably the front too. It can be seen on the pic.
The riding position is just perfect for me, and no need to improve anything about the saddle.
I have a very favorable feeling about this bike.
I had a very comfortable ride.
I like the adaptative cruise control.
The protection is excellent with no buffeting, up to 130 km/h.
It may be different with another rider.
Now let's criticize...
The bags and top case, although looking bigger than mine have significantly less room inside.
The culprits is not only the presence of these useless loudspeakers.
The design itself makes them much smaller, which is incomprehensible according to the touring aim of this bike.
The braking seems improved regarding the FE, but still no power assist.
They said they'll make me an offer ... let see what happen...

 

[Deleted member 1344]

I rode an R1200C for 14 years. It was the best looking bike I ever owned but did not have adequate wind protections and could not pass a car at 70 mph.
The R18 Transcontinental does both and is beautiful to look at.

 

[Gerard]

I rode an R1200C for 14 years. It was the best looking bike I ever owned but did not have adequate wind protections and could not pass a car at 70 mph.
The R18 Transcontinental does both and is beautiful to look at.

I agree about the R1200C.
That's why I keep my Montauk, which do have a wind screen and power assisted brakes
I agree for the TC look too.

 

[Cheerios]

I went to the dealership this morning for an oil change and by the time, I could try a TC.
It's really a different bike.
The rear suspension is higher , and probably the front too. It can be seen on the pic.
The riding position is just perfect for me, and no need to improve anything about the saddle.
I have a very favorable feeling about this bike.
I had a very comfortable ride.
I like the adaptative cruise control.
The protection is excellent with no buffeting, up to 130 km/h.
It may be different with another rider.
Now let's criticize...
The bags and top case, although looking bigger than mine have significantly less room inside.
The culprits is not only the presence of these useless loudspeakers.
The design itself makes them much smaller, which is incomprehensible according to the touring aim of this bike.
The braking seems improved regarding the FE, but still no power assist.
They said they'll make me an offer ... let see what happen...


View attachment 5410

I can agreed with all your previews except one for me. I’m heading across the country from Cali to DC through the middle, and eventually back home across the gulf coast. I am at about 1100 miles into the trip and the ease of controls, functionality of the TC luggage, and phone charging and storage works well for me. I do miss the quick release side bags of my RT. For the audio, radio and Sirius volumes and clarity works great. For iPhone music though is not loud enough past 70 mph or riding with loud HD pipes. I have gotten a lot of looky loos over the journey so far so agreed seams like everyone likes the look of the R18TC. Braking is good but something to get used to as the front and back are integrated where I prefer to feather front and trail brake as necessary around corners. Now for my one gripe, the stock seat is nice that they made it wider but not comfortable for me after 100 miles. I would prefer to remain comfortable for at least 150 or more to make fuel stops more productive.

Rubber side down!

Rob

 

[Cu Dubh]

I can agreed with all your previews except one for me. I’m heading across the country from Cali to DC through the middle, and eventually back home across the gulf coast. I am at about 1100 miles into the trip and the ease of controls, functionality of the TC luggage, and phone charging and storage works well for me. I do miss the quick release side bags of my RT. For the audio, radio and Sirius volumes and clarity works great. For iPhone music though is not loud enough past 70 mph or riding with loud HD pipes. I have gotten a lot of looky loos over the journey so far so agreed seams like everyone likes the look of the R18TC. Braking is good but something to get used to as the front and back are integrated where I prefer to feather front and trail brake as necessary around corners. Now for my one gripe, the stock seat is nice that they made it wider but not comfortable for me after 100 miles. I would prefer to remain comfortable for at least 150 or more to make fuel stops more productive.

Rubber side down!

Rob

Good input. Just curious, are you doing the Run To The Wall?