2012 BMW K1600GT and GTL Six-cylinder Unveiled

[Buzglyd]

Originally Posted by Kevin_Duke

Agreed. All dealers should allow test rides, especially in these gloomy times when the sale of a couple of bikes could mean the difference between being in the black or in the red.

So you own a dealership, some 20 year old walks in and says, "I want to ride a Gixxer."

Do you let him?

[Kevin_Duke]

Originally Posted by Buzglyd

So you own a dealership, some 20 year old walks in and says, "I want to ride a Gixxer."

Do you let him?

Yes, if he's been riding for years and has cash. If he's a noob and needs deep financing, no.

[Buzglyd]

Originally Posted by Kevin_Duke

Yes, if he's been riding for years and has cash. If he's a noob and needs deep financing, no.

So how do you determine that? By looking at him? Making him open his wallet?

I worked in a Big Four dealership for a short time and I'd be afraid to let a lot of the people who walked in there ride anything.

[Kevin_Duke]

Originally Posted by Buzglyd

So how do you determine that? By looking at him? Making him open his wallet?

I worked in a Big Four dealership for a short time and I'd be afraid to let a lot of the people who walked in there ride anything.

I dunno. But like said earlier, if other OEMs can do it successfully, the Japs should be able to, too. Or, if not, just read MO for all your buying advice and info!

[anrajala]

Originally Posted by mikedard

I wanted to take a test ride first. The salesman stated we're not like the other guys you've been used to. You have to have all the paperwork done after you've purchased it you can ride it. If you don't like it we'll tear up the paperwork! I'm sorry I have to ride the bike before I buy it. Never mind.

Are all Honda Dealers like that?

I'd expect the same story with the Beemer. At least here in Finland you'd have easier time sweettalking the dealer to testride his daughter than the 1600.

- cruiz-euro

[Buzglyd]

Originally Posted by anrajala

I'd expect the same story with the Beemer. At least here in Finland you'd have easier time sweettalking the dealer to testride his daughter than the 1600.

- cruiz-euro

After viewing all the dings on the sides of your Fatboy, I wouldn't let you test ride anything either.

[sarnali2]

Originally Posted by anrajala

I'd expect the same story with the Beemer. At least here in Finland you'd have easier time sweettalking the dealer to testride his daughter than the 1600.

- cruiz-euro

Well of course it depends on what the daughter looks like.............

[mikedard]

Originally Posted by Buzglyd

So how do you determine that? By looking at him? Making him open his wallet?

I worked in a Big Four dealership for a short time and I'd be afraid to let a lot of the people who walked in there ride anything.

I would have paid for a day's worth of insurance just to ride it. Why can't they do something like that. Heck you'd have to give them all kinds of information to do that. You could do it over the internet.The insurance companies know everything about you. It would work, but other manufactures do it without you having to sign your life away.

I want Honda to know on that day I would have paid cash if I liked the bike and from what I've read I would have liked it. You could say I was a motivated buyer pissed off that I didn't yet have enough cash to buy the K1300 or the K1600 which no one knows how much it's going to cost. So I was willing to buy a good bike which is supposed to be cheaper. But Honda wasn't interested. You lost the sell.

[Morbo the Destroyer]

BMW sends me at least a couple emails every month offering test rides. The local dealer offered a GS to ride for a DAY. Harley will let you ride, but then the salesholes are going to crawl up your ass for a month trying to make the $200 commission.

Triumph's factory demo show is coming to town today and tomorrow. I'm going down in the morning to snag a ride on a Sprint GT and maybe a Tiger 1050. It's the same place that let me ride a Multistrada for an hour and a half.

And Riva, the local Kawazukiyamahon dealer won't let you ride their elevator without a contract.

[mikedard]

Originally Posted by Morbo the Destroyer

BMW sends me at least a couple emails every month offering test rides. The local dealer offered a GS to ride for a DAY. Harley will let you ride, but then the salesholes are going to crawl up your ass for a month trying to make the $200 commission.

Triumph's factory demo show is coming to town today and tomorrow. I'm going down in the morning to snag a ride on a Sprint GT and maybe a Tiger 1050. It's the same place that let me ride a Multistrada for an hour and a half.

And Riva, the local Kawazukiyamahon dealer won't let you ride their elevator without a contract.

Wow if you think about it, no one gets to test ride the Japanese bikes but journalist, they're the only group albeit a small one that you have to convince that their product is great. Man that's great for manufactures. You walk up give them your money and ride away with a bike that someone said at one time is the best. You don't know if it's the best for you or not because you can't ride any of them. Market share is then somewhat based on how good your marketing budget is and how you wined and dined the journalist (ok maybe not all of them, but they will complain if the eats and lodging isn't first class). Jeeze no wonder Honda stagnates. Listening to Marketing/bean counters and not listening to your Race Team and Engineers you get bikes that seem confused as to what they wanted them to be.

I think I'd like the VFR1200DCT but getting 27 mpg with a 4.5 gallon tank, not a sport touring bike, to heavy to be a sport bike (Journalist did point these failures out, but not very loudly). What happened?

What's happened to the K1600GT? Is the GT=sport touring bike definition changing?