Few bikes are designed, from the ground up, to take two people and a load of luggage over long distances in great comfort. Honda's GL 1800 Gold Wing and BMW's K 1200LT are both, let's say, "luxury cruisers".
Some might include Harley-Davidson's FLHTCUI Ultra Classic Electra Glide and BMW's R 1200CL/LE, since they too have "thrones" rather that seats for pillion passengers, but both are essentially adaptations of more basic models.
We've just been testing BMW's K 1200LT Lux. This bike is to BMW motorcycles what the 7-Series is to cars.
It's meant, says the brochure, for "riding straight across the American continent, Atlantic to the Pacific", a 4,500-mile trip. In our language that's Holyhead to Istanbul and back - a bit more serious than a weekend spin in the Wicklow mountains.
This bike comes with everything . . . sleek and substantial fairing; generous-sized, electric height-adjustable screen of barn door proportions; integrated central-locking panniers; and topbox taking 120 litres of luggage. Now add luxuries such as reverse gear, heated grips, touch-button electro-hydraulic centre stand, AM/FM radio, 6 CD cassette, tank locker with Maglite torch, vanity mirror in the topbox, heated seats, height adjustable footboards for passenger, pillion backrest . . . and ground light to show you the sort of ground you're parking on.
Underneath the bodywork lurks BMW's 1172cc K series, water-cooled 4-cylinder, 4-stroke engine, churning out 116bhp at 5,250 rpm and 100Nm torque at 2,800 rpm rising to 120Nm at 5,250rpm. It can propel you at up to 130mph (209km/h).
Fuel consumption on our test ranged from 48mpg in city traffic to a very respectable 76mpg on N and M roads.
Suspension is BMW Telelever at the front and Paralever at the back. BMW's Evo braking and integral ABS are standard.
Although the bike weighs in at 354kgs, the specially designed seat and 770mm seat height mean that it doesn't feel unduly heavy.
The electro-hydraulic centre stand, powerful enough to raise the machine complete with rider, pillion and luggage, means that the most puny rider would experience no problems.Reverse gear makes getting out of a parking space child's play.It's a big bike but, like any well-designed machine, it sheds weight as soon as it starts moving. It's in its element on first-class roads and motorways.
There are ample reserves of power, along with enough torque for pretty much anything you want to do. The combination of BMW's EVO braking and ABS means that, despite weight and bulk, stopping never causes a moment's worry.
Total perfection, then? Well, there were a few gripes.
The seat, although comfortable, was not luxurious. At town speeds the exhaust note, probably amplified by reflection off the pannier, was obtrusive.
There was chatter from the dry clutch in neutral when the slack was taken up on the lever. The tank filler cap, below the right hand grip, made refuelling difficult - and the tank tended to blow back when filling.
Designed for long distances on fast, first-rate roads, this is a machine which tells you emphatically that it is not accustomed to slumming it on rough, bumpy, patchwork surfaces. However, given a decent surface, it's nimble enough in the twisty bits and well able to perform in quite an unladylike manner.
Despite bulk and weight and a mirror-to-mirror width of 1,080mm, it had no qualms in city traffic. You can commute on it, but it's like asking a thoroughbred to haul a milk-float.
It's home is the big open road with two-up heading for distant horizons with enough luggage to let both of you tog out elegantly for a night at the Casino in Monte Carlo on the way.
This is the sort of machine it would be nice to have for those two or three big trips in the year, with perhaps something more mundane for everyday use.
The Honda 1800cc GL1800 is its nearest rival, but the K 1200 LT is more restrained in looks. Power outputs are 116bhp for the K 1200; 117bhp for the Gold Wing. At 345kgs the BMW is lighter than the Honda at 363kgs.
Top speeds for the two are: BMW 135mph (217km/h), Honda 124mph (200km/h).
The Gold Wing comes at €27,999, whilst the top specification K 1200LT Lux costs €24,400.
TechSpec
ENGINE: 1172cc water-cooled, 4-cylinder, 4-stroke, twin-camshafts, 4-valves per cylinder; 86kW (116bhp) @ 8,000rpm; 120Nm @ 5,250rpm; 11.5:1 compression; electronic intake pipe injection, engine management; closed loop 3-way catalytic converter; single-disk dry clutch; constant-mesh 5-speed gearbox; electric reverse gear; shaft drive
CHASSIS: Cast aluminium bridge-type frame; vibration decoupled engine mounting; Telelever front suspension, 35mm stanchion, 102mm travel; Paralever rear suspension, central strut with travel-dependent damping, spring pre-load, infinitely variable hydraulic adjustment; EVO brake system - front dual disk 320mm, 4-piston, rear single 285mm, 4-piston; integral ABS
DIMENSIONS: Seat height 770-800mm; dry weight 353.5kg; tank 24 litres
PERFORMANCE: Top speed 134mph (216km/h)
PRICE: €24,400