All Comparisons – Comparison R1200GS 2013 Vs Tiger Explorer XC Vs XT1200Z Super Tenere – The weight of words, the shock of motorcycles!

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Comparison R1200GS 2013 Vs Tiger Explorer XC Vs XT1200Z Super Tenere

All Comparisons - Comparison R1200GS 2013 Vs Tiger Explorer XC Vs XT1200Z Super Tenere - The weight of words, the shock of motorcycles!

Even more powerful, the 2013 BMW R1200GS has on paper only to lean to cap the crown of maxi-trails motorcycles. But before pronouncing her coronation, MNC confronted her with the Triumph Tiger Explorer and the Yamaha Super Tenere.. Comparative test.

The weight of words, the shock of motorcycles !

From a strictly logical point of view, the partially water-cooled can be directly considered as the best bike in the maxi-trail category. Yes, outright: without even opposing it to its rivals to formalize this distinction !

Does that shock you? However, this is only a matter of common sense, since our exclusive confrontation on the web confirms the superiority of the R1200GS 2013 over its illustrious predecessor, and that it won all our reviews (reread our, our, our and our).

But a victory without a fight always leaves a bitter taste and unanswered questions as to the true potential of the protagonists … And then at Site, the hierarchies are not established on paper, but via "the evidence of the road "(© Matthieu Bretille!). With its share of surprises – often good, sometimes bad, but always instructive: as in real life, what !

It is this "I believe what I am testing" approach that allowed us, for example, to detect a small design problem with the electronically controlled real-time suspension offered as an option on the new GS "Flat Flotte" (full details techniques in our): if the ESA Dynamic is not returned to the "solo" position after transporting a passenger with the "duo" setting, the cardan shaft transmission does indeed let out worrying mechanical noises at very low revs ( reread our).

Finally, if there is no doubt that the new "Gehesse" has progressed in many areas, it is not without making some compromises: what a motorcycle gains on the one hand, it is often the same. lose the other! These concessions, it seemed relevant to us to measure the impact precisely by confronting the 2013 R1200GS against two of its rivals: the excellent Triumph Tiger Explorer and the successful Yamaha XT1200Z Super Tenere..

Become GS instead of GS…

So, if the one that the fans nickname GS "LC" – for "Liquid Cooled" (liquid cooling) – has become irreproachable of stability (the direction of the old one sometimes presented a slight blur from 150 km / h), this goes through the adoption of 120 mm tires at the front and 170 at the rear. That is respectively 10 and 20 mm wider than on the R1200GS 2012, on which the Explorer and the Super Tenere were based.

Because of this additional rubber surface on the ground and its additional 9 kg (including 2.7 kg related to the liquid cooling of the Boxer 2013), the legendary agility of the BMW is – very – slightly regressed. Here is a news that it is good, for the Triumph as for the Yamaha, until now complexed by the German when handling at low speed !

But the Anglo-Japanese euphoria will be short-lived: a few meters is enough to see that the R1200GS remains incomparably more obvious to apprehend than the XT1200Z Super Tenere, itself easier to turn than the Tiger Explorer. At the same time, despite its relative overweight, the 2013 R1200GS still gives back at least 20 kg to its rivals (see our technical sheets on the last page).

Better balanced, the Bavarian also benefits from a lower center of gravity, a determining characteristic for the handling which it owes in large part to its engine installed flat. Its ergonomics have also been the subject of all the attentions of BMW, and this is felt from the grip..

Thanks to its redesigned tank, the Behème spreads less the knees while its footrests fall perfectly under the boots. Its adjustable saddle – as on the Explorer and the Super Tenere – requires a significant leg lift (850 mm in low position against 837 for the Triumph and 845 for the Yam ‘), but the arch at the crotch less pronounced compensates this extra height when you put your feet on the ground.

Finally, its narrower handlebars and fixed closer to the bust than on its two rivals reinforces the feeling of being "one" with the R1200GS, an important impression when you discover a motorcycle. Despite their commendable efforts, the engineers Triumph and Yamaha did not achieve the same result…

Remarkably narrow at the crotch, the tank of the Tiger Explorer then deviates generously at the knees. Yes, you have to put it somewhere, the additional cylinder of the big English three-legged! With the saddle in the low position, the legs are also a little too bent for a driver over 1.75m, while its handlebars extend and spread the arms more than that of the BMW.

On the Yamaha, the driver is further away from the cockpit, his hands are more apart and placed higher, while his lower limbs are totally relaxed thanks to the footrests placed very low. The result is a position a little more to the rear, very relaxed, and ultimately really pleasant on the long course..

Its tank does not fit as easily as the one marked with the logo on the propeller, but it has the advantage of carrying three additional liters of gasoline (23 liters against 20 for the BMW as for the Triumph). A significant plus for backpackers keen on wide open spaces, who will benefit from a really greater range since the in-line twin was the most sober in our comparison (6.0 l / 100 km on average against 6.1 for the BMW and 6.2 for the Triumph).

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