Leaning towards a H2

[Pig]

I'm looking for input from H2 SX owners. After many years of riding Japanese bikes, I took the plunge and bought a BMW S1000XR. I ride daily and do four or five 2 thousand mile trips a year to the mountains from flatland USA. The BMW is absolutely phenomenal as a sports tourer, best overall performing bike I have owned. The problem is, after only 14k miles, I've found it's very unreliable. I just went on my fourth trip and had my fourth breakdown. On my third battery, ignition went out in Georgia, and just recently, my water pump went out in North Carolina. I'm cross shopping Japanese bikes and the H2 is the closest thing I can find. My questions are; Can you do 600 miles of slab on this bike comfortably and how is the reliability. I've done 500 miles a day on a GSXR1000, but at my age don't want to do it agin lol. My style of riding is finding the twistiest mountain road and going as fast as I can without going down. How is this bike in that regard?

[Raddy47]

I'm looking for input from H2 SX owners. After many years of riding Japanese bikes, I took the plunge and bought a BMW S1000XR. I ride daily and do four or five 2 thousand mile trips a year to the mountains from flatland USA. The BMW is absolutely phenomenal as a sports tourer, best overall performing bike I have owned. The problem is, after only 14k miles, I've found it's very unreliable. I just went on my fourth trip and had my fourth breakdown. On my third battery, ignition went out in Georgia, and just recently, my water pump went out in North Carolina. I'm cross shopping Japanese bikes and the H2 is the closest thing I can find. My questions are; Can you do 600 miles of slab on this bike comfortably and how is the reliability. I've done 500 miles a day on a GSXR1000, but at my age don't want to do it agin lol. My style of riding is finding the twistiest mountain road and going as fast as I can without going down. How is this bike in that regard?

Tough call. For twisty’s this bike with stock tires (Bridgestone battle ax) you will be pleasantly surprised with how lownshe can go. But I hate riding this bike for more than an hour half plus.. ass will be killing me. I’m 6’2” so the riding position is more than fine for me although others have made modifications to the handle bars and rear sets. The seat took me and others about 700miles plus to break in for me it was more like 2k miles.

For me I’m more likely to trailer bike to twisty’s if it’s more than 4 hours out. But a strait line interstate for 2+ hours is not fun for me. Doable, but a more comfortable seat would change the world for me on this bike.

Depends on your preferences.

Personally bike works for my needs. I want to be the touring guy but I can’t always do it with my schedule.

The 2019 KTM Super Duke 1290 GT might be an easier transition from the bmw you currently ride. It sits up right far more compared to the sx and is about 4-6k less and comes with bags.

But if getting low in turns on a bike that has you sitting straight up isn’t your thing then the 1290 GT isn’t for you.

[DeRox]

A couple of weeks ago I went to the Dolomites mountains in Italy. There I drove with an S1000RR and R1M. I could pretty well keep up.
They way back home to the Netherlands I did in one go: 1000km (621ml) in 10 hours without much problems. I'm 58...

[vcyclenut]

where are you in Florida?

Last weekend me and my fiancé ( her on the back )left Fort Myers late Thursday afternoon. Rode to just north of the GA border. Woke up rode to Blairsville GA and rode some mountain roads. Woke up Saturday , rode back down to Atlanta and met with a group of H2's and other sport bikes. Did an insane group ride through down town atlanta , went out to a spot where they do races. Then rode down to Macon. We got up Sunday morning and rode back to Fort Myers and were home by 5pm.

1600 miles total.

Last year we did a trip to Texas.

We find the bike very comfortable and is amazingly capable at all types of riding.

If you are not far from Fort Myers you can swing by on your BMW and we can swap bikes for a bit so you can see what you think

[PhukDD]

Get this bike you will not regret it. I have only ever owned kawi sport bikes since the 90’s and have yet have one to break down on me.

[CoolDaddyGroove]

I'm 56, 6' tall, with a 30" inseam, and 225lbs. I have been riding for 25 years, I'm a knee dragger, race license, plenty of track days, and a typical day ride for me is 800kms with more than half of that being twisties with corners posted anywhere between 25kmh and 40kmh. This is my 16th motorcycle, and I am coming off a Ninja 1000 (Z1000SX), a ZX-14R, and a Concours 14. This is better than most of them, especially when slabbing it. The Concours is more comfortable, but too heavy. The Ninja 1000 turns quicker, but sucks when you are cruising the straights at anything over 140kmh, and the ZX14R, while it has the best motor I have ever had, just had weird ergonomics that I could not get used to (low supersport like handlebars, even with 3/4: risers, yet foot peg location that was too far forward).

If you want to eat up the straight sections between the twisty bits, the Concours 14 is best, but you will be disappointed once you hit the tight stuff. The H2SX handles the slab really well, and can hold its own in any medium sized twisties. It's a heavy bike, only a few KG lighter than the ZX14R, but you don't feel the weight anywhere. The ZX14R.........you feel the weight as soon as you throw it down on a twisty section

[danham]

In June I did my first long ride since trading my BMW F800ST for the H2 SX SE -- 3100 miles down and back to Roanoke VA, with day rides into the mountains.

What I love about the H2 is its split personality. You can cruise around at relatively low RPMs in traffic without it acting temperamental (like a crotch rocket would), do some miles on the slab and set the cruise control and be quite comfortable, then head into the twisties and feel like you are riding a smaller, lighter bike.

I comparison shopped a BMW R1250 RS and the H2 is for me a better choice. I'm 68, 5'10" about 180 lbs and have been riding since 1969. No mechanical issues so far on the H2. In the roughly 45,000 miles I rode my BMW I put on two drive belts (one in the rain by the side of the road), replaced the rear rotor and pads, had to get a new shift position indicator. I don't call that horrible reliability, but not up to BMW standards, which of course are part myth anyway.

-dan

[Pig]

Thank you for the replies. I got the green light from the wify lol, I'm going to go look at one this weekend.

[Pig]

where are you in Florida?

Last weekend me and my fiancé ( her on the back )left Fort Myers late Thursday afternoon. Rode to just north of the GA border. Woke up rode to Blairsville GA and rode some mountain roads. Woke up Saturday , rode back down to Atlanta and met with a group of H2's and other sport bikes. Did an insane group ride through down town atlanta , went out to a spot where they do races. Then rode down to Macon. We got up Sunday morning and rode back to Fort Myers and were home by 5pm.

1600 miles total.

Last year we did a trip to Texas.

We find the bike very comfortable and is amazingly capable at all types of riding.

If you are not far from Fort Myers you can swing by on your BMW and we can swap bikes for a bit so you can see what you think

I'm in Venice, not too far from you. I've done a lot of riding around Blairsville. There's a pretty cool motorcycle only campground in the area, Two Wheels of Suches. Thank you for the offer, I just may take you up on it.

[vcyclenut]

where are you in Florida?

Last weekend me and my fiancé ( her on the back )left Fort Myers late Thursday afternoon. Rode to just north of the GA border. Woke up rode to Blairsville GA and rode some mountain roads. Woke up Saturday , rode back down to Atlanta and met with a group of H2's and other sport bikes. Did an insane group ride through down town atlanta , went out to a spot where they do races. Then rode down to Macon. We got up Sunday morning and rode back to Fort Myers and were home by 5pm.

1600 miles total.

Last year we did a trip to Texas.

We find the bike very comfortable and is amazingly capable at all types of riding.

If you are not far from Fort Myers you can swing by on your BMW and we can swap bikes for a bit so you can see what you think

I'm in Venice, not too far from you. I've done a lot of riding around Blairsville. There's a pretty cool motorcycle only campground in the area, Two Wheels of Suches. Thank you for the offer, I just may take you up on it.

awesome, yes I frequent there, been going since it was just called TWO. heading left out of their parking lot down 60 to morgan town is one of my favorite stretch of roads. My father has a place in Blairsville and I go up there regularly

sounds good, just let me know