Honda GL1800 Gold Wing Tour
With six cylinders, seven speeds, reverse and even an airbag, Honda’s indulgent tourist is in a class of its own
I’ve been trying to work out what that is, but can’t,’ says the bamboozled bloke behind the counter. ‘It looks like your bike has got… a boot.’ Summer putting in a unexpected final flourish is all the excuse required to head for the beach. 99? We should say so. We’re taking a tour of the bright lights of the East (Midlands) Coast and we’ve stopped for fuel just outside New York, and looking back from the kiosk to the bikes I understand why the Honda is confusing our friend. There’s nothing quite like a Gold Wing.
You won’t find another bike with a flat-six engine or a semiautomatic seven-speed gearbox, or with its load-separating front suspension design. Settled into the spacious saddle, Starship Enterprise controls run over the steering to a colour dash with full connectivity, navigation and a sound system, and everything’s heated, automatic or electronically controlled.
Pillion accommodation is exemplary. Panniers (hydraulically damped so they open with a satisfying action) are designed so the passenger can rummage for Ginsters sustenance while seated, the ‘boot’ swallows two helmets with ease, and the Wing has ‘walking’ modes that let it creep forwards or backwards to aid fully laden parking. It’s even got a flippin’ airbag. With fit and finish justifying Honda’s reputation for quality, this is grand touring at its most opulent and refined.
As you’d expect, it’s a unique riding experience. Honda’s 24-valve 1833cc motor is eerily smooth, politely delivering soaring drive right from idle and with the soundtrack of a classic Jag saloon when you keep the twistgrip wide. There’s not the sledgehammer bottom-end of the Indian or the vocal top-end rush of the BMW, but measured and accessible thrust at all revs. This makes it the perfect unit for DCT, the Honda going up and down its ratios in Drive mode without you noticing. It’s clever too – start tramping on a bit and the system holds onto gears for longer and changes down quicker under heavy braking. Snick it into Sport and it gets keener still. ‘I’m fabulously impressed with the Wing’, reckons legendary Bike photographer Chippy Wood. ‘I love the simplicity – you just lazily wind the throttle and it goes, the DCT smoothly sorting out gears.’ Though it weighs 367kg, the Wing almost feels small in this company. The K1600GTL has the height of a ‘normal’ bike while the Pursuit’s chunky controls and legs-akimbo riding position bring a sense of girth. But with a modest 745mm seat height, flat saddle and sat-at-the-dinner-table seating, the Wing feels the most compact. This isn’t the same as feeling delicate, of course. ‘It’s super-size,’ reckons Bike’s datalogging expert and 250GP racer Bruce Dunn. ‘Where my Yamaha race bike feels hollow, the Honda is dense.’
With low-slung mass and stability-biased geometry (30.5˚ head angle, 109mm trail, 1695mm wheelbase), you could tell you were riding a Wing blindfold (not advised). Its chassis absorbs everything – the tops of the double-wishbone front end frantically dance about mid-corner, yet you don’t feel anything. Instead, the bike rolls with steady grace, reacting and behaving the same way regardless of speed or surface, and scribing smooth fuss-free arcs. It’s majestic.
It can need hefty input, though. I love the feel of the whirring six-cylinder motor and steadfast chassis – the Wing’s sensations and performance are what I expect of a luxurious grand tourer with this level of comfort and equipment. But jump on straight from the others and the weight of its controls is a genuine shock – during a fuel stop I nearly take out a row of pumps after swapping to the Wing from the agile Indian. ‘I find the Honda unmanageable,’ says Bruce. ‘The weight is low down and in the right place, but it feels almost obese. And I can’t get used to not having a clutch. Pottering through town feels dodgy, and I struggle to manage the weight at low speed without the control of a clutch.’ To demonstrate this point, he and the Wing have a gentle lie down during a backlane U-turn. So that’s what the rubber bungs on the engine and exhaust are for.
I see where he’s coming from. Yes, the Honda’s a big ol’ bird with needlessly complicated switchgear and a snatchy throttle in Sport mode. And £32,449 is a wild amount of cash. But for massive-mile trips and genuine week-long comfort, the Wing’s smoothness, refinement, weather protection and sense of calm are unrivalled.
‘For massive trips and genuine weeklong comfort, the Wing’s… unrivalled’