BRITAIN’S BEST SELLER
Can the powerful and sophisticated sports tourer tempt us off the UK’S favourite all-rounder? A GS Adventure owner finds out...
I’VE RIDDEN OFF road most of my life, and the BMW R1200GS Adventure is the only bike I’ve ridden on the road in many years. I’ve certainly never ridden anything like the Ninja H2 SX SE! Simon Hargreaves and I have gone for a ride on the roads around RIDE’S office — a mixture of A-roads, B-roads and a stretch of A1(M) motorway. Simon says bikes like my GS A are the spiritual successors of traditional sports tourers; they fulfil the same role but with suspension better suited to poor roads and with greater practicality. I’m curious to see what the fuss is about.
When I first get on the Kawasaki, the riding position is so cramped I’m unsure if my aging hips can take it but by the time we’re out on the road, everything is working fine. The SE’S riding position
pitches me forward, much more than I’m used to but not uncomfortably so. The seat is comfortable too, but though the screen is reasonably effective, I find quite a bit of wind pressure on my upper torso once we’re above 70mph. By comparison, the combination of bodywork and screen on the GSA eliminates all of this.
After a few miles we swap bikes and suddenly getting back on my GSA feels like I’m sat in a Chesterfield leather armchair fitted with ape hangers!
The BMW is so easy; most of the time fifth and sixth are all you need. I expected the Kawasaki would be harder work in this regard but it has so much torque you can ride it in exactly the same way (which is probably missing the point).
But what’s the SE like compared to the GS? Aesthetically, the Ninja looks the part and the suspension and steering are great – it tracks through the corners superbly. Whatever line you want to take, the SE follows it with the suspension absorbing everything in its path. And the engine — what an engine! Simply loads of power and torque... though I find if I enter a bend a gear too low, there’s a hesitation as I try to bring the power back in gently — keeping it in a higher gear makes life easier.
My verdict is yes, the SE is an outstanding engineering achievement – but I can’t see it tempting many GS owners. For riding one all day, two-up, with full luggage, I can’t see it being enough of a tourer, there’s not enough luggage space, the riding position isn’t as relaxed and it hasn’t got the weather protection. I’m staying put.