Friendly Yamaha in Baton Rouge (and yes, they are quite friendly) has the Yamaha demo truck there today and tomorrow. Road my N1K 75 miles to test ride the '17 ES. Escorted group ride in suburban setting, so couldn't really get a complete feel for the bike. Top speed we hit was an indicated 54 mph, briefly. My impressions ... bike felt heavy at a standstill, but quite light once moving. Seat shape forced me into a wide stance at a standstill. Turn in is much better than my N1K. In Sport mode, around town, the throttle was very twitchy. Much better in Touring mode. I suppose I'd get used to Sport mode with a few more miles under the belt. (Test ride lasted about 20 minutes - a fair bit of stop and go.) Dash was easy for my aging eyes to read. Brakes felt good and easy to modulate. Certainly plenty of power -- at least pulling away from stop lights and getting up to a whopping 40 mph.
In regard to the test ride itself, I realize that there are certain limitations due to the test ride location, and possibly liability issues, but I think test riding bikes at rallies in the mountains (Asheville, Knoxville, etc.) has given me a lot more insight into a bike than this city test ride could come close to. It'd be nice if the test ride in Baton Rouge had included at least one road with a few nice curves and maybe a short stint on the interstate. I know of a nice route not far from Friendly Yamaha --- test drove one of the VW GTIs I've owned in that area.
As to the bike itself .... I'll keep my N1K and Goldwing for the time being. Prefer the N1K to the FJR. However, I do plan to reduce my stable some day, an the FJR would be a perfect compromise for a single bike to replace the N1K and Wing.
In regard to the test ride itself, I realize that there are certain limitations due to the test ride location, and possibly liability issues, but I think test riding bikes at rallies in the mountains (Asheville, Knoxville, etc.) has given me a lot more insight into a bike than this city test ride could come close to. It'd be nice if the test ride in Baton Rouge had included at least one road with a few nice curves and maybe a short stint on the interstate. I know of a nice route not far from Friendly Yamaha --- test drove one of the VW GTIs I've owned in that area.
As to the bike itself .... I'll keep my N1K and Goldwing for the time being. Prefer the N1K to the FJR. However, I do plan to reduce my stable some day, an the FJR would be a perfect compromise for a single bike to replace the N1K and Wing.
