Hp2e Best All Around Bike Ever?

After almost four years and 27,000 miles with long distance runs out of the US and full on 100 mile off road rides I say yes. I have owned 50,90,175 360,390,500,750,800,1100,1200,74ci, and 80ci bikes with multiples of these and I say yes. I have not had the problems you read about, for the most part. This bike will take me pretty much anywhere. No windshields, heaters, or much of anything added except to lighten the bike and or improve performance. I just hope they don't make another better one or I'll have to spend a bunch of money again. Richard.....

Mine.

1 word for you:

KTM990Adventure

(someone had to say it)

I've seen them. In my rear view mirror

we should go ride one day (you can take your mirrors off, you wont need them)

Gonna have to concur. Adored my HP2E until I rented a 990ADV in Chile for a tour. Threw everything at it, from sandy lonely Pacific beaches to rocky high Andean passes. Highway stints, city route finding, deep off road, it shrugged it all off. Returned to the States and within a month sold the HP2 and brought home the ADV. To be sure if enduro racing was my forte, then the HP2 would probably have an edge, and its looks are killer, but the versatility of the 990ADV won out... 200+ mile tank range, fairing, glove box, passenger/luggage accomodations, acc port, etc.... and that luscious, sweet engine.

Air cooling, 400#'s, no chain, hand made, limited production.....the HP2's the last motorcycle I"ll own before switching to maxi scooters.....the smog/safety police are closing in on our sport worldwide so buy what you want now and keep it! Bruce

I for sure think so but for right now its just a dream until the day when I have the cash to buy one.

Best ever? Probably a stretch. That's a fuzzy category of bike.

There's a lot of really good bikes out there, over the history of humanity. The HP2e is one of the best I've ever come across and it keeps me happy.

that's probably a pretty accurate definition of the best bike.

Man, if I lived in Arizona or Colorado, one of them would be for me but all round my vote goes to 990Adv/GS1200.

V Twins just don't do it for me. Now and opposed Boxer or even an L Twin can motivate me to ride, but narrow power band (torque/HP overlap) and overall maintenance on the VTwin KTM keeps it out of my garage and everytime I ride a potential trade in or swap with a buddy the only redeeming quality on the 950/990 is the front forks over the HP2 E, well with a custom lower triple tree I'll have those forks and the awesome broad power range of the HP2 E (104hp and 87lbs at the wheel) which surpasses any of the 950/990's Adv's or SE's that have been on the same dyno.

The HP2 E is the one I won't let go, period.

@BMW Atlanta

"the only redeeming quality on the 950/990 is the front forks over the HP2 "

200% correct.
We was OffRoading in Rumänien, me with the HP2, 1 950SE, 1 KTM LC8.
The 2 KTM's use 60% more Gas like i do.
When the orange motor have the Power, thats over 5000 U/min,
the stones flying wide, but no Traktion.
The man with the 950 like driving my HP2. Let him.
He comes back, his comment:
Best Motor i ever drive, best traktion, very easy to handl.
But the Fork by the KTM's are better.
And this 2 Guys have the Orange Class all the time.

Peter

Wasn't that your bike on the used lot for a while, with the Safaris on it?

I was lucky to buy an HP2E that had been well setup by the previous owner. A 6 gal HPN tank and upgraded front suspension solved two weak spots of the stock bike when it comes to adventure riding or whatever we call what we do on our 400 lb, overpowered bikes. (I joke, but I joke with affection.)

Some weak spots remain:

* The bike feels a bit fragile. I've broken my rear rack bracket repeatedly, despite keeping its load below the factory and TT recommendations. You can blame hard riding, but this bike should be able to handle that.

* I have yet to find head guards that stand up to what I consider a reasonable level of abuse. With those cylinder heads sticking out like they do, they need some protection.

* My transmission makes enough rattling noises that it worries me. Lots of people have reported this and I don't recall reading about any tranny failures ... yet ... but it still makes me nervous.

* The luggage capacity is limited. Most of the time that's a good thing, as it makes me think about what I really need when packing. Still, there's the occasional long trip, and the rear subframe isn't going to handle a big load. Yes, I know this is outside the bike's intended purpose, but hey, you asked.

I suppose most of these issues are not problems with the 950/990 Adv, but that bike weighs more and has significantly worse fuel economy. The F800GS also solves most of the above issues, but it sacrifices some off-road capabilities. All in all, I'm happy with my choice.

Nope, my riding buddies and he bought it from my pops

Gents, correct me if I'm wrong...

The R1200GS motor underside is "protected" by a skidplate that is attached to a the bottom of the motor by four rubber bushings. If you hit the bottom of the engine on a rock, the skidplate shears off (at best) or the engine case cracks.

How is this the best bike ever, if it is billed as an offroad bike, but if you hit the skid plate on a rock, you're bike could likely be killed?

Worse still, if you hit a small rock with your front wheel, it might get shot into your shin. That'll force you to scream, drop your cell phone, spill your coffee on your lap, you'll swerve and that'll cause the poodle to fall off the back seat and your whole day will be ruined.

What config said.

Also: the aftermarket TT skid plate makes a nice addition to the bike. Its mount points are attached to aluminum rails that reduce the stress on the engine block if you have a really hard impact. But yeah, the stock skid plate isn't quite up to snuff. Ewan McGregor busted a very expesive hole in the engine of an HP2 during the first episode of Long Way Down that probably could have been prevented by a better engine guard.

The stock HP2E might not be the best bike, but a good argument can be made for a well-farkled one.

PS. "your"

PPS. white power!

My grammar skills suffer when drunk. Thanks for looking out for me!

I'll have to check out the TT skidplate. I'd like to ride my GS offroad like they do in the advertisements, but something breaks every time I leave the pavement. Usually its the skid plate, but sometimes it throws a new one at me, like the shattered side stand switch.