I too have an LT. Over the past year I have put over 18000 miles on it. My first impression of this Lux-O-Barg was that it was like driving a fine German sports car. It had excellent acceleration, excellent braking, was very steady through a corner at some very respectable speeds and the instrumentation was sports car like.
I find the adjustable windshield to be very useful, in that I can change the height and angle based on speed, outside temperature, and weather conditions such as rain showers.
The new wing has an engine which is approximately 50% larger in displacement, but the LT has a detuned RS engine which has been reduced from 130hp to 100hp. With the RS tuning and it's 6 speed gear box, much of the Wing's power advantage would be gone. As it now stands I believe that BMW may have been somewhat concerned that the greater horsepower may have not been that well advised in what was designed as a luxury touring bike rather than a canyon racer. I find that my bike will stay with most other bikes in the twisties, up to some pretty amazing speeds, above which one is asking for trouble on anything other than a race track. The engine has to be operated in the optimum RPM range to get the most out of it's power, so one has to row through the gears, but that is part of the fun, sort of like the early M3s with the four bangers.
From the articles that I have read, it appears that the LT has better wind and weather protection overall, in than there is a cove for one's feet which shields one's lower extremities from both wind and road spray, and with the side vent wings and adjustable wind shield the airflow to the rider can be regulated pretty much to suite all conditions. Some reports have stated that the Wing still has a problem with airflow coming up from below which cannot be regulated.
The LT also comes with heated grips and heated seats on the Custom model. At first I thought that they might be a superfluous luxury but after having used both, they make riding in cold weather a whole lot easier.
No doubt the Wing is a fine bike, and Honda has done their usual development in sorting it out, but we are essentially talking about two different concepts in touring. If one merely desires to cruise down the super slab, then the Honda might be best, but if one leans more towards the sporty end of the scale it would seem that the BMW would more likely fit the bill.
I find the adjustable windshield to be very useful, in that I can change the height and angle based on speed, outside temperature, and weather conditions such as rain showers.
The new wing has an engine which is approximately 50% larger in displacement, but the LT has a detuned RS engine which has been reduced from 130hp to 100hp. With the RS tuning and it's 6 speed gear box, much of the Wing's power advantage would be gone. As it now stands I believe that BMW may have been somewhat concerned that the greater horsepower may have not been that well advised in what was designed as a luxury touring bike rather than a canyon racer. I find that my bike will stay with most other bikes in the twisties, up to some pretty amazing speeds, above which one is asking for trouble on anything other than a race track. The engine has to be operated in the optimum RPM range to get the most out of it's power, so one has to row through the gears, but that is part of the fun, sort of like the early M3s with the four bangers.
From the articles that I have read, it appears that the LT has better wind and weather protection overall, in than there is a cove for one's feet which shields one's lower extremities from both wind and road spray, and with the side vent wings and adjustable wind shield the airflow to the rider can be regulated pretty much to suite all conditions. Some reports have stated that the Wing still has a problem with airflow coming up from below which cannot be regulated.
The LT also comes with heated grips and heated seats on the Custom model. At first I thought that they might be a superfluous luxury but after having used both, they make riding in cold weather a whole lot easier.
No doubt the Wing is a fine bike, and Honda has done their usual development in sorting it out, but we are essentially talking about two different concepts in touring. If one merely desires to cruise down the super slab, then the Honda might be best, but if one leans more towards the sporty end of the scale it would seem that the BMW would more likely fit the bill.
