Anybody notice......

[Sorcerer]

If you can afford to buy a $27-31,000 motorcycle and you HAVE to be the first in your riding group to have the newest, greatest then taking a $1000 lost to achieve that goal means nothing. I neather have the pockets to buy a new Wing, nor wish to be the trail blazer on a new ground up built motorcycle. I've been around long enough to have seen that even Honda can miss the mark. 1200 Wings stators failing,rear wheel bearing to rim miss fitment, front wheel bearing change between the 84-85 model years. The 84 Wings speedo cable breaking every 10,000 miles, fixed for the 85 model year.The 1985 limited Edition LCD dashes shorting out. First 2 years of the 1800 frame problems. Then as the 1800s racked up some mileage, the failure of some of the ADG. Some people have been waiting a long time for the new Wing and will now hit the GO button. I still remember the 1500 owners clammering for a new bike with a bigger motor. Many sold/ traded in there 1500s for the new 1800 with out ever even sitting on the new 1800 until the day they road out of the dealership. Some were very disappointed. I talked to at least 3 new owners that got rid of the 1800 and bought used 1500s. One actually went back to his dealership to trade back for his old 1500 only to find out it had already been sold.

[VStarRider]

If you can afford to buy a $27-31,000 motorcycle and you HAVE to be the first in your riding group to have the newest, greatest then taking a $1000 lost to achieve that goal means nothing. I neather have the pockets to buy a new Wing, nor wish to be the trail blazer on a new ground up built motorcycle. I've been around long enough to have seen that even Honda can miss the mark. 1200 Wings stators failing,rear wheel bearing to rim miss fitment, front wheel bearing change between the 84-85 model years. The 84 Wings speedo cable breaking every 10,000 miles, fixed for the 85 model year.The 1985 limited Edition LCD dashes shorting out. First 2 years of the 1800 frame problems. Then as the 1800s racked up some mileage, the failure of some of the ADG. Some people have been waiting a long time for the new Wing and will now hit the GO button. I still remember the 1500 owners clammering for a new bike with a bigger motor. Many sold/ traded in there 1500s for the new 1800 with out ever even sitting on the new 1800 until the day they road out of the dealership. Some were very disappointed. I talked to at least 3 new owners that got rid of the 1800 and bought used 1500s. One actually went back to his dealership to trade back for his old 1500 only to find out it had already been sold.

^^^^ Now that is some wisdom and experience on display.^^^^^

I have done that myself, not on a motorcycle but on other large purchases. No manufacturer can get it exactly right on the first try, particularly with all this tech that is, generally speaking, very new in its own right.

[SpeedyWho]

The problems listed above with past GL models is 20-30 years old, I have faith that Honda has done their homework on this model. Besides, with 8 year unlimited mile warranty I have zero fear with the new model.

Goldwings popping up for sale shows how people are tired of the outgoing model, the new bike is WAY overdue and this proves it.

[opas ride]

I agree that waiting for the new generation Goldwing to be in the market for a couple of years before buying one is rather foolish in today's world..Honda has learned a lot since the older models were introduced and I would not hesitate one minute to buy the 2018 version if I were in the market..With a 3 year warranty and option to go a total of 8 years, I am pretty sure Ma Honda is confident this new bike is a "go".!!!

[Sorcerer]

My understanding of the 1800s early frame problems was that it didn't show up on the test bikes. The problem started when some one in the frame production part decided that they could make more frames if the speeded up the robots. To do that they turned up the amps (heat) to run faster. That extra heat was outside of the metal suppliers welding spec's.

[willtill]

As with any new product; sometimes flaws are not apparent until they have been used for awhile.

Save yourselves some grief and aggravation. Let others be the field be the unknowing beta testers for a year or two.

[Jimmytee]

I certainly wouldn't hesitate to buy a 2018 . If it were economically feasible , I'd already have a deposit on one.
Oh, I could do it, wouldn't be prudent at this juncture.

[ths61]

As with any new product; sometimes flaws are not apparent until they have been used for awhile.

Save yourselves some grief and aggravation. Let others be the field be the unknowing beta testers for a year or two.

Been there, done that, paid the price and the down time. Will let someone else be the eager guinea pigs this time as well as give the aftermarket some time to catch up.

I am interested in how they will continue to offer 10 year free map upgrades over the lifetime of the bike. If the bike has a 10 year run, that means they will have to offer map upgrades for 10 years after that for the last production year. I have yet to find a GPS manufacturer that supplies map upgrades 10 years after the product has been discontinued.

[VStarRider]

As with any new product; sometimes flaws are not apparent until they have been used for awhile.

Save yourselves some grief and aggravation. Let others be the field be the unknowing beta testers for a year or two.

There is a lot of evidence to support what you and I are saying, despite the sentimentalism over a new product. It is a still a very new design and it is impossible to replicate the complete end user experience in any sort of practical manner for a for-profit company.

Check the reliability ratings of any all new design from any manufacturer...the first few years always have trouble spots. Even Honda. The first few years of the 3.5 V6 / automatic combination in the Accord and Odyssey minivans resulted in premature failures until they beefed up the transaxle to handle the power of that motor. The first five years of the VStar 1100s are to be avoided, due to starter motor failures. The first two years of the Apex snowmobile from Yamaha featured premature bushing failures due to lack of grease zerks to save weight, as well as broken support arms in the rear suspension that required a gusset to be welded in after a TSB. Our own F6Bs went through a small transmission redesign to address ghost shifting out of 5th gear.

And so on.

I am excited about the new GWs, and I am sure they will be great...but I will still wait for the inevitable issues that will need addressing as well as a couple of years worth of tweaks and upgrades and color options before laying down $31k in 2020.