It's 2019 and I'm still driving a 2003 GL1800. It's a magnificent machine and almost impossible to wear out with proper maintenance. I have 123K kilometers on mine and it's hardly broken in. Frankly, I wouldn't trade it for a new one and expect to have it for another 10 years or so....
@@twowheelboomer Battery condition and age, cracked and aged tires older than 5 years old, condition of the brake and clutch fluids which will likely require service. MOST important check the serial number against the list of serial numbers where the rear frame was subject to cracking. Ask the owner about any recalls done. If the frame has been checked, usually there is a little driven in dot on the plate up front carrying the serial number. Bikes don't like to sit and 6K is nothing for a 20 year old bike. Check the oil to see if it's black; should tell you how the owner has treated it. Check out it's history as well...is he the original owner etc. Any service records to check out? Any visible accidents...check underside of crash bars etc. It is very possible to get a great bike but be diligent because of both it's age and it's low usage.
@@TOURMANBOB I an eyeing an 03 with 20 K miles. I will use the info you recommend. btw: I stand 6’1” without footwear, weigh 213 pounds. My greatest concern is how to make the more comfortable for me to ride. I’m coming off a Yamaha Stratoliner, 2006 I bought new.
@@robdonell9915 I am 6 foot 2 inches and 220 lbs, and the stock seating did nothing for me. I did the following...1- bought bar backs to raise the handlebars up an inch and back two inches...2- bought a customized seat from Wingsoft in Texas that redid the seat and gave me 3 more inches back (which is only ok if any passengers are fairly skinny)...and 3- installed floorboards which allowed me to put my feet further forward. This did it for me, and made it the most comfortable bike I have ever owned.
I'm near 80 and I have been driving for almost 65 years and owned dozens of bikes over the decades. But until I bought my 2003 Wing, I always had to compromise in one way or another to be happy with each vehicle. Set up the ergonomics on this one and it is near perfections. I have over 130,000 kms on it and it runs and looks like new. I will never sell this one because the new Wing offers me nothing I don't already have. Honda may have made a mistake in making the Wing so good, few will want to trade up.
I can tell you love your bike when you commented 3 years ago about how much you love it and then come back to the same video 2 years after to reiterate how good it is. I can't wait until I get mine. Stay safe and have fun riding Robert!
@@BeginnerMoto Absolutely true ! The bike just gets better year over year...super reliable, comfortable to the n'th degree, beautiful to look at and at 80, this bike will still be on the road long after I am gone. Truly the best motorcycle on the market bar none...at least the older ones anyway.. The new ones have lost a lot of wind coverage and comfort and are now more a "sport touring" machine. But ANY Wing is superb but different in many ways. Stay safe my friend, and live every mile....riding keeps you young
@@TOURMANBOB You have an awesome attitude Robert! I totally agree with you about the new Wings. I love the look but I don't like how they lost many of the touring aspects that made them so comfortable. One thing I'm not a fan of is the new seat. It's more like a sport tourer than the good ole Japanese road sofa of old. I feel like they changed it to appeal to a younger rider that may have looked at the previous models as an "old man's" bike. I'm a younger rider and I prefer the older models like the GL1500 and the pre-2018 GL1800s. I looked at a 2003 Black one today and I was going to buy it but the guy didn't have the title. I hope I can be riding in my 80s like you man! Hopefully it will be on a Wing!
@@BeginnerMoto After three years of Covid lockdown, when I took the bike out the other day for the first ride of the season, I was wondering in the back of my mind if I still had it. Rolled out and did 300 miles virtually without stopping as 65 years of muscle memory came flooding back. Got off totally revitalized physically and mentally and realized that riding is in my DNA. And nothing less than the King of all motorcycles would ever do it for me (in the same way Elvis was the "king"). I will stop only when I sense I am a danger to myself due to age, but with luck, the grand old lady and I will see many more miles of twisty roads and beautiful scenery. It's medicine for the soul...
these gear boxes have with stood the rigors for over 40 years. You think its him the rider who doesnt know what he's talking about much less knows how to drive a 900 pound highway cruzer? This bike is not for him.
