Wingin' It

WINGIN' IT

One year and 13,500 miles aboard a GL1500

CLEARLY, ANYONE SPENDING the number of greenbacks required to buy a GL1500 Gold Wing these days will feel compelled to ride the thing. Tour? Sure. But also, commute. Haul groceries. Visit the in-laws, even. How does a Wing cope in everyday use? If our experience is any indication, it copes pretty darn well.

We must confess, firstly, that we're no different from any other Wingsters, in that we succumbed to the temptation to throw add-ons at our 1989 longterm bike. We added Hondaline’s color-matched plastic spoilers ($176.90), cornering lights ($165.95), spouse-pleasing top-trunk vanity mirror and light ($49.95). a pair of matching open-face helmets ($224.95 each) and the microphone-andspeaker sets ($ 102.41 each) with which to plumb those helmets into the bike’s on-board stereo/ intercom system.

We also added two non-Honda aftermarket items that greatly improved the bike: a fork brace ($69.95) and a sheet-metal belly pan ($69.95), both by Superbrace (5842 McFadden Ave., Suite O. Huntington Beach. CA 92649; 714/894-2994), installed for us by Motorcycle Service Center, also in Huntington Beach. The Wing's fork came with a factory-installed brace, but was made noticeably more rigid by the stout Superbrace unit. Even more helpful was the belly pan. Big touring bikes can be a handful in a sidewind, and the belly pan did an extremely good job of smoothing the air flow under the Wing, making it easier to ride in windy conditions. At one point in our longterm evaluation, one rider hit side gusts so strong they blew his sunglasses from his face, but the bike gave no more than a wiggle when hit by the blasts.

Marcie Trump, at the Motorcycle Service Center, also tightened our bike’s swingarm nut. which was loose to the tune of about a turn-and-a-half—apparently a not-uncommon occurrence among early GL1500 Sixes—and the Wing instantly was tauter and more solidly planted.

Out covering miles, I soon found that the seat does not share the long-range potential found in the rest of the bike. Its foam tends to pack down on a long ride, and before too long. I felt as though I was sitting on the bare seat pan. Also, 1 prefer to ride looking over a bike’s windscreen. instead of through it, but a fierce rain squall on a trip along the Columbia River to central Washington caused me to seek the extra protection of the Wing’s adjustable screen at its full height. It soon ratcheted right back down to its bottom level, though, its locks unable to hold it in position.

Another problem area on our test bike was the front suspension, which started out on the soft side and degenerated as the miles rolled by. By the time we were done with the Wing, it badly needed a spring transplant; its fork was so soft it'd bottom, seemingly, on a cigarette butt. The rear suspension, adjustable by an on-board compressor, could have used a bit more rebound damping. None of which means, however, that the bike couldn't be flogged through corners. By the time we gave it back to Honda, we’d not only worn away the pavement feelers on the bike’s footpegs, but contact with road surfaces had ground the ends of the footpegs to razor-sharpness. At near 900 pounds, the Gold Wing was heavy, but it handled well, even with the sacked front end.

That sort of hard riding has been known to use up tires. But when we returned the Wing, it had 13.500 miles on its odometer and still wore its original Dunlops, though they were getting a bit thin.

Fuel consumption during our Season of Winging Comfortably averaged 37.9 miles per gallon; the commute figure was 37.3. the tour figure was 38.7. Oil? Didn't use a drop.

So, what of CfCs long-term GL1500? Well, Laura, my wife, thoroughly endorsed the bike. She appreciated the amount of stuff its luggage compartments would haul, and she gave its passenger accommodations high marks. I'd put an accessory seat on the thing and some stiffer fork springs, and quite happily ride it anywhere.

There are those who consider big touring bikes nothing more than Buicks with handlebars. Perhaps. But in living with this Wing, we've seen that it conveys to its rider a license to roam; we've seen that it causes observers to smile as they catch a whiff of its irresistible Eau de Freedom. That's what motorcycles are all about, and that makes the Wing every inch a rider's motorcycle. —Jon F. Thompson