Fragile kickstand?

I went to my nearest dealer today to try on a (hopefully discounted) 2016 R1200RT. I had back surgery back in January and I'm still a bit weak and inflexible so I had trouble getting my boot over the right side case. When I was last there, they asked me to not put all my weight on the stand by picking up both feet to try the riding position, so I asked if it was ok to get a boost by stepping on the left-side foot peg to step over. They said not to - might bend the kickstand mounting tab on the frame.

Having read that this is a recommend way for vertically challenged riders to mount up, I'm now curious - is breaking the kickstand or bending the mounting tab really an issue? The sales folks at this dealer aren't the most accommodating bunch anyway but the next nearest dealer is quite a bit further away... I went to the triumph dealer afterwards and the sales manager there actually told me to mount by stepping on the left peg after I told him about my surgery. He said he almost always mounts that way and he's a big fellow.

I think they are wrong. If right - the bike is way to fragile for me to buy. But you do need to name the dealership so I can avoid going there. This crap from some staff at some dealers demeans the brand.

Filling in a bit more in your profile might be useful to both of us, too.

Telling them to remove right bag so you can better mount might help also. Stands aren't unreliable, but sounds like sales staff might be.

Motodan said:

Stands aren't unreliable, but sounds like sales staff might be.

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Concur with that. The kick stand is strong. The surface and any incline are the potential problem.



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Try not letting being disappointed by someone in sales get you down. As I watch an ad on the telly, I find it's a good primer on what to expect from the corporate culture running the ads......which trickle down to the dealerships.
It's great to come to the forum and ask the question as, while the answers may not be perfect, the operators of the bikes (side-stands) can fill you in. I can think of a number of reasons you were told what you were told.....I suspect the sales personnel has fallen into the position of "order taker" cuz it's so much easier.

I take it you mentioned your surgery? You may have scared them and a bit of "panic" ended up with the "cheese-wizz" answer.
If the sales personnel was on their game (what I consider their game)- they would have provided a step-stool to allow you to get into riding position and supported the bike while you were sitting.
Good luck with your purchase.
Gary

When I first started looking at the GSA a dealership and sales associate in San Diego told me not to mount the bike by putting my weight on the pegs with the side stand down... You're not alone with what you've said about sales saying the side stand or center stand can't take the weight.
FYI I always mount full weight on pegs with either side or center stand.

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Customers and sidestands

On a somewhat humorous note (at least now) I sold BMW's part time some years ago, dealership also had Japanese bikes available. One day customer sits on a Concours 14, flips side stand up as he talks to another salesman and I...5 minutes goes by when he decides to dismount. Unfortunately, he forgot stand wasn't down. No damage to bike as it rolled over with bag onto carpet, but several startled folks. Perhaps these sales people have had same experience....LOL

I always step up on the left peg before swinging my leg over when the cases are on my '16 RT. Stand seems perfectly solid to me.

Dealer is the one that suggested it....

Ski

One of our motor officers, riding a BMW, always mounted on the left side of the bike by standing on the left peg with the side stand down. One day, as he mounted, something gave way. The bike fell down on its left side, dumping him on the ground. He escaped, with only his ego bruised.

I don't recall (if he ever told me) what broke or bent, whether it was a tab, a bolt that sheared, or something else. But I've stopped mounting that way. The center stand is strong enough for this, I'm told, but the side stand is not.

There are many who mount like this, who have never had such an experience, and who will continue. I prefer to learn from the experience of others.

skibumwi said:

I always step up on the left peg before swinging my leg over when the cases are on my '16 RT. Stand seems perfectly solid to me.

Dealer is the one that suggested it....

Ski

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Come to think of it, when I went through the BMW motorcycle training at their South Carolina facility they told me the same thing. It reallly helps if you have short leg syndrome like I do....


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Motodan said:

Telling them to remove right bag so you can better mount might help also. Stands aren't unreliable, but sounds like sales staff might be.

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I did that with the R1200R.

PGlaves said:

I think they are wrong. If right - the bike is way to fragile for me to buy. But you do need to name the dealership so I can avoid going there. This crap from some staff at some dealers demeans the brand.

Filling in a bit more in your profile might be useful to both of us, too.

Click to expand...

I've added my location but I'd rather not name the dealer - they had a questionable reputation several years ago but I thought things had improved. I've heard good things about their service department.

Another thing that I thought odd - i asked if they could mount a low seat for me to try. My thought was that maybe I could start off with the low seat until I got more strength back and then switch over to the regular seat or an aftermarket one. The salesman said they didn't have one in stock so I asked when they expected one in -he said he wasn't going to get one and recommended that I get the stock seat and "take it somewhere and get it shaved down." No recommendations on where to go or who to call.

jeffshoaf said:

The salesman said they didn't have one in stock so I asked when they expected one in -he said he wasn't going to get one and recommended that I get the stock seat and "take it somewhere and get it shaved down." No recommendations on where to go or who to call.

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They didn't want your business. Go elsewhere.

What are the odds that a salesman would know if the parts guys had a lowered seat available without checking?

Omega Man said:

Try not letting being disappointed by someone in sales get you down. As I watch an ad on the telly, I find it's a good primer on what to expect from the corporate culture running the ads......which trickle down to the dealerships.
It's great to come to the forum and ask the question as, while the answers may not be perfect, the operators of the bikes (side-stands) can fill you in. I can think of a number of reasons you were told what you were told.....I suspect the sales personnel has fallen into the position of "order taker" cuz it's so much easier.

I take it you mentioned your surgery? You may have scared them and a bit of "panic" ended up with the "cheese-wizz" answer.
If the sales personnel was on their game (what I consider their game)- they would have provided a step-stool to allow you to get into riding position and supported the bike while you were sitting.
Good luck with your purchase.
Gary

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I had a totally different experience at a dealer who's quite a bit further away last year (and the sales manager is a frequent poster here). The sales manager sent several emails with updates on inventory and when a demo went on sale at a good discount and even invited me to a cookout. Only issue is that I'm not ready yet to ride that distance and I like to support local businesses.

I did.mention my surgery, but i was told the same thing when I was there in 2015 and wanted to test the riding position. They did offer a test ride then but I wasn't fully in the market then (they didn't know that) and didn't want to be overly tempted.

36654 said:

They didn't want your business. Go elsewhere.

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I am. I've contacted another dealer who's quite a bit further away - far enough that I'm not recovered enough from my surgery to ride home from - to see if they have any delivery options. If they do, I'll make the drive for a test ride. I'd wait until I'm more recovered but king have pms (parked motorcycle syndrome) bad with all the nice weather we've had recently and my current motorcycle aggravates my back terribly.

Whenever I am touring, I have a big waterproof bag on the rear part of the pillion seat and the luggage rack on my 2015 RT. I used to try to thread my leg through the gap between the tank and the bag, but started mounting by stepping on the left peg. I still do it when the bike's loaded, even though the 2015 RT Rider's manual on page 97 says that the sidestand is only designed to hold the weight of the motorcycle.

One of my pals is RangerReece, and when visiting him in Alabama last Fall I observed that he does not mount the bike using the left peg and the side stand, but instead puts his right knee on the seat, grabs his right boot with his right hand, pulls it toward his butt and gets his leg across the seat that way. I tried to do the same motion but my 72-year old knee didn't like it much. Seeing him do it, makes it look pretty easy.

akbeemer said:

What are the odds that a salesman would know if the parts guys had a lowered seat available without checking?

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Pretty good, I'd say. My dealer keeps one available in case someone wants one on a demo ride.

Jeff, did I miss how much you weigh? In my opinion I've seen the side stand evolve over the years from light alloy to the new more sturdy steel. I also feel your pain as I had a serious bike accident in 2015 so I typically use the foot-peg to mount the bike. I'm 5'10" and weigh 176. I just do it slowly and make sure the bike is not leaning "too" much (un-level surface). If it's leaning too much I'll mount from the other side. I can stretch and make it without having to step on the foot-peg, but it's an "effort" and I can't do that if I've got something strapped on the back of the bike, ie tent, sleeping mat, etc. The sales dealer also told me not to mount from the foot-peg. He said to grab my pant leg and lift my leg, but I told him that I wouldn't do that since that's for old men and I'm only 69! Stretching exercises work even though they are painful. Bottom line, if you're under 180, imho, the side stand will hold just fine. The best thing about my Harley Ultra Classic is that the side stand will hold just about anybody. I used to ride with a couple where the rider was over 250 and his SO was over 200 and they'd sit on the bike with the side stand down fully packed. Never seen the Harley side stand give, but I'm not suggesting you go that route.

Damn, that's a lot of hardware you got there.