The final cost of a trip to the arctic from Az.

[brownie0486]

The 2012 GS ran great, the Heidenau's made the round trip without needing tires, the chosen clothes/gear performed admirably in lots of inclement weather.

BUT, the word from my mechanic is that the rear rotor is warped [ I had him check it because on the way home I feel it pulsing at low speeds coming to lights etc. He thinks I either got something up into the works and it overheated the rotor, or it happened when I had to panic break in Calgary when I got cut off on the highway in rush hour traffic at 45mph where the abs kicked in---or a combination of both.

Bikes in for service, new brake parts, all fluids changed again, new tires already on it two days after I got back. She'll be ready to rock and roll on the fire roads, trails and surface roads again end of next week. Total cost of the service back to fully operational and ret to go 660.00.

I've washed it 5 times and it'll never be a starbucks bike ever again. Not that it ever saw one before I left, but it ain't no getting it back to showroom condition either. I've used shout, clr, soap and water, high pressure hose, garden hose, and it's still got signs of the haul road and crap from running days in the rain in all the nooks and crannies of a GS.

For me, the sweetest part of all the above is the varios have stickers from Yukon territory, BC, Mile 0 Dawson Creek, and making the arctic circle with the bike. Worth the 8K miles in 19 days up and back even with all the costs associated with the trip and getting it back to running new again. .

 

[AntonLargiader]

Of course $660 isn't exactly the typical cost of a trip like that. In my shop that would roughly cover the cost of a set of tires (installed) and the the rotor (installed) but there's the rest of a 12,000 mile service plus maybe $600 for fuel. Oh, and the depreciation for wear and tear! Like you experienced, the bike I used would never be the same again short of a complete teardown and restoration. Abrasive, corrosive grime was packed into every crevice.

What was the overall trip length? When I went up there in 2003 it was 20,000 miles in all but I didn't go straight there or back. Doing that on a new bike would take a few thousand dollars off its value. Brake pads, shocks, and everything else are now that much closer to wearing out.

 

[brownie0486]

Of course $660 isn't exactly the typical cost of a trip like that. In my shop that would roughly cover the cost of a set of tires (installed) and the the rotor (installed) but there's the rest of a 12,000 mile service plus maybe $600 for fuel. Oh, and the depreciation for wear and tear! Like you experienced, the bike I used would never be the same again short of a complete teardown and restoration. Abrasive, corrosive grime was packed into every crevice.

What was the overall trip length? When I went up there in 2003 it was 20,000 miles in all but I didn't go straight there or back. Doing that on a new bike would take a few thousand dollars off its value. Brake pads, shocks, and everything else are now that much closer to wearing out.

I had the new Metzlers put back on the bike that were taken off for the Heidenau to make the trip. All fluids changed again as before left, the rotor and new pads plus low beam bulb that burned out while gone came to 660.00. It's due for a 24K service in 4K miles, didn't need that this trip to the shop. Wear and tear can't really be determined, can it? Bikes a 2012 with 20K on it after the 8K miles trip. Right, it'll not be pristine as it was before the trip, there is that devaluation but how much is anyone's guess with the low miles on the bike for something now going on 8 years old. Less than 3k a year average keeps the value up some I'd think.

I was gone 19 days, 17 ride days, 8786 miles total. Brakes, shocks and everything else are items that are expected to wear out IF you use the bike. The more I use it, the more it's going to cost me, just like any vehicle, that's just maintenance cost to me for the privilege of having it and enjoying it. Of course I could stick a new one in the garage and never use it to prevent all that maintenance down the road, but then I wouldn't be enjoying what I bought would I? Senseless to have something and not use it to prevent having to spend money on it IMO. I don't consider that cost of the trip. The trip was priceless IMO, something to check off the list of things to do before my unknown expiration date

 

[67207]

Glad you had a blast.

Agree, that's what they are for.

If you want you want to save re sale value, you can just watch tv on the couch. Use ' um while you got um. No guarantee on the future ,only the present, best.

Sent from my C6606 using Tapatalk

 

[brownie0486]

Glad you had a blast.

Agree, that's what they are for.

If you want you want to save re sale value, you can just watch tv on the couch. Use ' um while you got um. No guarantee on the future ,only the present, best.

Sent from my C6606 using Tapatalk

That's my thoughts at 67, how many more years can I expect to play.

 

[k12lts]

I made a trip from Indiana to Alaska myself last month on my 2010 R1200RT. We did Anchorage, Seward, Arctic Circle, Chicken, Dawson and more. 9400 miles in 18 days.

We were lucky that all the gravel roads we rode, about 250 miles, were on dry days. The bike was dirty when I got home but none of the corrosive calcium you get if the roads are wet. One good wash and the bike looks like new. Probably helps that the RT has all the body work keeping the dirt out of the nooks and crannies of the engine and frame.

I pretty much wore out a set of Michelin Pilot Road 4GT tires (dual sport tires not needed). I'd done a 12k service last fall and after riding another 1000 miles since I've been back it's due for another one now at 48k. I don't consider the service and tires as a cost of the trip, just a cost of riding the bike.

 

[AntonLargiader]

Every time I got off a long unpaved highway my first stop would be the car wash. And there is ALWAYS a car wash! It wasn't just the bike, it was my luggage, straps, everything that I would touch during the course of a day. If I didn't blast it all away, the straps would get gritty and the dust would spread to my hands and clothing. I was wearing mesh riding gear (Air Power) which could fortunately be rinsed in any body of water and would then dry very quickly.

On my R100GSPD, I didn't have a lot of tire wear at the relatively low speeds I was using. I think I got a front tire in SF on my way north and it made it 16,000 miles or so home, and I got a rear tire in Fairbanks that I think made it home as well (maybe 12, 13k miles? Hard to say where the miles all happened). I bought another front in Anchorage but never used it (carried it for the second half of the trip needlessly).

I don't know what it cost, but it I sure wouldn't have ridden 20,000 miles in two months if I'd stayed home. If the wear & tear costs are omitted as just being the cost of ownership, then the trip was free! Can't beat that.