2011 RT limited versus 2016 RT s

[Newflover]

Considering changing from my 2011 limited to a 2016 Rt-S. What am I going to 'lose' by going to the RT s? Vice versus, what would I gain. The limited has 20,000 mile, 10,000 we put on it.

Insights.....

[ARtraveler]

You will lose the GPS and the real chrome trim. For me, that was $2K I did not need to spend. I love my 2014 RT-S. It has everything but the above.

[SpyderAnn01]

You will gain a superior motor, large gas tank, a 6th gear a longer maintenances interval which means you'll save money and can afford to buy a GPS. I'd just keep the GPS and luggage from your 11. Plus the RTS looks way better with the black handle bars and black pieces than the 11 with the gray pieces.

[Bam Bam and Pebbles]

What she said!

[Bob Denman]

x 2 ...
It's not about what you're losing: it's about what you're gaining!

[Arion]

Here's my (that is, our) two cents. My Spyder is a 2015 RT-S while my wife's is a 2012 RT Limited. Both were purchased used, and we each like ours better than the other. That is to say, I like mine and she likes hers. I like the smoothness of the triple while she likes the character and sound of the twin. That might be explained by the fact that my "other bike" is a BMW K75S "Flying Brick" triple while her "other bike" is a Honda CTX700 twin.

Hers has the stock GPs while I added one of my favorite Garmin units to mine using a similar "center of the bar" mount. Hers has Seal floorboards and I'm rather jealous about that but it isn't stock so the comparison is invalid, but I still like them a lot. I also like the sixth gear on mine, but when riding hers I don't seem to miss it as much as I might have expected. Mine gets better mileage but it doesn't seem to interfere with our travels. Maybe secretly I appreciate stopping to refuel and being able to stretch a bit more often now that I'm in my seventh decade.

And not that it's a big deal at this point in our ownership, but I appreciate being able to remove the battery from mine without having to search for a video to tell me the tricks and tips necessary to remove the battery from her 2012 model (see Finless Bob's "here's how you really do it" video). It's also a snap to replace the stock horn on mine while hers requires disassembly of the entire front end to remove and replace using the same mounting location. Guess that's why several members have said leave the stock horn in place and mount a better one somewhere else. Good plan.

Perhaps the most significant difference we've found is that the newer models don't pump enormous amounts of heat onto ones right foot as does the 2012. Not only is the gaping hole on the right side well, a gaping hole, it's also a furnace exhaust! Blanking plate and associated mods were one of the first changes she asked to be made. She's happier now, meaning I'm happier as well.

Lastly, but limited to us, is the fact that I like the look of hers better. It's red and chrome while mine is black on black on black. Both are handsome in their own right although I would have appreciated something a little less stealth. But, for the price I can accept stealth. Application of Wrap My Spyder accents has helped somewhat, in my opinion, although it doesn't exactly stand out. And, depending on wind direction, if someone opens a bag of flour in Boston or San Francisco I'll find the dust on my Spyder shortly thereafter!

I'm not sure this is of any help but it did allow us to make sort of an extended introduction and for that we say thank you.