Are 84-87 Wings still reliable

[twocams]

I had an 84 Interstate for 12 yrs.bought in 1989 & put 50,000 miles on it with just replacing timing belts & stator. Once my 85 Aspencade is up and running with new tires,poor boy system,fuel pump, rebuilt carbs,timing belts,spark plugs,pulse generator, maybe new coils. Will it be reliable enough to ride 3-400 mile days? Has 30,000 miles on it, or is it better for just local rides? I know there will always be unforeseen problems here and there. I just see a lot of little-big problems with these old girls here.
So is there anyone putting long distance miles on there 84-87 Wings. Inquiring minds want to know.

Twocams

[roadwanderer2]

i did a 175 mile ride yesterday with my 86 aspy. its got 80,000 on it and it ran great. only one problem, im having trouble keeping it within the speed limit lol. one minute im doing 70 mph, next thing i look at my speedometer and it shows 90 mph. i see a new radar detector in my future.

stuart.

[golden highway]

The biggest fear would be a stator failure far from home and you already removed that issue. I wouldn't think twice about heading across the country on my 1200 when I owned one. I know a lot of people who do long rides including to Alaska on a 1200. There are times I miss my 1200 but don't regret buying my current 1500. If your 1200 is in good mechanical condition ride it when and where you want and worry about replacing it when it wears out in the next in the next 20 or 30 years.

[detdrbuzzard]

a friend and I did a poorboy kit on my 1200 wing last year. this year my niece rode the 1200 wing and I rode the 1500 wing to the flight 93 memorial and then to deep creak lake in MD.all in one day we put over 1000 miles on both bikes without a problem by the time we got back home

[twocams]

Thanks for the input. I figured they were still a pretty good stead for distance riding.

Twocams

[julimike54]

Since I've owned mine since new, this seems an odd question to me, but....

The reliability of a machine is directly effected by it's history (IMHO), since I've kept mine well, I'll ride it anywhere I have time off for. That said, they are about 30 years old, and machines will break. 20 years ago I lost stator on trip, you get a lot of jumps to get home & have it replaced with a factory unit. Last trip found out the 'kill' switch was corroded, made bike cut out & die intermittently, actually found by accident saw my thumb resting on it.

They are machines that make you love & hate them, at least that's me. Go ride & enjoy!, till they break

[oldishwinger]

i did a 175 mile ride yesterday with my 86 aspy. its got 80,000 on it and it ran great. only one problem, im having trouble keeping it within the speed limit lol. one minute im doing 70 mph, next thing i look at my speedometer and it shows 90 mph. i see a new radar detector in my future.

stuart.

lol yeh I agree, they love to go, and speed creeps up, they handle it so well too, and it only when you check the speedo you realize usually with surprise, what speed you are doing.

I have used my 86 aspy for long trips only for nine years, I ride all year round,when I ride it can be anywhere from 200 to 1000 kms in one day.they are totally a beautiful machine to ride on a long trip, the only things in nine years that have gone out has been a speedo gearbox and stator. in both cases she got me home. ride anywhere with confidence, for a 30 year old machine, they are quite amazing i think, anyway, thats my totally biased opinion lol

[twocams]

Ya my 1969 R69S BMW has been all rebuilt. And there are guys riding these old Beemers 3-400 miles a day. But unfortunately I wont know how well I refurbished mine until spring ...as far as riding that is. I know it starts and runs.

Twocams

[Fatwing Chris]

Like it's already been said the stator would be the only thing that's scary too far from home,but you're getting rid of it anyways.We had 2 1200's over the years and the wife and I used to do 5 k trips on it by ourselves every summer.Ride the wheels off of it.They're great bikes.

[roadwanderer2]

i have absolutely no complaints about my 1200 even though i had to put a battery, starter and starter solenoid in it when i got it, that's somewhat normal maintenance on a 30 year old bike with over 80,000 miles on it. some things are bound to go wrong and have to be fixed. i intend on riding this bike as long as it lasts,(hopefully another 10 years), then if im still able to have it and ride it, then i'll worry about what major work needs to be done to it.

stuart.

[Arti]

A few years ago I bought a 1970 vw beetle a thousand miles away and drove it home sight unseen. What a great trip that was.

I wouldn't take an older bike on a long trip until it was ridden for a season, sort of time to get to know the bike and get the little quirks out of it.
Doing maintenance on my 86 this winter and after a few miles on it this spring I wouldn't hesitate to go coast to coast on it as far as it being dependable, I think the wing would would be able to go the distance but my butt wouldn't.

[geraldm]

Bought my 86 gl1200a last fall before snow $2000.00 cdn. , First Honda or Japanese bike for that matter , to cold to ride home so just put it on my car hauler and hauled him home . Did a hose change in the spring of 2015 because the bottom one was leaking a tad through the winter ( sitting in the cold ). Did a number of 300 to 800 Mile rides in all types of weather ( the rain bothered me much more than the bike , never faltered once . I used 2 high wattage lights for daytime riding that gave my battery system a bit of trouble ( After a run up to flin flon MB. for a biker due my battery was low enough to not turn bike over fast enough to start and of course with low voltage and trying to start bike it burned the wire on the solenoid with high amp. draw . Kinda knew what was the problem took about 5 min. to find problem about 5 to repair wire , boosted it and that was the end of my problems all summer . 17,000 MILES not KM. , 4 oil and filter changes , changed plugs that didn't need changing , .. The biggest issue I had was finally convincing myself to quit checking oil every time I went for a ride. The bike had a the pulsing brake thing all summer . totally rebuilt my front forks and cleaned the anti dive mechanism new tires front and rear , Michelin commander 11 .. went through the rear drive , new wheel brgs. lubed the drive shaft with anti seize and good high pressure lube new brake pads ,, the most common problem I found was most of the brake pins and pivot points were seized on braking mechanism front and rear so if changing brake pads I would suggest everyone remove the pins and pivot points ( being careful not to destroy dust boots ) clean and re lube all moving parts on calipers , same as the rear my rear caliper was seized from I'm betting 30 years of not being done . ( you cant expect brakes to work proper if things can't move and line up with brake rotors . Possibly has lots to do with pulsating brakes , even the rear brake being as it is linked to the front could make the front brake pulse if not working proper . DONT JUST CHANGE THE PADS and expect everything to be good . The old bike seems very sound and is capable of very extreme speeds for a big boy Which I will not talk about , with no noticeable side effects , biggest complaint is the fuel mileage . Don't muck with the carbs if you don't have something to cync them with besides setting the idle. ( before syncing them I tried just by ear and feel and never even got close , took me three hours to get all four bottles the same level which I know is not necessary but that is the way I did it . even just a bit of a push on the screws involved can make a change . the old wings seem like a very reliable machine . If I do have problems , well that is one of the reasons I am a CAA premier member .. for 180.00 cdn. they will load my bike with a proper harness and haul him home for 0 dollars .. ... I might add that if anyone is worried about being broke down then maybe should stay home and miss all the adventures of the biker world , heck to me after riding some 45 odd years a breakdown is just another adventure to tell when you get to the point where you cant ride anymore and that will happen faster than you think . Have a good one and enjoy your adventures while you can , In my experiences through the years there is usually someone around that will lend a hand and get you going again . I'm betting that lots of the newer wing riders have problems with there rides also , Patiently waiting for spring of 2016 , bring it on . And artie I would sooner get on an old wing and take my chances anyday than a old VW I had one of them also and learned very early to never trust it , . Have a good one Geraldm

[shawnee1952]

I would ride mine anywhere and with confidence. This is one of the most reliable powerplants ever built. Stators and other problems you might encounter are possible on any make, model, or year bike out there. Trust it and enjoy it.

[thompsoj22]

Great thread!!! lots of good info and advice, Ill have to post some pics of my new to me 86I. I have completed my much needed maintenance of fork seals,front pads,new stereo,stator connections,timing belt inspect/adj,clean/lube all handle bar switches, and this bike is my daily commuter!. absolutely love it, so much so that I haven't ridden my Harley in weeks. My daughter would rather ride with me on the wing than the Harley. The bike has 77k miles and im going to see how long it will go, I would point this bike east and not stop til I hit key west without hesitation!.but im a Harley owner so we never wonder if it will break, just how many times til we get there

[DRWard]

I have owned a 1984 Aspencade for the last 8 years or so. I regularly did 3-4 day rides putting on 6-700km per day. Never had issues and will do it again. As long as the bike is maintained with regular oil changes and TLC, it will give you many years of enjoyment. My bike had 140,000kms on it before it was totaled in a bad crash last spring. I bought another one and after some work on bearings, shocks, and front forks, it will be ready to ride this spring.

[1985Mistake]

Not quite unseen (like the VW bug above), but in the same theme of adventure, I bought a 1985 Aspencade of Craigslist after a short ride around the block and then rode it from Tampa, FL to Bryan, TX. Flew into Tampa on a business trip, then rode the bike home.

After I bought it, I noticed the speedometer wasn't working (you would think that you would notice this on the test ride). Took it to a dealer for an inspection (after I bought it) and they said it was not safe to ride (dry rotted tires).

Went to Wings of Gold in Branden, FL (this is a mom and pop shop specializing in Goldwings) and had a set of tires put on it. It took three days to make it home but the only problem that came up was the left trim piece coming loose and when I stopped on the side of the interstate to put it back on the bike fell over and broke the right mirror and the windscreen.

Found a replacement mirror from an 84 on ebay. The bike is now in the shop getting the front fork seals and bushings replaced.

[MiWinger51]

I had an 84 Interstate for 12 yrs.bought in 1989 & put 50,000 miles on it with just replacing timing belts & stator. Once my 85 Aspencade is up and running with new tires,poor boy system,fuel pump, rebuilt carbs,timing belts,spark plugs,pulse generator, maybe new coils. Will it be reliable enough to ride 3-400 mile days? Has 30,000 miles on it, or is it better for just local rides? I know there will always be unforeseen problems here and there. I just see a lot of little-big problems with these old girls here.
So is there anyone putting long distance miles on there 84-87 Wings. Inquiring minds want to know.

Twocams

I have an 87 Aspencade that runs and drives like a top. I have ridden it on a 300 mile day with my wife on the back. Since I got an 1800 last year I'm trying to sell it. You can see it in the for sale forum. It only has 9800 miles on it so I'm not going to be too disappointed if it doesn't sell. My wife might be though. Lol.

[WingAdmin]

If the bike fell over (assuming it was on the side stand), and it was on level ground, chances are the rear shocks are shot. When those old springs sag, the back end of the bike drops, which causes it to sit too far upright when on the side stand, instead of leaning like it should.

[1985Mistake]

If the bike fell over (assuming it was on the side stand), and it was on level ground, chances are the rear shocks are shot. When those old springs sag, the back end of the bike drops, which causes it to sit too far upright when on the side stand, instead of leaning like it should.

It was on the side stand. The shoulder had a significant slope to it. Since then I have noticed that the bike wants to stand rather straight unless I pull up on it when getting off. How much of that is a bad shock and how much is lack of air won't be answered until I can get the push button for the air compressor out of the fairing and remounted.

The front fork rebuild has been detoured. With front brake pad replacement, the shop wanted over $700. A set of used forks on ebay was $90 including shipping and a complete set of brake pads (both fronts and rear) was $11 with free shipping. (The shop wanted $54 each for the fronts.)

[WingAdmin]

I didn't realize just how much my GL1100's rear shocks were sagging until I replaced them with a set of new Progressive 416's. I always worried about the bike on the side stand, it sat far too upright for my liking. With the new shocks the bike sat up at least an inch and a half, and the sidestand lean angle became much better.

[Rednaxs60]

I have the Progressive 12 Series Dampers (12-1206B) and the heavy duty springs (P/N 03-1364B) for my '85 LTD and the bike sits up considerably more as well. When on the centre stand the rear wheel is still on the ground; however, the ride and handling quality is very good - solo or two up. I have the opposite problem in that I think the bike is too far over when on the side stand. Intend putting a 1/2 inch pad on the bottom of the side stand to lessen the angle.

These bikes are also very easy to work on and maintain, and once the work is done - won't have to be done for a while. There is some maintenance that should be done every couple of years that is well documented on this and other forums.

As for being reliable, I read more about carb issues than fuel injection issues, but once fixed/repaired the bikes are extremely reliable. With this in mind, sometimes wonder why people tend to shy away from the older fuel injected GWs. Looking forward to putting a few Kms on mine and hoping to hit at least 400K Kms - not outside the realm of possibility. Have put 15,000 Kms on it since purchase in Oct 2015 and that is with doing a significant amount of work/maintenance on the bike.

Enjoy your ride.

Cheers

[rcgreg]

If it lasted this long, it's likely to keep going for a long long time. Darwin works on M/C too and the weak ones have already been culled from the herd.

[JOLLY]

I would ride my 1986A anywhere. Just fill it up go 200 miles and do it again. PS. Doing this keeps the carbs clean... LOL

[CrystalPistol]

Owned my '85 GL1200A from August 1995 until I sold it this past June 2019, it was kept in my basement when not being ridden, wife and I traveled a lot on it, never once did I leave home wondering if it was gonna bring me back. Rain, cold, heat, interstates, back roads, it never complained. If I had it today, I'd feel the same, one damn reliable machine.

Was a time in 1997 the stator blipped, I jusrt watched volts close on meter I installed, finished ride noting that it only took longer to recover after a town but recover it did. I R&Red the stator the following week in my spare time in the afternoons, used a Honda life warrantied one, made some improvements (in my opinion), cleaned & waxed some hidden spots. Great bike.