ABS - worthwhile?

Anyone with ABS ever used it?

Worthwhile?

Worth $500?

New chook chaser is offered with it for extra money. Can see the point with
a car - but not sure if worth it on a bike?

Opinions appreciated.

 

I had ABS on my K1100LT, it only saved my life once.

Boxer

 

It's the last thing you'ld want if used on dirt.
G.

 

So you died a few times since?

 

Quite worthwhile and very effective.

justAL

 

How does ABS cause you to crash?

If true you could sue BMW for millions.

Boxer

 

I didn't actually crash but I had a few hairy moments when it let the brakes
off for a meter-or-two after hitting a little bump mid downhill-corner.
Brown undies those days!

 

Maybe I misunderstand, but that still sounds better than locking up in that
circumstance....

P

 

P'raps I'm not describing it well but all that would've happened was the
back tyre would've chirped a little as it momentarily locked,
but instead the ABS released BOTH brakes!
Sure they grabbed again after a rotation (or maybe less; these moment tend
to elongate when you're panicking) but it was still a period during which I
had no control.
I'm sure just one meter doesn't sound all that dramatic to you but I can
assure you that it absolutely scared the crap outta me!

 

No, now I'm on your page. Releasing both for a single lock is ...
problematic ...

I guess I never really thought about the mechanics of it all, but that does
sound a little pucker inducing...

P

 

My 1200 is not power assisted.

Boxer

 

Umm, why? Either you release the brakes or the ABS does. What's the
difference? End result is the same. Seems a waste of effort to me.

I installed a switch in my Lancer GSR to turn off the ABS when I
wanted. I must say it had very good ABS though and it rarely cut in,
only when the car was really being pushed. Compared to my mate's WRX
which seemed to cut in waaaaay too early, it was great. But I still
wanted to be able to practice braking under my own control.

Cheers
Kev

 

ABS can be fooled by certain situations and road conditions. In Tims case
(if I recall correctly) it was a matter of a dirt road with little-to-no
traction. ABS sensed a lockup and backed off the brakes (as it's supposed
to), but it kept backing off the brakes to the point of Tim having no
brakes. The ABS system was fooled by the loose gravel road and the constant
wheel slip.

Cheers,
Dale.

 

On a billiard-table smooth straight bitumen road maybe; but throw in ripples
and potholes and my R1100GS's ABS was meters worse than "normal" braking.
On gravel it was just stupid! (Although this is probably more due to my
non-ABS "minimal front, heavy rear" dirt braking than any actual mechanical
shortcoming)

 

Yer on the money there... GPS updates once a second, and is good for
consistent speeds in straight lines, not rapid changes in speed and or
direction, certainly not suitable for this type of application.

P

 

http://tinyurl.com/2px23p

Nev..
'04 CBR1100XX

 

Well, that's kind of missing the point. ABS is there to pull you up
quicker (and safer) than you could yourself in those situations where
your eyeballs are bulging out of the helmet and the seat is
disappearing up your arse, not when you've got time to pick a nice bit
of road and a landmark to measure against . It's not hard to do a
good emergency stop when you're ready for it.

With that said, 40% is a load of crap. I'd be willing to bet that
comes from comparing the 7-8 year old bikes w/o ABS to the new ones
with it (and even then - that's a *huge* improvement). But it's
coppers (and American ones at that) - you can't expect much honesty
out of them.

I've not experienced ABS on a bike, but I used to have a car with it -
and while I could pull the car up quicker in controlled conditions
with the ABS "off", the few times I ever had it cut in I have little
doubt it saved me from accidents - albeit relatively minor ones. I'd
have to rate ABS as an overall plus - if I were buying a bike new I'd
get it.

 

I recently purchased a new R1200GSA, and having had 2 previous BMW's with
ABS and many without I voted with my wallet and ticked the ABS box. It only
has to save your life once to pay for itself, and you are quite correct it
is a safety net to cover your arse when the shit is really hitting the fan.

Boxer

 

I thought MB was a(n) MB Cop? No?

 

I reckon if you took two Harleys up to speed and stomped as hard as you
could on the rear brake pedal, the one with ABS would probably stop in
40% less space than the one without. I'm sure Keith Urban is going to
option up to ABS on his next bike, so the next time someone does an
illegal u-turn in front of him, and he has no choice but to drop his
bike, he can drop it 40% sooner.

Nev..
'04 CBR1100XX