Motor Cycle News August 24, 2005

BMW R1150 v R1200RT

Could the all-new R1200RT big tourer prove to be even better than the previous R1150? Our panel of owners explain all……

BMW RT OWNERS PANEL

Paul Dickinson, 42

A motorcycle-training instructor with www.in-gear.co.uk. Paul did 84,000 miles on his beloved 1150 before trading it in for a new R1200 earlier this year.

John Taylor, 55         John owned a R1150RT for four years and wishes he had kept it instead of buying the R1200RT.

George Edwards, 43

George runs www.rtrider.co.uk. , a website dedicated to BMW RT owners. He owned an 1150 for four years, covering 50,000 miles, and is already up to 6000 miles on the new R1200RT.

PERFORMANCE   

Paul: “The new model feels smoother straight away. It fires quickly, the throttle is lighter and the engine feels more responsive. On the move it just gets up and goes, and it really thrives above 5000 rpm. At first I was arriving at corners much quicker than I realised – and two-up performance is a revelation compared to the 1150”

John: “ I’m not that impressed with the new model. The 1150 would cruise at 5000rpm-plus like a turbine. By comparison, the new 1200 has more power, but lacks the low down grunt that the older bike had. However, once you rev it there’s noticeably more power.

            “Fuel consumption varies from 58 to 46 miles to the gallon, depending on the terrain and my right hand.”

George: “I always ride two-up with the wife, and usually fully loaded, so the extra power is really noticeable. There’s much more punch out of corners compared with the old 1150 which felt a bit sluggish.

            “With the new bike there’s a surge of power, especially above 6000rpm, but there’s still plenty of low down grunt, too. It also means that you don’t have to change down the gearbox so often,

On the old 1150 I used to drop down to fifth gear on A and B roads, as it didn’t have the grunt for overtaking in top.

The  new 1200 is far better, I just leave it in top most of the time.

RIDING

Paul: “The 1200’s seat is slightly higher than the 1150, but the new bike is still easier to manoeuvre at low speeds and the top heavy feeling has virtually gone, and the front feels more progressive than the 1150 – but I wouldn’t say it was better, only different.

The suspension takes care of the rougher surfaces in a more gentle way and it’s better two-up, too – less likely to bottom out. There’s been many a time when we’ve scraped the 1150’s centre stand during fast cornering.

John: “The weight reduction has made the new bike easier to ride, especially on back roads. However on long fast sweepers it doesn’t feel as planted as the old 1150.

“Low speed handling is much better on the new bike and the rear brake is much better as well.  I hated the old linked-brake system – it was too sharp, a nightmare in a gravely car park two-up. The non-linked brakes on the new bike are far better.

“The low beam is also much better on the new bike, but there’s no adjuster now for some reason. (There is an adjuster, it is situated on the rear of the left hand lamp GEORGE) The pillion seat is too slippery, too – my other half is constantly sliding around. The old 1150 seat was much better.”

George: “The new RT is much lighter and easier to ride. On the old bike, fully loaded and with the wife on the back, we had a problem with ground clearance – the new bike is much better.

“I’ve owned BMW’s for the last nine years, so I am used to the stiff feeling front end. The brakes are much better than the old bike, too – the front is more progressive and thankfully they’ve got rid of the linked brakes.”

OWNING

Paul: “I’m more than happy with the new version. The miles are totting up as I use it for instructing and I’ve even taken it on the track. Like all boxers it uses some oil, but maybe not as much as my 1150. Also the 1200 is better on fuel, as I get 47-49mpg compared to 42-43mpg on the older bike.

“ The RT is expensive and they seem to have a low book value used if high mileage, which seems stupid as it’s built for high mileage. So I plan to keep mine for the duration of its life – as I ride 30,000 miles a year, in nine or ten years it will have been fantastic value!”

John: “When I first picked up the new RT it was very vibey. Pidcock BMW sorted it but I’ve still got other complaints: you only get one key and the fact that no tool kit is supplied is a sick joke. I complained and as a goodwill gesture they sent me a proper spare key and a tool kit.

            “The mirrors have a major blind spot, so I’ve a pair of GS mirrors, which fit fine and are a massive improvement.” (Except in looks…GEORGE)

George: “I’ve owned RTs before so I was expecting it to use oil, but that should decline as the miles mount – it also gives about 55 miles to the gallon.

            “The standard panniers are more than large enough, but they’re easily scratched so I’ve fitted some clear protective plastic to protect them.

            “The rear Bridgestone tyre needed replacing after 4800 miles, which isn’t as long as on the older bike. But they’re really good, I always fit Bridgestones. “

VERDICT

Paul: “The new RT is a very fine bike. It’s lighter, quicker, and the gearing is better, and it’s more comfortable.

            “The R1200RT is all the things that I wanted the 1150 to be. Like all bikes it won’t suit everyone but it’s worth a try. This is my fourth RT and I’ve long been converted to BMW.”

 John: “As you can gather I’m not too pleased, although it’s no fault of Pidcocks. I’ve spent the best part of £12,000, waited four months for it, and it’s turned out to be inferior to my old 1150. I just hope it smoothes out and stops drinking oil – I’ve just come back from touring Europe and it’s better, but I still don’t like it as much as my old bike.”

 George: “Some say it’s expensive, but I disagree. You don’t have to do anything to it, it does everything I ask of it and by riding for three or four years to 60 or 70,000 miles I’ll get my money’s worth. You can buy cheaper bikes but not many will last 70,000 miles. I think it’s worth the money and I’m really pleased with it.”

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Bike Magazine Evening at the Ace Cafe, London. Weds 18 May 05.

We were invited by Mike Armitage from Bike magazine, to the Ace Cafe in London to meet the Bike team and also see and talk about the bikes they currently have on the long term test fleet. We met up with 3 other R1200RT riders and all compared notes, every one said what a marked improvement the bike was, as all of them had traded up from a R1150RT.

   Three other R1200RT's that turned up...                                    The Met were there with their standard and not so standard bikes, an R1...

All in all there must have been about 100 or so bikes of all different makes and types, and there was people from all over the country.

It was a good night out, with some great insight into all the different kinds of machines, people and lifestyles. The regulars were there, some having just popped in on the way home from work, and there were a few lads doing a tour of the south coast, who were off to Portsmouth...

The Police were there showing off their new Yamaha R1, as part of the Bikesafe scheme. It is where they invite bikers of all types to participate in Rider Skills Days that offer assessment on present skills, and advice to help making their riding safer and more enjoyable. Bikesafe

In Sept 05 Bike Magazine, Mike Armitage has done an article on the Top 50 cornering bikes.    "Handling? Not exactly. We are interested in the satisfaction of taking a corner, the thrill of balancing a bike through a turn, the buzz from driving out on the perfect line"

Amazingly the R1200RT get a very credible 18th position. " Blimey, what's this doing this far up the chart? It leans like an SV650S and flicks about like a CB1300, with the stability of a full oil tanker. Put in the effort and it will show a clean pair of panniers to much sportier tackle. Exceeds all expectations"

Bike Mags, Mike Armitage about to scare the bejasus out of some unsuspecting sole....

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6 April 05 Motor Cycle News have taken a R1200RT onto it's long term test fleet, Adam Child has the bike for a year to ride and report on it's antics.

Adam says " WHY the RT? I rode it on it's launch in Tenerife earlier this year and was impressed. The engine is much improved over the old 1150 version with enough grunt to have fun with and makes overtaking slow moving traffic quick and safe. I have got a 90 mile round trip to work every day with country roads and long stretches of the A1 (Large Freeway) I can't think of a bike more suitable. As a result I plan to do loads of touring this year-to at least one WSB or European GP and maybe also to the Isle of Man, TT races or a smaller Irish road race. I also hope to do a day's training with the police. They use BMW's, so who better to ask for some tips? Finally, I expect to cover some serious mileage so this year is going to be a tough test of the Beemer's abilities"

All pictures by Garry at www.picman.co.uk

MCN 13 April 2005.    By Adam Child Road Tester.

“Wheelie over the Mountain…on a RT?

The mile munching BMW rules at Cadwell. Never bet against an MCN road tester…

The 1200RT might seem like a strange choice for a sports bike fan. But it makes perfect sense to me-and here’s why.

I have a 90-mile trip to work. Each way. Most days that’s nearly 200 miles every time I’m needed in the office and a possible 1000-mile week! But at the same time I still need something fun which, if ridden hard, can still keep a decent pace. I also want to be able to play at the weekends, or be able to pop to Sherburn (Popular Biker Meet) on a Wednesday night and not get left behind. The R1200RT ticks all these boxes.

            I’ve had it for nearly a month now and have done more than 1500 miles- it’s even been on the track. I went over to Cadwell Park to watch some mates and before I knew it the trackday organizers (Thanks to Linda at No Limits) and my so-called friends had bet me the RT wouldn’t wheelie over the Mountain.

Naturally I had the BM’s honour to uphold so went out to prove them wrong. Firstly it was hysterical enough to see the look on people’s faces as I drove out of the pit lane with Bob Marley playing on the built-in CD player.

Second lap around and, sure enough; the front wheel was in the air.

Back to the everyday world, the BMW has carried me to work and back to my home in Hook, East Yorkshire, so many times already it now feels like it could do it by itself. In just under an hour and a half I’m at work and it feels like I’ve only just popped down the road.

            But it’s not all perfect. Twice the RT has struggled to start first time on cold mornings, once requiring six minutes to start and lots of revs. To remedy this, on its first 600-mile service, local BMW dealers Balderston’s downloaded the latest updated fuel mapping (about a 50 minute job) and things are now much improved. According to BMW this has only been needed with the very first models (which mine certainly is).

Buyers today will find their bikes already updated. Balderston’s also altered the temperature of the heated seat so not only is my cold starting sorted, so is my cold backside…

Test Notes:

HIGHS AND LOWS

When I got it: March 12 , 2005

Price new: £12,517

Value now: £10,717

Insurance Cost: £680 (fully comp)

Mileage: 1525

Power (Estimated): 110BHP

Top-speed as tested: 131 MPH

Fuel mpg/range 46/225 miles

                                                                                                                                                       Pic by Garry www.picman.co.uk

WHAT WE LIKE:    Mile-eating capabilities, and it makes the journey to work a breeze.

WHAT WE DON’T LIKE:   It struggled to start twice before its first service.

 BITS WE RECOMMEND:

Electronic Suspension (ESA) £395. Change the suspension settings at the touch of a button – very clever, very effective.

Oil level warning light £30. Saves getting on your knees and looking for the window.

Heated seat £210. I ride all year so why not.

Heated grips £195. Got to have heated grips, saves having to wear massive winter gloves.

On-board computer £80 Useful info like MPG and keeps you entertained on longer journeys.

Radio with CD player £875 Best extra fitted! Still clear up to around 90mph but very expensive.

White indicator lenses £22 Just for show, but only £22 so why not?

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