BMW R1200R

Motorcycle Trader mag's Rob Blackbourn summed it up neatly after a quick spin on the R1200R: "If that's all you were allowed to ride, you'd have nothing to complain about." Amen.

BMW, like many manufacturers, sometimes does best when it sticks to the basics - in this case producing a good solid naked bike with plenty of performance. In fact the R managed to get under the skin of quite a few people, including the same mag's Rob Smith, who is a dyed in the wool performance hound, admittedly with something of a quirky streak. A serial GS owner, he too came away raving about the R.

Why? Throw a leg over it and you soon realize it's just plain fun.

Packaging
The basic package consists of the firm's 1200 twin in 109hp guise, in a package that claims to weigh a shade under 200 kios. In other words, there's plenty of performance on tap.

The four-valve per pot powerplant is air/oil cooled, runs a high-tech injection system and is mated to a six-speed gearbox via a dry clutch. Final drive is via the current generation paralever that was developed for the more powerful K series.

The frame uses a similar twin alloy bridge set-up to the rest of the R series, employing the powerplant as a stressed member, but is running unique steering geometry. Front suspension is by telelever.

Braking is via twin 320mm discs up front and a single 265mm rear. It has third generation ABS on board, and there is no power assist. There is however a semi-linked set-up, which gives you some rear brake with the handlever, but rear only on the footlever. The company plans to offer traction control as an option, around March next year.

 The dash includes a comprehensive LCD display that gives various versions on fuel consumption, ambient temp etc, via an "info" button on the left handlebar.

Heated handgrips are also in place along with provision for panniers.

The only accessory fitted to ours with a mini perspex screen, which did finish off the looks nicely.

In the saddle
There's no weird science to this thing. The injection provides instant starting without the throttle, and it can be ridden away instantly.

Once warm, the engine has a very broad spread of power with strong bottom end and a fat midrange.

The top-end is less spectacular and you eventually reach a point where it's making more noise than power. By that stage you're traveling plenty fast enough. Oh, and the stunt riders among you may be pleased to learn that it does good wheelies - or so I'm told...

 In reality the performance is perfectly adaptable for just cruising around, or having a fang on your favourite set of corners. In the latter case, the flexibility of the powerplant means you can minimize gear shifting.

Speaking of the shift - our demo had one of the sweetest boxes we've encountered from Bimm.

Reasonably slick, and accurate. The paralever succeeds in being unobtrusive, while the clutch offers a good range of take-up - though we did notice a little shudder when launching it with vigor.

Suspension is good. The telelever feels different to a conventional set of forks, but takes very little time to adapt to. You can also order the company's excellent electronic suspension adjustment as an option. In stock form, the suspenders do the job well, providing good comfort and more than acceptable control.

 Braking is very strong. The handlever offers a gentle initial bite, which increases very rapidly and ultimately offers pretty good feel. Again, it takes a little time to adapt to, but works well once you get the hang of it.

Stock tyres on ours were Continental Attack - the first time we've used this rubber. There seems to be plenty of stability and grip and they probably come closest to current Michelins in feel.

Fuel consumption is generally in the mid to high teens, which provides plenty of range from the 18 litre tank. Typically for BMW, there is good pillion legroom, though there isn't much in the way of handgrips - something you might want to address if a copilot is going to be a regular part of the picture. If that's the case, you well be better off with an ST.

So how much? $18,750 - not a lot more than its predecessor, and it's a much more lively package. It's a fair bit of dough for a naked bike, but then again there are a lot of extras on board, too. Go out and ride it, and I suspect you'll quickly forget what it cost.

Specifications - BMW R1200R
Power Unit
Capacity cc 1,170
Bore/stroke mm 101/73
Max output kW/hp 80/109
At rpm 7,500
Max torque Nm/lb-ft 115/85
At rpm 6,000
Configuration Boxer
No of cylinders 2
Compression ratio/fuel grade 12.0/premium plus
Valve/gas control HC (high camshaft)
Valves per cylinder 4
Valve dia, intake/exhaust mm 36/31
Fuel supply Electronic intake manifold injection BMS-K
Emission management Fully controlled three-way catalytic converter

Electrical System
Alternator W 600
Battery V/Ah 12/14 maintenance-free
Starter kW 1.2 

Power Transmission/Gearbox
Clutch Single-plate dry clutch, dia 180 mm
Gearbox Dog-shift six-speed gearbox
Primary transmission 1.882
Gear ratios I 2.277
II 1.583
III 1.259
IV 1.033
V 0.903
VI 0.805
Drive shaft
Final drive ratio 2.75

Suspension and Running Gear
Frame Tubular steel spaceframe, load-bearing engine
Suspension, front BMW Telelever
Suspension, rear BMW Paralever
Spring travel, front/rear mm 120/140
Castor mm 119.1
Wheelbase mm 1,495
Steering head angle ° 62.9
Brakes front Double disc brake, dia 320 mm
rear Single-disc brake, dia 265 mm
BMW Motorrad Integral ABS as an option
Wheels Cast wheels
front 3.50 x 17
rear 5.50 x 17
Tyres front 120/70-ZR 17
rear 180/55-ZR 17

Dimensions and weight
Length, overall mm 2,145
Width, overall, with mirrors mm 872
Seat height mm 800
Weight, dry kg 198
DIN unladen weight with full tank kg 223
Weight, max permissible kg 450
Tank capacity ltr 18

Performance
Fuel consumption
90 km/h ltr/100 km 4.1
120 km/h ltr/100 km 5.5

Acceleration
0-100 km/h sec 3.6
Top speed km/h 200 plus