BMW R 1200 R

Excellent all rounder – Have ridden the 2017 r1200r Sports version for a few years now. Always a pleasure to ride, whether city or long trip. Friendly, plenty of grunt when needed and handles surperbly. As recently mentioned by Harley owners who I left long way behind during a recent winding up and down mountain run. The well deserved low fat decaf lattes I bought the lads were room temperature cold by the time they arrived at the lunch stop. Show details

Highly recommended naked bike – Second best bike I have ever owned! Bought it new at Doncaster BMW and rode it for 12,000km in just over a year. Great engine, superb suspension and very easy handling bike. Upgraded to a GS which is the only reason for the sale. Had only one issue with a leaking fork seal, which was replaced under warranty. Would purchase again, if I ever wanted another naked bike.  Show details

Love it – I bought a 90 Year anniversary R1200R new in 2013 and love it. I thought i would upgrade from my R65LS i bought in 1984. I was a looking for another Ducati before test riding and loving the R65LS and I am not disappointed in sticking with BMW. It is very torquey and will easily pull in all gears and handles well. I haven't ridden many modern bikes… Read more

to compare but it just has that BMW charm that hooked me in 1984 when I sold my 450 Desmo S/shotgun. Not one of my better decisions selling that so i am keeping the LS. as a retirement project. Though it still fires up first go after sitting in the shed for 2 years. BMW reliability!

I have not had one complaint about the R1200R and started servicing it myself after the warranty ran out. Very easy bike to own.

I thought I had and issue one day riding when it seemed to be lacking power and i noticed my tire pressure monitor flashing low warning. Pumped the pressures up when I got home and it has been running fine since. so I assume some sort of safety limp mode kicks in when the pressure is very low. Luckily I have not been in the position to use traction control yet. I am 58 now and try to ride fairly safely but its nice to know ABS/TC is there when you need it.

One thing that did annoy me was the salesmen at Caloundra did not give me the option of seat height as mine, by the part number is a high seat and i could probably use the slightly lower one as there are 4 choices i believe which is a good option. I can touch the ground fine its just when the suspension is jacked up and i step in a hole its a bit dicky. But push button weight/ride height and 3 suspension ride modes Sport,comfort,normal is all to easy.

Anyway I would recommend this BMW to anyone contemplating buying one.

Simply Brilliant – I have a 2009 R with a bit over 70,000km up so far. Not a single failure in that time and the bike still feels as tight as new. I do a lot of touring, have been riding bikes since the late 60's and use them as my daily transport in all weathers. The R has a lot of torque, a free-spinning engine, handles very well, gets great fuel economy and… Read more

is very light for a big bike. It is comfortable - mine has the high seat and I put a set of old US-spec Triumph Daytona bars on for a bit more pull-back. Everything is in the right place for me as far as pegs and controls go. No real downside to the R - even the BMW servicing (if you decide to use it) is comparative to my Kawasaki Versys 1000 and that is at the cheaper end of the big Jap fours for major services. The gearbox takes a bit of time to get used to in comparison to other bikes as it does actually use all the gears - 1st and 2nd are often used around town in normal running, unlike the Versys where it will happily stay in 3rd or 4th at town speeds. Mine has all the electronic gear on it, the BMW bags, screen, crash bars and Barkbuster Storm handguards for the cold weather. Like all nakeds it does get a bit windy out on the highway but the instrument pod and the tank give a reasonable amount of protection in the cold. I've run mine in minus C temps wearing only the usual lined jacket and pants over thermal underwear and have been quite comfortable for several hours. The high beam is a bit disappointing, but on a par with most modern bikes that use the under slung high beam, but a set of LED spots fixes that.

The pre-camhead BMW 1200s go for next to nothing now due to the fears of expensive repairs, but in general they are very reliable (I've owned 5 other BMW airheads and K bikes) and parts aren't actually much different in price to other makes. If you see a decent R or RT - the ex-cop ones are generally bargains - then go for it.

Torque Baby; Torque – Grunty low end and mid-range motor with a sublime suspension package make this bike a joy to ride. Has every feature under the sun, traction control has saved my back when I hit a patch of wet leaves on a windy road. I don't like high revving motors, but wanted a bit more poke than most cruisers can provide and found this to be a good middle ground.  Show details