BMW K1200R WWi -...

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32 | MOT O O OR CY C C C Y Y LE NEWS JUNE 8, 2005 ROAD TEST BMW K1200R www.motorcyclenews.com/bikereviews Will it convert y

Transcript of BMW K1200R WWi -...

32 | MOTMOTMO OR CYOR CYOR C CYCY LE NEWS JUNE 8, 2005

ROAD TESTBMW K1200Rwww.motorcyclenews.com/bikereviews

you?convertitWillWill it convert yo

JUNE 8, 2005 MOTMOTMO OR CYCOR CYCOR C LE NEWS | 33

THERE’S no harsher test of a bike than it being ridden by a cynic. So, with that in mind, MCN invited four

readers to ride the latest offering from BMW, the K1200R – the most powerful naked bike in the world.

The four (below) are self-confessed, hard-charging, sports bike nuts. If a bike doesn’t have downward-angled handlebars and an acutely-aerodynamic fairing they’re not interested. Not even the threat of premature curvature of the spine bothers them – as long as it’s a sports bike, then life is grand.

So when it comes to BMWs, the group as a whole reckon they’re for old

men. Which is why we didn’t tell them what bike they were going to ride and explains why the K12 was covered up when they arrived.

Before the bike was unmasked, all were asked what they thought it might be. When it was unveiled their faceschanged from nervous excitement to forced smiles as they tried to hide their horror. Each one then climbed aboard the BMW for a 60-mile ride of fast A-roads, twisty and undulating B-roads and a smattering of town traffic.

So, does it destroy all preconceptions of BMWs? And is it good enough to convert sports bike riders? Read on to find out...

The new K1200R is designed to appeal to sports bike nuts who’d never consider a BMW. Four MCN readers take the blindfold test... you?

TURN THE PAGE FOR FULL TEST

GREG BAXTER, 28Years held full licence: Six (and it’s clean!)Job: Company accountantPresent bike: ’99 Yamaha R1 withGilles rearsets, YRT race can,HyperPro steering damper, Bridgestone BT-014 tyresPrevious bikes: CBR600RR, R6 x 2, RVF400

SPOKESMAN for the gang of four. Thrives on speed and wheelies.Trackdays are considered as luxury days off work – the reason he’s only managed one so far this year. Gregthought the covered K1200R wasgoing to be a Triumph Bonnie or a cruiser because of its length.

STUART BARBOUR, 39Years held full licence: 18 (threepoints)Job: MusicianPresent bike: 2000 HondaFireBlade with race can and PowerCommander, Harris Performance steering damper, Bridgestone BT-010 tyresPrevious bikes: R1, FireBlade, CBR600F… (23 bikes in total!)

HARD-RIDING Scotsman who hasn’t ridden a shaft-driven bikesince his courier days on a Honda CX500. Hoped the bike would be a GSX-R, but thought it was a naked Aprilia when he saw the covered machine.

STEVE BEANEY, 41Years held full licence: 23 yearsJob: Legal assistantPresent bike: 2000 Honda SP-1 with Harris high level cans, Pirelli Diablo Corsa tyresPrevious bikes: FireBlade, ZZ-R600, RD350, IT250

AT 41, Steve’s the ‘old man’ of theATgroup. Has his SP-1 gear change in reverse pattern (race-style, one up, the rest down) as the original gearshift wore out and he learneda VFR750 gearshift would fit in its place! Reckoned the masked bike might be a 1000cc MV Agusta. “More of a hope really,” as he laterpointed out.

JAMES JACKSON, 28Years held full licence: Five (three points)Job: Town plannerPresent bike: ’03 KawasakiZX-6R with decals removed, smallaftermarket indicators and which needs a steering damper. MichelinPilot Sport tyres fittedPrevious bikes: R6 x 2

AFTER only five years of holding a ERfull licence, James is the baby of the bunch – even though he rides fast, smooth and occasionally crazed like the veterans. Was the only one of the four who correctly guessed our test bike would be the newBMW K1200R.

BY TREVOR FRANKLIN PICTURES BY MARK MANNING

34 | MOTMOTMO OR CYOR CYOR C CYCY LE NEWS JUNE 8, 2005

ROAD TESTBMW K1200R

FIRST IMPRESSIONSBaxter: I thought I’d come a long way just to ride a BMW. They’re old men’s bikes. It doesn’t look bad from here, but it’d look better from back over there…Barbour: When the cover was lifted completely all I could think was ‘aw bollocks’. I was disappointed. Beaney: I was expecting something much more outrageous. But it does look quite good from the front. It’s got 163bhp? That’s going to take some believing.Jackson: The look of it and the BMW image is just not me. No matter what bike BMW produces, I’ll always think it should have panniers stuck on its sides.MCN: It looks big, because it is. Based on the faired 178bhp K1200S, the R is simply a naked and detuned (163bhp) version with sharper steering geometry. This is BMW’s most radical-looking high

performance bike ever – they hope it will attract a new breed of BMW buyer.

ENGINE, DRIVETRAIN, POWERBaxter: The power is very linear low down, but it wakes up at 7000rpm. You lose the sensation of power by being sat upright. The clutch is heavy for town work and the bike sometimes jumps forward when you shut the throttle off.Barbour: Very quiet but very powerful. The power is very usable: it felt like I was in control – on some bikes it’s the opposite. The shaft drive gives such instant drive, you’re not aware of it at all.Beaney: It’s lively enough when you wantit to be and probably good for motorways and touring. The gearing is spot on to make that power usable. There’s a little hesitancy low down, but when it’s on song it really is on it.Jackson: I’m only used to revvy 600s, so the engine feels good to me. I could be a lot lazier with gear changes by using the engine’s drive a lot more. It’s got some go, but it’s also safe because it’s not racing

hard all the time. That shaft drive is different in that there’s no take-up like a chain – that’s a plus point, probably.MCN: BMW’s claimed 163bhp engine output is a crankshaft-measured figure. MCN measured it at the point the rear tyre contacts the ground: on BSD’s dyno this bike made 138.02bhp at 10,000rpm. The slight surges felt on a closed throttle could be a result of a sticking (tight tolerance) throttle assembly that has affected several K1200s and is dealer modified under warranty.

RIDE AND HANDLINGBaxter: It’s very stable – that suspension really soaks up the bumps, even with the electronically-adjustable suspension in ‘sports’ mode. The steering’s light, even though my weight’s right over the front – any movement through the bars at slow speeds causes a pendulum effect with the front wheel, it kind of sways. Strange.Barbour: There’s an unusual feeling atslower speeds, as if the front’s all loose. At higher speeds and in the bends it rolls into corners and is very stable. It feels bouncy in big dips but that’s probably because I’m not used to such plush suspension and so much travel.Beaney: It’s very neutral, very light with good feedback through the bars, almost sublime. Drops into corners very easily with little rider input. I enjoyed it; it’s so easy to ride, but I like something that needs more input for a more intense ride.Jackson: It’s very manoeuvrable, but you’re aware of its size and weight. On my other bikes I had to think a lot more about cornering and put more input into it. On this bike it’s easy. It doesn’t look like it should be so easy to ride but it is.MCN: Hard to believe, but each rider was visibly riding on the BMW than on their own bike. But was this because they didn’t have a care because it wasn’t theirmoney they were riding? No. The K1200R was made to demolish A-roads.

COMFORT AND BRAKESBaxter: It feels high but it’s very comfortable. I’ve never ridden a bike like this before. I didn’t notice any wind blast or buffeting. That little fairing really works. I didn’t like the brakes at all. They have decent stopping power but not much initial bite. I like that slight squeeze, ‘two-fingers-will-do’ effect.Barbour: The seating position is so open, so relaxing and so different – we’re normally stuck in the same sports bike position. There’s a lot of wind at speed and wind noise, but it’s not as bad as I thought it would be. The brakes are instantaneous and it’s more pronounced because there’s no fork dive as such. I had one moment when I braked hard and the bike lurched forward when it hit a bump.Beaney: Anything’s comfortable after riding an SP-1. There’s no vibration to speak of, except for a rumble from the bottom end at 5-6000rpm on a neutral throttle. The windblast is not muchdifferent to a sports bike. The front brakes are unusual in that there’s no grab at first, but you soon get used to that. They’re very powerful at high speeds, though. The ABS is a good safety point.Jackson: The riding position is different to what I’m used to, but it’s comfortable and the brakes are powerful. I don’t like the fact there’s no initial effect when the lever is moved. Sometimes there were juddering sensations like braking when the throttle’s still partially open.MCN: The fly-screen is a slightly taller genuine BMW accessory (£100) and gives valuable extra wind protection. The ABS system (£795 optional extra) means even novice riders can pull up as quickly as a skilled rider on a top sports bike.

OVERALL IMPRESSIONSBaxter: It surprised me because it’s a lot better than I thought it would be. More people should buy bikes like this because it does everything I use bikes for –

commuting, fun, trackdays. But I’m a pure sports bike man – they make you work harder, but give more of adrenalin rush.Plus people like me want to be like Chris Walker, or associate with that image.Barbour: It’s not what I expected. It gives you confidence, probably too much. Whether that’s a good thing or not is open to discussion. All I know is my Blade lets me know what I’m doing because I’m making it do it. This thing just does it.Beaney: I enjoyed riding it. The feedback is sublime and it’s so easy to ride. But I like something that needs a bit more input. BMW owners would like it as it is clinical at what it does.Jackson: It did everything I thought it would – and it did it all so easily, it made it easy and fun to ride. For a heavy bike it’s nimble, fast and safe all at the same time. MCN: BMW are on track to make theirbikes more exciting while retaining thatair of efficiency. With the K1200R there’s also a bucket-load of fun to be had.Exceptional ride quality plus 140bhp plus 160mph equals big smiles.

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VERDICT

BMW K1200RHHHHHCOST (standard trim): £9190COST (ESA/ABS, as tested): £10,510POWER: 138.02bhpTORQUE: 80.34 ftlbWEIGHT: 211kg

Availability: NowColours: Black/yellow, dark grey, silverNew for 2005: New modelInsurance group: 16Info: 0800-777-155

WHEELBASE: 1571mm

FUEL: 19 litres

TECHNICAL SPECEngine: Liquid-cooled 1157cc (79 x 59mm), 16v dohc, four-stroke, in-line four. Fuel injection. Six gearsChassis: Dual beam aluminium frame. Duolever front suspension with no adjustment as standard (£525 ESA option adds rebound damping adj). Paralever rear suspension with manual pre-load and rebound adj as standard (ESA adds compression). 2 x 320mmfront discs with four piston calipers, 265mm rear disc with twin-piston caliper. (ABS £795 option). Tyres: 120/70 x 17 (F); 180/55 x 17 (R).

STRAIGHT LINE PERFORMANCE FIGURESConditions: Dry, slightly overcast, no wind

Top speed Standing 1/4-mile 0-60mph Brake test(70-0mph)

Top gear roll-on (40-120mph)

BMW K1200R 167.02mph 10.85sec @ 134.7mph 3.02sec 47.89 metres 12.25sec

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WHEN asked ‘would you buy one?’ Baxter was adamant he wouldn’t, as the K1200R isn’t a sports bike but more of a sports tourer. Barbour said no,mainly because BMW has an image problem and it would have to make a much more spectacularbike before he considered owning the brand.

Beaney also said no to K12 ownership. Preferring instead bikes that give himgreater gratification bybeing more focused, likesports bikes. Although he did say: “Ask me again in 10 years.”

Jackson praised the K1200R with: “It’s easy toride and ride fast, but doesn’t have that thrillfactor. It’s suited to people who want a bike that cando everything (including fun) but doesn’t specialisein one area.”

MCN reckons the K1200R is a massive leap forward for the marque. As mentioned by the riders, BMW’s biggest problem isimage, but now that wallis being broken down by the new K-series, andpossible MotoGP inclusion (see page 44). We suggest you try the K1200R – you may be surprised.

... AS is the electronic shockadjustment (£525)

HEATED gripsan optional

extra (£195)...

FRONT brakeslack initial bite

NO underseatpipe here,

mister

REAR end modelled on angry ant

BMW display is a mainly

analogue affair