Menus
- Discovery
- In the saddle
- Contact
- In the city
- On the highway
- On departmental
- Comfort / duo
- Braking
- Night road
- Consumption
- Convenient
- Conclusion
BMW K 1600 GTL Exclusive … Pullman, luxury, extreme … BMW rolls here on the wheels of the GL1800 and other Ultra-Glides to offer a comfortable rolling vessel with a six-cylinder which relegates the traditional bi and four cylinders to the closet . Useful ? Too much? Driving? Test.
Discovery
The GTL 1600 is the comfort version of the K 1600 GT and impresses from the first glance. Long, wide, high, it represents the ultimate debauchery of the Maouss template to take driver and passenger to horizons unimagined until now. Almost 2.5m long, 1m wide, but a lower saddle than one might imagine at just 750mm! So we sink into the center of this two-wheeled bus. And yet behind this big bear hides not only the aforementioned six-cylinder but 160 horsepower, nothing less and an equally impressive torque of 175 Nm (almost 3 times more than an ER6).
Everything here exudes luxury, from the large soft saddle, to the dashboard, to the electric bubble, through the huge side cases and rear trunk, or the arm rests on the axle for the passenger, without a single fault of taste both in terms of finish and assembly. At 22,000 euros, the base price, you clearly get what you pay for, barely more than a 1200 RT in the end. the more informed will note that the guard is integrated as standard on this model. A detail that will avoid changing the entire lower motor in the event of an accidental fall when stationary.
In the saddle
At only 750mm high, the 1.70 rider almost puts his feet flat and that’s a real surprise, when you know that this is not the case on a lighter motorcycle like the 1200 for example. The advantage is all the more appreciated when the passenger has to get on, without unbalancing the whole. We immediately sink into the soft saddle which promises an ideal seat for long trips. The hands are placed naturally on the handlebars with a very upright position and the arms finally little apart and close to the body. The head then overhangs the bubble set at the lowest, but can be completely protected once the bubble is raised to the highest, thanks to a specific button on the left stalk.
We find the traditional BMW stems, including the manipulation of the menus on the left stalk with the impulses in the choices, making it possible in particular to adjust the levels for the heat of the heated grips or the driver and passenger saddles..
The counter is very readable, just like the tachometer or the indications on the central digital screen, both under the sun and at night..
Contact
The six-cylinder snorts in a deep growl. It is pleasant and rewarding. First and after one or two meters of swing if you accelerate slowly, the 348 kilos of the mastodon are forgotten.
In the city
As we have said, the K 1600 GTL is wide and one always wonders if the suitcases will fit. The overall weight, especially once loaded with the passenger and luggage, make the interface delicate at slow speed even if the maneuverability – relative for its size – is at the rendezvous. It immediately gets better as soon as you can exceed 20 km / h and not have to accelerate or brake regularly because stopping to start again regularly requires a little effort which turns out to be physical at the end of a half hour. The city is therefore not his favorite terrain, especially if you have to combine it with small streets at right angles and sloping with the stop sign in the wrong place which makes the exercise tiring..
However, the six-cylinder accepts all speeds, even cruising at 50 km / h on the last report. It is difficult to be more flexible. And in fact, when you go from a national to the small village, there is no need to downshift, the K1600 accepting to slow down gently to resume the same without knocking or effort at the next exit. Only the U-turns in the small narrow streets, without reversing, will make its owner suffer, even with the feet firmly on the ground.
On the highway
The K1600 GTL sets off on the motorway without looking like it … purring at legal speed at only 3,500 rpm in the last gear. And at 150 km / h, it is still only 4,000 rpm, or less than half of its maximum speed. It suffices to open smoothly, or not for that matter, for it to literally fly above 200 km / h (on the German motorway), speed at which with passenger and luggage and with a little wind, she stabilizes willingly.
While it can climb to 230 km / h at just 7,000 rpm, faster and the bubble raised, we can then start to feel a little flutter in the steering, which releases the accelerator or brakes noticeably if the ‘We flicked the cruise control. Even at this speed, the big curves are taken without blinking and without effort with a support barely more sustained on the handlebars. We often adjust the bubble while driving in order to limit the noise to the point of even making it disappear completely and without generating vibrations or infrasound in the helmet. It is then necessary to coordinate with the passenger, because when the driver does not have vibrations, the passenger can have some and it is then enough to lower the bubble only one or two centimeters compared to its maximum high position so that the two "occupants" are perfectly protected from wind and noise. And when night falls and the temperature gets cooler, all you have to do is turn on the heating to warm up not only the hind legs but more generally the whole body. And for having driven for a long time at night in November with an outside temperature sheltered below 10 ° C (and therefore felt lower at high speed), the efficiency of the heating especially on a journey of several hundred kilometers as it was the case can really be considered without arriving frozen.
On departmental
The K1600 GTL naturally returns to departmental roads, all the more so as it is relatively insensitive to poor road conditions. Bad connections and other natural holes happen as on a flying carpet, without feeling them, especially in the Comfort version of the ESA shock absorber adjustment. Once rolling, the average curves are linked naturally without any particular effort. On the other hand, when the curves get closer and the pace picks up, which can really be done with the 160 horsepower not really hidden under the fairing, driving requires a little anticipation in order not to get embarked. We do not forget the 350 kilos, even the 500 kilos with passenger driver and luggage which willingly lead the whole by widening the trajectories. We will then appreciate the sport world for the adjustment of the shock absorber but also Sport for the ride-by-wire. The gimbal is particularly discreet, except when decelerating where it can be heard working in particular at intermediate speeds..
Comfort / duo
The saddle is soft. The suspensions make all the defects of the road disappear. With an upright and natural driving position, the K1600GTL really allows you to chain the miles without thinking. For once and this is rare, it is not the buttocks that will ask you for a break, but rather the landscapes that will call for the photo and the panoramic stop, because the ship will take you very far.
Braking
Double disc brake at the front, single disc at the rear, but above all full braking provide all the necessary power. The feeling is good and it is perfectly dosable at any time.
Night road
The double optic already offers an enchanting look at rest, in particular thanks to this LED light signature in a circle framing the main light. Beyond the high-tech side, the lighting is very effective at night on a small unlit road. And when we pass in full lighthouse (commodo of the lighthouse call to be pushed), the night lights up.
And when stationary, you will appreciate the ground lighting, to know where you are stepping.
Consumption
The K1600GTL consumes barely more than a mid-displacement roadster with an average consumption of 6 liters with a cool alternating departmental pace. Consumption can climb to 6.5 liters on the motorway at an average of 140 km / h. We then go on reserve between 350 and 380 km, with an overall autonomy with the 26 liters of the tank between 420 and 450 km. And with the comfort provided, it is also really possible to make journeys of this distance, without any more breaks. For the anecdote, the tank cap can only be opened with the ignition off (and not only with the motorcycle stationary).
Convenient
The two side cases associated with the horizontal case offer an impressive load capacity, accepting both a full side on the side and two full in the upper part.
Conclusion
The BMW K 1600 GTL takes the notion of ultimate motorcycle comfort one step further, for both rider and passenger. With all the on-board electronics, associated with the driving modes (rain-normal-sport) and the settings of the suspensions and the load capacity, allows you to take you very far for a very long time. Only the weight and overall overweight do not make it ideal for daily commuting in the city, in particular for a driver of small size who will rather prefer a 1200 RT..
Strong points
- motor
- comfort
Weak points
- weight
The technical sheet of the BMW K1600
Test conditions
- Itinerary: small varied roads + highways
- Motorcycle mileage: 1500 km
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