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• Not super agile, but relaxed
• BMW R 1200 R more manageable with a higher seat
• Small loss of comfort
• Crankshaft from the R 1200 GS Adventure
• Technical data BMW R 1200 R

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The speedometer is analog, the changeable digital field provides information about gear, driving modes and speed, among other things.

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Handlebar end workstation: Fully equipped, the R 1200 R also offers cruise control. The switches are close at hand.

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Sturdy fork with solid clamping. The steering damper behaves inconspicuously in the best sense of the word.

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Brembo calipers, Conti-ABS: the R’s brake is a force. The design of the wheels comes from the S 1000 RR.

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The new R 1200 R not only looks sportier than its predecessor, it is too. The chassis even makes a slightly larger contribution to this than the dynamic boxer engine, which has hardly lost any of its revving even with a heavier flywheel.

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The higher bench favors active physical activity and handling. A narrow sports bench is even higher, and a low bench measuring 760 millimeters is also available.

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BMW R 1200 R: air / water-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke boxer engine, one balancer shaft, two overhead, chain-driven camshafts each …

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BMW R 1200 R: Bridge frame made of steel, load-bearing engine, upside-down fork, Ø 45 mm, single-sided swing arm made of aluminum, suspension strut, directly hinged, double disc brake at the front, Ø 320 mm, four-piston fixed calipers, disc brake at the rear, Ø 270 mm.

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BMW 1200 R: Warranty: two years, colors: gray, blue, white,
Price: 12,800 euros, additional costs: 390 euros.

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BMW R 1200 R..

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Division of tasks: low beam above, high beam below, LED daytime running lights positioned on the side are special equipment.

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Even non-connoisseurs can recognize the Wasserboxer-R by this: single-sided swing arm including cardan is on the left, exhaust on the right.

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Water boxer dismantled and put on the MOTORRAD endurance test touchstone – unlike its sister GS, the machine completed 50,000 kilometers largely without problems. The R 1200 R LC scored with exemplary reliability.

BMW R 1200 R in the driving report

Not super agile, but relaxed

BMW R 1200 R. R like Roadster. In the curve work of Spanish country roads, she was allowed to show in the driving report whether she has what it takes to become a road star.

The engine of the BMW R. 1200 R wakes up with a brief roar, shakes itself briefly, falls into a steady idle idle rhythm. Nothing special, but the short, dark-tinted outcry announces a claim: “I am the new power of the country road, have a 125 hp 1170 boxer engine of the latest design and a completely new chassis. My predecessor was pleasant, comfortable, but almost too subtle. I didn’t want to remain so inconspicuous. “

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BMW R 1200 R in the driving report
Not super agile, but relaxed

Larger differences in the chassis than in the engine

Anyone who found out about the BMW R 1200 R when it first appeared at Intermot will above all want to know how the new chassis with telescopic fork instead of telescopic lever has proven itself. In fact, there is even a bigger difference to the predecessor to be seen and felt here than in terms of the engine. The new R 1200 R has a very torsion-resistant steering section from the wheel axle to the fork and its clamping to the butted aluminum handlebar. It can be steered more precisely, reports in real time what the front tire is doing and shows “normal” driving behavior when braking and turning. Normal means that the front section plunges more deeply when braking than with Telelever, which means that the chassis geometry is shifted into the area that promotes handling, making turning easier.

This offer is gladly accepted when it comes to winding roads. Because the new BMW R 1200 R has also become a long motorcycle, with 125 millimeters of caster and 1515 millimeters of wheelbase. This is clearly noticeable when you carefully swing in, but when things get serious in the winding curve, everything fits. Almost optimal. Not super agile, but relaxed, the R follows the line anticipated by the driver with the greatest accuracy, does not appear wobbly in any lean angle. Nevertheless, it can somehow be folded into the narrowest corner that surprisingly appears behind a ledge.

Chopper / cruiser

BMW R nineT and BMW R 1200 R in the test

Puristic versus perfectionistic

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BMW R 1200 R more manageable with a higher seat

As the enjoyment of the curve increased, however, the tester felt the need to put more weight over the front wheel in certain situations than was easy for him in the standard seating position. For example, in the second phase, rapid changes in lean angle or in long downhill curves. The high bench available as an option, one of a total of four variants, helped. It is 30 millimeters higher than the standard bench (820 instead of 790) and the better choice in terms of driving dynamics because it enables more flexible weight distribution. The BMW R 1200 R even feels a bit more handy.

The test motorcycle was equipped with the semi-active Dynamic ESA, which continuously adjusts the damping depending on the road and road conditions. In combination with the long chassis, the new BMW R 1200 R provides exemplary braking stability. She can be slowed down terribly and remains stoically on track. At this point, I would also like to compliment those who have adapted the Conti-ABS and the Brembo components to the machine.

Small loss of comfort

Despite the long suspension travel, the new BMW R 1200 R does not achieve the suspension comfort of the “old” R. Even the excellently working fork does not iron wavy roads as smoothly as the Telelever. The hindquarters reach short strokes that the fork largely swallows through to the driver, even in moderate road mode. On the other hand, it doesn’t start pumping when it fires out of the curve over long bumps under full power. Overall, compared to the previous model, the chassis of the new R is in the sporty field, with a small loss in comfort, but significant gains in steering precision and feedback.

With that said, it’s time to get back to the engine, which has had to stay in the background since its brief wake-up call from the beginning of this story. The “water boxer” also contributes a lot to the new sportiness of the BMW R 1200 R. Especially in the speed range above 5500 rpm. You don’t necessarily notice that in the lower gears, as it simply clicks steeply linearly towards the limiter. But if you let it pull up from lower engine speeds with a high load, it seems to open an extra throttle valve somewhere above this mark and cracks irresistibly even in road mode. Even more vehement than the air-cooled boxer with the short gear ratio in the R nineT can do.

Naked bike

BMW R 1200 R, Kawasaki Z 800, MV Agusta Brutale 800 RR, KTM 1290 Super Duke R.

Four current naked bikes in horsepower comparison

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Naked bike

BMW R 1200 R in the top test

The currently strongest BMW boxer

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Crankshaft from the R 1200 GS Adventure

On the other hand, nothing is missing in the lower area. He can also pull hard from a narrow asphalt hook in second gear at just above idle speed. Only a slight shake indicates his displeasure. This is thanks to the crankshaft with a larger flywheel, which debuted in the R 1200 GS Adventure and has since been used in all models with the partially water-cooled boxer; the R 1200 GS got it afterwards. Another positive effect of the new shaft is the better running smoothness, whereby the engines of a GS and the R 1200 R ridden recently showed slight differences on this point. The R engine ran more smoothly, mechanically and acoustically. However, it is quite possible that this is not only due to manufacturing tolerances, but also to the new intake and exhaust system of the BMW R 1200 R. The fact that this showed no clutch picking when starting up sharply is probably due to tolerances.

With the standard equipment, engine power and throttle response are served by the electronics in two modes, “Rain” and “Road”. The test motorcycle was fully equipped; So it also had the Pro riding modes, which are combined with traction control. It regulates very unobtrusively. Anyone who does not push forward briskly to the limit will only notice its effect if the propulsion is a little more restrained than expected when the gas is being pulled up in a great incline. Then the electronics were once again more sensible than the driver. He then has the option of simply switching to “Dynamic” or even programming a driving mode himself. But to try all of this would go beyond the scope of the unfortunately set too few driving report kilometers. We check that in a detailed test. Just so much now: The title “Road Star” fits the BMW R 1200 R..

Technical data BMW R 1200 R

38 photos

Pictures: BMW R 1200 R in the driving report

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