I'm new to BMW motorcycles, bought a K1600 Grand America last May and love it. I've been riding Japanese motorcycles for more years than I care to remember. Brought my Grand America up to my Dealer last Friday to install new tires and to do a software update. While there they offered for me to demo any one of their bikes. I chose the new 1250RT model after reading about all of the improvements in magazines and advertisements. Never riding a Boxer bike, I thought I'd see what it was like.
One thing that I really like about BMWs is that most of their bikes have very similar control arrangements so moving from one bike to the other is not a new learning curve all over again looking for controls. I immediately noticed how light the RT was as compared to my K1600. The RT is almost 200 pounds lighter than my K bike, and it handles like a dream in the turns. Very neutral handling, felt light all the time. I owned several Kawasaki Concours 1400's which handle great but always felt heavy, and required a lot of effort to muscle the bike around and in the turns. The Boxer engine sounded funny to me because I always rode In-Line 4 cylinder bikes, and now the K16 6-cylinder. At idle the boxer had a noticeable vibration or light shake, which I assume is typical for these types of bikes. It shifted very smooth, but the clutch engaged far too soon for me. I'm sure a simple adjustment would fix that. The bike had lots of pep, and the seating position for me was much better and more natural than expected. At 6'3", I thought that my legs would hit the boxer engine sides, but nope, there was plenty of leg room. I found the suspension quite stiff though. It appears that the suspension isn't adjustable. The Dealer said that the ESA automatically senses the load and adjusts the suspension accordingly. I found it far too stiff to be enjoyable on a long ride. The windshield and fairing provided unexpected excellent wind protection their size. I guess the only thing I didn't like about it other than the stiff suspension was the throttle. My K1600 has the throttle-by-wire set up as well, and at times it can be more sensitive than I would like, and sometimes a little lurchy during down hill deceleration, although the "drivability" software update seems to have improved that. I found that the RT throttle was a little hard to control smoothly especially in 2nd gear. But I guess like any new bike, once you ride it for a while you get acustomed to the way the bike performs. Overall, I'd say that BMW did a nice job designing the 1250RT, and if I was looking for this type of bike I wouldn't hesitate to buy one. Not to mention is looks real nice. I think I'll demo a K1600 GT next to see how it compares to my old Concours 1400.
One thing that I really like about BMWs is that most of their bikes have very similar control arrangements so moving from one bike to the other is not a new learning curve all over again looking for controls. I immediately noticed how light the RT was as compared to my K1600. The RT is almost 200 pounds lighter than my K bike, and it handles like a dream in the turns. Very neutral handling, felt light all the time. I owned several Kawasaki Concours 1400's which handle great but always felt heavy, and required a lot of effort to muscle the bike around and in the turns. The Boxer engine sounded funny to me because I always rode In-Line 4 cylinder bikes, and now the K16 6-cylinder. At idle the boxer had a noticeable vibration or light shake, which I assume is typical for these types of bikes. It shifted very smooth, but the clutch engaged far too soon for me. I'm sure a simple adjustment would fix that. The bike had lots of pep, and the seating position for me was much better and more natural than expected. At 6'3", I thought that my legs would hit the boxer engine sides, but nope, there was plenty of leg room. I found the suspension quite stiff though. It appears that the suspension isn't adjustable. The Dealer said that the ESA automatically senses the load and adjusts the suspension accordingly. I found it far too stiff to be enjoyable on a long ride. The windshield and fairing provided unexpected excellent wind protection their size. I guess the only thing I didn't like about it other than the stiff suspension was the throttle. My K1600 has the throttle-by-wire set up as well, and at times it can be more sensitive than I would like, and sometimes a little lurchy during down hill deceleration, although the "drivability" software update seems to have improved that. I found that the RT throttle was a little hard to control smoothly especially in 2nd gear. But I guess like any new bike, once you ride it for a while you get acustomed to the way the bike performs. Overall, I'd say that BMW did a nice job designing the 1250RT, and if I was looking for this type of bike I wouldn't hesitate to buy one. Not to mention is looks real nice. I think I'll demo a K1600 GT next to see how it compares to my old Concours 1400.
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