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Calling 1250 owners: Howzit

Beautiful bike. More powerful than my R1200RT and feels smoother. Got Russell Day Long leather saddles (see the photo at the bottom). A HUGE improvement over the stock vinyl saddles. BMW should provide stock leather saddles worthy of its RT.

2019-paired.jpg
 
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1250 gs

I've owned my 1250 GS for about 3 months now and love it. There is a huge difference in engine power and technology over the 2004 1150GS that I sold to get the 1250. The only thing that bothers me just a little is the gear shift assist does not always work very smoothly. I have read KTM's gear shift assist works a lot more smoothly.
 
Shift Assist PRo

A little trick is to always be accelerating (not steady RPM) to upshift. If you have to, roll on the throttle a little and shift just a second after, then steady throttle until ready for next gear. For downshifts, close that throttle completely prior to the d-shifts. After some practice, you will find what works. Some times I forget those tips and find a little bucking bronco for a bit. HA
 
A little trick is to always be accelerating (not steady RPM) to upshift. If you have to, roll on the throttle a little and shift just a second after, then steady throttle until ready for next gear. For downshifts, close that throttle completely prior to the d-shifts. After some practice, you will find what works. Some times I forget those tips and find a little bucking bronco for a bit. HA

Thanks, I will try that the next time I ride.
 
R1250rs

I purchased a R1250RS in blue a couple of weeks ago and I was coming off an R1150R Rockster. For me, it's like a night and day difference. The Rockster is a good bike, but I'm really enjoying the added smoothness, power, and control of the new RS. I've put a few hundred miles on it, commuting to work, in the rain, and plenty of time in the twisties and while I'm still adjusting to it, I am really enjoying it. For the competition, I considered the R1250R and the KTM SD GT. I went with the RS on good review, looks, and being a bit of a BMW fan boy. The fact that the boxer pulls at so wide a rev range is also a great feature for commuting.

I got the BMW head guards, OEM luggage, and Nav VI. Over the winter I'll almost certainly put on an aftermarket exhaust and tail tidy of some kind. Probably get some LED blinkers for the front too. I may put on bar risers, maybe not, and also likely move the GPS mount to the screen.

 
The more I ride the GS’s, the more I ask myself, “Why did I ever buy such and such”. The ride is smooth and the power is a hoot. It would take a tremendous amount of coaxing to get me on another brand. I had no issues with my ‘14, but I am glad I bought the ‘19.
 
I had a 2016 RT, traded up to 1250 RT, smooth ride, smooth shifting, loving this bike, no buyers remorse here.....
 
2014 1200GS vs 2019 1250 GS

Bought my 1250 GS in February. BMW fixed everything they never admitted was wrong with the previous generation. Shifting, power, braking, handling, all better than my 2014. Niggles: Shift Assistant is a waste. I shift w/o the clutch on my 1981 G/S, but who needs that? Buy a DTC Honda if you hate clutches. OIL LEVEL WARNING skull and crossbones comes on the TFT from time to time, but sight glass is full. Go figure. I’ve got 4K on it now and think it’s amazing. In fact I have to be careful on my other bikes trying to rip around the backroads like they were GSs. They’re not. Nothing is. My .02 of course.

GS Joel
 
1250 rt

Bought in May, have 3000 miles.....no issues. I agree they all make odd noises,I have had so many bikes that they do all do that! Once the aer plugs fall out you can hear all kinds of engine noise; I’m use to it after all these years of riding

Jerry
 
2019 R1200 RT accessory advice

I'm on my way in a few days to trade my 2007 RT for a 2109 1250 RT. I've been looking at the basics for this machine which are few but I really liked my Wunderlich crash bars and like the '19 bars they offer except for the price. I had a Machineart moto fender extension for the front and will by another for the '19. I put all the extras on my '07 and will want them for the new machine too. Any advice of where to buy or what you've done with your machine would be appreciated.
 
I agree on the Shift Assist Pro. The harder you accelerate the smoother it shifts. If I am just puttering around I use the clutch. If I am rolling up an acceleration ramp for the interstate I use the shift assist.
 
Very Happy since May 1st!

Traded in my Harley for a new 1250GSA - couldn't be happier. The bike is wonderful and I'm approaching 5,900 miles since May 1st.

The biggest issue I had was the seat and the seat height. It was terrible. Went with Seat Concepts and now I can ride for hours with no issues. I figured at 34 years of age, i shouldn't have the pains I was getting after riding for 20 minutes. Changed the seat and I feel like my old self again. These are honestly the biggest disappointments I've had with the bike - the seat discomfort and the height of the bike.

Minor annoyance was the stock windscreen - regardless of the height, it just blasted wind in my face. Replaced that with a Puig and I'm very happy.

Hill Hold has caused me to drop the bike coming from a start. It held firm. Balance with no momentum only lasts for so long. Hill Hold doesn't seem to be very consistent in response and with disengaging. Also, the different mapping between riding modes also requires different clutch manipulations since power settings have changed - something I'm getting better at manipulating.

I have experienced the hesitation at low RPM with the Shift Assist. I figured higher RPM's are a better power setting for the Shift Assist to really work its magic and I use the clutch when I'm not getting on it.

Regardless, if any of you have pointers on what I can do to improve upon my inputs to the machine, I'd love to hear them. I can't stress enough how minor these grievances are. By no means do I dislike the bike.

All in all, I think I'm a lifelong BMW fan now. From the dealership, the buying process, and obviously the machine, it has been a great experience. I have to park in the back of my gym and other favorite establishments because if this bike is in the open, I can expect an additional 10 minutes of conversation with passers-by about it.

Looking forward to many more miles.

- Austin
 
2019 gs

I moved from a ‘17 1200GS to a ‘19 1250GS and I am extremely pleased. Noticeable change in smoothness across the board as well as acceleration. I am also very pleased with the TFT display and have only one complaint... the same as many others, “love the bike, don’t love the seat”. Understanding everyone’s backside is different it may be more me than the seat but currently working to find the happy place 😀. I have a new Sargent waiting for me at home and intend to swap it out and see if it is the answer. I haven’t owned one of their seats previously but I dealt directly with Dane at Sargent and I will say I was impressed, very patient, informative and great service.
 
4600 +/- miles on mine that was purchased last week in January.

HAPPY, to say the least!

No issues so far. I ride it daily to and from work, rotating it every other week (or so) with my 2000 R1200C. Tomorrow, it siits so the C can get ridden for the week. Bah, humbug.

Put on Ilium Works bar backs and engine/side case guards. Really worth the money.

View attachment 75260

Cheers,
William

Just got a R1250 RT two weeks ago trading my faithful '07 RT. I appreciate your review of the Illium bar backs, which I intend to buy very soon. I just installed my Suburban Machinery foot peg lowering kit a couple days ago and it is great just like the ones I used for 12 yrs. on the old machine. I installed the Machineart Moto fender extension yesterday and that is a nice piece as well. I also ordered Wunderlich crash bars that have beat the bank up considerably but I had those on my old machine too and they are artwork in my eyes. Not much left to do but ride I guess well, work and pay for it!
 
4600 +/- miles on mine that was purchased last week in January.

HAPPY, to say the least!

No issues so far. I ride it daily to and from work, rotating it every other week (or so) with my 2000 R1200C. Tomorrow, it siits so the C can get ridden for the week. Bah, humbug.

Put on Ilium Works bar backs and engine/side case guards. Really worth the money.

View attachment 75260

Cheers,
William

Just got a R1250 RT two weeks ago trading my faithful '07 RT. I appreciate your review of the Illium bar backs, which I intend to buy very soon. I just installed my Suburban Machinery foot peg lowering kit a couple days ago and it is great just like the ones I used for 12 yrs. on the old machine. I installed the Machineart Moto fender extension yesterday and that is a nice piece as well. I also ordered Wunderlich crash bars that have beat the bank up considerably but I had those on my old machine too and they are artwork in my eyes. Not much left to do but ride I guess well, work and pay for it!
 
R1250RT seats

I'm like most on here having issues with the seats on every BMW I've ever owned. Having just bought a R1250RT and paying extra for the brown leather option asking for just the plain black seat knowing I'll just put it in a box in the garage and buy something that I can sit on. I had a Rick Mayer seat on my '07 that that I traded that I could do 700 miles on with not too much trouble. What are the options?
 
What are the options?
I know Sargent makes seats for them; I stopped by their booth at The National. It may be an option for me in the future, but for now, we use the Alaska Leathers sheepskin covers. They suit us for now, but I forget to bring them out and put them on half the time; I only use them for longer trips. I wear mesh overpants and absolutley hate the slick surface on the OEM seat. I seldom have issues with the sheepskin cover, though. Someday.......
 
Bought mine in July on my wife's birthday. What a saint!! It was a big change from my 1994 LT.

At 1400 miles, it started running rough. The dealer couldn't get the code to clear so they had to replace the fuel pump. Runs great now. My other issue is trying to adjust the headlight since it is too low and I can't get to the adjuster screw to raise it. I'll add it to the list when it goes in for the 6,000 mile service.
 
Beautiful bike. More powerful than my R1200RT and feels smoother. Got Russell Day Long leather saddles (see the photo at the bottom). A HUGE improvement over the stock vinyl saddles. BMW should provide stock leather saddles worthy of its RT.

2019-paired.jpg

I had a Rick Mayer seat on my '07 RT and this seat on My '19 1250 RT is terrible. I'll be getting a day long soon enough.
 
Seat update

I moved from a ‘17 1200GS to a ‘19 1250GS and I am extremely pleased. Noticeable change in smoothness across the board as well as acceleration. I am also very pleased with the TFT display and have only one complaint... the same as many others, “love the bike, don’t love the seat”. Understanding everyone’s backside is different it may be more me than the seat but currently working to find the happy place 😀. I have a new Sargent waiting for me at home and intend to swap it out and see if it is the answer. I haven’t owned one of their seats previously but I dealt directly with Dane at Sargent and I will say I was impressed, very patient, informative and great service.

Installed the new Sargent seats and did a ride for about 1:40. So far I can say that it seems as though these seats will be much more comfortable than stock. Yes, they are more firm but also seemingly more support and less issues with hot spots. Will provide an update when I have more opportunity to experience more time in the saddle.
 
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