BMW R1150RT

My 3rd bemmer among my 20th Japanese Bike. Beware! After you ride with continental bike you will never want to switch back to Jap bike. Riding on this R1150RT Bike, don't need practical skill to ride it. but if have it, makes it feels as thought as GP rider to enjoy your riding experience .The twin boxer engine combustion made centre of gravity either you are riding on straight road or approaching last minutes bend its just respond as like you draw a line prefect angle to meouvering the bends.The problem on this bike is servo brake assistance suck.If you make small angle turn with brakes it feel like falling with it,Yes, without regular maintain on brake fuild may cause brake failure.That is all.my experience with this bike.

Hail to Bavaria Motor Workshop!

K1100RS

R1100RT

R1150RT

I have just bought an R1150RT in order to do some proper touring in comfort as the saddle on my Sprint is a bit small and narrow for the two of us. I chose the Beemer mainly due to the fact that the seats are enormous and very comfortable and the full fairing with screen gives lots of wind/weather protection. I failed to actaully check the carrying capacity as I assumed that as a purpose built tourer it would be fine. Big mistake. The top box is appalling and the panniers arent much better. I have looked into the global lid extentions but 6 extra litre doesnt sound much. And with the cost of an aftermarket top box and rack I'm wondering if its would be easier to just trade in for a tourer with bigger capacity.

My main gripe apart for the size of the cases is the design. All the locking arrangements are in the inside which takes up much needed space.

My triumph is actaully 3 years older but streets ahead in design. I'll check out the R1200RT and see

I have had my 1150RT for the last 2 years, riding pretty much daily commuting on A roads and motorways for almost 30,000 miles. in that time it's been almost faultlessly reliable, it has started every time (except for the day that I left the parking light on ;) ) I say almost because the oil filler cap has been a right pain in the butt, my mechanic has replaced the whole thing on almost every service and it STILL leaks, I now have a strap around the left cylinder to try to seal it. and the front fog lights have never worked. while we are talking about lights, you always pray that the front light doesn't pop out on the road, it is a nightmare to change with all the pannels on.

servicing - bloody expensive, 6K intervals, 24K mile service at a BMW dealer is well in excess of £600, 3 genuine brake disks is almost £600, 2 pairs of front pads is over £100. silly silly prices.

the riding - the engine is as dull as dishwater, it is slooooow, but the brakes and handling are pretty damn impressively good for such a big, heavy bike. if you can get past the slugish engine you can certianly boogey on down some twisties. the weather protection is superb, I like the adjustable screen and the amount of stuff you can stuff into the panniers & topbox.

overall I like the bike, it has been fun to ride (including a 1000 miles in 21 hours 'iron-butt' ride) but it is just too damn expensive to run doing reasonably high milage for a couple of years, so its probably going to be replaced by a Pan European.

The R1150RT - I love this bike. It's shape is so organic. It is really comfortable and SO satisfying to ride both slowly and fast. It has averaged 52MPG over 62000 miles. The seats - especially the pillion are extremely comfortable. The Riders seat mount needs a 1/4" shim which tilts the nose of the saddle and changes the seat from average to really comfy.

The Servo assisted brakes have let me down and I have since removed the ABS/Servo setup and now run conventional brakes. Now they are superb.

The Indicators use a button on each handlebar to initiate the relevant flasher. It took a while to realise the benefit of this system, but now I feel it is much better than the traditional single switch.

Suspension is amazing. Telelever on the front end reduces 'dive' and 'pitching' under braking. This makes barreling into corners a confidence inspiring activity.

I especially like the bike on loose surfaces because it inspires more confidence than any bike of this size ought to give.

Like any mechanical item, it is not without it's faults, but its plus points far outweigh its failures. The R1150RT has been replaced now and having ridden a few of its replacement models I feel BMW have gone backwards in their styling efforts.

The R1150rt is built for 2 up comfort and riding long distances. Filtering in heavy traffic can be fun because drivers think its the police and move out of the way. Its heavy when moving slow or handling in and out of a garage. Keep the battery well charged if you don't use it evert day or you may have problems starting.

The BMW R1150RT is my second bike after a near thirty year layoff from motorcycling and is used a daily transport in all weathers. 1 year and 16,000 miles later I have come to know and love the big Beemers quirks.

In the year I've had it the BMW has had routine maintenance, plenty of use and little else, never failing to start whatever the weather it's proved to be reliable and predictable in the most atrocious conditions. It's comfortable and easy to ride especially with the optional comfort seat.

Good points; economy, never dropped below 52mpg regardless of how it's been ridden. Engine: tractable with useable power where you need it. Handling; predictable and stable even two up. Reliability; enough said already. Brakes; phenominal! the power assisted ABS just stops the bike without drama whatever the conditions. Tyres; readily availble sizes with lots of choice. Currently the bike is on Continental Road Attacks. Servicing; Cheap and easy. Parts are available for reasonable money from Motorworks at Huddersfield.

Bad points; the exhaust isn't particularly good at resisting corrosion and rear tyre life of 8000 miles isn't outstanding given the 95hp or so the engine generates. The paint finish is a bit poor in places, especially on the front forks. The mudguard could do with being a bit longer to protect the exhausts.

Overall, after 1 years ownership these are the things I wish I had known before I bought it;

The BMW gearbox isn't bad at all despite what I had read about agricultural engineering it's certainly not plagued with the false neutrals that some reviewers have experienced. I was expecting much worse.

Switching to a 10W/60 fully synthetic has quietened the engine down no end. It runs better too! A taller screen is worth the money if you are 6ft or over. 6th gear is overdrive!

Beware the engine at low revs. At 11:1 compression it will stall if you don't give it enough throttle, usually at an embarassing moment. Trailing the rear brake doing U-Turns doesn't work and confuses the ABS. The 33 litre BMW topbox is naff. Buy something bigger.

It's not a bike I would recommend to a returner or new full licence holder. Something more forgiving like a Honda Deauville would be a better choice for a first big bike but after you have gained some experience....

Would I have another - absolutely!

I have owned my BMW R1150RT for two months and i find the bike grows on you. The engine does not scream like the 4cyclinder squid bikes and doesn't barf at you like a Harley. It just does what it was designed to do. Haul your butt and gear until you hit the other coast and then turn around and go back. Quality is very high. I have PIAA driving lamps so a blind man could see me and believe there are a lot of blind drivers out there. Great quality from the paint to the frame and driveline. Engine is bulletproof unless you do absolutely zero maintenace. Rock solid on the interstate. Trucks don't bother this bike when they pass. Good power band from second to fifth. Sixth gear is a very tall overdrive for fuel economy on the long open roads. Great bike in the windy stuff for as big as it is. It could be handfull for smaller riders when they are manuvering at slow speeds. I found this beautiful dark blue 2002 with 8700 miles on it.This guys wife wouldn't ride on it so he traded it in on a Victory Vegas (whew) . I was looking for this bike with this mileage for 3 months and it popped up on powersports networks classifieds. It was located at a yamaha dealer who was not emotionally attached to the brand. A great price on a great bike. If you look long enough there are diamonds in the rough out there. It takes a while to get used to but then you will appreciate the fine bike that it is. I added a Cortech tank bag and a Garmin Gps and I am ready for travel. If you are taller you will need a Aerflow(brand) windshield because the stock shield is too low.

Compared to inline 4 cyl bikes, the 2 piston arrangement makes for a slower power curve. On the highway the bike rides smoothely and it's really in it's element, but local riding, and lane splitting is not it's forte.

The BMW R1150 is not good value for money - I needed to fit a Techlusion unit to sort out the fuelling and modify the seat. BMW should have sorted out these fundemental issues before releasing the bike.

I do not ride my bike for my vanity but rather a economic reason and therefore I am pretty happy with this bike, much happier than my previous bikes as far as comfy level and performance. Low engine/muffler sound and very loud air-horn enable a nice and safe comfortable ride. So far, I can say I found a "working" and a "play" bike that will allow me great saving in gas and enjoying the ride. Only thing I need to do now is to move back to So. Cal. and "really" enjoy my ride to and from work as well as on the weekends.