Review of 2012 Bmw R 1200 Rt Motorcycle
My, how fourth dimension flies. Our last total test of a BMW R 1200 RT was back in August 2005, when yous could however get money for nothin' and mortgages for free. And an RT hasn't ridden through the pages of Rider since July 2008, when we compared information technology to the Moto Guzzi Norge 1200—correct about the time gas prices went through the roof and our economy came tumbling down.
Where has the RT been? Certainly non letting grass grow under its tires, that's for sure. The R 1200 RT underwent a major update for 2010, including the same engine changes found on all Bavarian boxers: the HP2 Sport-derived radial iv-valve, DOHC cylinder head, larger valves and throttle bodies, new pistons, a higher redline (eight,500 rpm, up from 8,000) and a servo-controlled valve in the 2-into-one exhaust. Equally we've reported in tests of the R 1200 R (October 2011) and R 1200 GS (Baronial 2010), the result is a smoother-revving engine with a broader torque spread and friskier exhaust note. We weren't able to dyno the 2012 RT, but Jett Tuning's dynamometer recorded rear-wheel figures on the R 1200 R of 99.half-dozen horsepower at 7,700 rpm and 76.2 lb-ft of torque at 6,300 rpm.
BMW didn't host a 2010 printing launch for the new RT, nor has information technology since, and RTs have been notably absent-minded from BMW'due south press fleet, with all bikes rolling off the assembly line going straight to dealers. BMW spent the last few years focused on its all-new Southward 1000 RR superbike and K 1600 GT/GTL sport/luxury tourers. Recently I visited BMW'south North American headquarters in Woodcliff Lake, New Bailiwick of jersey, to nowadays Hans Blesse, newly appointed Vice President of BMW Motorrad USA, with Rider's 2012 Motorcycle of the Yr award for the K 1600 GTL. Later on handing over the crystal bays, I sprinkled pixie dust around and walked out with the keys to a brand-new, well-appointed 2012 R 1200 RT in Fluid Grey Metallic!
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With Rider's Eastern Sales Director Joe Salluzzo leading the fashion, nosotros headed north, clutching our manner through blitz-hour traffic every bit New York City emptied out on a Friday afternoon, slowly but surely making our way to Springfield, Massachusetts. Nosotros had planned a couple days of scenic riding through Vermont and Upstate New York on our mode to the Americade rally, in Lake George. Heavy rain and thunderstorms forced us to shorten our route, merely the choppy weather and unseasonably cold temperatures provided the perfect opportunity to exam the RT's adjustable windscreen and optional heated grips and seat. They passed with flying colors, as did the user-friendly, watertight saddlebags and accessory top body, which tin be locked and unlocked with the ignition fundamental.
In addition to the engine upgrades, the 2010 R 1200 RT was the debut platform for BMW's Multi-Controller, a thumbwheel betwixt the left handgrip and switchgear that controls the optional audio system. (On the K 1600 GT/GTL, the Multi-Controller controls a whole lot more than, from ESA II to navigation.) The RT's styling and bike-to-passenger interface were too updated. The side fairing panels were made smaller and sleeker, the front fender more aerodynamic. The windscreen was reshaped for less turbulence and coated to reduce glare, and its mounting points were braced to minimize vibration. And the RT's integrated mirror housings were enlarged for more current of air protection. Inside the cockpit, the instrument panel displays more information and reflects less sunlight, at that place's a new quick aligning knob for the headlight position, and the triple clench and handlebars are new. The list of refinements goes on, from the larger clutch and restriction fluid reservoirs to the enhanced air inlet for the oil cooler to the reshaped engine spoiler.
The optional Electronic Interruption Aligning was upgraded from ESA I to ESA Ii, which adjusts bound charge per unit in addition to damping rates and preload, and we've covered the details of ESA II in previous BMW route tests. The pushbutton convenience of setting break mode (Comfort, Normal, Sport) and load (rider, rider plus luggage, rider plus rider) certainly makes life easier, but the $900 option adds weight and complication. No one around here can recollect the last time we rode an RT without ESA I or 2, so how pause performance differs from a standard RT remains an open question. Our ESA Ii-equipped test cycle, however, was well-equanimous in a broad range of riding weather, aided by the Telelever forepart that separates break and steering, all but eliminating bump steer and fork dive during braking, though at the expense of some front-terminate feedback. The R 1200 RT has a balanced nimbleness shared with other R-bikes that results from years of refinement and the opposed boxer twin's low center of gravity. It'southward no wonder that the fleets of many Alps tour operators and municipal police departments are heavily stocked with the R 1200 RT.
Like a favorite pair of blue jeans, the RT is comfy and unpretentious. Information technology doesn't warp time like the K 1600 GT or conquer the world similar the R 1200 GS. Instead, it exemplifies the archetype definition of "sport tourer," balancing performance and excitement with practicality and reliability. The RT has been in BMW's lineup since 1979, and it has benefited from methodical improvement over its 33-year history. Both rider and passenger bask neutral seating positions with supportive seats and generous legroom. There are large passenger grab handles, and the optional tiptop torso doubles every bit a comfortable dorsum residual for your companion. In an effort to arrange as many body types as possible, the rider portion of the standard seat can be raised from 32.3 to 33.one inches, and a no-toll optional depression seat can be set up at xxx.7 or 31.5 inches. Or you can purchase a one-slice extra low seat (30.ane inches) and a lower suspension kit (29.five inches with actress low seat). The reach to the handlebars and the distance between the grips felt very natural, assuasive me to proceed my back direct and my artillery relaxed. Transitioning from laidback touring mode to apex-strafing attack mode required only minor adjustments: assurance of anxiety on the pegs, windscreen in the everyman position and more lean. Cornering clearance was never a limitation.
With its wide, integrated mirrors and spacious cockpit, the R 1200 RT appears bulky from the saddle, a small price to pay for the generous current of air protection it provides. Depending on whether information technology was raining lightly or apocalyptically, the sunday was shining or it was cold and overcast, I fiddled with the adjustable windscreen constantly, always finding just the right amount of refreshing air current boom or reassuring coverage. Adjustments to the optional heated grips and seat (both with loftier/low/off settings) were washed chop-chop with my right thumb, while my left thumb commanded the cruise control, windscreen, turn signal, audio arrangement, ESA Two, horn and info display. Everything made sense.
The R 1200 RT tested here was equipped with the RT Premium Equipment package, a $2,195 upgrade that includes the chrome exhaust, ESA Two, heated seat and grips, cruise control, onboard computer (fuel consumption, tripmeters, etc.) and accessory socket, plus the $i,295 Audio/Communications Packet that includes the Multi-Controller, audio system with tuner and Sirius XM satellite radio, Bluetooth, also every bit interfaces for iPod and BMW Navigator IV GPS (sold separately). The locking compartment on the right side of the upper fairing includes a cream-padded pocket for an MP3 player, plus 3.5mm and USB ports (BMW adapter cable is an optional extra). Attach the accessory top trunk ($923, in White Aluminum only) to the standard baggage rack, and the as-tested toll ramps upward to $21,763, $4,413 more than the $17,350 base price. Only for serious sport touring, that's coin well spent. In fact, I'd become a couple steps further and pony up for ASC (Anti Spin Control, $400) and the tire force per unit area monitor ($250).
But all that is just icing on the block. What the R 1200 RT possesses, what it has e'er had but now has even more of, is a cocky-assured composure on the road. The counterbalanced 1,170cc boxer lopes along comfortably at low rpm, delivering tractor-like torque for climbing upward tight, neck-straining switchbacks, but it as well revs out strongly, delivering a potent blend of power, sound and experience, adept for high-speed blasts whenever your heart and throttle hand desire. You'd be difficult-pressed to find a more versatile engine, one that is as smoothen without being dull. The RT has good throttle response, information technology clutches and shifts smoothly, and its single-sided Paralever swingarm eliminates shaft jacking and puts power to the ground with minimal driveline lash. And the RT's front-to-rear-linked, triple-disc Brembo brakes with standard ABS are some of the best y'all'll find amidst sport tourers, offer precise modulation and cease-on-a-dime ability.
Prior to my week-long romp through New England, I hadn't spent much fourth dimension on the R 1200 RT, just a few hours here and there. Only it proved to be the ideal two-wheeled companion. We became fast friends while exploring Vermont's scenic Route 100, skirting along the edge of the Green Mount National Wood and wandering downward back roads in search of covered bridges. The RT'south Metzeler Roadtec Z8 tires hugged the road tightly and provided reassuring grip in the rain. Though fuel capacity has been reduced to 6.half-dozen gallons from the previous 7.1, I averaged over 41 mpg (271 miles per tank) on the recommended midgrade. The optional audio system and prowl control worked well, but I plant myself not using either very much, instead enjoying the placidity disconnectedness from the rest of the world and the natural cadence of blue highways.
2012 BMW R 1200 RT
Base Toll: $17,350
Price equally Tested: $21,763 (RT Premium Equipment, Audio/Communications Package, top body)
Warranty: 3 yrs., 36,000 miles
Website: bmwmotorcycles.com
ENGINE
Type: Air/oil-cooled, longitudinal
opposed flat twin
Displacement: 1,170cc
Diameter x Stroke: 101.0 x 73.0mm
Compression Ratio: 12.0:1
Valve Train: DOHC, 4 valves per cyl., radial layout
Valve Adj. Interval: 6,000 miles
Fuel Commitment: Fully sequential EFI, 50mm throttle bodies x 2
Lubrication System: Wet sump, four.2-qt. cap.
Manual: vi-speed, hydraulically actuated dry out clutch
Final Drive: Shaft, two.62:1
ELECTRICAL
Ignition: Electronic (BMS-1000+ due west/ twin spark plugs)
Charging Output: 720 watts max.
Battery: 12V 19AH
Chassis
Frame: Tubular-steel infinite frame westward/ engine as stressed member; Paralever single-sided bandage aluminum swingarm
Wheelbase: 58.v in.
Rake/Trail: 26.2 degrees/4.three in.
Seat Pinnacle: 32.3/33.ane in. (no-toll low seat: 30.7/31.5 in.)
Suspension, Front: BMW Telelever w/ 41mm stanchions & single shock, 4.7-in. travel, w/ ESA-Two (equally tested)
Rear: BMW Paralever due west/ single shock, 5.3-in. travel, due west/ ESA-Two (as tested)
Brakes, Front end: Dual discs w/ 4-piston opposed calipers & semi-Integral ABS
Rear: Single disc w/ two-piston pin-slide caliper & semi-Integral ABS
Wheels, Front: Cast, iii.fifty x 17 in.
Rear: Bandage, v.l 10 17 in.
Tires, Forepart: 120/70-ZR17
Rear: 180/55-ZR17
Claimed Wet Weight: 580 lbs. (no options/accessories)
Load Chapters: 511 lbs. (no options/accessories)
GVWR: one,091 lbs.
Performance
Fuel Capacity: half-dozen.vi gals., last 1.0 gal. alarm lite on
MPG: 89 PON min. (high/avg/depression) 43.1/41.one/38.i
Estimated Range: 271 miles
Indicated RPM at 60 MPH: three,200
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(This True-blue Companion article was published in the September 2012 issue of Rider magazine.)
Source: https://ridermagazine.com/2012/09/07/ridden-rated-2012-bmw-r-1200-rt/
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