BMW K1200S

[Gpirelli]

The comparisons to the Busa were drawn by the motorcycle magazines (from my very limited research), if BMW truly did that, I would love to see a citation.  The article I read clearly stated that de-throning the Hayabusa was not a design goal...  

I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for, but in the article I read (this month's Cycle World) the BMW is referred to as the "Bavarusa" short for Bavarian Hayabusa. Direct quote:

..."Anxious to commence development on the new bike's Duolever front suspension, but lacking an engine to propel a motorcycle to competitive Open-class sportbike speeds, engineers sawed the front end off a Suzuki GSX1300R and attached a prototype fork.  If that doesn't give a clear indication of the K1200S's intent, I can't imagine what does." [author speaking]

Later in the article the head of BMW R & D was asked to cite which, if any, competitors' bikes were targeted as reference models, he replied, "The Honda CBR1100XX was the focus.  It's passenger-oriented and very usable with some wind protection.  With the Hayabusa, the aerodynamics dictate the look, and the Kawasaki ZX-12R looks like a supersport bike, but it's definitely not a supersport bike!"

 

[Revlis]

Um, you sure get twitchy when someone pokes at BMW bro...  Yeah I said BMW tends to build some ugly assed bikes, but while I expressed my opinion that I doubt the NEW bike would be pretty, or Symmetrical I never said the new one is ugly...  

No worries Rev.  Obviously I do not rely solely on one bike, variety is the spice of life!  The only thing I do find amusing is the constant worry about someone building a faster bike...  I love the Busa for many reasons, but thinking I am the fastest squid in town isn't one of them.  That said, my main point is (and has been) that BMW is not trying to compete with the Busa and build a Hayabusa-sleigher...  if they wanted to do that, they would have put weight-loss as a first priority (like the ZX10R).  The comparisons to the Busa were drawn by the motorcycle magazines (from my very limited research), if BMW truly did that, I would love to see a citation.  The article I read clearly stated that de-throning the Hayabusa was not a design goal...  Triumph was another story...    If someone wants to build a bike that is faster than the Busa, it is pretty easy to do... turbo, large displacement, etc. etc. etc.  The thing is, who does the market appeal to, especially in a speed-restricted environment...   Hell, if you want a crazy fast bike, PLEASE BUY MY TURBO BIKE!!! PLEASE!!!!

[/QUOTE]
Doc, After Reading about the hell your going through with your Busa... It's safe to say I will NEVER turbo a Bike... Ever...

Oh and disregard all the Flaming on the LABS thread, you know I'm playing rough... BTW I have a line on a BAD-ASS 2002 SE with HMF Himounts (Ceramic Coated), PC, HID, 5K miles, well loved, Blacked out Pegs, XM Satelite, Convertibars, etc... Very Sharp $8500...

I agree, regarding BMW... I mean look at the M3, Vette performance and handling... seats four and actually retains it's value... cool... If they wanted to Beat the Busa they could, No Doubt. I do have to say though, I wish the new plastics were a bit more dramatic, I know it's not the teutonic way to do things but darnit, The new bike is a little plain wrapper around all the hi-tech goodies.....

 

[mcoyote]

...If they wanted to Beat the Busa they could, No Doubt.  I do have to say though, I wish the new plastics were a bit more dramatic, I know it's not the teutonic way to do things but darnit, The new bike is a little plain wrapper around all the hi-tech goodies...

David Robb has done good things at BMW Motorrad, and the R1200GS and K1200S are pretty neat. The last fifteen or so years, however, their bikes -- as packages -- have truly sucked.

Underpowered, top heavy, expensive, very maintenance intensive, and above all else -- butt ugly.

Their cars are in a different class. I wouldn't recommend any BMW bike after the last airheads or before these latest two to anyone -- they're just bad bets. You should *hear* how BMW riders, as a group, bitch about their bikes.

Their ABS brakes are lifesavers and their suspensions really do approach how bikes ought to work. If the GS or the S aren't too quirky, they might be the thing for these crappy roads out here.

 

[BulletTrain]

I wouldn't swap my used busa for a brand new one of those. I'd buy a busa for 10k if that bike had a price of 6k... Does absolutely nothin' for me at all...

No offense train, but I was thinking about what you said...   if someone wanted to trade you a bike that is worth double what your's is worth, you wouldn't do that???

I would have traded by n/a Busa in a heart beat for a bike worth $15k...   true, I may have sold the $15k bike and bought a Busa, but it is hard to mess with simple math.

Gettin' technical on me, huh?

I was sayin' that I wouldn't trade my busa for a brand new BMW bike of any kind if I had to ride what I got. Of course I'd trade and sell the BMW if I could. Anyone would be stupid not to do that. My point is that NONE of the BMW bikes do a damned thing for me at all. I guess I'm not "sophisticated" enough to appreciate them...

 

[bacharles]

Looks pretty cool. I had a few of my ZX12 riding buddies raggin' me about the new BMW bike and how it's supposed to kill the Busa. I just simply reply..."If it's going to kill the Busa then what do you guys suppose it will do to the ZX12

? " When you look at their faces it's like one of those common sense questions they use on those IQ tests.

They then think about it for a second and then it's like

After that, then it's like

. Isn't it great to be KING?

 

[Doc_Busa]

To me, it still sounds like the Cycle Rags are making the comparison moreso than BMW. BMW and Triumph both built proto-type bikes with serious HP that could be contenders if they wanted it... again, I just don't think there would be much of a market.

If you want to worry about being the King... I would worry much more about the ZX10... The Busa can beat it now (sort of), but the ZX10 is getting faster and faster... the same can not be said about our beloved Busa which has not changed in 5 years...

 

[Doc_Busa]

Doc, After Reading about the hell your going through with your Busa... It's safe to say I will NEVER turbo a Bike... Ever...

[/QUOTE]
In all honesty, one of the things I like best about the Busa is its extraordinaryly strong motor. There are very few bikes that you could even consider adding a turbo as bolt-on accessory. I would NEVER do it again because of the costs amd headaches, but it is neat that it can be done.

One of the reasons I have shy-ed away from the Busa sites is that I spend most of my limited on-line time at our local sportbike club site, where I am an officer. After hanging with the great group of local riders, I realized that some of them have a stereotype that Hayabusa riders have serious attitude issues. I, and another Busa rider, have tried to break this stereotype and having the national Busa run here in town helped! One of the funniest things I saw, however, was a guy from SH.org who owns a turbo'd Blackbird. TOTAL STEALTH! A Busa owner who was not in the know wanted to race this guy. After a dozen or so roll-on ass-whoopings, the Busa guy (a friend of mine) finally gave up and went home to have his bike checked out... The point is, there are a LOT of great rides out there, I like 'em all... well, almost all...

Salutations!