CYCLE WORLD Oct 1998 and Dec 2006 Comparative Data

[ckcarr]

For those interested I put together a chart of the performance measurements from the original October 1998 R1100S road test and the current December 2006 R1200S road test.



You may need your reading glasses!

[Phil Buttolph]

Errrr, List base price on 2007 R1200S is a bit off ($2,000)...but great comparison..why difference 40-60 mph with 1100 faster?

[dohc97]

I can't read!!!!!

[ckcarr]

List price is "As tested." Included Ohlins, ABS. That is what they used and published in the article. You have a copy I assume.

I doubt there will be many units sold at the $14,700 price.

Your other question will forever go unanswered as the test was back in 1998 and anything is possible.

[Dr. Curve]

CK, did the new test say what rear end the R12S had? Curious.

[R111S]

thanks for the nice chart..."Load Capacity Tank Full" do I read "902" for the R12S?...should be about half that, right?

[ckcarr]

I'm not the one making the mistakes. Only reporting what's written.

No information is anywhere in the article regarding rear end ratio.

[JonyRR]

aside from the bore-and-stroke differences, the compression ratio increase really jumps out at me.
All other things being equal, increased compression is a great way to more power, as well as capping the overrev slightly.
Combustion chamber and squish design are a complex interrealation of many variables, but generally speaking, the more comperssion, the better the BMEP (brake mean exerted pressure), which is the measurement of how much 'push' is exerted on the piston per measured quantity of fuel burned.
I WAS concerned about running 12.5:1 on a street engine, but not so much anymore...if it's good from the vaterlandt, it's good enough for my 11S (with the proper state of engine tune).
Yes, I know I'm beating a dead horse here, modifying an 'obsolete' R1100S, but I tend to keep motorcycles for a very long time.
I'm stubborn AND crazy....the perfect combination for a denizen of this board.

[JonyRR]

and this is so totally objective...but I STILL like the looks of the 11S VS the 12S...for me, and only me. In every objective measure of hard performance, the 12S is better...as should be expected.
Now, I'm off to fill my dry nitrous system...

[JonyRR]

oops, make that 'subjective' instead of 'objective'. Must be the patron'.
Tequila...the devil's tears

[sfarson]

Craig... Great work pulling this together. Yeah, there's a question here and there where nums seem to conflict with reports from elsewhere, but it doesn't negate the effort to put all this side-by-side. The R12S really impresses on paper, and it just confirms what I already know from the saddle. Take a bow.

[on2wheels52]

10% weight reduction is progress for me.
Jim

[hawkeyejohn14]

First, thanks for the chart, 2nd there is no such thing as a 98 R1100S, in the U.S. anyway, the chart shows it correctly as a 99, even if most dealers saw them in the fall of 98.

I was surprised by the difference in carrying weight with the 12 being able to carry more than the 11. Everything else makes sense to me including weight differences ABS to ABS models. I have seen 05 BCR's that had the smaller battery and smaller alternator for less weight for actual racing. I was told by my dealer that half of the 300 BCR's came with this set-up in the U.S.

It's sad that cycle world only tested the R1100S once, BMW is constantly making improvements on models whether they make it know or not; duel spark, servo brakes with continual improvement, partially linked brakes (not on BCR's) etc...

[Chris Geuting]

CK you forgot to mention both bikes were yellow...Must be the fastest colour...;-)
Anyways BMW addressed all the critique and dreams CW had 8 years ago.A little more power,a little less weight and a slightly smoother engine.It would be all good in the BMW universe if BMW would have left the rest alone and did not create new things to critizise...A liile more power and less weight for 10 grand + the old bike trade in or more versatility and a liitle less power and more weight?The old R1100S wins the comparo for me...;-)
Chris
PS:The new R1200R with the K1200R-Sport fairing a.k.a. R1200RS could make me change my mind...

[Seventies Man]

In digesting what I've read the past couple of days, If I'd waited to purchase I could have gotten Either a higher performing Boxer twin:the R1200R or the 1200S or a much cheaper 1100S. But have I enjoyed the ride for the last 21 months? YeaHH. Also .9% was key in my decision to buy.
For real touring I felt I had to buy a Honda ST 1100, which probably has a great top speed even with 5th gear.
The thing the 1100S did for a while was keep me from lusting for a Moto Guzzi with good supension and very strong air cooled engine. But now there's a Norge, which is supposed to commemorate a trip to the Arctic Circle in the 1920s.
I think I'll rent a Triumph in New Zealand this winter and then wait for April.

[zx9rmal]

<>

On the contrary.........modifying and tinkering with a (hardly obsolete) bike is what all "real" motorheads do.