500 Miles in and have questions.

[RSiconic]

My BMW Boxer history is varied from an R100S in 1977 to an assortment of K100RS’s and an R1150GS. Then an R1200RS and 2 x R1250GS/GSA so I am no stranger to the quirks of BMW.

My new R1300GS has a few things that I would like to ask fellow owners for their feedback on.

1) Gearshift quality. Does it improve after 1st service ? I have tried using GSA/Clutch/No clutch. It’s still crap.

2) The Gear Shift Assist is just not as good as on my previous three LC Boxers.

3) Are the shift interruptions set for different times for different gears as mine feels like they are.

4) I can live with the gear whine.

5) The shift cam on the left cylinder now and then sounds like 3 ball bearings in tin.

6) The suspension is set to Road with -2 on the damping. Yet it still feels as if it has too much compression damping or a really stiff spring. It patters over ripples badly and its choppy.

Not certain that the auto lowering actually works as it should.

7) It leans over to an extreme angle on the side stand

The good points are that it’s very eager, it’s very flickable. It’s good on fuel.

After the first service I am off to Southern France for 9 days/2200 miles so after this trip I will know for sure if it’s as good as my outgoing 2021 R1250GS TE Rallye.

Opinions please on your new R1300GS’s have you found the same or are yours perfect ?

Allan

 

[leadfarmer]

Excuse the dumb question but are you sure you’ve got the ride height set to auto?

To answer your questions, I came from a 1200 with the first iteration of GSAP

On my 1300 I find the box and gearshift smooth as silk compared to my last bike, you can feel the cut off slightly if you’re just bimbling

I used to run the 1200 in road mode normally but find the 1300 a bit soft in road so run it in dynamic mode, which seems to be strangely the opposite to most folks

The engine noise, whine, rattles and tyre noise seem variable, which is odd

I’m out on it tomorrow for the first time since it’s service as the weather has been shite for weeks, I’ll see if it sounds any different

 

[Tyzer]

The new gearbox is marginally better than the 1250 still not great,I had a s1000r whilst mine was in for a service which confirmed it.
Quick shifter is like my 1250 all depends on your speed and rpm as to how smooth it is.
It does lean over a lot further,if I'm on a bit of a camber wifey gives me a gentle shove to help stand it up and I'm no weakling.
I had the suspension set the same as you for the 1st time today in the hopes it made it more comfortable for my wife it seemed to work I find it a little harsh on anything other than smooth roads .
Auto lowering,look on the dash,arrow up above a certain speed arrow down when you drop below a certain speed,you cant actually tell when it's doing it.
One thing that has improved after the 1st service is the engine tone much less tractor like,no ball bearings in a tin noise though !
Had a brill 180 ride today and I feel I'm finally starting to gel with it,wife enjoyed it too.
The Anakee Adventure tyres are shite I might have to change them.

 

[team duvet]

Surely like every other boxer engine before it, gets better with more miles? Wonder who’s got the highest mileage on the 1300 on here? Be interesting to hear their thoughts?

 

[botus]

My BMW Boxer history is varied from an R100S in 1977 to an assortment of K100RS’s and an R1150GS. Then an R1200RS and 2 x R1250GS/GSA so I am no stranger to the quirks of BMW.

My new R1300GS has a few things that I would like to ask fellow owners for their feedback on.

1) Gearshift quality. Does it improve after 1st service ? I have tried using GSA/Clutch/No clutch. It’s still crap.

having read about the gearbox being a bit dodgy, I was very surprised. Easily one of the best they ever fitted - although false neutral between 4 and 5 is nasty

2) The Gear Shift Assist is just not as good as on my previous three LC Boxers.

this was light an day different to any previous BMW effort - almost have it right - down shift blips if you want to smear cogs work very well - least intrusive and a massively less irritating assist system than they have ever fitted before - first time ever shift assist didn't draw blood from my left foot (trying to get it to shift up)

3) Are the shift interruptions set for different times for different gears as mine feels like they are.

don't understand the point - you shift gear, the assist tries to unload the forces to reduce gearbox damage

4) I can live with the gear whine.

idle is very odd - seems to go away with heat - either that or I got used to it, or after I gave it 100 miles of proper use it seemed much smoother / normal (1100 miles)

5) The shift cam on the left cylinder now and then sounds like 3 ball bearings in tin.

see comment above - at least this shift cam is far better hidden - on 1250 its a huge blip in the power curve at switch over - now its imperceptible (with 10 times the go everywhere to boot)

6) The suspension is set to Road with -2 on the damping. Yet it still feels as if it has too much compression damping or a really stiff spring. It patters over ripples badly and its choppy.

stuffed everything in dynamic or dynamic pro and gave it everything it has - quite a good effort - save the stupidly nervous front end and that's geometry not spring or dampers

Not certain that the auto lowering actually works as it should.

didn't know it had it - but every-time went to put the side stand down (as its now in the wrong place) pushed down the centre stand and the bike wobbles (turn out they have a feature to drop rear when putting on centre stand)

7) It leans over to an extreme angle on the side stand

no

The good points are that it’s very eager, it’s very flickable. It’s good on fuel.

stupidly nervous, you ride it like a motocross bike, ignore what's happening throw at a corner violently and nail the throttle to save the mess - when not doing that, lost the front twice going gently round roundabouts in warm, dry, smooth road conditions on hot tyres - geometry is all wrong and needs fixing for a quick facelift

After the first service I am off to Southern France for 9 days/2200 miles so after this trip I will know for sure if it’s as good as my outgoing 2021 R1250GS TE Rallye.

enjoy

Opinions please on your new R1300GS’s have you found the same or are yours perfect ?

Allan

 

[leadfarmer]

Opinions please on your new R1300GS’s have you found the same or are yours perfect ?

Well then, I’m back from a bit of a run in the Ardèche, Only 180 km ish but some of the best roads you’ll find if you like twisties and some faster bends

Some of the roads are actually too twisty really for the 1200 which could be quite tiring but the 1300 is much better, it’s lighter, it’s sharper and it’s much more nimble, you can just flick flack through the bends like a lightweight

The engine rattles at tick over and whines a bit but I don’t mind, as soon as you’re moving it’s smooth.

The power is more than I need, the torque is superb, it pulls from nothing even better than the 1200 did, thankfully the brakes are bedded in now because it gets very fast very easily
Now that I’ve finished running it in I can confirm that it pulls wheelies in dynamic mode, I don’t pull wheelies but it seems the bike does
Wifey is gonna feckin love that

It’s also going to be better for long distances, the 1200 was vibey and thirsty over about 125kmh but the 1300 is far more relaxed at around 130/140 kmh, the wind protection is a lot better too

I know a lot of folks think it’s too sporty now, and I have never considered myself a sporty rider, but I guess I must be the target audience for this iteration of the GS because I absolutely love this bike

I must have got a good one because I really can’t find anything wrong with it for the moment appart from it’s covered in bug splatter, and it’s not self cleaning, but I’m hoping for a software update to fix that

 

[Baked Bean]

Well then, I’m back from a bit of a run in the Ardèche, Only 180 km ish but some of the best roads you’ll find if you like twisties and some faster bends

Some of the roads are actually too twisty really for the 1200 which could be quite tiring but the 1300 is much better, it’s lighter, it’s sharper and it’s much more nimble, you can just flick flack through the bends like a lightweight

The engine rattles at tick over and whines a bit but I don’t mind, as soon as you’re moving it’s smooth.

The power is more than I need, the torque is superb, it pulls from nothing even better than the 1200 did, thankfully the brakes are bedded in now because it gets very fast very easily
Now that I’ve finished running it in I can confirm that it pulls wheelies in dynamic mode, I don’t pull wheelies but it seems the bike does
Wifey is gonna feckin love that

It’s also going to be better for long distances, the 1200 was vibey and thirsty over about 125kmh but the 1300 is far more relaxed at around 130/140 kmh, the wind protection is a lot better too

I know a lot of folks think it’s too sporty now, and I have never considered myself a sporty rider, but I guess I must be the target audience for this iteration of the GS because I absolutely love this bike

I must have got a good one because I really can’t find anything wrong with it for the moment appart from it’s covered in bug splatter, and it’s not self cleaning, but I’m hoping for a software update to fix that

View attachment 325140

I was going to write a report but you saved me the trouble. Thanks.
I've just fitted wunderlich up and back risers which makes it more comfy for me.
It's brilliant.

 

[tspivey]

I’m back from a bit of a run in the Ardèche

Jealous! I’m not jealous, who said anything about being jealous.

 

[The Stimulator]

Well then, I’m back from a bit of a run in the Ardèche, Only 180 km ish but some of the best roads you’ll find if you like twisties and some faster bends

Some of the roads are actually too twisty really for the 1200 which could be quite tiring but the 1300 is much better, it’s lighter, it’s sharper and it’s much more nimble, you can just flick flack through the bends like a lightweight

The engine rattles at tick over and whines a bit but I don’t mind, as soon as you’re moving it’s smooth.

The power is more than I need, the torque is superb, it pulls from nothing even better than the 1200 did, thankfully the brakes are bedded in now because it gets very fast very easily
Now that I’ve finished running it in I can confirm that it pulls wheelies in dynamic mode, I don’t pull wheelies but it seems the bike does
Wifey is gonna feckin love that

It’s also going to be better for long distances, the 1200 was vibey and thirsty over about 125kmh but the 1300 is far more relaxed at around 130/140 kmh, the wind protection is a lot better too

I know a lot of folks think it’s too sporty now, and I have never considered myself a sporty rider, but I guess I must be the target audience for this iteration of the GS because I absolutely love this bike

I must have got a good one because I really can’t find anything wrong with it for the moment appart from it’s covered in bug splatter, and it’s not self cleaning, but I’m hoping for a software update to fix that

View attachment 325140

Now that looks like a nice wee run.

I was out for a run myself this morning around Speyside, and covered a mixture of roads. Coming from my 1250 GSA I’m loving this bike, although as I haven’t had my first service yet, and am trying to stick to 5000rpm max I actually find its willingness to rev quite frustrating. A couple of minor issues for me, which’ll get sorted at the first service, but that support is one thing you do get with BMW. I had forgotten just how much Anakees hate overbanding though…..

Got my SHAD luggage all fitted, and bike nearly sorted for my NordKapp trip next month.

 

[leadfarmer]

I've just fitted wunderlich up and back risers which makes it more comfy for me.

I thought I might need some to begin with, I had some on my 1200 as it made my shoulders ache on long motorway runs
Haven’t done a long run on the 1300 yet so I don’t need them for now, if it gives me trouble I’ll get the Wunderlich ones, they look good

I had forgotten just how much Anakees hate overbanding though…..

Luckily mine came on Metzelers which seem very good for the time being

 

[team duvet]

Positive vibs

TD

 

[bmsouls]

My BMW Boxer history is varied from an R100S in 1977 to an assortment of K100RS’s and an R1150GS. Then an R1200RS and 2 x R1250GS/GSA so I am no stranger to the quirks of BMW.

My new R1300GS has a few things that I would like to ask fellow owners for their feedback on.

1) Gearshift quality. Does it improve after 1st service ? I have tried using GSA/Clutch/No clutch. It’s still crap.

2) The Gear Shift Assist is just not as good as on my previous three LC Boxers.

3) Are the shift interruptions set for different times for different gears as mine feels like they are.

4) I can live with the gear whine.

5) The shift cam on the left cylinder now and then sounds like 3 ball bearings in tin.

6) The suspension is set to Road with -2 on the damping. Yet it still feels as if it has too much compression damping or a really stiff spring. It patters over ripples badly and its choppy.

Not certain that the auto lowering actually works as it should.

7) It leans over to an extreme angle on the side stand

The good points are that it’s very eager, it’s very flickable. It’s good on fuel.

After the first service I am off to Southern France for 9 days/2200 miles so after this trip I will know for sure if it’s as good as my outgoing 2021 R1250GS TE Rallye.

Opinions please on your new R1300GS’s have you found the same or are yours perfect ?

Allan

Hi,done 1700 miles on mine yes the gearbox is shit and yes i thought i had bought a diesel gs doesnt seem to be getting any better with the miles but the bike is also very good to ride handles nice and stops well and goes like stink will see how i get on over the next few months .

 

[roundincircles]

Diesels do have loads of torque....

 

[Frankh]

Hi,done 1700 miles on mine yes the gearbox is shit and yes i thought i had bought a diesel gs doesnt seem to be getting any better with the miles but the bike is also very good to ride handles nice and stops well and goes like stink will see how i get on over the next few months .

I would ask to ride a demo bike as if your gearbox is shit on a 1300 then something is not right, the gearbox on mine is better than any of the 1200 or 1250 I have had and the quick shifter is also better.

 

[TaskMule]

Hi,done 1700 miles on mine yes the gearbox is shit and yes i thought i had bought a diesel gs doesnt seem to be getting any better with the miles but the bike is also very good to ride handles nice and stops well and goes like stink will see how i get on over the next few months .

Just saying the gearbox is shit without explaining why seems to point to operator error. This goes for the OP as well

 

[TheStammeringBiker]

I’ve done nearly 6000 miles on mine now in the last 5 months and having had 2 x 1250GSA’s I personally think the gearbox is notchier and clunkier than the 1250. It clunks into 1st more heavily, upshifting isn’t too bad but downshifting especially in the lower gears is more jerky and clunky too (in my opinion)

 

[roundincircles]

I wonder if the 1300 needs the nuts thrashing of it so that it runs in? Modern synthetic oils prevent wear. Most of my GS's needed 12k to 15k miles before the engine felt smooth and spun up easily. Also, a few clutchless gear changes helped the box bed in.....

 

[roundincircles]

Just saying the gearbox is shit without explaining why seems to point to operator error. This goes for the OP as well

Ooooahhh.......bitchy

 

[RSiconic]

Ok so 1st service now done. So 600 miles covered. Some operator error involved in the shift quality. My short TCC Summer bootees were worn for almost 500 miles. Then I wore my BMW Touring boots and it was a huge improvement. I had Wollaston adjust the gear lever up a smidge and it’s better again.

IMHO it’s still not as slick as last two 1250’s but I will give it more time.

Suspension is still a bit sharp over little bumps.

Let’s see what 2300 miles in France on it are like.

 

[bmsouls]

Just saying the gearbox is shit without explaining why seems to point to operator error. This goes for the OP as well

HI,ive had 14 gs bikes over the years so probably can comment on them more than others the gearbox clunks into first ,second and coming down from 4th to 3rd to 2nd ive rode my pals 1250 and his has a nicer gearbox its been back to the dealers and they say all ok.I have owned over 60 bikes in 46 years of biking so its def not pilot error.