I've been waiting ages

[Wraithwrider]

I've been waiting a bloody long time to be able to write this post. Even though I've a whole lotta contributions to my name I haven't been able to write as a bona fide Tosser until I finally got the GS (a bit like NLS I suspect).

And I have to accept that, for the likes of Paragon I'm still a mere transparency until I own a real GS

I've only done 430 miles on the 'Wraith II' but that mileage took about 12 hours. Read on to see why I ride so slowly.

I picked up the bike on Friday at about 1000 and it looked absolutely lovely in red. I had it fitted with heated grips, panniers (I have a loathing of topboxes), H&B engine bars (in black) and the BWM tankbag. It came with Tourances which I was pleased about.

So I took it out for 50 miles of 'bedding those rings in!' riding around Callington and Tavistock (for those who know the area) before an oil change and fitting of Reyno's oil cooler guard.

Mike, at this point I have to apologise for not contacting you, forgot and once in Plymouth had no means of getting hold of you.

Now I ordered the bike from Ocean BMW in Plymouth but have since moved to Kendal. So my plan was to ride up to Kendal over 2 days using entirely A roads. The route was to be A38 to Exeter, cross country to Tiverton then A38 from Wellington to Gloucester, across to Ross on Wye using the A40 and then A49 all the way up to Preston where I would pick up the A6 to Kendal. Overnight stop to be in Shrewsbury where I would spend time with my lady and her folks.

I set of from Plymouth in pouring rain at 1000 and it stayed that way until, 7 hours later I arrived in Shrewsbury. My Hein Gericke Master suit stayed dry apart from my gloves/arms. Now does 'one' put 'ones' gloves inside or outside the sleeves on a GS? The water made its way down my arms into the gloves and from there up my arms to my elbows! It rained so hard all day that I don't think I've ever ridden through such a downpour in 34 years of bikin'. My HJC lid had a bit of a preference for allowing water droplets inside the visor!

The bike? Bloody brilliant. It seemed smoother than the test bike I rode in fact it seemed to have no noticeable vibs at all. The screen didn't give me any buffeting at up to 80 mph into a huge headwind so I don't think there's an issue there either.

The screen didn't 'wobble around' like the test bike either. This could be due to the fact that BWM have modded the lower mounting screws - the old screws were included in with my spare keys.

Even after about 6 hours I didn't find the seat uncomfortable so there's no problem for my butt there either.

I was told to check the pannier mount bolts for tightness when I picked up the bike. Sure enough at Shrewsbury I found both bolts very loose. I bought some thread Loctite and adjusted them so that the panniers locked but were not at all loose. Shame to see that there was no spanner to fit the bolts in the toolkit - I hate using adjustable spanners but it seems to have done the job.


On removing my earplugs I did notice a definate 'clunk' from the final drive whilst taking up the drive poodling around a car park. I didn't notice this from new but it was certainly there on my old airhead so I'm assuming 'They all do that Sir'.

So today was the final part of the trip to Kendal. Now parts of the A49 are a cracking biking road, as was evidenced by the number of bikes that I saw. True to form it started pi**ing down an hour and a half before I arrived. The Wraith is now bedded down in quite a filthy state but is liberally dosed with WD40 until Friday when weather permitting I can clean all the grime off and take some photos.

The trip was a great experience. There was a lot of time spent negociating 'city' traffic in this increasingly conjested Island of ours. Flooded roads and Autumn leaves were a major feature as was a a time travel journey through England of the 21st century.

First impressions of the bike exceeded my expectations. A very capable road motorcycle that's oh so rewarding to ride well

The whole run was a great 1st bonding experience with the GS. It was a very fun, if wet 2 days!

 

[reyno]

Hi Peter (or is it RAIN GOD) pleased to hear your happy with it, not had a test ride on the 12 yet, think i would also be hooked, but i think sorting my mortgage has got to take priority.
We will have to sort that date out for meeting up.
Cheers reyno.

 

[Tim Cullis]

Great write-up and a great shame about the weather--it could have been a brilliant drive in better weather.

Hope to be picking mine up (Red/Grey/Black) in a week or so.

Tim

 

[oddball]

For thoose of you looking for a 1200GS or dithering because of the potential wait

BMW in Cardiff have 1200GS's in stock ready to take orders on. They also have a used blue one, looked mint to me 764 miles I think it was £8995.

Also Bath Road Mcycle in Bristol have a red demonstrator up for sale, about 5000 miles I think and about £8500.

Not meant as advertising for either dealership and I have no vested interest other than trying to help fellow bikers.

All the best.

 

[MikeP]

Pete,

Glad to hear you have it at long last and that it sounds as though it's everything that you expected and more.

Sorry I missed you at Ocean. I expect you were too excited to think about making contact in the days running up to Friday. I can't have missed you by much because I was in there a little later getting a diagnosis on Greg Jarretts R80/7 gearbox (knackered).

Get the camera out and lets see it (bike)!

You didn't have to wait for the bike to be a real Tosser!

 

[Mouse]

"The clunk"

This is one of my few complaints with the GS, couldn't they have put a bit of damping in the final drive somehow? It's not very smooth when you're just trickling along with the throttle barely open. Or maybe I'm using it wrong!

 

[jefformston]

New R1200GS available

For thoose of you looking for a 1200GS or dithering because of the potential wait

BMW in Cardiff have 1200GS's in stock ready to take orders on. They also have a used blue one, looked mint to me 764 miles I think it was £8995.

Also Bath Road Mcycle in Bristol have a red demonstrator up for sale, about 5000 miles I think and about £8500.

Not meant as advertising for either dealership and I have no vested interest other than trying to help fellow bikers.

All the best.

for those of you further North:

Mill (BMW) in Sunderland have a new Yellow R1200GS available. Cancelled order apparently.

Seems they are ready to do a deal if you want to negiotate.

 

[Wraithwrider]

Just to add in here that according to Andy at Ocean in Plymouth the waiting time for the 12GS now is the build time.

Just bloody typical having waited months for mine

 

[kiwiAdventure]

I've been waiting 3 months and still have 6 weeks more to go, but I take delivery of my new 2.7CRD Grand Cherokee Laredo on Friday

 

[Tim Cullis]

BMW increased production of the R1200GS during the summer, see press release below

BMW MOTORRAD INCREASES PRODUCTION OF R 1200 GS 17 May 2004

Due to the enormous demand, BMW Motorrad has decided to increase the production of the R 1200 GS. "Incoming orders have exceeded all our expectations and we want to reduce delivery times for our customers as fast as possible. The aim is for customers who order now to receive their motorbike in the summer", says Peter Müller, head of sales and marketing of BMW Motorrad.

Additional shifts have been arranged in the short term with the work force of the Berlin motorcycle plant. All suppliers are also co-operating. "This shows", says Dieter Schliek, plant director in Berlin, "how very flexible our workforce is and how it is dedicated to satisfying our worldwide customers". Quite a few employees were even willing to put off their annual holiday so that the R 1200 GS could also be assembled during the plant holidays.

Over the past years more than € 117 million were invested in the BMW motorcycle plant for renewal and expansion of the production facilities. The production site in Berlin is one of the most modern manufacturing plants for motorcycles in the world and is characterised by great flexibility. This flexibility allows for the very quick adaptation of production to meet current demand and thus react quickly to customer wishes.

These are some extracts from a speech by Dr Herbert Diess, president BMW Motorrad, at Intermot 2004

20 Sep 2004

BMW Motorrad is going through a period of transition, making significant upfront investments on the introduction of new models. The year 2004 marks the beginning of our product offensive: The R 1200 GS has made a very successful entry into the market, with deliveries of more than 12,000 units to customers worldwide in the first six months following the introduction of our new model in March. In Germany alone we delivered 4,828 units to customers during this period, an increase over the same period last year and, as a result, the very successful former model, by no less than 36 per cent!

So it is fair to say that the R 1200 GS is outperforming all our expectations. It is a best seller in all relevant markets and we have already been required to increase production in response to demand. Indeed, this outstanding success of the R 1200 GS confirms the approach we have taken in the orientation and focus of our products.

Our second new model, the K 1200 S high-performance athlete, was presented here in Munich in July. This machine offers...

Looking worldwide sales throughout the entire year, we are confident that we will succeed in repeating the previous year's overall figure. 2004, therefore, is not more than a break in our growth, naturally influenced by the changeover to new models and customers waiting for other new Boxers still in the pipeline.

In our two press launches this year, we have already described our basic strategy, with our future models becoming even more dynamic and sporting, that is with more power and less weight. And this applies to all our new models including the Tourers, the K 1200 S and R 1200 GS showing the path we are taking.

In technological terms we are continuing to increase our leadership: The most advanced engine management with knock control, the highest compression ratio, CAN-bus technology, intelligent lightweight engineering, an optimum mix of materials, as well as innovations and electronics on the suspension and running gear will be introduced step-by-step in our new models. And even where we are already far ahead of the competition in technical terms, for example with Integral ABS, we will not slacken in becoming even better. Application of the brakes on our new models has been optimised to an even higher standard, and this brake system is unparalleled in its effectiveness.

How will we continue from here with our new models?

The first point is that there will be no direct successor to the Cruiser in our next model generation. This is due to technical considerations: The new engine you know from the GS is designed consistently for low weight and therefore - quite intentionally - offers only a small margin for an increase in engine displacement. And since the trend in the cruiser segment has now been pointing far beyond 1400 cc for quite some time, a Cruiser in its former, classic style with a smaller engine would no longer fit into our concept for the future. But this does not mean that we are turning away from the cruising philosophy with BMW motorcycles once and for all. On the contrary, it would be quite conceivable for us to re-interpret this theme quite differently some time or another.

This means that the R 1200 C and CL the way we know them today are now entering their last model year...

Having built a supply of R 1200 C models for 2005, we have already provided for next year's demand and will use the production capacity thus available in order to meet the great demand for other Boxer models more quickly and efficiently...