r850 models help

[john_aero]

ok so looking for some info ont he 850. i am looking getting one to take my wife with me on some road touring, there are 2 bikes really like, r850r and r850rt. the rt has 85k on it and standard r has just 23k on it. but the touring version will allow more comfort.

so stupid question, any issues to watch out for on the 850's and is 85k for a 2000 bike low enough as i feel it should do lot more

 

[motobiker]

If it were me, i would forget the 850 in its RT guise and look for a late 1100 (or early 1150) thats assuming the 1150 was the same as the GS re. Servo.

1 up.. I would bet the 850 is a peach. but 2 up? I believe the extra oomph from the bigger engine would be desirable. (for an RT)

The bikes are identical other than CC size. Though there is some kudos attached to the 850. The 850RT is itself a very VERY rare bike.


brw. im a great fan of the 850. and would have had one myself when I was in the market. but the 850GS is a rare beast and there were none to be had at the time.

 

[john_aero]

yes there are few 850gs here, my reason for 50 over 1100? 2 big ones, 1st means its not hard make it learner legal for my last few months before restriction is up, 2nd price, 850 is half cost of 1100 over here. i can get either a 850rt with 85k on it or 850r with 23k on it by 5 year older,both are £1k

 

[Wrigsby1]

Many people have 850's and love them. They are slightly down on power and torque to the 11's roughly consistent with K75's to K100's. They are pretty linear though the rev range and seem to run a little smoother low down. Easily able to get 50+ per gal.

The R's are good bikes and there are many that have all the gear including touring screen. The RT's are usually DSA Examiner bikes or possibly ex-police or military. The DSA bikes had big panniers and all the extra's including a fog light. Should be white. They will have not been raked and will have a good service history.

When I was a dealer salesman we had a well known GS's junkie who was a big fella and toured with his wife and camping gear all over on his 850GS. He moved up to the 1150 in the end but he liked his 850.

I seem to remember that they were known for not being as hard on clutches but I may be wrong. As already said, same bike as bigger bruv bar the cc's.

Oh yeah, good value for yer cash.

 

[JJH]

I seem to remember that the 850 was lower geared. I have never had one but I have never heard anything bad about them either. Personaly I would perfer the rt but you will weigh up all the pros and cons -price milage condition before you make up your mind. If the 850 is cheaper in the first place you will not loose as much money when it comes to change. Good luck which ever way you jump. JJH

 

[Neil W]

I've ridden a couple of R850R's and they are appreciably smoother than the 1100 and 1150's .
A couple of years back I was talking with 4 Dutch lads waiting for the ferry at Hull and they were all on BMW's , two were 850 RT's and the other two were the 1100 RT's .
All of them agreed that the loss of power was more than made up by the fact that the 850's were not only much smoother and nicer to ride (especially once you got off the motorways) but also more economical.
Mind you they were using them solo.

 

[john_aero]

well the rt would be ideal but it the miles compared between them.bt i assume 8k easy miles handy for the boxer.it is the white model bt being irish now chances are all history is thrown out

 

[JJH]

the one thing people always say is that boxers can handle milage. Witout knowing history ect the higher milage bike could be more genuine. I certantly would not let 85k put me off wheather miles or kms.

 

[motobiker]

One thing I do know.. £1,000 isn't far off breakers value. I personally wouldn't expect much for that money. Wouldn't surprise me at all if you had to pay approaching the same again to get it up to scratch... the fairing on an RT can hide all kinds of nasties.

so.... £1,000 for an RT? eyes wide open on that one.

 

[zoltan]

I had the R850R with the BMW wind shield, good protection on chest and arms from elements. Cracking bike , comfortable, no vibes and less weight than a 850RT .

 

[Trullion]

I've got an 850GS and an 1100RS. Given the choice you have for the same money I'd go for the R. IMHO the RT would be a bit sluggish two-up with the 850 motor. Also, you do have to rev them appreciably harder to maintain decent speed; top gear on the 850GS = 4th gear on the RS (though I don't know whether or not the 850RT runs the same gearing as the GS). Because of the lower gearing they are not as economical as you might think. I get about 52 overall (46 on the 1100RS), but short of dying of boredom I've never managed much more. I suppose the RT would be more aerodynamic, but probably heavier.

 

[john_aero]

well rand lad about the rt and it needs full service and good going over new battery etc. r850r seems bit more realistic and its true as mentioned fairings hide a lot too. well i going try get time this week go see both

 

[JJH]

Whare are they if you want someone to be a second pair of eyes?

 

[john_aero]

one is in cork, other is in louth. well have fair idea looking at bikes butan experienced eye with boxers would be ideal

 

[JJH]

I cant claim to be a gouro but I live in Meath and if you want to meet up too look at the one in Louth give me a pm JJH

 

[john_aero]

cheers jjh, in process of trying to persuade herself to part with cash as money tight.

going try arrange a viewing, least not this week maybe weekend

 

[Wrigsby1]

Good luck, R's tend to be the cheapest in the range and being an 850 won't help either so there is the chance of a bargain. Someone here in Shetland couldn't sell one a couple of years ago and let someonehave it for sub £1000. If I had known i would have snapped their arm off even if it required a bit of service work. If you do your own work a service kit is £50ish + about £25 for oils.

 

[Beak Freak]

Just to say that my 850 (GS) is happy cruising at 100mph all day fully loaded with my "tosseresque" frame on it, so no reason to suggest that it wouldn't be happy cruisning at motorway speeds with two (non tossers) on.

The main reason I went for it was that the purchase price and insurnace were a lot lower for the 850 (new rider at the time) than the 1100 and for the sake of a few HP teh costs didn't stack up at teh time.

Good luck with your search and I hope you get sorted soon.

 

[john_aero]

well i like 850 as cheap as hell but boxer reliability

rt model would be perfect but the high miles and fact he states need bit work makes me think it might be a lmon and more of a money pit

pitty no 850gs around

 

[motobiker]

pitty no 850gs around

when they come up for sale.. which is rare, they tend to sell for a higher price than the same 1100. Stoke motorcycles had two last summer. one was on for £3500 the other for a shade under £4K. both sold rather quickly. (they were both in fantastic condition mind.

In retrospect.. although I do love my 1100, I wish i had been a bit more patient and waited for an 850 to come along... but as I've said before. sometimes the wait can be a long one.