Well that was interesting.
I had my K1300S serviced at North Oxford today, and they had their R1300RS idle and waiting. It would have been rude not to try it.
TLDR:It's not 9 years and £14k* better than a 2016 Motorsport.
However, it's the closest match to a K1300S that I've ridden yet, in terms of decent power, handling, and especially the ergonomics which were mostly very good for the gangly rider. That was a pleasant surprise.
The ASA** technology doesn't get in the way, but then again a good quickshifter does 90% of the same work.
*allowing for trade-in for £4k.
**automatic transmission with no clutch lever, but a normal gear lever so you can manually kick up/down the gears if you want. I did. It was smooth, perfectly normal, couldn't tell the difference between that and a quickshifter.
Detail:The bike was blinged to the nth degree with Billet this and Sports that. Not much of it improved the experience except for the Akrapovic that was throaty, and the rearsets that were adjustable downwards as far as I could tell - but I bolted so I couldn't adjust them.
Panniers can be fitted, but they aren't expandable. I haven't seen any images of them, but much was made of them being electrified/lit. I just want waterproof shells, please. Like a trusty sports pannier.
Power:
- Fast enough to amuse. Not the lovely smooth grunt of an in-line 4, but you can still get a shift on.
Suspension/handling:
- good, better than the K1300S I reckon but I didn't push it too hard
Ergonomics:
- Seat was a whisker shorter than a K1300S but most people will be OK. It was comfy - much comfier than the F800 I also borrowed, but maybe not as good as a K1300S Sargent. Only a day's ride would prove/disprove that.
- Tank plastics swell out slightly more than a K for long legs, but that would be OK for most normal height people.
- Screen is adjustable with 2 positions, but the higher one made no difference. Tested to 70mph or so.
- Reach to the handlebars was spot on. Another pleasant surprise.
- There are lots of options for seat height, handlebar height, screen height, etc, although how you guess the right combinations without a mule bike in front of you, I'm not sure.
- mirrors not as wide-set as a K1300S, so a poorer half-view with my long arms, and some blurring
Example picture courtesy of Aussie MCN, since I forgot to take a snap:
From
https://www.mcnews.com.au/bmw-r-1300-rs/
