I was able to have a test ride on the new BMW R1300GS courtesy of Bahnstormer Alton whilst I was having some work on my R1250RT. This post summaries some first impressions of the new R1300GS.

The appearance of the new R1300GS, particularly the headlight, has received a lot of attention. I think it looks much better in the flesh and I thought the Triple Black was very smart (normally I don’t like black bikes!). The headlight is different but I think as we see more on the roads everyone will get used to it. When the GS asymmetric headlight first appeared the same thing happened, and apparently regulations require BMW to have a symmetric headlight now anyway! The indicator lights integrated into the handlebars work very nicely. The storage box on top of the tank can actually take an iPhone Max and when you lock the steering it stops you opening the storage box as well.

The weather conditions were pretty awful during my 90 minute test ride, cold, heavy rain and a lot of flooding on some of the small Hampshire roads. The trip to Bahnstormer on my R1250RT had not been a lot of fun either and I was not really looking forward to getting even more wet on the R1300GS. However I was very surprised at how good the weather protection was on the new GS. The electric windscreen really helps along with the new ‘winglets’ that protect the rider. I would say it was at least as good as my R1250GSA and not that far behind my R1250RT – very good.

There is a lot of new technology on the R1300GS as you would expect for a completely new model that will form the basis of BMW boxers for the next 10 years or so. A lot of the changes are better than on the outgoing R1250GS. I would highlight the gearbox which is much quieter and the Gear Shift Pro works very nicely now. Engine performance has obviously improved over the R1250GS but conditions limited how much performance could be used during the ride. The engine also has great flexibility – it will pull 6th gear at 30 mph if needed.

The radar controlled cruise control works very nicely and when you have to follow other vehicles reduces fatigue. A small point but very useful is the fact that you can now change gear whilst maintaining the cruise control.

 

The suspension on the R1300GS has been substantially revised (the test bike did not have the automatic ride height feature but it was easy to flat-foot anyway). The handling is now sharper with a more precise feel and the feeling of ‘float’ that can sometimes afflict the R1250GS when the Dynamic ESA chooses a very soft damping has gone – control is much more precise. The only downside of the new suspension is that it is quite firm and on poorly maintained British minor roads it can feel sometimes harsh. I tend to ride my R1250GSA 80% of the time in Dynamic mode and 20% in Road mode when I want more comfort. I think with the new R1300GS I would reverse that to 80% of the time in Road and 20% Dynamic, where the road surface would permit. With the new suspension the bike still feels like a GS but a smaller, easier to control and more precise version.

BMW Motorrad has moved the ignition on/off switch from the central yoke to the right switchgear; in the position that was occupied by the heated grips switch. With the advent of the electric windscreen and radar cruise control there are now more functions to select so the BMW R1300GS has a menu button where you choose which function you want to assign to the toggle switch. It does work and after 90 minutes I was getting used to it but I do think a couple of extra dedicated switches for say the heated grips and the electric windscreen would have been handy. The rear brake/running light has now gone to be replaced by the multi-function indicators found on the post 2021 GS/GSA and S1000 models. These have been improved from the R1250GS/GSA version but if this is not to an owners taste the situation can be improved with products from WeiserTech and Denali.

The R1300GS seems to have more engine noise than the R1200GS perhaps because the exhaust is quieter you notice the engine noise more. With the increased power and ‘whine’ it did feel a bit like being on an XR at times! I expect you would get used to this fairly quickly or you would fit the Akrapovic exhaust option.

The new Vario luggage system is quite advanced with central locking (very nice on my R1250RT), built in lighting and USB sockets for charging. From what I had read in the press I was a bit concerned that the new R1300GS frame might not be as strong as the tubular frame on the R1250GS but in fact it looks very solid. The finish of casings has a sort of sand cast effect which looks as though it will last.

So to summarise my brief test and first impressions of the R1300GS it is definitely a very good motorcycle and in most areas is superior to the R1250GS. If I was in the market for an GS the R1300GS would be absolutely fine. It has a different character to the R1250GS: faster, more nimble, more precise, more compact but with a different ‘feel’. The new R1300 engine is very good and the R1300RT and R1300GSA should be awesome machines when they arrive. I wonder whether those touring two-up on a R1250GS might find the new R1300GS not quite as good and perhaps BMW will make the new R1300GSA more accessible to a wider range of touring riders to compensate? However BMW will probably be getting a lot of riders coming from other marques to the new R1300GS.

Thank you to Bahnstormer Alton for the brief test of the new R1300GS it was certainly an interesting experience.