Bmw Charges Ahead!
BMW CHARGES AHEAD!
ROUNDUP
WHEN AT THE INTERmot Show in late 2004 BMW Moto-
rrad President Dr. Herbert Diess said of the 167-horsepower K1200R naked bike, “This is only the beginning of our product initiative,” the esteemed Doktor wasn’t kidding.
Spotted testing in southern Spain near the Cartagena race circuit were two new models: a K1200GT sporttourer based on the all-new
K1200S; and a middleweight sportbike that is, get this, a parallel-Twin!
Sources say the bagequipped K-bike is being developed as a law-enforcement special, but seeing as how the previous “Flying Brick” K1200GT started life
as a police model, a civilian version is sure to follow.
The K1200GT sport-tourer would be in performance terms a direct competitor to Yamaha’s FJR1300, except it would have more power! The bike shown in the spy photos has color-
matched hard bags with a shape that evokes those of the K1200LT full-rig tourer. The windscreen looks to be adjustable, as the fairing notch above the headlight suggests, and the riding position appears comfortably upright. Expect heated grips, adjustable seat height and cruise control; hope for GPS!
And the so-called “TBX”? Looking much like an enlarged and more aggressive F650CS, the sport-Twin features a singlesided swingarm and belt final drive like the CS, but has a twin-spar aluminum frame, dual-disc brakes (F650s have single discs) and a large radiator suggesting that the bike is heavier and has a larger, more powerful engine than BMW’s citified commuter Single. So what kind of Twin could it be? Obviously, it’s not a Boxer. With the all-new (and expanding!) K1200 range featuring an across-the-ffame Four-definitely a departure
for BMW-a 600 to 800cc parallel-Twin seems likely. Reports from within BMW say this is accurate, and that the bike is at the moment “half’ of a K1200’s 1156cc mill, which could mean 80 horsepower. Fairings were disguised with false outer panels, and the bikes were being tested alongside a Suzuki SV650, lending further credence to the smaller end of the displacement range. This Twin will eventually replace the F650 Single line, so try to picture a “Super-Dakar” lightweight, 80-hp adventure-tourer
along the lines of the F650GS! Tasty...
On the heels of all this came a release from new Aprilia-owner Piaggio stating that the Italian company and BMW had signed a “co-operation contract.” The release noted that the F650 range (manufactured by Aprilia from ’93-99, after which BMW brought it in-house) is not affected by this agreement, meaning it will focus on new models-and it’s highly unlikely BMW would ever outsource, for example, Boxer-powered bikes. The conventional telescopic front
end on the TBX suggests BMW is building the new Twin with a low price in mind, so it makes sense to “outsource” to Aprilia, which has vast experience from its scooters with building to a budget.
As for the “product initiative” offered by Dr. Diess, he also added that future models will become “more dynamic and sporting, that is with more power and less weight.”
No doubt the Boxer Twin engine will continue, but the face of BMW is changing in exciting new ways.
Mark Hoyer
