BMW K1300GT
Like the rest of the Ks, the GT’s now a 1300. With so much touring know-how at BMW and a great engine, is this our winner?
Watching photographer Oli merrily chuck the fully-loaded BMW from side to side on patchy, wet and unfamiliar French roads, I concentrate on keeping the Hayabusa’s wheels in line – sometimes size really does matter.
Seemingly stuck to the damp tarmac, the hefty German’s filtering ineptitude (the GT sure is wide) that held us up so frustratingly as we fought out of a particularly busy rush-hour Calais is forgotten. On proper roads the BM’s tough to stick with.
The sheer weight of the GT helps no end with its road-holding qualities, but some credit has to go the quirky but effective front Duolever and rear Paralever suspension. It’s a system that five years ago I absolutely detested but that BMW have stuck with on all of their bigger bikes and, as proved by the R1200GS both on road and off, these days it really does work. Getting used to the lack of weight transfer takes a while – the Duolever system is set up to resist brake dive – but once you’ve established faith in the system, so your speeds rise. Thanks to the balance of the bike, it’s surprisingly easy to get carried away, regardless of the size of the thing.
Just like its cars, BMW has a massive checklist when it comes to options for the GT. To list them all here would require at least another two pages but, unlike the older model where a higher spec SE model was made available, the K1300GT comes pretty well loaded as standard, with ABS, heated grips, an electrically adjustable screen, a built-in immobiliser and colour-matched panniers all included in the price.
If you want to go further your wallet really is the only limit; electronic suspension adjustment (ESA II), cruise control, heated seats, an onboard computer, a wireless alarm system and even a tyre pressure monitoring system are all available.
Our test bike had the ESA II system fitted. It allows adjustments to the preload and compression damping to be made on the move at the press of a button. Switching from soft in the wet to firm on fast, dry roads, the difference is both immediately apparent and beneficial. Quick adjustments allow for spur of the moment pillion rides without skinned knuckles and the luxury of tuning the suspension to your mood; firm and controlled when you’re on good roads, comfortable and insulating when you just want to get to the hotel.
While the innovative new regime at BMW seems hell-bent on leading the way with fresh ideas in bike technology, they were perhaps a little slow on the uptake when it came to using a decent across-the-frame, four-cylinder engine. But their current four, first seen in the Hayabusa-baiting K1200S, has now evolved into a dry-sumped, forward-canted peach of a motor, one with a character all its own.
The engine design now includes a stacked transmission too (BMW are very proud of this, even though the Japanese have been doing it for well over a decade), which gives the bike a low centre of gravity. This, together with the well-balanced suspension, helps hide the bike’s weight well, even at low speeds.
The power delivery from the 1293cc motor isn’t so much explosive as infusive, building steadily from a soft but strong bottom end, rising through a torquey yet docile midrange before being truly unleashed from its shackles when the tacho needle hits 7500rpm. Then it takes on a completely different feel, the softness replaced with a rasping, gravelly wail as the motor comes on song, pushing the bike all the way to a top speed just shy of 160mph.
The BMW isn’t nearly as swift as the ballistic Suzuki but, considering the sheer mass the engine has to push through the air via the maintenance-free but power-sapping shaft drive, it’s still pretty impressive, especially since all this takes place with you sat bolt upright, the screen enveloping you in an almost silent pocket of air. Never before has covering huge distances at huge speeds been so comfortable.
As a distance tool that won’t turn its nose up at a set of S-bends or wince at bumpy backroads, and can just about cope with the walking pace frustration of a congested city centre, the BMW is a well-built, not to mention classy, piece of engineering.
But the problem for me is that it’s almost too well engineered. While the GT may be the most relaxing bike on test, it’s not as exciting as the Suzuki or as engaging as the KTM. The SMT delivers a whole catalogue of fun, the Hayabusa has an engine like nothing else on Earth and the VFR is £341 cheaper. Well, the Honda has to have a plus point in there somewhere.
If high-speed, two-up comfort is your number one priority, you won’t be disappointed. But if it’s pure fun you seek, and if you’re the kind of rider who rates excitement over luxury – one who hankers after the kicks only motorcycling in its purest form can deliver – look elsewhere.
Read on for the Honda VFR800
