MARKBROOKS43-year-oldLancashire ladMark has ownedhis GS for fivemonths.

TED MORLEY53-year-oldmechanic Tedfrom Stockporthas done 22,000miles in twoyears on his GS.

PAULSHARPLES42-year-old Paulis an engineer and his GS has covered 100,000miles in less than three years!

28 | MOTOR CYCLE NEWS DECEMBER 21, 2005

WHY I HAD TO HAVE A...www.motorcyclenews.com/bikereviews

THE OWNERS

2002–2005BMW R1150GS ADVENTUREFancy a trip to Siberia tomorrow? How about a visit to Tesco? The 1150GS is

the ultimate do anything, go anywhere machineWHY I HAD TO HAVE ITMark: “I had cruiser-style bikes for a while,just to ride on sunny days really. Then amate of mine bought the new BMWR1200 GS and let me have a go on that, andI was well impressed. Because I rode MXand did sand racing when I was young, Iwent for the 1150 Adventure, as it is moresuitable for off-roading and I have been upsome trails in Derbyshire on it – a bit hair-raising occasionally, but I made it OK.”Ted: “I had loads of bikes; cruisers, sports bikes, tourers and a fair few BMWs. I likedthe look of the Adventure, had a demo rideand loved it straight away. It’s a bike whichyou can tour on, commute on and not bebothered about cleaning too often. It just seems to suit me and my riding style. Agreat two wheeled toy that is really user-friendly as well.”Paul: “I had a few Japanese bikes, but this is my first BMW. I decided I was going to dosome huge commuting distances betweenManchester and London by bike, rather than car. The bike had to be shaft-drive,comfortable of course and reliable. I alsoliked the looks of the Adventure.”

PERFORMANCEMark: “I never read any road tests on thebike. I just had a three-hour demo ride onthe Adventure and thought it was plenty fast enough for the type of riding that I wanted to do. When you ride the GSyou almost feel like the bike is wrappedaround you somehow, it feels so sturdy,steers so accurately and, because of its unconventional front suspension set-up, itdoesn’t dive under braking.”Ted: “Before I bought it, I had peopletelling me that the brakes wouldn’t stopsuch a heavy machine, but I’m pleased tosay they were all totally wrong. It goes andstops brilliantly and, believe it or not, you can surprise many an R1 rider on the GSAdventure.”Paul: “I was amazed at how well the GSAdventure cornered when I first rode it;you really can lean the bike right over.And, although it only has something like80bhp, you can use every one of thosehorses. It’s really user-friendy, too – not likea big sports bike, where you’re constantly wondering if the tyre is going to break away coming out of a corner.”

RIDINGMark: “I’ve only done 4000 miles on mine,but to put that in perspective I used to doabout 3000 miles per year on my cruisers.The wife keeps asking me where I’m goingall the time, but I just find excuses to ride it anywhere. It’s great fun, as long as you don’t try riding through sand that’s too deep. Isuppose doing the Weston beach race onthe GS might be pushing it a bit...”Ted: “It’s a great handling machine– no question. I recall racing this guy in aCitroen in the Ardeche region of France,racing down these sweeping corners, thenI thought ‘something’s not right here.’ Theodd feeling in the corners was due to thepanniers grounding out on the tarmac! I’vealso been to Spain, France and Germany – by accident – took a wrong turn at someroadworks.”Paul: “I find the GS Adventure is so wellbalanced that I can ride it almost to astandstill at traffic lights and filter throughtraffic easily on it. Tyre-wise I like theConti TK380s. I also like the Metzeler Tourances as I can get 12,000 miles from arear!”

OWNINGMark: “The GS has changed my life, it’s sofantastic to ride. I run my own business sotime is always short. The great thing about the GS is that you can just get your bikingkit on and go – anywhere, anytime. Theweather simply doesn’t matter to me any more – I just keep riding. It has inspiredme to plan a trip next summer to the war beaches in France.”Ted: “I’ve added a long list of extras toit; fog lights, mainstand protector, bigger screen to cut down on buffeting, plus aRemus end can that makes the bike soundlike an old V1 rocket.”Paul: “I’ve fitted Touratech panniers,and some mudflaps. I also have the bikedealer serviced every six to eight weeks.Apart from commuting I’ve also beenover the Alps to Italy and back throughSwitzerland – the best 16 days’ biking I’vehad. Also done the Elephant Rally – that was madness. I found myself pitching a tent in -32°. A small blizzard on the Saturday night woke me up when the tent collapsed...otherwise I slept pretty well, all things considered.”

DECEMBER 21, 2005 MOTOR CYCLE NEWS | 29

PARKER’SPRICE GUIDENOW INCLUDES BIKES!

MCN SAYS

YEAR CHANGES2002: Model introduced.Colours available: black orsilver/grey. Unchanged since.

TECHNICAL SPECEngine: Air/liquid cooled 1130cc8v four stroke flat twin.Top speed: 125mphInsurance group: 13 (of 17)

BMW R1150GSADVENTURE★★★★★COST NEW: £8810

USED PRICES:2002-2003 £6500-79002004-2005 £7750-9400

Mark: “The one tip I’d have is that you shouldn’t be afraid to take it off-road. It can handle more rough stuffthan you might reasonably think.

Ted: “ Change the stock headlight bulbs for some brighter ones. Thestandard lights aren’t particularly idealfor plodding on through the night on alengthy tour.”

Paul: “I really rate the Touratechpanniers – if for nothing else than thesheer quality of them, although I knowthere are other companies doing allkinds of luggage kit.”

● MCN would like to thank WilliamsBMW of Manchester for their helpwith this feature

THE BMW GS series kicked off 25 years agowith the R80GS flat twin.The later R100GS rapidly became the benchmark ‘goanywhere’ motorcycle.

The 2002 R1150GSAdventure was a modelwhich re-connected many BMW owners with that original 800cc bike, in that it was more off-road focusedthan the stock 1150GS,or its mid-1990s 1100ccpredecessor.

Featuring a taller screen,a reshaped saddle, lower top gear, longer travelsuspension, accessory socket, handguards andhandlebar crossbraceprotector, plus a bigger front mudguard and bashplate,the Adventure is a bikeaimed at anyone suffering atouch of Wanderlust.

There’s a bewilderingarray of factory options; heated grips, luggage kit,front lights grille, fog lights and engine bars being

among the most popular.You can even obtain acoding plug, so the motor can run on low octane 91RON grade fuel in remoteparts of the world.

Interestingly, somenewer second-hand models will cost you more than astraight-from-the-crate2005 bike, as owners tend togo mad on accessories.

EXPERT OPINIONSteve Scriminger, Moto-Bins BMW specialists:“The 1150GS is pretty much bullet-proof. Wemainly sell service items and accessories. The most popular accessories areluggage kits and engineprotectors. If the GS has afault it’s the occasional fuelinjection ‘surging’.

“The most popular aftermarket exhaust is fromRemus, which is often runwith a K&N air filter. Get the bike set up on a dyno, as it runs lean as standard.”

MCNquickguide FUEL: 38mpg, 30 litres, 215 milesSEAT HEIGHT:

840mmRAKE: 27.1°TRAIL: 121mm

WHEELBASE: 1530mm

OWNERS’ TOP TIPS

THE BEST BITS

THERE’S absolutely no mistakingthe Patrick Moore-styleheadlights; owners wouldn’tswap that 30-litre “see you inKillarney for tea” fuel tank foranything; and there’s room fortwo proper-sized people on theGS’s vast saddle

PROS...✔ Taking the scenic route toanywhere you fancy✔ All day riding comfort

CONS...✘ Stop-start riding for short-legged bikers✘ Being lifted out of a bogwhen green laning

‘The wife keeps asking mewhere I’m going all thetime, but I just find excuses to ride it anywhere’

POWER: 85bhpWEIGHT: 232kgTORQUE: 72ftlb

LIGHT off-roading on this big beast? No problem

THE Adventure will eat up motorway miles, too

YOU want utilitarian transport? Look no further

THE big Beemer could well bethe only bike you’ll ever need