BMW’s 1200cc cruiser/roadster sort of slipped under the radar, didn’t it? Possibly so much so that you don’t even know what I’m talking about.
Late last year, while the moto press was busy wetting its pants over the forthcoming R 1300 GS, the folks at Bayerische Motoren Werke quietly mentioned that they planned to change the name of the R nineT.
That made sense, the R nineT had originally been rolled out as a celebration of BMW Motorrad’s 90th birthday ─ in 2014. One suspects the company didn’t expect the model to be as popular as it turned out to be. A decade later, the name doesn’t make sense; BMW is no longer celebrating its 90th birthday and previous R90 models ─ ie, the R90/6 and R90/S ─ had been powered by 900cc engines (well, 898 cc, to be precise), as opposed to the 1170cc twin driving the R nineT.
So, BMW decided to put the bike’s name in line with the 1800cc R 18 cruiser, calling it the R 12. Except, they didn’t really do that. In what I assume was an attempt to avoid confusing R nineT fans, the bike formerly known as an R nineT became the “R 12 nineT.”
Obviously.
Meanwhile, at exactly the same time ─ as in, it was thrown into the same press release as the news about the renaming ─ BMW revealed that there would be a new bike, dubbed, simply, the R 12.
Relying largely on the chassis of the R 12 nineT, but with different wheels, different handlebars, and a different rear subframe, the new R 12 offers the same fantastic engine as the R 12 nineT, but with a more relaxed, cruiser feel. It’s an idea that definitely suits the character of the engine. When I rode the R nineT six years ago, I thoroughly enjoyed pushing the bike’s boxer twin, but also took pleasure in slower sections of my ride; I got a real sense that it would be a great tool for more relaxed adventures.
Jump forward to when I first saw pictures of the R 12: I was smitten. But I may be in the minority. Reviews of the bike are pretty hard to find. I’m not entirely sure BMW did a press launch for the bike. Most of the reviews come from UK-based YouTubers ─ most of whom were allowed to tag along to a dealer launch (where representatives from dealerships are brought together to get a chance to ride the bike and ask questions). A few others appear to have gained access to the bike thanks to relationships with individual dealerships.
Side note: I respect the hustle of YouTube reviewers. Without them we wouldn’t really have reviews of bikes like this, or the Benelli TRK 702 X, because traditional media outlets don’t tend to cover bikes when there is no press launch or press fleet. That said, the old-school journalist in me really dislikes the fact that very few YouTubers use their real or full names. Old Man Chris says: it hurts your authenticity when you aren’t willing to tell people who you are.
Additional side note for BMW: Why even go to the trouble of making a bike when you’re going to bury it in your own media releases and never promote it? I can’t help but question how much faith BMW has in the model; perhaps we shouldn’t expect to see it stay in the line-up for long.
Anyhoo, your reviewers this time around are Phil West of AutoTrader, Tim Rodie of Tim Rodie Rides Motorbikes, Kate of Usernamekate, Andy of The Missenden Flyer, and Tegan, Lukas, and Ross of Biker Torque.
SOME NUMBERS
Starting price: £11,900
Engine: 1170cc air/oil-cooled boxer twin
Power: 70 kW @ 6500 rpm
Torque: 110 Nm @ 6000 rpm
Seat height: 754 mm
Fuel capacity: 14 liters
Weight: 227 kg ─ fully fuelled, ready to ride
FIRST IMPRESSIONS
Don’t ask me which one is which when it comes to the three people speaking in Biker Torque’s video (Label your presenters, guys!), but the older fella in the middle ─ Ross? ─ wasn’t immediately impressed when he saw press shots of the bike. I disagree. To me, the bike has a great ‘Sportster meets Moto Guzzi‘ aesthetic that is individual enough to not be derivative of either.
The R nineT platform has always had a chop-and-change aspect to it, so the R 12 can be presented in a number of ways. I personally prefer the look that eschews passenger accommodation ─ as selfish and impractical as that may be.
All reviewers commented on the overall quality of the bike’s fit and finish. Though, the alloy wheels on the standard R 12 get a little bit of an eye roll.
“I think the weakest part of this bike, in terms of its looks, is the mag wheels,” says Tim Rodie. “I think they look a little bit like they’ve been designed to make you buy the more expensive spoked wheels.”
Otherwise it’s a praiseworthy machine ─ the sort of thing you really want to be seen on. The bike’s steel tank ─ reminiscent of the so-called ‘Toaster Tanks’ of the 1970s BMW /5 models ─ drew particular attention from a number of reviewers.
Ergonomics are more laid back than with the R 12 nineT. Feet are about as far forward as they can be, but obviously you don’t get the stretched out riding position of a V-twin because the boxer engine’s massive cylinders are in the way. The handlebars, meanwhile, place hands a little higher and allow the rider to sit more upright. On the whole, it seems the R 12 puts riders into a classic, comfortable, sitting-up position.
“It’s a very, very classic naked dynamic ─ straight up and down, super relaxed,” explains Lukas (I think). “The handlebars are right where you expect them to be. You could sit on that bike and happily cruise along for one, two, three hours.”
Seat height is relatively low: 754 mm, or 29.6 inches. That’s about an inch and a half lower than the seat height of a Triumph Bonneville T120. Your butt won’t be as close to the ground as it would when riding, say, an Indian Scout, but because of the way the engine cylinders prevent stretching out I can’t help but wonder if the riding position would be a little cramped for someone my height (6 feet 1 inch) or taller. In fairness, none of the reviewers flagged this as an issue, though.
The bike is shaft-driven, of course, so you don’t have to worry about chain maintenance.
ENGINE, PERFORMANCE, AND HANDLING
Because BMW is almost belligerently ignorant about what makes a cruiser appealing (I direct the jury’s attention to the R 1200 C, and, to a lesser extent, the K 1600 B.) it has chosen to tweak the R 12’s performance to be slightly less than that of the R 12 nineT. So, whereas the 1170cc air/oil-cooled boxer twin that drives them both delivers 80 kW (109 hp) at 7,000 rpm and 115 Nm at 6,500 rpm in the R 12 nineT, you get just 70 kW (95 hp) at 6,500 rpm and 110 Nm at 6,000 rpm with the R 12.
That’s a lot of numbers in sentence form, so the takeaway is that the R 12 has 10 kW less power and 5 Nm less torque. These are small sacrifices but why make them? But, peak power and torque arrive lower in the rev range. Which, admittedly, is where people of a cruiser mindset tend to dwell. Riders of cruisers don’t tend to want to rev the nuts off an engine.
Also, as Kate points out, “it means that it’s A2 compatible; it can be made A2 compliant, unlike the R 12 nineT.”
I find it hard to believe that Europe ─ in the grips of a cost-of-living crisis ─ is brimming with people under the age of 24 who have roughly £12,000 to spend on a motorcycle. But, ultimately, it doesn’t really matter; it’s still a good bike.
“There’s bags of lively acceleration, the boxer twin picking up from virtually nothing and blessed with a characterful and fruity sounding vibe,” explains Phil West.
Andy agreed, observing: “I wasn’t winding full-on (and I still) felt the front wheel wanting to lift.”
The engine traces its history back to 2008, so, in terms of reliability, one would assume all the kinks have been worked out. In this detuned (and therefore less stressed) form, an owner would have even less to worry about, I’d think. Servicing intervals are every 6,000 miles; it’s up to you whether that’s too short. I guess it all depends on who’s doing the servicing: you or someone you’re paying.
A few reviewers raised eyebrows about the suspension. For some it was too firm and too easy to max out. For others, it was too soft. It’s worth noting that the bike has adjustable rear preload, so some of the issues can be tweaked according to rider preference. Whatever the case, the suspension didn’t prevent riders from being able to enjoy corners with a reasonable amount of gusto.
“On the whole, and given the context, you’ll have no complaints,” says West. “The handling is beautifully neutral and nimble… On fast A-roads it’s a delight and you only start to feel the limitations of the slightly soft rear end when pushing hard on B-roads at a pace most cruiser bikes wouldn’t usually encourage.”
BELLS AND WHISTLES
In standard, the R 12 comes in plain black, has a solo seat, no screen, and a basic round instrument panel with LCD digital display. Like the R 18, the R 12 has two riding modes with cringe-inducing names: Rock and Roll, with ‘Rock’ being the more dynamic of the two. You also get lean-sensitive traction control, lean-sensitive ABS, keyless ignition, and LED lights.
That’s about all you need for a cruiser ─ arguably more than you need ─ but this being BMW, you can, if so inclined, bedeck the bike in thousands of pounds/dollars/euros/shekels worth of accessories, both aesthetic and electronic. These include additional riding modes, wire wheels, a slimline TFT dash with built-in Bluetooth connectivity, heated grips, cornering lights, and countless shiny or billeted bits that will push the price tag far into Harley-Davidson territory (most reviewers rode the Option 719 bike, which costs more than £16,000).
RIDER VERDICTS
Phil West: “It still comes over as more roadster than cruiser, but it performs well, is very customisable and, tellingly, is almost £2,500 cheaper than the NineT… the R 12 is also a damn good boxer roadster in its own right.”
Tim Rodie: “It is a really good-handling bike. It handles better than you might think a cruiser would handle, up to a point ─ that is about 35 degrees of lean angle… but the rest of the bike, I’ve fallen in love with it… That engine is an absolute honey… The mirrors even work.”
Kate: “Yeah, I really love this bike. I just love it. Love, love, love… The brakes are exceptional… The bike doesn’t feel low, because it’s quite wide and quite chunky at the seat… The riding position is so relaxed… the bike also has a nice price tag compared to the R 12 nineT.”
Andy: “That boxer engine really has got some go in it. Fantastic. I’m liking this bike more than I thought I was going to.”
Tegan (I think): “I give it an 8, which is pretty good for me… considering my highest is 9… It does everything perfectly… but, also, I don’t know if there’s anything that just blew me away on that bike. I enjoyed the engine; but it didn’t blow me away. Looks, I liked it; didn’t blow me away. But I thoroughly enjoyed riding it.”
MY TAKE
There’s a part of me that feels almost annoyed at BMW for not promoting this bike more. It has a great look and from all the reviews I’ve found it is a far more enjoyable bike than people were expecting. Since I already know that the platform formerly known as the R nineT is a joy, it makes me pretty optimistic about how good this bike is.
Phil West is the only one of the reviewers here who regularly rides cruisers, and he correctly identifies that this bike isn’t properly a cruiser ─ in part because the engine prevents you from being able to get your feet forward. Although… if foot position determines what is and isn’t a cruiser, are bikes like the Harley-Davidson Street Bob or Low Rider S cruisers? Discuss.
Whatever the case, the spirit is there ─ sorta ─ and I am all for it. I’m all for the price tag, too. (Just under) £12,000 is still a shit-ton of money, but it’s more affordable than anything being offered by Harley or Indian. The Honda CMX1100 (aka Rebel 1100) costs a not insignificant £3,000 less but also delivers less power, less torque, and markedly less cool. (Digressing here: I want so much to like that bike more than I do but there’s just something about the look that makes me think: “Yeah, OK, I guess.”)
You’ll have to buy all-new tools to be able to work on a R 12 because BMW insists upon using Torx screws, but I suppose that in the long run that’s not something that’s going to prevent a purchase. And although BMW’s lackluster promotion of the model suggests the R 12 won’t be around for long, all the parts that matter are just taken from the popular nineT platform. So, you won’t be stuck with a difficult-to-maintain oddity.
Gorgeous and graced with an incredible powerplant, this is, without doubt, a fantastic machine. But I will admit that I’m kind of with Tegan in my response to it. There is something ─ something so faint that I can’t put my finger on it ─ that makes me feel that if I had £12,000 I wouldn’t be spending it on this. The motorcyclist’s heart is a fickle thing.
Perhaps, although it doesn’t understand cruisers, BMW at least understands that aspect of cruiser riders, and that’s why it hasn’t pushed this bike more.
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