BMW R1200RT/R1250RT Forum

[size=2px]I've just bought a 2005 R1200RT.  If you, too, find the bike a bit tall and unsteady - can't quite flat-foot it - here are a couple of ideas.  Pls let me know if there are any downsides to them.[/size]


I just totally removed the movable height adjusters under the driver's seat.  Lowers the seat about another inch.  Doesn't seem to contact the battery, etc. under the seat. 

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[size=2px]Even at a long-waisted 5'11", I find that, especially when backing it up a slight incline or rough ground, it's an adventure.  Fix:  popping off the lower anchor of the front pegs' return spring (which tensions the front pegs forward) will allow you to fold them up during such maneuvers (manoeuvres if you're from the UK).  This prevents barked shins and bone bruises from the pegs, and allows a greater range of motion for your legs;  and, since you no longer have to adopt a wider stance to avoid the pegs, a smaller rider can point their legs straight down and take advantage of every inch of inch-seam.  This and the torturous upright position almost dissuaded me from buying the RT, but these fixes help with both problems.  Pass it around if you see someone struggling.[/size]
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HI, I'm 5'6'' and own an 05 RT and was on tip toe the first time I rode it. I quickly discovered the seat was on the high setting and moving it to the lower position allowed me to get more or less both feet flat on the road.  Curious what is holding the seat on if you've completely removed the adjusters?

Nothing holds the seat on, but I figure a thief wouldn't know that.  Having just told you this, if it disappears, I guess I know who to look for heathy65!!  Seriously, check out these tricks, it really helps.  With the pegs folded, there are no more of those embarrassing baby steps backing up (not a cool look at all).  I'm slowly curing some of the ills of the bike.  Suggestion: the deep and too narrow fairing storage compartment - put valuable and/or less-used items under a thick piece of foam (a little extra security), giving you a shallower, more accessible space, especially on the road when you'd have to fish around that deep well at 80 mph.  Could be a life-saver.


Also, if you don't like the stock mirrors, or if you'd like a more reclined seating position for long hauls, I've posted some cheap "fixes" under Mirrors and Risers. heading.  BTW, what kind of mileage do you get at a steady 75 mph?  I have a feeling I'm way below average, tho' the bike seems fine.  Later.

Interesting the cultural differences in aproach to riding and vehicle legislation.  Hre in the UK an insecure seat would, I suspect, be an MOT test fail as the bike would be deemed unsafe.  The reclined riding position you mention sounds like a cruiser riding position, presumably combined with a rider backrest.  This would never catch on here in the UK. But we have twisty roads

I'd say that, if the seat came off, it would mean I'd already been thrown from the bike!!  There is no untoward lateral motion since it is draped over the sides of the bike.  Remember, the distances are different here:  my longest day on a bike would have taken me from Bournemouth to John o' Groats in Scotland and back.  Mind you, those dreaded police cams you have over there on your M and A motorways would have prevented me doing 110-115 mph through the whole state of Nevada, which made the 1000 miles less onerous.  My typical day on a cross-country trek would be 500-700 miles a day, for days on end;  the options allowing varied body position are really necessary in "the long run"  BTW, we have our share of twisties here, and all I had to do on my Magna was sit up straight and take my feet of the highway pegs.


My backrest was all my gear stacked behind me, and the ability to stretch out with the highway pegs saved my legs and my arse.  It's like having a reserve tank, they give you another 200 miles on your butt (and back).  As I think I said, I rented a sport-tourer in France/Italy, and even the slight forward lean played havoc with my lower back.  As an unlooked-for benefit, even with my hands on the bars, the add-on extension serves as a support for my left wrist. 


My English uncle rode his bikes well into his 80's, having used his 1936 Panther 600cc with its side car as the family car for over a decade.  I hope to continue in his tradition, having been bitten with the bike bug riding pillion with him on camping trips to Camber Sands.  I still remember rolling out my first bike from the Triumph dealership and thinking (correctly):  I'm gonna be doing a lotta this!!!