BMW R 850 RT 2000 — Specifications

Is 1100 cc really necessary to taste grand touring the Munich way? In 1998, BMW settled the question by launching a younger sibling with a downsized flat twin, designed for those who found the reference RT a touch too ambitious in terms of price and horsepower. The bmw r 850 rt thus arrived on the market with the same bodywork, the same protection, the same bourgeois posture, but 250 cc less in the crankcase. The 2000 model year, priced at 13,990 euros new, remains the most representative version of the range, before the tweaks of the bmw r 850 rt 2002, bmw r 850 rt 2003 and bmw r 850 rt 2004 which would refine the recipe before production ended in 2006.

Beneath the fairings, this 848 cc flat twin (bore 87.5 and stroke 70.5 mm, compression 10.7) develops 73 horsepower at 6,750 rpm for 80 Nm at 5,500 rpm. Let's be honest, we're not in the league of fire-breathers, and the comparison with the 1100 big sister costs about fifteen horsepower. BMW compensated for this with a shorter final drive ratio, and the result holds up day-to-day, with a claimed top speed of 191 km/h that is more than enough to swallow a motorway leg. The injection does its job from 2,000 rpm, the twin pushes hard once past 5,000, but small vibrations then come up through the footpegs, a tremolo that the 1100 smooths out better. Nothing prohibitive, just a reminder that displacement has its reasons.

The rest of the technical specifications breathe late-decade BMW vintage. Mixed frame with cast aluminium front section and steel rear part, 40 mm Telelever fork with 120 mm of travel, Paralever single-sided swingarm at the rear with 135 mm, braking entrusted to two 305 mm front discs gripped by four-piston calipers and a single 276 mm at the rear, with the abs bmw r 850 rt offered as an option. The Telelever front end does the job we know it for, the bike refuses to dive under hard braking and the bevel gear of the shaft drive shifts through the 5 gears without harshness. With its 282 kg fully fuelled, 238 dry, and a seat at 780 mm, it remains manageable for anyone with experience of large machines. The 25.2-litre tank allows for long legs, a knockout argument on a GT.

Up against a heavier and more expensive Honda Pan European ST 1100, or a Yamaha TDM that plays in a more trail-oriented court, the RT 850 defends its position as a compact and accessible tourer. Let's not dream, the bmw r 850 rt permis a2 does not exist, the 73 horsepower and the weight automatically exclude this regulatory framework, and bmw r 850 rt cafe racer or bmw r 850 rt scrambler projects are more fantasy than logic, given how costly the full bodywork makes the exercise. Better to take it for what it is, an honest GT cut out for swallowing miles two-up.

On the used market, the bmw r 850 rt occasion now changes hands at gentle prices, with the bmw r 850 rt 1998, bmw r 850 rt 1999 and bmw r 850 rt 2001 being the most affordable, while the later model years hold their value better. To watch out for during a test bmw r 850 rt or a visit to a dealer, the condition of the shaft drives, Hall sensors, and the batterie moto bmw r 850 rt which ages poorly if the machine sits too long. As for the avis bmw r 850 rt 2003, the feedback is often the same, a sound, comfortable bike, without flair but without traps, exactly what one expects from a sensible Bavarian.