The Adventure Bike With Honda Reliability And Triumph Sophistication
Motorcycles are often fair weather friends. They are great fun on that perfect sunny Sunday morning, but when times get tough that two-wheeled companion can stay locked up in the nice cozy garage. But not adventure bikes. These motorcycles are designed to do everything from blasting across a desert to hacking through a jungle — there is very little that an adventure bike isn’t prepared for.
With a range of accessories, rugged capability, and a comfortable riding position, this is the type of bike that you can rely on when the going gets tough. But there is one that perfectly blends upmarket sophistication with dependable reliability, plus a backstory that begins in one of the world’s toughest endurance races. This is one bike you can use on more than just Sunday…
Adventure Bikes Are Designed For Our Inner Explorer
Adventure motorcycles, or ADV bikes, are designed to be the Swiss army knives of two-wheeled ownership. These bikes are equally at home on almost any terrain, whether you are traversing the Sahara or riding to Siberia. Of course, a lot of people just use them for regular daily riding, and maybe the odd weekend away, but that’s OK. With a comfortable seating position and typically large displacement engines, they soak up the miles on asphalt too.
Adventure bikes can trace their history back to scramblers and dirt bikes, with Yamaha bringing the concept to the streets in 1968 with the pioneering DT-1, an off-road machine that could be ridden easily on the streets. By the early ’80s, events like the Paris-Dakar race were capturing the public’s imagination, and with the rise of backpacking as an alternative to commercial package holidays, bikers realized that motorcycles could take them on adventures they never before dreamed possible.
The BMW R 1250 GS Has Its Roots In Racing
At the forefront of the adventure bike movement was German brand BMW. While superbikes were all the rage in 1980, BMW decided to buck the trend at the IFMA international show in Cologne. The Bavarian brand unveiled the R80 G/S, a new type of motorbike that was something of a mash-up of every kind of bike you could imagine—the first adventure motorcycle, in fact. It had a capable flat-twin airhead engine, matched to knobby tires, two-up space, and the upright comfort of a tourer. The G/S in the name stood for Gelände/Straße, or “off-road/street” in Teutonic parlance.
In 1981, Frenchman Hubert Auriol won the Paris-Dakar Rallye piloting a BMW R 80 G/S, proving the bike’s off-road capabilities. Auriol repeated his victory in 1983, while in 1984 and 1985, Belgian Gaston Rahier also won onboard a BMW. In 2018, BMW introduced the new BMW R 1250 GS as the latest in its line of adventure bikes. The Bavarian company has a long history of creating bikes that eat up the miles, and this was designed to be one of the most accomplished.
The R 1250 GS Has Continent Smashing Capabilities
The R 1250 GS features a vastly improved boxer engine with BMW ShiftCam Technology for variation of valve timing and valve stroke on the intake side, with increased power across the entire power band. The 1,254cc powerplant is good for 136 hp at 7,750 rpm and 105 lb-ft of torque at 6,500 rpm. The motor also features asynchronous valve opening on the intake side for improved air-fuel mixture and better effective combustion, along with a knock sensor system to allow for use of variable fuel quality while on the move.
The camshaft drive is via toothed chain, replacing a roller chain, and BMW fitted a new exhaust system (with closed-loop catalytic converter technology) for better performance. The oil supply has been improved, and the bike is fitted with the latest generation of BMS-O engine control.
The BMW R1250GS Has Triumph Levels Of Sophistication
As well as taking on the established tech and dependability of the Japanese brands, BMW has also pitched the R 1250 GS against upmarket Triumph. The British brand is known for combining high-tech and sophistication with old-school looks. While the GS doesn’t go down the classic styling route, it has plenty of upmarket sophistication that will appeal to the well-heeled Triumph crowd. The GS has connectivity as standard, with a multifunctional instrument cluster that features a large 6.5-inch full-color TFT display. This is supplemented with an analog speedometer and tachometer.
These bikes come with two ride modes as standard: ASC (Automatic Stability Control) and Hill Start Control. “Dynamic Traction Control” (DTC), “Dynamic Pro”, “Enduro” and “Enduro Pro” ride modes are available as an option. Optional Dynamic ESA means that the bike automatically adapts to riding conditions and movements, as well as providing automatic ride height adjustment. Finally, the BMW Motorrad Spezial has a range of customization features available as factory options. Triumph offers standard factory customization as well as the Triumph Factory Custom (TFC) with ultra-premium options that are often hand-finished.
The BMW R 1250 GS Is A Reliable Partner
BMW has made its name on a blend of quality and performance, and it seems that the R 1250 GS fits into that. Owners at Advrider.com say there have been some minor issues, but these have reportedly been ironed out, and the bikes have clocked up big mileages. One owner on a Facebook discussion said: “I bought a 2023 R1250 GS Trophy model. Last year of the 1250 GS version. BMW had pretty much completely debugged the model by then. No issues so far.”
As the bike is so new, it shouldn’t cause too many problems, especially if you go for a full service history from an authorized BMW dealership. These bikes are known for clocking up a lot of miles due to the fact they make for good do-it-all machines. As another option, the Honda Africa Twin is seen as the gold standard among the company’s adventure bikes. The 2026 model, which employs Honda’s 1,084cc parallel-twin engine, is highly dependable and reliable.
This High Tech Adventure Bike Costs Used Civic Money
A 2008 Honda Civic Si will cost on average $15,283, says Classic.com, but for this kind of money you can get a BMW R 1250 GS that is just a few years old. Scouring the classifieds brought up some surprising results. The R 1250 GS cost $22,615 in 2019, but prices are much lower now. On Bringatrailer.com, we found a 2020 bike with 5,000 miles and a BMW-branded top box and side cases that had sold for $15,750. A 2019 bike with 24,000 miles was naturally more affordable, costing just $11,200. The bottom line is that you will need around $15,000, it seems, to get the keys to one of these capable adventure bikes on the used market. As with any used purchase, it’s important to do your homework and not be tempted by very low prices, but the R 1250 GS offers a lot of can-do attitude for the money.
Sources: Advrider.com; Classic.com
Related posts
Latest Post
No Comments