BMW R1200GS TE. FSH. New wheels & tyres. Incredible condition. Must see!

There’s a lot to tell you about this bike, so be prepared for a long listing. Or, if you just want the bullet points, here they are:

- TE (Touring Edition) model. Comes with various upgrades over the standard model, including; ESA (electronic suspension), cruise control, dynamic traction control & ABS, sat nav mount etc.

- Other BMW extras include; heated grips, tyre pressure sensors, daytime LED lights.

- Aftermarket extras include; front and rear fender extenders, radiator guards, instrument cluster anti-theft frame, Givi touring screen, mirror extenders, hand guard wind shields, bar extenders, Datatag anti-theft protection, brake pedal extender etc.

- Full Service History (BMW and independent specialist).

- Brand new front and rear wheels, tyres and tyre pressure sensors.

- Brand new Yuasa hi-power battery.

- Newly rebuilt forks with new seals, oil etc.

- Recent new brake discs and pads.

- Hilltop tuned. Engine/ECU was tuned by the famous Hilltop Motorcycles in Hinckley back in   2019, resulting in smoother low-end power (great in traffic) and slightly boosted top-end HP.

- No faults or issues whatsoever - rides almost like new!

- 12 months MOT.

- 69k miles. Yes, it sounds bad, but read the text below ;-) ...

So, what’s the story with this bike - how come it has high mileage, but looks like a nearly new machine? Read on ..,

The bike was purchased, new in 2015, from Chandlers BMW in Brighton by a firm known as ‘West Sussex Motorcycle Hire’. I hired many bike from them over the years and that is how I came to discover the joys of the R1200GS (my favourite bike by far). As a business, it was critical for WSMH that their customers enjoyed trouble-free motoring (as breakdowns meant that the company had to compensate the customer and effectively lost money on the whole deal). As such, their bikes were meticulously maintained, either by the dealer or WSMH (the owner was a former Honda mechanic and did a conversion course to be qualified to service BMWs as well). When on hire, these bikes clocked up most of their miles on foreign motorways, which is why the numbers are so high. I was so confident in the ability of the firm to look after their bikes that when this one came up for sale in summer 2018, I snapped it up. At that point, it had about 54k on the clock.

Once I took over ownership, the bike was pampered even more. It lives in a (former) stable of its own, never goes out in the winter (apart from once or twice on a dry day to keep the engine oil and fluids circulating) and has been serviced at more regular (mileage) intervals than it needed. Cosmetically too, the bike has been kept clean and free from rust and corrosion. Every time it goes for a service, MOT, tyres etc. the technicians working on it always comment on how clean it is for its age (let alone its mileage).

Over the past 6 years, I have mainly used it for ‘Sunday rides’ and trips to Europe (mainly Germany), where it really shines as a ‘comfortable cruiser’. However, a couple of years ago I changed jobs and since then I have simply not had as much time-off or prolonged periods of leave where I could get away on the bike. In fact, since COVID, my annual mileage has dropped considerably.

This year, I had hoped to do more riding, but on only my second short ride of the year I struck an unseen pothole in the road and buckled the front wheel. I managed to stop the bike and pull over (without dropping it), but it required a breakdown truck to get it back home again. I decided to blow my no-claims bonus by getting the insurance company to fix the damage and it’s just as well that I did. Not only was the front wheel (and tyre) destroyed by the impact, but it turned out that the rear wheel had a slight flat spot too and even the fork stanchions were a little bent. As a result, the bike received brand new road wheels, Michelin Road 6 tyres, two new tyre pressure sensors and a complete front fork rebuild (new stanchions, seals and oil), new axle bolt and front wheel bearings as well!

That incident, plus the fact that I may soon lose the right to park my bike at my (rented) home, has forced me to take the painful decision to give up motorcycling altogether for the time being. The GS is the only bike that I have owned since 2018 and I won’t be replacing it with another bike. So, please don’t ask me about trade-ins or swaps. Thank you!

So, that’s my story. As for the bike itself, I can only say that it is in stunning condition, has no faults or issues (that I, or the BMW service engineers know of) and that anyone who is not put off by the high mileage on the clock will be getting a bike that should go on to serve them well for many years to come.

This bike really needs to be seen ‘in the flesh’ to fully appreciate it, but I think that the photos in the listing do a pretty good job of illustrating the overall condition of the machine, so please study them carefully.

If I had to be critical, I would point out the only cosmetic flaw on the vehicle, which is not uncommon on GS’s of the period - flaking paint around the cylinder head joints. You can clearly see this in the photos. The good news is that this occurred within the first year or two of the engines life and has not got any worse since then. I’m not sure what caused this to happen, but any GS forums will no doubt have long threads about it. It’s something that you will see on many GS’s from this period and in some cases is a lot worse than mine!

I have a fair amount of paperwork with the bike, including fully-stamped BMW service book (it’s on its second book now), MOT certificates going back to 2018, spare key, various invoices etc.

So, if you decide that you are interested in purchasing this bike, please message me (with a phone number, if possible) and I will get back to you to arrange a viewing.

As stated below, I am not open to silly offers on the price. Thank you!

IMPORTANT: Terms and conditions of the sale:

- I will not let anyone test ride my bike, unless it is first paid for in full (and payment cleared). This is simply to protect myself, both financially and legally. In practise, if you agree to buy the bike and have paid for it, I will be happy for you to test ride it on collection and if you discover any issues that have not been mentioned in the listing I will take the bike back (undamaged) and refund your money on the spot. Can’t say fairer than that!

- The bike is ‘sold as seen’ and there is no warranty (either actual or implied) with this sale, except for the ‘refund on collection/test ride’ mentioned above.

- I am the legal owner of the motorcycle and it is registered to my home address. Registration documents will be handed over following full payment and completion of the ‘collection test ride’.

- No swaps, part-ex’s etc. Traders need not apply! I am not going to reduce the asking price significantly and would prefer to sell to a private owner who will appreciate the bike more.