RE: Smoothest ride? - 2

If the forks barely move with the ignition on I think you may have a problem!

Zitat von Willy im Beitrag #16

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If the forks barely move with the ignition on I think you may have a problem!

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I would get the dealer to check that the damping is switching/adjusting properly.

Personally I find the RS suspension and handling superb, I absolute love the smoothness in combination with great feedback from the road & tyres. I’d contrast that with the RT which I previously owned which was “cushy” but gave no feedback from the front end, it never gave way but was far from engaging.
So for me the RS is a perfect mix of forgiving ride and real-time feedback, in a set-up that allows sporty blasts and lengthy tours - what a bike, what a joy!

Pumping the forks up and down when replacing the front wheel ensures the axle saddles are aligned - putting weight on the forks should achieve that whether the forks pump up/down or not. As a final test, rotate the wheel while it is off the ground and see whether the discs rotate smoothly.

Zitat von MexicoMike im Beitrag #1

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I rode my wife's Ducati Diavel recently and noticed that the suspension seemed to deal with rough pavement/potholes much better than my RS does. The RS can give me quite a jolt on bad spots where her Diavel just seemed to absorb the bumps on the same road. I have the RS set on single rider/road most of the time. Per the manual that is what I assume to be the "softest" setting. Is that correct or am I missing something.

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Telelever absolutely the best ride - The new Honda Goldwing has adopted it now. My K1200s was the best ride ever.

have to agree that I find the ride is choppy in Road and jarring in Dynamic, not happy with it whatever the setting. Ditching the Telelever was a cheap trick in my opinion as I find the ride uncomfortable, as I think the the feedback from the road is harsh...and don't get me started on the vibrations....
wonder if there have been any suspension setting changes through the years, mine's 2018

I've owned several BMWs and have noticed that the ride on every one softens up over the first few thousand miles. They are all stiffer when new than they will be after they work in a bit. I think it takes maybe 6000 miles or more before the suspension softens up to its normal condition, where it will remain for quite a few miles afterward. This was true of my 2016 RS, which now has 19000 miles, and also of my 2018 K1600GT, for example.

If you have the ESA set to rider with no luggage, and you are finding that the bike gives you a hard kick in the butt when riding over big bumps, it may be that you're too heavy for that setting. The suspension may be sagging too much under your weight, which reduces how much travel is available before travel is used up and the bump-stop hits, which will be quite jarring. If this is happening, you'll have a better ride if you switch to rider and luggage setting, which allows more suspension travel before it hits the stop.

Adding preload does not make the suspension stiffer. It just raises the rear of the bike, allowing more suspension travel when carrying a load. This can also assure that steering geometry isn't degraded by having the bike slope down at the rear. Switching to the Dynamic setting, however, changes damping and does make the suspension stiffer. If your ride is too hard, make sure you're not in Dynamic suspension mode.

It may be that ESA also changes damping when preload is adjusted, which could make suspension feel stiffer when preload is increased, but if so, I haven't noticed it. Anyway, if you're finding the ride too harsh over big bumps, try increasing preload. You may find it actually makes the ride better. I have experienced this myself on some bikes (I weigh 200 pounds, not including riding gear).

I also want to point out that faulty shocks are not unheard of on the R1200R and R1200RS bikes (which share the same components). My wife's 2017 R1200R had a shock failure with only around 100 miles on the bike. The failed shock was totally immovable. It was fixed under warranty.

After many a doo with BMW, I've had new shock absorber, new fork seals, tyres and I still think the bike is the worst I've ever had, so got rid of it and now enjoy a smooth and fun ride on a Honda VFR - best bike I've ever had, this will be my third VFR in 18 years - All the BMW's I've had have cost me dearly mostly on mechanical failure on the drive, be it clutch, gearbox or rear wheel drive. So, sorry chaps I'm ditching any thought of having another BMW.

Heh Heh...I had to sell my first gen Diavel Cromo, after spending over $3K to replace OME suspenders for Ohlin's, the ride was still so rough that I kept getting prostate infections and acute cervical spine muscle spasms! Now that I'm sporting my 2018 RS in "Road" mode, one-up ESA and "Dynamic" engine response mode, I am very comfortable and very FAST and no more prostate or C-spine problems!! -Dr Ron
But I must admit one very important detail: I swapped out the original BMW handle bars for a pair of R1200R bars and stacked up 2 handlebar risers onto the triple tree. This brought me to a much more neutral posture on my RS which I could not do for the Diavel Cromo... I think that the suspension components are not alone responsible for the bucking bronco sensation. As the change in posture to a more upright position also changes the center of gravity of the rider on the bike and allows the rider to sit further back so that my body is closer to the fulcrum of the whole bike which decreases the relative rocking of my body so I don't bounce nearly as much...if you can see the geometry in your head...imagine sitting over the fulcrum of a sea-saw on the playground rather than one end or the other as it goes up and down....-Dr Ron

Zitat von Dr Ron im Beitrag #26

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Heh Heh...I had to sell my first gen Diavel Cromo, after spending over $3K to replace OME suspenders for Ohlin's, the ride was still so rough that I kept getting prostate infections and acute cervical spine muscle spasms! Now that I'm sporting my 2018 RS in "Road" mode, one-up ESA and "Dynamic" engine response mode, I am very comfortable and very FAST and no more prostate or C-spine problems!! -Dr Ron
But I must admit one very important detail: I swapped out the original BMW handle bars for a pair of R1200R bars and stacked up 2 handlebar risers onto the triple tree. This brought me to a much more neutral posture on my RS which I could not do for the Diavel Cromo... I think that the suspension components are not alone responsible for the bucking bronco sensation. As the change in posture to a more upright position also changes the center of gravity of the rider on the bike and allows the rider to sit further back so that my body is closer to the fulcrum of the whole bike which decreases the relative rocking of my body so I don't bounce nearly as much...if you can see the geometry in your head...imagine sitting over the fulcrum of a sea-saw on the playground rather than one end or the other as it goes up and down....-Dr Ron

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I've seen others say the 'bars are not comfortable, but are ideal for me. My previous was a K100RS with the O.E. narrow ace bars, almost perfect. The great riding position is the main reason I bought my bike, 14 months & 11k miles ago. That and the shaft drive!

Hi re RS bars. I changed to 'R' bars only 100 miles after buying my RS. The RS bars were as you say the wrong angle for my wrists.
Have since then tried Wunderlich std risers and now use Wunderlich Ergo tham ove the R bars up and back. Have had them for 2 years now and the set up suits me fine even on 6 hours days.
P1030313.JPG - Bild entfernt (keine Rechte)

Hi re RS bars. I changed to 'R' bars only 100 miles after buying my RS. The RS bars were as you say the wrong angle for my wrists.
Have since then tried Wunderlich std risers and now use Wunderlich Ergo tham ove the R bars up and back. Have had them for 2 years now and the set up suits me fine even on 6 hours days.
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