Motorcycle.com

It's time to head back and I can revel in 70 miles of pure Autobahn adrenaline until I get to Munich's airport. The highway that leads from the Alps to Munich has some proper fast sweepers and throwing the K1200S into them at 120+ is pure joy. While passing cars crawling along in the middle lane through fast right-handers, I don't hesitate to place the K on the outside lane while the Armco flies close. The front end really gives you the feeling that you could thread the K into a needle's eye at these speeds.     As the landscape flattens, there are no more sweepers and in the boredom of droning-along, you notice that at certain throttle openings and gears, a rather noticeable vibration is transmitted through the footpegs and seat. This is strange, because the K has a balance shaft and it's intended as a long range BMW. This spoiled the hypersonic cruising experience for me. Another gremlin surfaced, as the traffic starts to clog: Rather erratic low-rpm, low-speed throttle response. At very low, steady crawling speeds, the engine seems to "hunt". It makes you wonder if BMW can really get away with not using a double butterfly system like the big four products use in their intakes. Upon returning the bikes, BMW technicians debriefed us and confessed to be working on the vibration problems (seemingly shaft drive related) and mentioned that the fuel injection maps aren't final.

Talking about low speed issues, one big question remains open after a day in the K1200S' company. Do to a lack of time; we did not have the chance to try the thing on the really twisty mountain passes that are typical of the Alps. Will this excellent package still be as exiting, in slow hairpins and through wild direction changes? We'll have to wait for a more thorough road test in a variety of environments, in order to cast a verdict on this issue.

Even after a day with the K, I wasn't able to fall in love with its looks. So what? The K1200S' blend of supersport and touring capabilities fits my current riding profile so well that I wouldn't hesitate to live with it for a few years. This new concept of "Elegant Hypersport" is not casual. I can foresee typical BMW owners that love ultra-comfy tools but also crave some mad performance making queues in dealerships. On the other hand, I can foresee supersport riders that are a bit fed up with the extreme discomfort of recent bikes being happy to move over to something slightly less focused without giving up on excitement. This is of course an extremely European blend, tailor made for no limits Autobahns, Autostradas and for the fast and flowing roads in Provance or Spain. However, that hasn't deterred many Americans from buying Super Blackbirds and ZX-12Rs, has it?

The K1200S brings a philosophical shift to BMW. ÊMunich's very special take on sport bikes, reveals their desire not to entrench themselves in esoteric niches and to compete head on with the Japanese. If my eyes don't deceive me, this mill can also be equipped with chain drive. Considering how well the K1200S version works, the K1200RR should be a real belter..... Watch out Japan.