BMW R 1200 GS 2012 Owner's Manual
Rider's Manual
R 1200 GS
BMW Motorrad
The Ultimate
Riding Machine
Motorcycle data/dealership details
Motorcycle data
Model
Vehicle identification number
Colour code
Date of first registration
Registration number
Dealership details
Person to contact in Service department
Ms/Mr
Phone number
Dealership address/phone number (company stamp)
Welcome to BMW
We congratulate you on your
choice of a motorcycle from
BMW and welcome you to the
community of BMW riders.
Familiarise yourself with your new
motorcycle so that you can ride it
safely and confidently in all traffic
situations.
Please read this Rider's Manual
carefully before starting to use
your new BMW motorcycle. It
contains important information on
how to operate the controls and
how to make the best possible
use of all your BMW's technical
features.
In addition, it contains information on maintenance and care to
help you maintain your vehicle's
reliability and safety, as well as its
value.
If you have questions concerning
your motorcycle, your authorised
BMW Motorrad dealer will gladly
provide advice and assistance.
We hope that you will enjoy riding your BMW and that all your
journeys will be pleasant and safe
BMW Motorrad.
01 41 8 548 431
*01418548431*
Table of Contents
You can also consult the index at
the end of this Rider's Manual if
you want to find a particular topic
or item of information.
1 General instructions ... . 5
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. 6
Abbreviations and
symbols . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. . .. . . . . 6
Equipment . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . 7
Technical data . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 7
Currency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . . 7
2 General views . .. .. .. .. .. . 9
General view, left side . . . . . . . 11
General view, right side . . . . . 13
Multifunction switch, left . . . . 14
Multifunction switch,
right . . . . . . .. . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 16
Underneath the seat . . . . . . . . 17
Instrument panel . . . . . . . .. . . . 18
3 Status indicators ... .. .. 19
Multifunction display . . . . . .. . 20
Service-due indicator .. . . . . . . 21
Fuel reserve . . . . . . . . .. . .. . .. . 21
Ambient temperature. . . . . . . . 22
Tyre pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Oil level . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 23
Recommendation to up-
shift . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Warning and telltale
lights . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 25
Warning symbols in the dis-
play . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 28
4 Operation . .. . .. .. .. .. .. . . 43
Ignition switch/steering
lock . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 44
Ignition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Electronic immobiliser
EWS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46
Multifunction display . . . . . .. . 46
Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53
Daytime riding lights . . . . . . . . 54
Turn indicators . . . . . . . . . . .. . . 56
Hazard warning flashers . . . . . 56
Emergency off switch (kill
switch) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Heated handlebar grips . . .. . 57
BMW Motorrad Integ-
ral ABS . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . 58
Automatic Stability Control
ASC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . 59
Riding mode . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 60
Cruise-control system . . . . . . . 63
Clutch . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 65
Brakes . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 65
Mirrors . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . 66
Handlebars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Windscreen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Spring preload . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Damping . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68
Dynamic ESA, electronic
suspension adjustment . . . . . . 69
Anti-theft alarm (DWA) . . . . . . 71
Tyres . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Headlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Front and rear seats .. . . . . . . . 74
5 Riding .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. .. .. . 77
Safety instructions . . . . . . .. . . 78
Checklist . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80
Starting. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . 81
Running in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . 83
Off-roading . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 84
Brakes . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . 85
Parking your motorcycle . . . . 86
Refuel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86
Fuel grade . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 88
Secure motorcycle for trans-
portation . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . 88
6 Engineering details . .. . . 91
Riding mode . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 92
Brake system with
BMW Motorrad Integral
ABS . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 93
Electronic engine management with BMW Motorrad
ASC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . 96
Tyre pressure monitoring
RDC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 98
7 Accessories . .. .. .. . .. . 101
General instructions . . . . . . . 102
Power sockets . . . . .. . . . . . . 102
Cases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Topcase. . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 106
Navigation system .. . . . . . . . 109
8 Maintenance . . . .. .. . .. 113
General instructions . . . . . . . 114
Toolkit. . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . 114
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 115
Brake system . . . . . . . . . . . . . 116
Coolant. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120
Clutch . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 122
Rims and tyres . . . .. . . . . . . . 122
Wheels . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . 123
Front-wheel stand . . . . . .. . . 129
Bulbs . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Air filter . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . 135
Jump-start . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 136
Battery . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 137
Fuses . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 141
9 Care ... . . .. .. .. .. .. . .. .. 143
Care products . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144
Washing motorcycle. . . . . . . 144
Cleaning easily damaged
components .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . 144
Paint care . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . 145
Protective wax coating . . . . 146
Lay up motorcycle . . . . . .. . 146
Restoring motorcycle to
use . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 146
10 Technical data . . .. . . 147
Troubleshooting chart . . . . . 148
Threaded fasteners . . . . . . . 149
Engine . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 151
Fuel . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. 152
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 153
Clutch . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 153
Transmission . . .. . . . . . . . .. . 154
Rear-wheel drive . . . . . . . . . . 154
Running gear . .. . . . . . . . . . . . 155
Brakes . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 157
Wheels and tyres . . . . . . . . . . 157
Electrics . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . 158
Anti-theft alarm. . . .. . . . . . . . 160
Frame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160
Dimensions . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 161
Weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. 162
Riding specifications . . . . . . 162
11 Service . . .. . .. .. .. .. .. 163
BMW Motorrad Service . . . 164
BMW Motorrad Mobility
services . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . 164
Maintenance work . . . . .. . . . 164
Confirmation of mainten-
ance work . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166
Confirmation of service . . . . 171
12 Appendix . .. .. .. .. . .. . 173
Certificate . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . 174
13 Index . .. .. .. .. .. .. .. .. 175
General instructions
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Abbreviations and symbols . . . . . . . . . . 6
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Technical data . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Currency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
1
5
z
General instructions
Overview
1
Chapter 2 of this Rider's Manual
will provide you with an initial
6
overview of your motorcycle.
All maintenance and repair work
on the vehicle is documented in
Chapter 11. This record of the
maintenance work you have had
performed on your vehicle is a
precondition for generous treatment of goodwill claims.
When the time comes to sell
your BMW, please remember
to hand over this Rider's Manual;
it is an important part of the motorcycle.
z
General instructions
Abbreviations and symbols
Indicates warnings that you
must comply with for reasons of your safety and the safety
of others, and to protect your
product against damage.
Specific instructions on
how to operate, control, adjust or look after items of equipment on the motorcycle.
Indicates the end of an
item of information.
Instruction.
Result of an activity.
Reference to a page with
more detailed information.
Indicates the end of a
passage relating to specific accessories or items
of equipment.
Tightening torque.
Technical data.
OE Optional extra
The motorcycles are assembled complete with
all the BMW Motorrad
optional extras originally
ordered.
OA Optional accessory
You can obtain optional
accessories through your
authorised BMW Motorrad dealer; optional accessories have to be
retrofitted to the motorcycle.
Electronic immobiliser.
EWS
DWA
Anti-theft alarm (Diebstahlwarnanlage).
Anti-lock brake system.
ABS
ASC Automatic Stability Con-
trol.
ESA Electronic Suspension
Adjustment.
Tyre pressure monitoring
RDC
(ReifenDruck-Control).
Equipment
When you purchased your BMW
motorcycle you have chosen
a model with individual equipment. This Rider's Manual describes the special equipment
(OE) offered by BMW and selected optional accessories (OA).
This explains why the manual
may also contain descriptions of
equipment which you have not
ordered. Please note, too, that
your motorcycle might not be exactly as illustrated in this manual
on account of country-specific
differences.
If your BMW should feature
equipment that is not described
in this Rider's Manual, then
these scopes are described in a
separate Rider's Manual.
Technical data
All dimensions, weights and
power ratings stated in the
Rider's Manual are quoted to the
standards and comply with the
tolerance requirements of the
Deutsches Institut für Normung
e.V. (DIN). Versions for individual
countries may differ.
Currency
The high safety and quality level
of BMW motorcycles is ensured
by continuous development
work on design, equipment
and accessories. Because of
this, your motorcycle may differ
from the information supplied
in the Rider's Manual. Nor can
BMW Motorrad entirely rule
out errors and omissions. We
hope you will appreciate that no
claims can be entertained on the
basis of the data, illustrations or
descriptions in this manual.
1
7
z
General instructions
1
8
z
General instructions
General views
General view, left side. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
General view, right side . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Multifunction switch, left . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
Multifunction switch, right . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Underneath the seat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Instrument panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18
2
9
z
General views
2
10
z
General views
General view, left side
1 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with daytime riding
OE
lights
Daytime riding light
( 54)
2 Fuel filler neck ( 86)
3 Seat lock ( 74)
4 Setting the rear damping
(down at the spring strut)
( 68)
2
11
z
General views
2
12
z
General views
General view, right side
1 Adjuster for spring preload,
rear ( 67)
2 Air filter (underneath the
centre trim panel) ( 135)
3 Brake-fluid reservoir, front
( 118)
4 Height adjustment of the
windscreen ( 67)
5 Power socket ( 102)
6 Vehicle Identification Num-
ber (VIN) (on steering-head
bearing)
Type plate (on steeringhead bearing)
7 Coolant-level indicator
( 120)
Coolant reservoir ( 121)
8 Engine-oil filler neck
( 116)
9 Engine oil level indicator
( 115)
10 Battery (behind the side
trim panel) ( 137)
Battery support point (behind the side trim panel)
( 136)
11 Brake-fluid reservoir, rear
( 119)
2
13
z
General views
Multifunction switch,
2
left
14
1 High-beam headlight and
headlight flasher ( 53)
2 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specifica-
tion
with speed control
Cruise-control system
( 63)
3 Hazard warning flashers
( 56)
4 ABS ( 58)
z
General views
with riding modes
ASC ( 59)
5 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with Dynamic ESA
ESA ( 69)
OE
OE
OE
6 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with LED auxiliary head-
OA
light
Auxiliary headlights ( 54)
7 Turn indicators ( 56)
8 Horn
9 Multifunction display
( 46)
10 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with preparation for navigation system
Navigation system
( 109)
11 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with daytime riding
OE
lights
Daytime riding lights
( 54)
OE
2
15
z
General views
Multifunction switch,
2
right
16
1 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with heated handlebar
OE
grips
Heated handlebar grips
( 57)
2 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
z
General views
with riding modes
Riding mode ( 60)
3 Emergency off switch (kill
switch) ( 57)
4 Start engine ( 81)
OE
Underneath the seat
1 Toolkit
2 Rider's Manual ( 114)
3 Table of tyre pressures
4 Payload table
5 Adjusting the driver seat
height ( 75)
2
17
z
General views
Instrument panel
2
1 Speedometer
2 Rev. counter
18
3 Ambient-light brightness
sensor (for adapting the
brightness of the instrument lighting)
with daytime riding
OE
lights
Ambient brightness sensor
for the automatic mode of
the daytime riding light
with anti-theft alarm
z
General views
Anti-theft alarm telltale light
(see the instructions for
use for the anti-theft alarm)
4 Warning and telltale lights
( 25)
5 Multifunction display
( 20)
OE
Status indicators
Multifunction display . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Service-due indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Fuel reserve . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
Ambient temperature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Tyre pressures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
Oil level . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
Recommendation to upshift . . . . . . . . 23
Warning and telltale lights . . . . . . . . . . . 25
Warning symbols in the display . . . . . 27
Warnings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
3
19
z
Status indicators
Multifunction display
3
1 Fuel-gauge reading
2 Recommendation to up-
20
z
Status indicators
shift ( 23)
3 Gear indicator; "N" indic-
ates neutral.
4 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with daytime riding
OE
lights
Automatic daytime riding
light ( 54)
5 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with heated handlebar
OE
grips
Grip heating stage
6 Indicator range of the milo-
meter
Display of the SETUP settings
7 Service-due indicator
8 Warning symbols
9 Display range of the on-
board computer
Display of the SETUP settings
10 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with Dynamic ESA
Display of the ESA settings
11 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with riding modes
Display of the active riding
mode
12 Clock
13 Outside temperature warn-
ing
OE
OE
Service-due indicator
If the time remaining to the next
service is less than a month or if
the next service falls due within
1000 km, then the service date 1
and the remaining kilometres 2
are displayed briefly after the preride check.
If service is overdue, the
due date or the odometer
reading at which service was due
is accompanied by the 'General' warning light showing yellow.
The word "Service" remains permanently visible.
If the service-due indic-
ator appears more than a
month before the service date,
the date saved in the instrument
cluster must be adjusted. This
situation can occur if the battery
was disconnected.
Fuel reserve
The amount of fuel present in
the fuel tank when the fuel warning light is switched on is dependent on vehicle dynamics.
The more the fuel moves inside the tank (due to regularly
changing angles of heel, frequent braking and acceleration),
the more difficult it becomes to
determine the reserve volume.
For this reason, the fuel reserve
volume cannot be displayed exactly.
After the fuel warning light
has switched on, the range
is displayed automatically.
3
21
z
Status indicators
The distance that can still be
3
travelled using the reserve
volume depends on the style of
22
driving (usage) and the amount
of fuel remaining at the time the
light came on.
Ambient temperature
When the motorcycle is at a
standstill the heat of the engine
can falsify the ambient-temperature reading. If the effect of the
engine's heat becomes excessive, -- temporarily appears on
the display.
z
Status indicators
At ambient temperatures below 3 °C there is a risk of ice
forming. When this temperature
threshold is underrun for the first
time, there will be an automatic
switchover to the ambient temperature display 1, independent
of the actual display setting; the
displayed value flashes.
In addition, the ice crystal
symbol 2 is shown.
Tyre pressures
with tyre pressure monitoring
OE
(RDC)
The tyre-pressure readings are
based on a reference tyre temperature of 20 °C. The front
tyre pressure is on the left 1;
the reading on the right 2 is
the rear tyre pressure. -- -
- appears directly after the ig-
nition is switched on, because
the sensors do not transmit tyre
pressures until the first time the
motorcycle accelerates to more
than 30 km/h.
If the symbol 3 also shows,
this is a warning. The crit-
ical tyre pressure flashes.
If the critical value is close
to the limit of the permissible tolerance range, the reading
is accompanied by the 'General'
warning light showing yellow. If
the tyre pressure registered by
the sensor is outside the permissible tolerance range, the
'General' warning light flashes
red.
The detailed description of
BMW Motorrad RDC starts on
page ( 98).
Oil level
Oil-level indicator 1 gives you an
indication of the engine oil level.
You can call up this reading only
when the vehicle is at a standstill.
The preconditions for the oil level
check are as follows:
Engine at operating temperature.
Engine idling for at least ten
seconds.
Side stand retracted.
Make sure the motorcycle is
upright.
The readings mean:
OK: Oil level is correct.
CHECK: Check the oil level the
next time you stop for fuel.
---: Oil level cannot be meas-
ured (conditions as stated above
not satisfied).
If the oil level needs to be
checked, the symbol 2 is
displayed until the oil level is detected as being correct again.
Recommendation to upshift
The upshift recommendation
must be activated in the display
settings ( 48).
3
23
z
Status indicators
3
24
The upshift recommendation 1
signals the economically best
point in time for upshift.
z
Status indicators
Warning and telltale lights
1 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with speed control
Cruise-control system
2 Idle
3 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with riding modes
ASC
4 Flashing turn indicators,
left
5 ABS
6 Flashing turn indicators,
right
7 General warning light, in
combination with warning symbols in the display
( 28)
OE
OE
3
25
z
Status indicators
8 not included in the stand-
3
26
z
Status indicators
ard equipment specification
with anti-theft alarm
Alarm system (see separate operating instructions)
9 High-beam headlight
10 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with daytime riding
OE
lights
Daytime riding lights
11 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with LED auxiliary head-
OA
light
Auxiliary headlights
12 Fuel reserve
The ABS symbol might differ, depending on the spe-
cifics of national regulations.
OE
Warning symbols in the display
1 not included in the stand-
ard equipment specification
with tyre pressure monitoring (RDC)
Tyre pressure ( 38)
2 EWS ( 33)
3 Coolant temperature
( 34)
4 Engine oil level ( 34)
5 Engine electronics ( 33)
6 Battery charge ( 138)
7 Warnings ( 28)
OE
3
27
z
Status indicators
Warnings
3
Presentation of the
28
warning lights
Warnings are indicated by the
corresponding warning lights.
z
Status indicators
Warnings that do not have warning lights of their own are indicated by 'General' warning
light 1 showing in combination
with a warning symbol at 2 or a
text warning at 3. The 'General'
warning light shows red or yellow, depending on the urgency of
the warning.
The status of the 'General' warning light matches the most urgent warning.
The possible warnings are listed
on the next page.
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