It is near impossible to write a review about BMW’s R 1300 GS Adventure without commenting, however briefly, on its looks. There is much that is subjective about this discussion, so I will preface this review by simply saying that the GSA looks better in the flesh than it does in some of the press photos and that I quite like it for its in-your-face, angular, mech-style looks. It’s a unique-looking bike, and it is often these bikes that become icons—think the first GS, think the Hayabusa, etc.
I once read a passage somewhere, by someone, that said, If you’re never in fashion, you can never go out of fashion—I think the GSA will prove to be of this ilk. Like GSs before it, the new GSA is doing things on its own terms—don’t whinge that it’s too big. The GSA is unashamedly large, just the way BMW intended it to be.
Now, even if you don’t like the bike’s looks or you’re just not sold on them yet, you cannot—and will not—be able to dispute the Bavarian machine’s abilities on or off-road because it’s quite brilliant.
The R 1300 GS was a leap forward over the 1250 GS, and as the R 1300 GS Adventure shares much of what makes the 1300 GS so good, it too is, in a word, bloody brilliant at what it’s meant to do—which is carry you down the highway in supreme comfort and allow you to discover places at the conclusion of all but the nastiest dirt road.
The sheer girth of the GSA means unrivalled protection from the elements, and there is not an adventure machine on the market that is going to keep you as warm and dry when the weather gets nasty.
Much of the expanse comes from the giant 30-litre fuel tank, which provides 11 more litres of go-juice than the standard GS. The 1300cc boxer twin is identical to the GS and offers the same 145 HP and 149 Nm of torque as its smaller sibling. The ShiftCam twin is shoehorned into the same pressed steel frame that replaces the tubular steel frame of the 1250.
This particular rig—a R 1300 GS Adventure in the Trophy X variant—is equipped with a quickshifter-infused six-speed manual gearbox, although for the first time, you can now buy a GS Adventure with an automatic gearbox—I’m looking forward to giving that a good thrashing at a later date.
Electronics-wise—well, if you can think of it and it’s available, then the GSA probably has it. From electronic suspension to adaptive cruise control to cornering ABS to hill hold control and everything in between. The GSA, like the GS, is a rolling tech-fest, and I simply don’t have the word count to list all the electronic fruit at the GSA’s disposal, let alone comment on it.
What I will pluck from the list of gizmos to comment on is the auto-adjust suspension that lowers the 870mm seat height as you are coming to a halt and the traction control system. The suspension bringing the seat down to a manageable level—especially on a bike with a claimed weight of 269 kg—is a massive boon for those who lack a bit of leg length or confidence.
I’ll call the traction control out for mention as well because it’s a testament to just how good Beemer’s system is that, unless you’re tackling really nasty off-road terrain, you don’t have to disable the traction control system. When it intrudes on your ride, it doesn’t do so aggressively or in a way that cuts the power so completely that you’re left perched on the side of a hill wondering if you’ll live to see the sunset.
And just like that, I’ve hit my word count.
The takeaways from my time with the GSA are this: it is a massive motorcycle, which is not an accident and not to the detriment of accomplishing its purpose in the world—and that is to get you from A to B in comfort while allowing you to take the road less travelled. The GSA is just screaming to be loaded up and pointed at the horizon—that’s what I wanted to do every time I looked at it.
Like the GS, its road-handling abilities are far higher than anyone who has never ridden a GS can appreciate—unless they have been carved up by a GS rider on their local twisty road. And despite its size, the GSA is far more capable off-road than a bike of this size has any right to be. Think you can’t punt the GS Adventure along a fire trail at speed? You are most incorrect, I’m afraid.
At over $33,000 for the base model, it isn’t cheap motoring, but no one can deny that you’re getting a huge amount of technology, reliability, and, well, motorcycle in general for your cash. It may not be the fastest adventure bike around, but is there a more iconic one? It may raise eyebrows now, but I think the GSA is destined to become a cult bike of epic proportions—pardon the pun!
