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So the stage was set when the CX was stolen while on holiday in France for a Germanic replacement. I ended up with the two year old R100RS when I was 24 - on the young side for a BMW rider then & at £2800 a big chunk of cash at a time I was making around £8k gross. And it promptly let me down in Switzerland a month later ! The spline in the clutch fricton plate stripped. The cause was actually a faulty gearbox input shaft that caused the friction plate spline to wear excessively until it failed. When I got back to the UK (replacment clutch fitted in Switzerland) & broached to subject with Allen Jefferies, Tony Jefferies got a complete replacement gearbox & another clutch plate from BMW despite the warranty being expired, as there had been a number of gearboxes that had improperly hardened input shafts.
At the time - when I had figured out how to ride it - ( don't chop the throttle mid bend !) - it was probably one of the best long distance bikes available & allowed me (with Mrs B & a load of camping gear on the back) to get further, faster & more comfortably than anything I had had previously. But it was quite labour intensive to keep "on song" and some aspects were below par for what was a premium price product - short silencer life (innards rotted out - Keihans sorted that for a price), regular fork seals, collapsing seat foam come to mind + it was thirsty at around 42 mpg average - it did get worked hard, though !.
Looking back it wasn't so much what it did but the way that it did it that made it more "usable" than the more sophisticated Japanese competitors. At the time it seemed a step above, but I don't think the model has aged particularly well & they just feel a bit "of their time" to me now - the world has moved on.
I'm not suprised that you found the late model RT screen buffeted you. For reasons I am unaware of, BMW reduced the height of the RT screen in later years from the initial models. My '84 RT had such a lower screen fitted when I bought it, as the original higher item had been replaced after the bike had been knocked over in a "pack of cards" car park incident at a BMC Club meet. The screen got scuffed by another bikes handlebars & was replaced by insurance, but with the lower item as BMW had discontinued the original by then, This happened to the chap I bought the bike off, but he had got the original scuffed screen (along with the other damaged parts) from the dealer after the repair was done & included it in the sale. I disliked the low screen due to the buffeting (and I am only 5' 9" ), so polished out the scuff on the original & refitted that - no buffeting then.
The subect of declining BMW quality has been being aired since before I got mine - owners of the /2s reckoned that the /5s were not a patch on the earlier bikes & so it has been ever since ! BMW do seem to have plumbed new depths with the latest R1300GS though - a life-limited drive shaft. Mandatory replacement of the driveshaft at the customer's expense (around €900 for the part + fitting according to Motorrad) at 80K kilometers !
I won't be getting another 4 cylinder bike either - it took ownership of 4 different models (CB550F1, K100RT, GSX1100F & XJ900F) before the penny dropped that it wasn't any of the individual bikes that was the problem for me, it was the engine layout. Much prefer a torquey twin or single to a buzzy inline four any day - though I did enjoy riding my late friend Brian's VFR750 (the last of the twin sided swing arm models).
The GSX put me into the Brickboy length ownership arena - 6 days ! I bought it SH from Carnells Doncaster, who did not offer test rides but did offer a "no quibble" exchange within 7 days or 300 miles (IIRC). The only memorable thing about the bike was that it was the fastest I have ridden (155 indicated & still accelerating at the point I shut off) - otherwise I just hated pretty much everything it did & the way it did it. Only trouble with the exchange policy was that Carnells would not return your money or "undo" the deal (they wanted £1K for me to get my Guzzi back) just allowed what you had in the deal against another bike. This turned out to be a 2 year 2000 mile old "as new" XJ900F that I had to chip in another £200 for - that did at least get down into Italy & did the Stella Alpina, but got sold on in less than a year.
Nigel B.
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