BMW R 1250 GS versus Ducati Multistrada 1260
BMW R 1250 GS
Ducati Multistrada 1260
Year of construction / RRP / Test report
Competitors
- Motor, powerful and willing to rev
- Resale value (as seller)
- Chassis
- Processing
- Performance
- Powerful engine
- Precise chassis
- Windbreak
- Comfort
- Service
- Price (especially for extras)
- Resale value (as buyer)
- Seat
- Nothing to get at low speed
- Off-road capability
Dimensions & Weight
Length : 2.207 mm Height : 1.430 mm
Seat : 850 mm
Weight : 249 (max: 465 ) kg
Length : 2.190 mm Height : 1.495 mm
Seat : 825 mm
Weight : 232 (max: 450 ) kg
Engine
Displacement: 1.254 ccm
Hub: 76 mm
Hole: 102 mm
Cooling: wassergekühlt
Drive: Kardan
Aisles: 6
Displacement: 1.261 ccm
Hub: 72 mm
Hole: 106 mm
Cooling: Flüssig
Drive: Kette
Aisles: 6
Performance
Performance: 136 HP at 7.750 U/Min
Torque: 143 NM bei 6.250 U/Min Tank contents: 20 Litre
Consumption: 5 l
Reach: 400 km
Performance: 158 HP at 9.500 U/Min
Torque: 130 NM bei 7.500 U/Min Tank contents: 20 Litre
Consumption: 6 l
Reach: 350 km
Chassis
Two-part framework Front suspension:
Telelever 37cm (travel 190 mm) Rear suspension:
WAD mono strut with paralever (travel 200 mm)
Rear suspension:
Aluminum cast single-arm swingarm Tyres at the front: 120/70 R19
Rear tyres: 170/60 R17
Tubular space frame (steel) Front suspension:
Upside-down telescopic fork (travel 170 mm) Rear suspension:
Adjustable central strut (travel 170 mm)
Rear suspension:
Single-arm swingarm made of aluminium Tyres at the front: Width: 120 mm, 17 inches
Rear tyres: Width:190 mm, 17 inches
Brakes
Double disc, 4-piston radial brake calipers (∅ 305 mm) Rear brake
Single disc brake, double piston floating caliper (∅ 276 mm)
Double disc (∅ 320 mm) Rear brake
Single disc (∅ 265 mm)
One motorcycle, two opinions
And now, with so much light and so little shadow? Buy or not? Dietmar says it's too expensive for him (@Dietmar: Now among us, you won't have two years, at the latest then you've used it). ;) Otherwise, he is enthusiastic about what you can be, for all his objectivity. In any case, the recent revision would be reason enough to pay for the old model.Of course, I see it differently. The price is an argument at first glance, and BMW is struggling, especially with the extras. But the competition from Ducati or KTM is not much cheaper, so again this does not attract. First of all, it is too big for me, with my slightly short legs I don't even come up reasonably. Apart from that, the GS is just too perfect for me. I like it when my moped has to work, when I actively lead it and always come back a bit strenuous.
If someone told me that I had overlooked the fact that the BMW would have been driving autonomously all the time during the test - I would believe that.
Our thanks to Bergmann and Söhne for the loan of the BMW.
The Multi is at a crossroads
One has to pay the highest praise to the Ducati engineers that one hardly notices these extra pounds. And yet the multi is at a crossroads. The whole electrics are not only for safety because of the bearish engine, it must be to make the heavy vehicle manageable. The most striking example of this is the electronic parking brake. At the push of a button, the rear brake can be activated to pin the Duc to a hill for a start, thus facilitating uphill start-ups. The Multistrada 1260 S has nice but completely unnecessary things like the backlit switches on board. Impossible for serious use off-road would be the delicate blinkers in the hand protectors, which lead their meaning ad absurdum.
Ducati actually has the most sporty adventure bike in the range with the Multistrada 1260 S, because the competition from BMW or Triumph can't keep up (and probably won't). With her rousing style she won many friends in the Test team and gave us a lot of fun.
On the other hand, it is comfortable enough for the long tour, great to use and well crafted. That she can't get into the terrain – as a gift, she would only lie down next to all the other adventure bikes that were sunk by her riders there in a nod to reality.
The test bike was provided to us by Ducati-Hamburg.
