REALLY? You guys liked that thing? I thought it was the biggest mistake BMW ever made. It came out shortly after the original Oilhead models (the R1100RS and R1100RT), but unlike those 95hp bikes, this 1200cc Oilhead only made a measly 61hp. That is one more horsepower than the antique, air-cooled, pushrod boxers before them, and they were only 1000cc.
The bike was actually introduced to the public on April 1, 1997 and a LOT of traditional BMW Riders swore it was an April Fool's Joke! The biggest joke was the R1200CL model. Same engine, but they added about 200 lbs of fiberglass in the form of a fairing, lowers, saddlebags and trunk. Rather than give it any more power, they added a sixth gear. You had to shift that thing like a madman to keep it at a steady speed on the highway. They eventually dropped both models from their line up and todays 1200cc boxer motors put out almost TWICE the horsepower that thing did.
