BMW Motorrad R 1200 RT 2005 Installation and maintenance manual

BMW Motorrad
Freude am Fahren
Rider's Manual (US Model)
R 1200 RT

Motorcycle/Retailer Data
Motorcycle data
Model
Vehicle identification number
Color number
First registration
Registration number
Retailer Data
Contact in Service
Ms./Mr.
Phone number
Retailer's 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.
Familiarize yourself with your
new motorcycle so that you
can ride it safely and confi-
dently in all traffic situations.
Please read this Rider's Man-
ual carefully before starting
to use your new BMW motor-
cycle. It contains important
information on how to oper-
ate the controls and how to
make the best possible use
of all your BMW's technical
features.
In addition, it contains infor-
mation on maintenance and
care to help you maintain your
motorcycle's reliability and
safety, as well as its value.
If you have any questions
concerning your motorcycle,
your authorized BMW motor-
cycle retailer will gladly pro-
vide advice and assistance.
We wish you many miles of
safe and enjoyable riding
BMW Motorrad.

Table of Contents
You can also use the index at
the end of this Rider's Manual
to find a specific topic.
1 General instructions . . . 5
Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Abbreviations and
symbols . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Technical data. . . . . . . . . . . . 7
Currency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2 Overviews . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
General view, left side . . . 11
General view, right
side. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
Underneath seat . . . . . . . . . 15
Left handlebar fitting . . . . . 16
Handlebar fitting, right . . . 17
Instrument cluster . . . . . . . 18
Headlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
3 Status indicators . . . . . 21
Multifunction display . . . . . 22
Warning and indicator
lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
ABS warning light . . . . . . . 23
Function indicators . . . . . . 23
General warning
indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
ABS warning
indicators . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
4 Operation . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37
Ignition switch and
steering lock . . . . . . . . . . . . 38
Electronic immobilizer
EWS.................... 39
Hazard warning
flashers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40
Odometer and
tripmeters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41
Clock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Multifunction display . . . . . 42
Onboard computerOE .... 43
Cruise controlOE ......... 46
Emergency ON/OFF
switch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48
Heated hand gripsOE ..... 49
Seat heatingOE .......... 49
Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Lights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52
Headlight . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54
Turn indicators . . . . . . . . . . 55
Storage compartment . . . . 56
Front and rear seats . . . . . 57
Helmet holder . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Mirrors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60
Windshield . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61
Spring preload . . . . . . . . . . 61
Shock absorbers . . . . . . . . 62
Electronic suspension
adjustment ESAOE ....... 63
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65
5 Riding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Safety instructions . . . . . . . 68
Checklist . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Starting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70
Starting off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72
Running in . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73
Parking your
motorcycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Refueling . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82
General brake system. . . . 83
Brake system with BMW
Integral ABS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84
6 Accessories . . . . . . . . . . 87
General instructions . . . . . 88
Onboard socket . . . . . . . . . 88
Luggage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91
Case. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92
TopcaseOA .............. 94
7 Maintenance . . . . . . . . . 97
General instructions . . . . . 98
Toolkit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98
Overview of toolkit . . . . . . . 98
Supplemental setOA ...... 98
Overview of supplemental
set...................... 99
Engine oil . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99
General brake
system . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100
Brake pads . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101
Brake fluid . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103
Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Tires . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Rims . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105
Wheels. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106
Front wheel stand . . . . . . 112
Lamps . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113
Jump starting . . . . . . . . . . 121
Battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122
8 Care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127
Care products . . . . . . . . . . 128
Washing your
motorcycle . . . . . . . . . . . . . 128
Cleaning sensitive
motorcycle parts . . . . . . . 129
Paint care . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Protective wax
coating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130
Storing motorcycle . . . . . 130
Returning motorcycle to
use .................... 131
9 Technical data . . . . . . . 133
Troubleshooting
chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134
Threaded fasteners . . . . . 135
Engine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 136
Riding specifications . . . . 138
Clutch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Transmission . . . . . . . . . . . 139
Rear-wheel drive . . . . . . . 140
Running gear . . . . . . . . . . . 140
Brakes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 141
Wheels and tires. . . . . . . . 142
Electrical system . . . . . . . 143
Frame. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Dimensions . . . . . . . . . . . . 145
Weights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146
10 Service . . . . . . . . . . . . . 147
BMW Motorrad
service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
BMW Motorrad service
quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148
BMW Motorrad Service
Card - On-the-spot
breakdown
assistance . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
BMW Motorrad service
network . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149
Maintenance work . . . . . . 149
Maintenance
schedules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150
Confirmation of
maintenance work . . . . . . 151

Confirmation of
service . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 156

General instructions
Overview. . ...................... 6
Abbreviations and symbols ...... 6
Equipment ...................... 7
Technical data . ................. 7
Currency . . ...................... 7
1
5
z General instructions

Overview
Chapter 2 of this Rider's Man-
ual will provide you with an
initial overview of your motor-
cycle. All maintenance and
repair work carried out on
your motorcycle will be doc-
umented in Chapter 10. For
generous treatment of claims
submitted after the warranty
period has expired, proof of
the maintenance performed is
essential.
Should you want to sell your
BMW one day, please also re-
member to turn over the Rid-
er's Manual to the new owner;
it is an important part of your
motorcycle.
Abbreviations and
symbols
Indicates warnings that
you must comply with for
reasons of your safety and the
safety of others, and to pro-
tect your motorcycle against
damage.
Special information on
operating and inspecting
your motorcycle as well as
maintenance and adjustment
procedures.
Indicates the end of an
item of information.
Instruction.
Result of an activity.
Reference to a page
with more detailed in-
formation.
OE Optional equipment
BMW equipment avail-
able only as a factory
installed option.
OA Optional accessories
BMW optional acces-
sories can be pur-
chased and retrofitted
at your authorized
BMW motorcycle re-
tailer.
EWS Electronic immobilizer.
DWA Anti-theft alarm.
ABS Anti-Lock Brake Sys-
tem.
ESA Electronic Suspension
Adjustment
Electronic suspension
adjustment.
1
6
z General instructions

Equipment
When you ordered your BMW
motorcycle, you chose vari-
ous items of custom equip-
ment. This Rider's Manual
describes optional equipment
(OE) offered by BMW and se-
lected optional accessories
(OA). This explains why the
manual may also contain de-
scriptions of equipment which
you have not ordered. Please
note, too, that your motorcy-
cle might not be exactly as
illustrated in this manual on
account of country-specific
differences.
If your BMW is equipped with
options or accessories not
described in this Rider's Man-
ual, then this equipment is
described in a separate oper-
ating manual.
Technical data
All dimensions, weights and
performance specifications
in the Rider's Manual refer
to the standards of the
Deutsche Institut für Normung
e.V. (DIN) and comply with
its tolerance specifications.
Versions for individual
countries may differ.
Currency
The high safety and quality
standards of BMW motorcy-
cles are maintained by con-
stant development work on
designs, equipment and ac-
cessories. Because of this,
your motorcycle may differ
from the information supplied
in the Rider's Manual. BMW
Motorrad is also unable to en-
sure that no errors occur. We
hope you will appreciate that
no claims can be entertained
on the basis of the data, illus-
trations or descriptions in this
manual. 1
7
z General instructions

1
8
z General instructions

Overviews
General view, left side ......... 11
General view, right side ........ 13
Underneath seat .............. 15
Left handlebar fitting . . ......... 16
Handlebar fitting, right ......... 17
Instrument cluster ............. 18
Headlight . .................... 19
2
9
z Overviews

2
10
z Overviews

General view, left side
1Headlight adjustment
(vertical) beneath instru-
ment panel ( 54)
2Brake-fluid reservoir
( 103)
3Radio operating unit (OE)
4Onboard socket ( 88)
5Onboard socket (OE)
( 88)
6Adjuster, rear shock ab-
sorber ( 62)
7Oil sight glass ( 99)
8Filler neck, engine oil
( 100)
2
11
z Overviews

2
12
z Overviews

General view, right
side
1Seat lock ( 57)
2Switch for passenger
seat heating (OE) under
passenger seat ( 50)
3Mounting for tank ruck-
sack (OA)
4Filler neck, fuel tank
( 82)
5Front clutch fluid reser-
voir
6Electrically adjustable
windshield ( 61)
7Storage or radio com-
partment ( 56)
2
13
z Overviews

2
14
z Overviews

Underneath seat
1Height adjuster, front
seat ( 58)
2Battery ( 122)
3Brake-fluid reservoir, rear
( 104)
4Adjuster, spring preload,
rear ( 61)
5Toolkit ( 98)
6Type plate
7Helmet holder ( 60)
8Table of tire pressures
9Label, payload
2
15
z Overviews

Left handlebar fitting
1Switch for cruise control
(OE) ( 46)
2Radio operating unit (OE)
3ESA button (OE) ( 63)
4Button for windshield ad-
justment ( 61)
5Horn button
6Button for left turn indi-
cator and hazard warning
flashers ( 55) ( 40)
7Switch, high-beam head-
light and headlight flash-
er ( 53)
2
16
z Overviews

Handlebar fitting, right
1Onboard computer but-
ton (OE) ( 43)
2Emergency ON/OFF
switch ( 48)
3Starter button
4with OE Heated handle-
bar grips:
Heated hand grips
( 49)
5Button for right turn indi-
cator and hazard warning
flashers ( 55) ( 40)
6Turn indicators off button
( 56)
7Switch for driver's seat
heating ( 50)
2
17
z Overviews

Instrument cluster
1Speedometer
2Warning and indicator
lights ( 23)
3Multifunction display
4Rev. counter
5Anti-theft alarm indicator
light
6Setting for clock and
display dimming ( 42)
( 42)
7Control, odometer ( 41)
8Sensor for lighting of in-
strument panel
The instrument-cluster
lighting has automatic
day and night switchover.
2
18
z Overviews