1150R - whizzy brakes, what years?

[psychocandy]

Hey all, I intro'd myself recently in that sub as I'm new to the forum.

 

I'm considering moving up from an SV650 to an 1150R. A friend of mine is a big beemer fan & was trying to convince me to get a GS. But I don't really tour or go off road. Still, after test riding his, i am starting to get the appeal of a bigger bike -- which I've never truly cared much for before. But now I sorta get it.

 

I know 1150s are getting a bit long in the tooth, but I'm looking at them because they do sorta seem in the sweet spot for me as far as price, while also still being a fairly modern bike. Looking at the R model mostly for aesthetics. I don't want a heavy plastic sheathed touring bike. I understand the charm of the weird GS cockpit, but it's not my thing. Plus, I do like tinkering with my bikes. The 1150R seems to go for a little less as they seem less popular. All the better for me.

 

One thing about the 1150 though, I really really really don't want whizzy servo brakes. I found an 1150R that was in good shape, good price (might've sold already) but the seller had no idea if it had the servo brakes or not. I even asked him if it made a whirring noise when he started it up or hit the brakes and he said: "Sorry, don't know. Really not a bike guy." OK, seems crazy to me, but some people never work on their bikes and just ride them, then take them to the shop sometimes. Crazy, innit?

 

Since I'm in no rush, I'm willing to cast a pretty wide net. But I don't want to drive like 100 miles or more with cash in hand to find out that a bike has the one thing that would make it a hard pass for me. Hell, I don't wanna drive 20 miles to figure that out. I have done my due diligence searching various resources, but can't seem to get a straight answer re: whizzy brakes on an 1150 R. Does anyone know:

• What years did the 1150R come with whizzy brakes?
• Did ALL R models come with whizzy brakes? Or was it an option?
• Is there a way to tell, generally from mediocre craigslist pics that often aren't super detailed or very large, whether an bike has the whizzy brakes or not? I've heard that the ABS ring on whizzy brake bikes differs slightly from non-whizzy brake bikes, but a lot of craiglist pics don't really have enough detail to use that as an identifier.

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[9Mary7]

IIRC.......If it's an 1150 and has ABS, they're Whizzy............. First 2 years (05,06) of the 1200 also had them.

I had an 05 1200 that was not equipped with ABS.... and had fantastic manual (normal) brakes. 

If you gotta have an 1150 your only option is to remove the servo system. Unless you find one w/out abs.

OR you could go with a late 1100 (98-01) or a 2007 and up 1200.

I never liked my 1150, the servo brakes were only one of the reasons.......

[dirtrider]

18 hours ago, psychocandy said:

Hey all, I intro'd myself recently in that sub as I'm new to the forum.

 

I'm considering moving up from an SV650 to an 1150R. A friend of mine is a big beemer fan & was trying to convince me to get a GS. But I don't really tour or go off road. Still, after test riding his, i am starting to get the appeal of a bigger bike -- which I've never truly cared much for before. But now I sorta get it.

 

I know 1150s are getting a bit long in the tooth, but I'm looking at them because they do sorta seem in the sweet spot for me as far as price, while also still being a fairly modern bike. Looking at the R model mostly for aesthetics. I don't want a heavy plastic sheathed touring bike. I understand the charm of the weird GS cockpit, but it's not my thing. Plus, I do like tinkering with my bikes. The 1150R seems to go for a little less as they seem less popular. All the better for me.

 

One thing about the 1150 though, I really really really don't want whizzy servo brakes. I found an 1150R that was in good shape, good price (might've sold already) but the seller had no idea if it had the servo brakes or not. I even asked him if it made a whirring noise when he started it up or hit the brakes and he said: "Sorry, don't know. Really not a bike guy." OK, seems crazy to me, but some people never work on their bikes and just ride them, then take them to the shop sometimes. Crazy, innit?

 

Since I'm in no rush, I'm willing to cast a pretty wide net. But I don't want to drive like 100 miles or more with cash in hand to find out that a bike has the one thing that would make it a hard pass for me. Hell, I don't wanna drive 20 miles to figure that out. I have done my due diligence searching various resources, but can't seem to get a straight answer re: whizzy brakes on an 1150 R. Does anyone know:

• What years did the 1150R come with whizzy brakes?
• Did ALL R models come with whizzy brakes? Or was it an option?
• Is there a way to tell, generally from mediocre craigslist pics that often aren't super detailed or very large, whether an bike has the whizzy brakes or not? I've heard that the ABS ring on whizzy brake bikes differs slightly from non-whizzy brake bikes, but a lot of craiglist pics don't really have enough detail to use that as an identifier.

 

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Morning  psychocandy

 

 

Your won't find a factory BMW 1150RT that came without factory ABS, supposedly some 1150R bikes were available without factory ABS, your best bet to find an 1150 without ABS is on the 1150GS motorcycles. 

 

Some have had the ABS system removed by the rider so there are probably some 1150R bikes with removed ABS on the market. 

 

Look at the L/H side of the front wheel, if no ABS there should be no ABS speed sensor & no toothed tone ring on the wheel bolted to the rotor bolts. 

 

Your best bet is to just ask the seller.  

 

 

[Skywagon]

If you can, post a picture as DR said of the left hand side of the front wheel

 

Is the seller the owner who has been riding it for years or just someone who is buying/selling it recently

 

If he has been the rider, hard to imagine he wouldn’t know if whizzy brakes or not. The noise of the servos at idle is obvious.  If it has ABS and hasn’t been serviced properly through the years, it would just be a matter of time before the servo unit fails. If it fails brakes go to very hard to use. Choice then is to replace the ABS unit which is very expensive or remove it which is a big project

 

If you like the bike, I would find out for sure. If yes on whizzy then you need to see the service records

[szurszewski]

1 hour ago, Skywagon said:

Choice then is to replace the ABS unit which is very expensive or remove it which is a big project

I wouldn’t call this a big project. 
 

For that reason, @psychocandy , if you really like the 1150R, and you don’t mind not having ABS, I would say find the 1150 you want and if it DOES have the servo brakes, you can just convert it to manual/non abs brakes. You might also get lucky and find one that came that way from the factory or that a previous owner has already converted. 
 

I agree that the r1150r is a good bike to get at this point. It’s capable of touring but also great for just day rides and such. I think they are also a really good value lately. 

[psychocandy]

17 hours ago, 9Mary7 said:

IIRC.......If it's an 1150 and has ABS, they're Whizzy............. First 2 years (05,06) of the 1200 also had them.

I had an 05 1200 that was not equipped with ABS.... and had fantastic manual (normal) brakes. 

If you gotta have an 1150 your only option is to remove the servo system. Unless you find one w/out abs.

OR you could go with a late 1100 (98-01) or a 2007 and up 1200.

I never liked my 1150, the servo brakes were only one of the reasons.......

 

What didn't you like about the 1150 vs. the 1100? My friend that is trying to get me to join the BMW fold is a MC tech. He thinks I should get a 1200, but he seems to think I have more money to spend on a bike than I actually do, lol. I asked about the 100 vs. 1150 and he just laughed when I said 1100. Followed by "don't get an 1100." Aside from the whizzy brakes, the 1150 has 6 gears, are generally a few years newer. Aside from the "feel," which can't really be quantified, what about the 1150 don't you like vs. the 1100?

[Dave P]

Candy- Here's my 2c, I chose an 1100 RT about  8 years ago. It's a 5 speed not a 6 like the 1150 and 1200, but everything else about the 1100 I like. Even the styling. No linked (whizzy) brakes.I can service my brakes myself. I feel that the 1150 started really getting computer controlled and I guess I like the fact that my 1100 is not. I feel like I can work on it myself, and have since 2013. She's a good, reliable bike with 128k on the clock.  Maybe your mechanic buddy laughed at the idea of an 1100 cause he likes all of the technology. The 1100 maybe isn't as fast as the newer bikes, but it's plenty fast enough for me. Yeah and I didn't have 12 grand to drop on a bike either. I think the 1100s "dont get no respect" well I like my 1100RT just fine, thank you. You could buy one for 3000, ride it for 5 years and sell it for 2900...ok I'll stop now. Dave

[9Mary7]

17 hours ago, psychocandy said:

what about the 1150 don't you like vs. the 1100?

In addition to the ridiculous power brake system, the six speed transmission has a large ratio change from 5th to 6th which doesn't really make 6th usable unless you're traveling over 70. So in daily use you never use 6th unless you are lugging the motor which some say causes the transmission input shaft failure. Which brings me to that issue, well documented here and elsewhere which has spawned the aftermarket modified clutch disc in an attempt to mitigate a trans mis-alignment issue.

Finally, the 1150 power increase over the 1100 is negligible in daily use and I feel is offset by the far more usable gear ratios in the 1100's 5 speed trans. 

14 hours ago, Dave P said:

You could buy one for 3000, ride it for 5 years and sell it for 2900...

Another reason why folks on a tighter budget should be looking at the 1100. 

The jump to the hexhead 1200 is a large step and worth saving up for, substantially less weight and much improved 6 speed as well as noticeable power bump. The handling is sharper as well with no spacer needed to shim the rear wheel.

Enjoy the chase for what ever you chose!!

[psychocandy]

On 8/31/2021 at 2:48 PM, Dave P said:

Even the styling. No linked (whizzy) brakes.I can service my brakes myself. I feel that the 1150 started really getting computer controlled and I guess I like the fact that my 1100 is not. ...  Maybe your mechanic buddy laughed at the idea of an 1100 cause he likes all of the technology.

 

Well, TBH, an RT is never gonna be my style, so there's that.

My mechanic friend is an old school guy that grew up on 2 stroke Vespas and fixing old bikes, incl. airhead beemers. He's fine with tech, but his primary ride for yeeears was a KLX.

 

One thing about the 1100R vs. the 1150R, it looks like the 1150 uses actual handlebars. Whereas the 1100 use those "half" bar type bars that bolt into the top triple. I like to mod my bike and I often start with bars. So, 1100 is probably gonna be a hard pass no matter what bc I'm not interested in dropping a lot of cash on a triple tree conversion.

[szurszewski]

You are correct about the bars, but you can buy a kit to mount a 22mm bar for about $150. 
 

https://www.unitgarage.com/lower_riser_handlebar

 

and there are other options as well. 
 

I’m not trying to sway you toward an 1100, but just posting this to show it’s not too spendy or complex to swap in bars.