Power gain
+65bhp
80bhp R1100GS → 145bhp R1300GS. The boxer twin nearly doubled across 30 years while staying recognisably the same architecture. The 2019 R1250GS contributed 36bhp of that gain via ShiftCam variable valve timing.
Torque gain
+51Nm
98Nm → 149Nm. The GS has always been about torque, not horsepower. The R1250GS shown here makes 143Nm — basically the same as the new bike, courtesy of ShiftCam.
Weight gain
+28kg
209kg dry → 237kg wet. Direct comparison hard but the modern bike is roughly 20kg heavier than the 1996 — radar, electronics, emissions kit add up.
Skipped a generation
R1200GS LC
We jumped from Hexhead 2006 to ShiftCam 2019. In between sat the 2013-2018 R1200GS LC — the first liquid-cooled GS ("wethead"), the first with a colour TFT option, and the first with proper ride modes. Important bridge bike, slightly less interesting story.
Real cost change
+£0.7k
£8,000 in 1996 ≈ £16,000 today. The 2026 R1300GS base is £19,580. Modest premium — about 5% more in real terms — for adaptive cruise, radar, IMU electronics, and 65 more horsepower than the 1996.
Rider aids count
1 → 9
1996: ABS only (and that was optional). 2026: cornering ABS, traction, slide control, hill control, cruise, ride modes, ESA, hill-hold, blind spot detection.
Cheapest way in
£2.5k
A clean 1996 R1100GS today. The bike that built BMW's entire ADV empire — for less than a 125 commuter.
