BMW R NineT Urban GS - Owner's Journal
- Alex Johnson
- Apr 23
- 39 min read
Updated: Jun 12
Last Updated: April 2025
My forever bike? As I continue to live with the R NineT Urban GS I'll share my thoughts on it including modifications I've made, luggage and any issues I've had.
Model: 2022 BMW RNineT Urban GS - aka "Sterling" (Purchased May 2023 with 500 miles)
Current Mileage: 8300 Miles (April 2025)
Glen Quaich, Scotland - October 2023 - The morning after Storm Babet calmed down
Contents
News Updates / Latest Thoughts
April 2025 (2 Year Ownership Update)
Having met up for coffee with a fellow Urban GS owner Rich who lives near me in Bath, I decided it was time to update this article. I'm approaching 2 years of happy ownership now and still have no intention of ever selling my Urban GS and tell any biker looking for a new bike to buy one. Since my last update a year ago BMW have brought would the R12 NineT and have also recently announced the new R12 GS which looks stunning and allows for some off-roading. I have no intention of switching to any newer model as I don't see any benefits - the seat height will be too low for me on all the models except the new R12 GS and the R12 GS will likely not handle as well due to the larger 21 inch front wheel and much greater suspension travel. I like that a tyre pressure monitor has been added, there's a fuel gauge (I think) but I think BMW have missed a trick here by not having designed it with a luggage system in mind. If you look on social media, it's very common for Urban GS owners to go touring on their bikes. Imagine if BMW had provided VARIO luggage mount points, so lockable panniers can be mounted without the annoying frames. They could have styled these panniers to look more retro too. Sure they'd be useless off road but actual off road riders would be using soft luggage anyway. A luggage system like this would have made me upgrade to the new model.
It's clever what BMW have done with the new R12 lineup though - you can create the racer by adding a nose cone to the R12 NineT for example. They've still left a gap in their range though as there's no taller seated model with a 19 inch front wheel like the old Urban GS and Scrambler. So now either you get a lower sportier/cruiser model or else an off road orientated R12 GS model. They may yet still bring out a scrambler model with a 19 inch front and road suspension as I would imagine that was the most popular bike in the range.
If I didn't have my Urban GS currently, I was looking at getting a bike and I was only allowed one bike what would I get? In that case I'd get the new R12 GS as it's essentially a retro adventure bike. I would want to be able to ride some easy gravel trails in Spain etc even though it's a heavy and expensive bike to drop. If I could have 2 bikes then I would buy the 2023 Urban GS or Scrambler and get a lightweight ADV bike for adventure travel. I'm currently planning on buying the new BMW 450GS to sit alongside my Urban GS for when I want to go trail riding. I'll still keep the CRF300L as it's not worth selling and there's certain trips that might call for more off road ability.
My Urban GS and my CRF300L continue to be the only transport in my household (my wife doesn't ride either). As I live in Bath city I don't really need transport so I walk or get the train a lot. In the last year I've only clocked up around 3000 miles on my Urban GS, while I probably did 5000 miles in the first few months of ownership. This is mostly due to all my big trips last year being on other bikes - 6 weeks trail riding in Spain, Portugal and France on my CRF300L and a week trail riding on a rental bike in the Atlas Mountains in Morocco. My Urban GS has mainly been used for trips back to Ireland through the fantastic roads in Wales. On one of these trips to Ireland I took my wife on the back after installing some Wunderlich lower passenger footpegs which made a huge difference when combined with a duffle bag on the rear rack to lean against. She's happier on the bike now with the lowered pegs so she joins me more on day trips.
The only other modification I've made in the last year was to install a Wunderlich R9T Series DIN Socket Kit as my battery kept on dying due to the tracker system, so now I can use an Optimate trickle charger to prevent this. As I've no power in my garage I needed to buy a rechargeable power station to use with it too.
But after two years with the bike, what changes do I still want to make?
Shortly I'll be changing the looks to the front of the bike. As my bike has the hand welded aluminium tank and a brown seat and high exhaust, I feel like 3/4's of the bike looks retro scrambler and the front doesn't match this look which has been annoying me since the start. To address this I'm going to remove the white parts (front fender and headlight cowl) and buy an aluminium Unit Garage high front fender (which also lowers the headlight to the same position as the other models). This might also make the bike handle better on the motorway and in the wind where in the past it's felt like the high front fender was catching the wind. I'm then going to install a yellow Unit Garage Screen with GPS Support (note you need the scrambler/pure version if using with the Unit Garage high front fender due to the lowered headlight). I mostly use the bike for touring so I've decided I need a screen to help with fatigue. After doing research the Unit Garage screen seems to be the best option in terms of looks and practicality - good wind protection and a place to mount my phone more at eye line for navigation and reading my speed. I'm opting for the controversial yellow as I plan to install some yellow auxiliary lights at some point and it'll look a bit different. Will it still look like an Urban GS? No, but the new high fender and screen is hopefully it will have a nod to its past.
Next changes - Unit Garage high front fender and screen
The main thing I still miss about my F750GS is the lockable storage provided by the hard panniers and topbox. As my UGS is essentially my touring bike and car, I miss being able use it for doing a weekly shop or being able to walk off for a few hours while touring without worrying about all my soft luggage insecurely just strapped to the bike. I'd like to be able to take my camera gear and laptop with me without having to worry every time I go into a petrol station or coffee shop. This is the last piece of the puzzle I need to solve and then I think this is the perfect bike for me for all my uses. I don't like the idea of pannier racks permanently mounted to the frame though and I'd want the ability to be able to just jump on the bike and head off for the weekend or back to Ireland on a moments notice. It may well be that a top box is the answer as I already have the rear rack for one, I'd at least have some lockable storage then and it would greatly benefit my wife when she's on the bike. But ugh, top boxes are so ugly and the Unit Garage one for my rack is bulky and expensive.
In terms of trips on the Urban GS this year, hopefully at the very least I'm going to ride it down to Bavaria to attend the BMW Motorrad Days festival and then explore the Alps. On the way down I'll visit the French wine regions of Champagne and Alsace, and on the way back I'll visit various German wine regions such as the Mosel.
Why I Bought the R NineT Urban GS
In Spring 2023 I sold my BMW F750GS. While it was a great bike that did what I needed, it had no soul and riding it was starting to feel like a chore rather than a pleasure. The F750GS was for all intents and purposes the family car at a time when I was living in rural Surrey and it needed to do the weekly shop and even bring home a Christmas tree. Moving to central Bath however meant my wife could find her own way about and I could look at more impractical bikes that could also be used for touring duty.
I always loved the look of the RNineT. In Autumn 2020, I was drinking a beer outside a bar in Chamonix when 2 bikers on BMWs parked up, one on an RNineT. At this time I'd been off bikes for 9 years and at that moment I swore I'd get back into biking and next time I was in Chamonix I'd be riding an RNineT. I would later make that trip to Chamonix in July 2023 on my RNineT.
Having researched bikes for months I reduced my choices to 3 bikes - the BMW F900XR, the RNineT Scrambler and the Triumph Scrambler 1200. After test riding each of these bikes a few times with/without my wife on the back I still couldn't decide, they're all great bikes.
The F900XR was the more practical option, it handles very well and would be the better touring option, especially if my wife was coming, but I fancied something retro and it essentially has the same engine as my 750GS.
I thought the Triumph scrambler could work well as a retro adventure bike but its handling is compromised by 21" front wheel, tall suspension and dual shocks. It also gave a lot of heat off the engine and high exhaust and my wife found the peg position really uncomfortable. It was a lovely bike but ultimately I would only have gone for this bike over the RNineT if it been great with a pillion.
That left the RNineT, the least practical of the 3 but the one I loved the most. I'm not the best of riders but I found the handling amazing and it gave me so much confidence in the corners. It carries its weight really well and has a lot of character with the boxer engine. I test rode the Urban GS, Scrambler and the roadster/classic, but as I'm 6'2 I knew I'd need to get the Urban GS or the Scrambler with the tall seat to suit my height. The Urban and the Scrambler were very similar to ride but the Classic was wildly different. The Classic handled a bit better, had a more aggressive throttle and riding position but it was truly awful to ride on bad Surrey roads with its rock hard suspension.
My preference would have been to get the scrambler, as I prefer that look, but having looked around I found a demo model Urban GS with the hand welded aluminium tank for sale in my local BMW dealer so I went in to buy it. When I arrived it was out on a test ride by a chap who owned a Kawasaki 900RS (another bike I considered). He came back singing the praises of the RNineT and said he was going to buy one. At that point I ran into the dealer to get it before it was gone and after a bit of haggling I was the proud owner of an RNineT!
Living with the RNineT
The first thing to say is that I absolutely love this bike, it's the best bike I've ever ridden and I can't ever see myself selling it. It just makes me smile every time I ride it and I just love how it looks.
So far I've mostly been using the bike for touring which has been very useful to highlight potential improvements for the bike as I've ridden it for various durations and through very different road and weather conditions.
Ergonomics / Tall Rider Comfort
I see the question asked a lot on Facebook and various forums as to whether this bike is suitable for taller riders. I'm 6'2"+ with a 34" inseam and I find it really comfortable. The RNineT classic/roadster and the Pure models will not work for a taller rider as their seat height is 805mm and the riding position is sportier which makes you feel very cramped. I had a loan of the classic/roadster for a week and I found it awful. The Urban GS has a considerably higher 850mm seat height and higher bars which makes it feel more like riding an adventure bike. In fact my previous bike (F750GS) only had a seat height of 815mm so I'm strangely more comfortable on the Urban GS. The Scrambler model as stock has a 820mm seat height but you can get a higher seat for it and it does have the higher bars also. I've ridden the Scrambler also and it'll work for a taller rider.
I haven't needed to make an ergonomic changes yet. I do start feeling it in the knees and hips if I'm riding all day so I would consider getting some lower/adjustable pegs which might help a bit, these ION lower footpegs or EVO adjustable footpegs from SW Motech look like good options and increase the foot area also.
The tank on the RNineT is very long so you do feel like you have to stretch a bit to get to the bars. In fact in the new 2024 R12 Nine T they've shortened the tank to fix this. Some people replace the bars on the RNineT to ones that sweep back a bit more to get around this. I'd imagine if you're a shorter rider this has the potential to be uncomfortable but I've a long torso so it works for me. The shape of the tank isn't very conducive to gripping onto it either so if your riding through very twisty roads it's hard to get any grip with your knees. It feels like you're sitting on the bike rather than in it. Under acceleration it's easy to start sliding back in the seat, especially with my Unit Garage Biposto seat.
Motorway Riding
While I try to avoid this where possible, sometimes you just need to get places quickly or the non motorway alternative is a never ending boring straight road and not worth the delay (I'm looking at you Northern France). This bike is obviously a naked bike with very little in the way of wind protection so it's not going to be pleasant on the motorway. I've found 60-65mph is about the max speed that you can ride along comfortably. Every 5mph above that the experience feels exponentially worse but you do learn to live with it but it's tiring. The UK motorways aren't that bad with a limit of 70mph but in France it's 80mph and you absolutely feel that extra 10mph, it's very unpleasant. After a few hours riding at 80mph on French motorways and then you return to British motorways you feel like you're on a spa day. One point of note is that the high front fender seems to upset the bike a bit at speed or when overtaking trucks, I'd a few scary moments where the turbulence caught it so I'm thinking of removing it.
You could make the bike more comfortable by adding various aftermarket windscreens but I think it's fair to say that they ruin the look of the bike. I think the least obtrusive looking one especially if you keep the headlight cowl is the Wunderlich BMW R9T Urban GS Windscreen but I've read that it doesn't offer much wind protection and causes a lot of turbulence. The best solution and indeed the one I'm going to implement is the Unit Garage Windshield with GPS Support as it strikes a balance between looks and practicality, and you can also get a XL version with more coverage. The XL screen itself can be bought separately so you could switch between the smaller and larger screens as needed. I swore I wouldn't install a screen, but after one long day's ride from Dublin to Bath, where I nearly had an accident partially due to fatigue (the other being an idiot in a car overtaking me at 120 mph), I decided a screen would be a good idea to reduce fatigue and have a higher place to mount my phone for navigation (and to see my current speed). As I mostly go touring on my Urban GS it seems sensible to bias it a bit more for that than trips to coffee shops.
The Wunderlich and Unit Garage screens respectively
Riding With A Pillion
First, a bit of background on my circumstances. Myself and my wife are both tall and skinny, we both have 34" inseams so are both long in the leg. We don't own a car so if we want to go somewhere it has to be by bike, public transport, taxi or rental car. My wife frequently went on the back of my last bike (750GS with top box and panniers) which was roomy and had a top box as a back rest for her. Often we'd go off for the day on the bike and the odd time we'd go moto-camping or a trip home to Ireland (from the UK). When I owned the 750GS we lived in a tiny village in Surrey with an hour+ walk to the nearest town so I definitely needed to be able to carry my wife on the bike. We then decided to move to central Bath city so I was able to make the selfish decision to buy a "me" bike rather than a "we" bike so I got the Urban GS.
I had optimistically hoped that with the Urban GS we could carry on like the good old times but with maybe a few compromises but very quickly we realised the stock Urban GS wasn't going to work for anything other than short rides. Things might be easier if your both petite Italians but for taller and/or larger rider and pillion you're going to have issues. If you have the Classic or Pure models then things will be even worse as you'll be more cramped, the suspension will be more harsh and the riding position is more sporty so if the passenger has to hold on to the rider they'll probably get more weight transfer to their arms.
In 2024 I took my wife back to Ireland on the bike and I tweaked the settings on the rear shock, installed lower passenger footrests and had a duffle bag on the luggage rack my wife could lean against. This combination of changes made a huge difference and I'm confident we could happily do multi day trips together going forward.
Pillion Issues To Address:
1. Holding On On a stock bike all there is to hold onto is the leather strap on the seat which is hard to get at as you're so cramped and I wouldn't bet my life on it no snapping. From day one I had the Unit Garage Passenger Grip Rail installed. My wife found this useless to hold onto as it was hard to contort her arms to hold it and it was hard to grip with gloves on (it is great for mounting luggage to and very lightweight however).
Unit Garage Passenger Grip
As the bike has a bench style seat it's very easy for the passenger to slide backwards and then off the back of the bike so the only option for holding on is to hold on firmly to the rider's waist. This isn't very practical if riding any sort of distance although there is the benefit of the pillion being able to see more and what we call "bike cuddles".
2. Comfort
The stock passenger pegs are very high so my wife finds with her long legs it quickly hurts her knees as they're cramped and her knees are up high. There's two things I can now confirm will help with this.
Firstly you can buy lower passenger pegs, the pricey Wunderlich passenger footpeg lowering kit lowers the passenger pegs by 45mm. I added these in 2024 before taking my wife from UK to Ireland and it made a huge difference. Note while they are sold as black, they do look more like a Navy colour which doesn't match the frame and you'll need to add some Loctite Threadlocker and one of the screws fell off and got lost on its maiden voyage.
Secondly you could add a top box or tail luggage. On our trip to Ireland we had a 40l duffel bag on the large tail rack and my wife was much happier and comfortable with it as a back rest. She could also sit further back which meant here knees weren't as bent and hold on to me more loosely so she was more relaxed. If you don't need luggage then unfortunately you're looking at a topbox. Yes they look horrible and the Unit Garge one is silly money but it solves a problem and you now have some lockable storage. The only real all in one top box solution comes from Unit Garage. I've already purchased the Unit Garage Top Box Rack (heavy and expensive) which opens up a number of options - to mount a top box, to add a duffel bag when a pillion is on the bike or to generally carry extra luggage. This is however a very expensive solution at £660 for the Unit Garage Top Box and Rack (even more if you buy the rack and box separately). They also do a back rest for the top box for extra comfort.
If you want a different top box you could try mounting the Givi universal mount and then buying something like the Givi 30l Dolomiti which IMHO is the least offensive looking top box they have. You would need to find a tail rack that has the BBQ grill type design to mount the universal mount on and I feel like that's never going to be the most sturdy solution.
The Unit Garage Atlas 36l Top Box as per their website. In reality I think the top box will look much less dainty than this however as I think this is a "Photoshop" representation of how it will look.
3. Luggage
Following on from using a top box as a back rest is the issue of what to do about luggage. Obviously less of an issue if you're only out for day trips but what about weekend trips or touring? It's starting to look like a top box solves a lot of the issues when taking a pillion, if only they weren't so damn ugly. As mentioned you could just get the top box rack and get a large waterproof duffel bag which would give you more storage space than the 36 litre top box. I've been using a Osprey Arcane 40 litre Waterproof Duffel (now discontinued) which work wells but companies like Kriega and Mosko Moto do motorcycle specific ones with extra bike specific features.
Side bags or hard panniers are another option but you then have the issue of them getting in the way of the pillion's feet/legs and then if you also have the high exhaust that further complicates matters. When I first got the bike I looked in depth for side luggage that would work for a pillion and it was very hard to work out what would work and what wouldn't as there was lots of conflicting info and manufacturers regularly showed images on the wrong product on their product pages. In the end I decided to just go touring on my own and I went with Mosko Moto Reckless 40 bags as they were the most practical option and don't involve mounting any unsightly racks on the bike. However the Reckless 40s mount on the passenger seat so for carrying some luggage and a pillion the following would be my picks.
Another issue I've come across is that if I carry a small shoulder bag or rucksack with a pillion then they can't hold on to me, so they need to wear the bag. I'm now thinking then of getting a single sided luggage bag just for carrying a lock and some small items.
Note - I have not tried any of these side bags/panniers personally but these are the best solutions I've found that also look acceptable on the bike.
A. SW-Motech Legend Bags & OEM BMW Bags (These Mostly Don't Work)
If you've looked into side bags you'll certainly have come across the SW-Motech Legend and BMW OEM bags which both use the same frame mounts as I assume they're all made by SW-Motech. I'm mentioning these to save you the time of looking to see if they'll work with a pillion. The issue here is that unless you get the smaller sized 9.8 litre bags you can't use them as they will rest on the passenger footpegs. There's 2 legend bag sizes, the larger 13.5 litre one (same size as the BMW one) fully rests on the passenger peg and the smaller 9.8 litre bag looks to be ok (note images of this bag in relation to passenger pegs usually show the larger bag). The Legend bags also sit quite high and there's mention of them interfering with luggage mounted on the passenger seat so we can assume they'd be in the way of the pillion also. I still reckon you'd get away with mounting one of these smaller 9.8 litre ones on the right hand side of the bike for carrying some essentials like a lock. Note these bags can't be locked to the frame though or be locked themselves.
SW-Motech Legend small (9.8 litre) bag
B. Unit Garage Canvas/Suede/TPU Bags
These are a popular and attractive option but very pricey. They are all rolltop style bags and come in a variety of sizes, colours and materials, all of which according to the Unit Garage website can be comfortably used with a pillion, the options are:
The TPU ones while being the least attractive are probably the most useful for travel as I can foresee the canvas/suede bags getting ruined pretty quickly from muck off the road, especially with the RNineT's poor rear mudguard. They're also the cheapest and have more space than some of the options. I'm considering these now for travel with a pillion, combined with a duffel bag on the rear rack
Unit Garage also do a novel carry system which mounts in the same way as the other bags but it allows you to put your own bag into it.
All these bags lock to the frames and also have quick release functionality. The bags themselves do not lock however.
Unit Garage Canvas Bag. This image was taken from the product page for 22-30l canvas bags but this image looks suspiciously like the 10-14 litre bag as there's no zip on the side of the bag
These bags come with either single sided or double sided frame mounts (there's an asymmetric option if you have the high exhaust too) so you have the option of just mounting a single bag on the right if you wish. These mounts attach using 3-4 bolts (3 if single side only) under the seat so are relatively quick to remove if needed and they are definitely the better looking of the fixed frame mounts out there if you decide to leave them on the bike. They mount further back than the SW-Motech frame mounts which is why these bags will work better with a pillion.
Unit Garage Asymmetric Double Luggage Rack
C. Unit Garage Large Luggage Racks and Hard Aluminium Panniers
Some more great options from Unit Garage. One thing I really miss about my ADV bike is the lockable aluminium panniers which were so useful. Luckily Unit Garage provide these as an (expensive) option and they say they work comfortably with pillions.
Unit Garage Aluminium Pannier - showing fitment with the high exhaust and relation to the passenger footpegs
The Unit Garage Atlas aluminium panniers come in two sizes (both asymmetric to fit around the exhaust) - a 40l + 34l Set and a 47l + 41l Set. Either option should provide ample storage for touring.
The Unit Garage pannier frames (available in silver or black) on their own would provide some great additional luggage options in the form of large soft panniers. It should hopefully be possible to mount something like the Mosko Moto Backcountry soft panniers to these frames or at the very least throw over bags like the Adventure Spec Magadan Panniers could work well provided the pillion doesn't mind sitting on the straps. Both these soft bags are very practical and waterproof and also allow basic locking by way of a something like this Kriega security strap.
Note the luggage frame appears to mount underneath the passenger footpeg so this may prevent a passenger footpeg lowering kit being installed.
What I don't like about the luggage frame option is that there's no quick release option to remove them so they'll need to stay on the bike all the time as they can't be quickly removed. They ruin the look of the bike if you leave them on, it's one thing I hated about having panniers on my F750GS.
Overall though if you're going on a long trip with a pillion then these racks with either hard or soft panniers must be the best luggage option available.
Unit Garage Pannier Frames - note the mounting point at the passenger footpeg
Pros
Looks If you're thinking of buying this bike then one of the reasons will certainly be for its looks. The hand welded aluminium tank that came with mine is also a thing of beauty (as well as shaving off some weight).
Characterful Torquey Engine Definitely one of the main reasons I bought this bike was for its character. The side to side rocking of the boxer engine at standstill and that engine sound that makes you feel like you're flying in an old WW2 plane. It's happy pottering around for a relaxed ride or it'll go like the clappers if you want it to also. You can start the bike in most gears and coming up to bends it doesn't matter as much if you shift down or not.
Handling This bike feels firm and planted and handles superbly through corners like it's on rails, it's very confidence inspiring. The RNineT classic does however have sharper handling with the smaller front wheel and a more sporty riding position but the Urban GS is a much more comfortable bike to ride so it more than makes up for this.
Brakes Coming from the F750GS I really noticed how much better the Brembo brakes are on the RNineT. This great braking was really appreciated when riding downhill around hairpins in the French Alps and when I've got a pillion on the back. Again very confidence inspiring.
Cruise Control You might think this is ridiculous on a retro bike but on long trips you'll definitely appreciate it especially as the throttle has quite a lot of resistance and gets tiring quite quickly. It's also very handy to stick on in French towns and villages with overzealous police and seemingly random speed limits.
Heated Grips Another excellent thing to have and you'll use them far more than you'd think. BMW make particularly hot heated grips too!
Low Centre of Gravity This makes the bike feel lighter than it is and it doesn't feel like it wants to tip over at low speed. A big plus is how it well it handles in high winds, on two of my 2023 trips I had to ride through very high winds in orange/red weather warnings during named storms and I'd have been in serious trouble if I had been on a tall top heavy ADV bike.
Shaft Drive No more f*****g chain to oil, clean and tighten! Once you go chain free there's no going back.
Unobtrusive Tech I love that the bike has a simple dash which is out of sight as you're riding so it makes you feel like you're flying. The bike is loaded with tech features like cornering ABS, adaptive headlights etc but you're unaware that it's there.
Cons
If I had to nitpick, these are some of the downsides to the RNineT. I won't include anything that's obviously a downside to owning a retro/naked bike like lack of a screen. In no particular order:
Uncomfortable Seat As mentioned in Comfort / Ergonomics the stock seat is torture if you're on the bike for any length of time. To be fair it does soften up a bit after a few thousand miles but be warned at first you'll want to get off the bike after an hour or so. Other than engine crash bars and a small tail rack, this is the only mod this bike really needs.
Poor Suspension This is a common bone of contention with the the RNineT. My F750GS was plush and perfect for pothole ridden English roads so when I jumped on an Urban GS for a test ride it felt awful as the suspension was far too firm. I test rode the RNineT scrambler and the suspension felt the same and then I had a loan of the classic/roadster model for a week and that was considerably worse. The suspension on the classic/roadster was totally unfit for my local Surrey roads, it was so hard that it felt like there was no suspension at all, I couldn't wait to give that bike back. Strangely though when I picked up my Urban GS I didn't find the suspension to be an issue, perhaps they'd tweaked the rear shock settings to soften it up a bit but I've been happy enough with it up until now. I've heard a Wilbers suspension upgrade will make a huge difference so this is something I'll look at in the future. This is a bit ridiculous from BMW as this is an expensive bike and the Triumph equivalent (1200 Scrambler) has a full Ohlins suspension setup for similar money.
Lack of Fuel Gauge As you've probably read already elsewhere, this bike has no fuel gauge which does cause a bit of stress when you're touring and are up a mountain and have forgotten when you last put fuel in. My solution is to note down the mileage and fuel added each time I fill up, not ideal but it get's around it. There's a fuel light that comes on when you're on the reserve but that only tells you how many miles since the light came on and I also feel like it comes on early. Read more about fuel economy here. Other owners use the secondary trip meter to record their mileage since last fill up, I'm yet to test this out however.
No Gear Indicator It's such a torquey bike that most of the time it doesn't matter what gear you're in but this may annoy some people. The classic/roadster does have a 2nd instrument unit for tachometer which has a gear indicator. This can be added on to the other models but it's quite expensive and should really have come as standard. A local biker to me Rich told me about the DEVmoto 'Calin MB' Gear Indicator & Rev Counter Mod Plug which adapts the single instrument panel to display gear and rev info and at £175 is a much cheaper alternative.
Relatively Short and Costly Maintenance Intervals The bike needs a valve adjustment check every 6000 miles which is quite short versus some other bikes. This isn't cheap either, after one summer's riding I had to fork out £500 for this service. I did however only pay around £200 for my third service at my new local dealer and I was told the value check wouldn't have been much extra (so let's say under £300 with them in total).
Useless Mudguards If you're out riding in the rain or through mucky roads the bike will be a filthy mess in minutes. It's particularly bad at the rear as the shock gets covered in muck as does any luggage you might have on. There are some aftermarket options for crud catchers or different front/rear mudguards but I haven't decided on any I like yet. An RNineT custom specialist did recommend getting the lower rear mudguard from the 1200GS which he said works very well. I've bought this but haven't installed it as I wasn't sure I like the look of it but I'll certainly install it for my next big tour and it would be easy to remove.
Lack of Dynamic Engine Mode The Urban GS gets Dirt mode instead of the Dynamic mode found on the classic/roadster model. When I went to pick up my bike I returned a classic RNineT which I had a loan of for a week and it was set to Dynamic mode. The power delivery was noticeably slower when I jumped on the Urban GS immediately after although the Dynamic mode on the classic I found very snatchy and lurchy. Would still be nice to have it though as there's no reason to exclude it that I can think of.
Hard to Access Battery As mentioned later under servicing and issues, the battery died on my bike (likely due to drain on the battery from the Datatool tracker) when I didn't use it for a month or so over winter. This happened on my previous F750GS but it was easy to replace the battery myself as it was just under the seat. Looking under the seat of the RNineT you'll see the battery is fairly deep within the bike and partially under the fuel tank. After getting the bike going with a jump start it totally died riding down the road so I had to get the bike recovered by BMW and they replaced the battery under warranty. The recovery driver confirmed he couldn't do anything as indeed the tank and number of other panels need to come off to get at the battery.
Inability To Turn Off Lights Following on from the battery issue, when I was trying to jump start the bike, you can't turn off the lights on the bike so when the battery is low/flat this is a bit annoying. After jump starting the bike, it cut out while riding down the road for a mile. Could this possibly have been due to the power drain from the lights or was it just that the battery would no longer hold charge? Certainly wouldn't hurt to be able to turn the lights off, I did look in the menus and didn't find any options except to reduce the dash brightness.
Speedometer Is Hard To Read I don't have the best eyesight and I find the speedo really hard to read due to the tiny numbers and the fact it's an analogue clock style. The even smaller KPH numbers are impossible to read when I'm touring in Europe. The fact the speedo is also out of my vision as I ride means I have to take my eyes off the road for far too long to properly gauge my speed. I mostly use the sat nav on my phone (which I've mounted higher towards my line of vision) as a speedo as the bike's speedometer isn't accurate either (it probably displays the speed 10%+ higher than it actually is). This is another reason I'll be installing a screen with high GPS mount so I can check my speed more easily.
Lack of Tire Pressure Monitor This is one feature I really missed after moving from the 750GS. Obviously having the correct tyre pressure is critical to safety and the bike handling so being able to see it on the dash is very handy. I got around this by adding Michelin TPMS tyre caps to the tyres which allow you to tap a dongle off them to read the tire pressure. The new R12 Nine T now comes with a TPMS option but they've also added the stupid keyless ride which seems to come hand in hand with TPMS.
Annoying Seat Bolt Accessing under the seat requires an Allen key to remove a bolt under the rear mudguard. Firstly this makes your seat easy to steal and secondly it's a nightmare to get back in with my aftermarket Unit Garage Biposto seat which at times has taken me hours to do. With my new seat I've now stuck a bolt in the reverse position in the seat so all I need to do is twist a nut onto it from under the bike which is much easier.
Rusty Bolts A new addition to the list. After only a year's ownership I found the engine bolts were getting very rusty and other bolts were corroding. I've tried adding ACP50 but it doesn't look like it's helped much. This is poor from BMW for such an expensive bike.
Fuel Economy
A bit of a boring topic except somewhat crucial for a bike with no fuel gauge. During my first trips of 2023 I tried to fill up every 120 miles but when you're riding day after day for up to 12 hours each day and you're tired it's easy to get mixed up with how many miles since you filled up last (note I haven't bothered seeing if the bike has a trip meter and would prefer to display the total mileage as I ride anyway). This caught me out on a few occasions either almost running out of petrol or leaving an epic balcony road (which I'd ridden for a week to see) because I thought I was going to run out of petrol only to discover I still had 10 litres left!
From then on I decided I'd need to write down in my phone the mileage I refuelled at and how many litres I added. For my last big trip of 2023 to Scotland I then had a full list of all my fuel stops which has allowed me to provide the table below.
My 2022 RNineT Urban GS has a 17 litre tank with a 3.5 litre reserve. Depending on your model and year this might vary slightly, for example the 2022 roadster/classic has an 18 litre tank and 3.5 litre reserve.
Note - these figures are for standard 95 octane fuel in the UK. The riding was mostly on B and smaller A roads with the only motorway riding on the first and last days. The RNineT was in "Road" mode (the classic/roadster model has "Dynamic" mode which I'd assume uses more fuel).
I know Miles Per Litre might seem weird but I live in the UK which uses Miles and the petrol stations use Litres so these numbers make more sense to me.
Bike Mileage | Distance Since Last Refuelling (Miles) | Litres Added | Fuel Economy (Miles per Litre) |
5292 | 130 | 13.66 | 9.516 |
5455 | 163 | 14.6 | 11.164 |
5576 | 121 | 11.10 | 10.9 |
5710 | 134 | 11.53 | 11.62 |
5819 | 109 | 10.9 | 10 |
5939 | 120 | 9.5 | 12.63 |
6101 | 162 | 15.14 | 10.7 |
6187 | 86 | 7 | 12.28 |
6317 | 130 | 11.74 | 11.07 |
6437 | 120 | 10 | 12 |
6556 | 119 | 8.09 | 14.7 |
Summary
Total Miles: 1394
Average MPL: 11.5
Median MPL: 11.164
Min MPL: 9.516
Max MPL: 14.7
Average Range (Miles): 195.5
Median Range (Miles): 189.79
Min Range (Miles): 161.77
Max Range (Miles): 249.9
Reserve Range (3.5 Litres Only): 33.3 - 51.45 miles (average 40.25 miles / median 39.07 miles)
So in theory you should be safe to go at least 160 miles on a tank, with 190 miles being more likely. I'd still be getting twitchy after 150 miles though. Once you hit the 3.5 litre reserve tank the RNineT will display the number of miles you've travelled since the fuel light came on, not how many miles you've left like other bikes with a fuel gauge. The longest I've dared to travel was 19 miles when the fuel light came on and I managed to fit 15.14 litres into the bike which looks about right according to my figures (1.64l of the reserve used should give us on average 18.86 miles). From practice I feel like the fuel light comes on around 150 miles so that seems correct on average you should get 155.25 miles before the light comes on.
An unknown is whether the full 17 litres of the tank is useable but I'd need to run the tank dry to test that out.
The final fuel figure of 14.7 MPL seems abnormally high, this was purely motorway riding and I was tired so I was taking it easy.
Modifications
So far I've taken a rather practical view to bike modifications, making changes only to improve the bike for touring while also being mindful of the aesthetics of the bike.
Protection
No I didn't slide the bike into a giant condom to stop it from catching some rust, I'm talking crash bars and the like. The first modification I made was to add Unit Garage Heavy Duty Engine Bars to protect the engine incase I drop it (not that I expect to). I went with these as I liked the look of them and they were supposed to be easy to install (I'm mechanically useless). They would have been easy to fit if you had a garage lift table or a second pair of hands. The issue was that as the bike was tilted on the sidestand, some of the bolts would fall out as I was trying to line things up. This turned a 10 minute job into a few hours of frustration. As of 2025, I have found these crash bars to be rusting and the paint flaking away in places which isn't good considering the cost.
I had planned to go to Spain in October 2023 but I cancelled that 4 hours before the ferry due to very bad weather and headed to chilly but dry Scotland instead. For the Spain trip I had been planning on riding on some unsealed roads to places like the Bardenas Reales desert and Sad Hill cemetery (from The Good, The Bad and the Ugly). I didn't know what I might end up riding through so I thought I better add some additional protection so I added the Unit Garage Radiator Protector (very light) to prevent pebbles piercing the oil cooler and an SW Motech Engine Sump Guard to protect the underside of the bike and the chrome exhaust headers. I didn't get a chance to fit the sump guard so I'll leave that off until needed although it's surprisingly light.
Comfort / Ergonomics
From the number of used RnineT's I see for sale with tiny mileage after years, it must be that either people are only posing on them at their local coffee shop or they can't stand sitting on the bike for longer than a couple of hours. The stock seat is torture, to the point that I was going to name the bike Uncle Monty (go watch Withnail & I if you don't get it) due to my sore arse. My worst experience was coming back from Ireland where I had a 10+ hour ride back to Bath from the ferry, towards the end I had to stand on the pegs for long stretches. After that I ordered the Unit Garage Biposto Seat but it got lost in the post so I needed to do my 2 week trip to France with the stock seat and I kinda got used to it. The stock seat must break in a bit with use making it a bit more comfortable otherwise I wouldn't have survived the trip.
I finally got the Unit Garage seat on the bike in time for doing some of the Wild Atlantic Way in Ireland. The first thing to note is that it's very hard to get the bolt under the seat back in with this new seat as it doesn't have the same kind of nut internally as the OEM seat. I've wasted hours at a time trying to get it bolted back on with the OEM bolt, so eventually, I bought a small bolt which I placed sticking out of the seat (through the hole the OEM bolt usually goes into), and then I can easily just twist a bolt on under the bike. Another thing to note is that there must be some leather oil on the seat so for the first few days on it you'll be sliding all over the place. The seat is lovely looking though and fits my aluminium tank very nicely. Comfort isn't night and day versus the stock seat but it definitely solves the problem.
Luggage Racks / Passenger Grab Rails
I started off by getting the Unit Garage Passenger Grip so my wife would have something to grab onto and I'd have a mounting point for luggage. My wife will testify that it's useless as a passenger grip as she would need to contort to get her hands there and it's hard to get your fingers around with gloves on. It is however very lightweight, looks great and makes an excellent mounting point for the Mosko Moto reckless luggage or for strapping a rolltop bag to the seat. I would keep this on the bike all the time and only switch to my large rear rack if I was going away for weeks and I was camping and/or bringing my camera gear too.
Anticipating that I might go away for the weekend with my wife and would need to carry both us and some luggage, I bought the large Unit Garage Luggage Rack that's meant for mounting a top box. It's very hefty and certainly gives a lot of storage space. I went with this large one rather than the standard luggage rack Unit Garage does as this gives me more flexibility. An advantage of the large rack is that I can strap a large drybag on there and it's easy to quickly remove the whole luggage system. Besides the extra space I'd also have the option to get a top box which would be very handy (but unsightly & very expensive) to keep my valuables in when touring and for my wife to have as a backrest. I got used to a top box and lockable panniers on my old bike which is one thing I definitely miss when I travel.
Luggage
I've already covered a number of luggage options suitable for pillions here. Although I'd love hard panniers so I can lock them and walk away on a tour, I'm reluctant to put large side racks on that aren't quickly removable like my quick release Givi setup on my old 750GS. Therefore I'm currently running soft luggage setups.
For short tours back to Ireland or bike festivals I just put the large Unit Garage rear rack on and then use RokStraps to strap on a 40 litre waterproof duffle bag and optionally a tent, 20 lite Lomo rolltop bag etc. I will often put my valuables in my Kriega Trail 18 rucksack or my Sandqvist Ruben 2.0 waterproof rucksack and strap that to the backseat also so I can quickly take it off if I stop for lunch or whatever. I try not to ride with a rucksack on as it hurts my back and shoulders over distance and I wear an airbag vest which means I can't have it strapped on tight.
Mosko Moto Reckless 40 v3.0
This is my main luggage solution when touring solo and is a lot more practical than just strapping a load of bags to the bike as there are many pockets so you can put an oil canister and tools on one side, a water bottle in the other etc. I've expanded it with 2 extra pockets on the sides which fit a 1 litre fuel bottle, water bottle or more importantly a bottle of wine. That gives me 4 side pockets, 2 side 16 litre waterproof rolltop bags and the rear 8 litre rolltop bag. The beavertail lets you strap things like jackets underneath it. You can replace the 8l tailbag with a 22l one or use your own bag. When you arrive at your hotel you can quickly just pull out the 3 rolltop bags and bring them to your room. There's enough space for a long tour when staying in hotels or a weekend camp. For longer distance camping I'd look at the larger Reckless 80 system.
It's very easy to install. All you need is the Unit Garage passenger grab handles (or any rear rack) to affix two straps at the back and then another strap on either side near the footpegs. On the advice of a friend more familiar with this luggage, I put duct tape on the frame at any points the luggage might rub. The rear mudguard on the RNineT is terrible, so often you get mud and grit thrown up, and this will rub between the luggage and the bike. The luggage fits this bike like a glove and looks great too. It also keeps the weight forward and low, so it doesn't affect the handling of the bike. I've seen some other riders with the 80-liter version of this system add Unit Garage side racks (the ones meant for their canvas bags), but this is unnecessary as even with the high exhaust, their bags don't sit on the exhausts. The new Mosko Moto Reckless 40 v4.0 are apparently more rigid so this would be even less of a problem. The other great thing about this luggage is it's quick and easy to move between bikes. In 2024 I used this system on my CRF300L for 6 weeks trail riding in Spain, Portugal and France and it was perfect. The only downside is the cost but it's a very durable quality product and better value than the simple Unit Garage by comparison.
The Mosko Moto Reckless 40's v4.0, my UGS in Vercors with the Reckless 40 v3.0 and the late Ricky Phoolka showing off the Reckless 80s
Battery Maintenance/Charging
Owning a bike like this, particularly in the UK means you'll want to have a good tracker on the bike like the DataTool Stealth S5 Tracker and bike theft is common. What they don't tell you though is that the tracker quickly runs down the battery so that after about 2 weeks of no use the bike may not start. This coupled with the fact the battery is under the petrol tank so it can't be taken out easily is a recipe for disaster. Countless times I needed to jump start the bike and once I needed to be recovered by breakdown recovery and get the battery replaced. I needed a solution...
At this point many of you will be screaming at the computer saying Alex why don't you just plug your bike into the mains with an Optimate battery maintainer. Well that's all well and good if your garage has power and you don't live in a flat in a different location from the bike. So in the end I needed to buy a EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Portable Power Station which takes an hour to charge and I do this every 2 weeks or so. I've installed a Wunderlich R9T Series DIN Socket Kit as my model of Urban GS has a USB socket instead of a DIN. I can then plug in an Optimate Can Bus QUAD BMW Charger into the power station and the bike, problem solved. This has worked fine when I've been away for 3 weeks. If I was alway any longer I'm sure the battery will be dead by the time I'm back but hopefully this setup should be able to recharge the battery when it's got low again. I could always get my wife or a friend to charge the power station and replace it while I'm gone too if I need to.
Power station, Optimate & DIN port
List Of Accessories / Modifications
Here is a full list of everything I've changed on the bike:
Comfort
Luggage
Osprey Arcane 40 litre Waterproof Duffel Bag
Rokstraps
Protection
Unit Garage - Heavy Duty Engine Bars
SW Motech - Engine Sump Guard (Silver) (Not installed)
Security
DataTool Stealth S5 Tracker
Litelok X3
Abus 8077 Alarmed Disk Lock
Pragmasis 22mm chain + Anti Pinch Pin
Other Accessories
EcoFlow RIVER 2 Max Portable Power Station (For charging the battery in the garage)
Optimate (by Wunderlich) Can Bus QUAD BMW Charger (DIN Trickle Charger)
Peak Design Phone Mount
Michelin Tyre Pressure Checker
Future Modification Wishlist
Unit Garage Screen with GPS Mount - yellow (scrambler model for lower headlight)
Auxiliary Lights - Classic black with yellow bulb
Rear Hugger/Mudguard
Handguards or bar end mirrors
Tail-tidy
Dunlop - Mutant Tyres
SW Motech Lower Rider Footpegs
Wilbers Rear Shock
Trips On The Bike
I've included this section only to show that the bike makes for a capable tourer. A few times a year I ride the bike back to Ireland to visit my family and take the scenic way up through the Elan Valley and Snowdonia in Wales.
Ireland & Wales - August 2024 - 1000 miles (with pillion)
Scotland & Northern England - October 2023 - 1500 miles
Ireland & Wales - August 2023 - 1500 miles
France - July 2023 - 2500 miles
Adventure Bike Rider Festival - June 2023 - 150 miles
Mileage By Year
April 2025 - 8300 miles
Feb 2024 - 6650 miles
May 2023 - 500 miles (Bike Purchased)
Servicing & Issues
So far I've had no major issues with the bike (touch wood) except for a dead battery and recall notice in November 2023 for replacement of the footpeg clips.
Rusting
I have noticed that after a year of ownership many of the bolts, especially on the engine, have become rusty or corroded. I did raise this with BMW at my last service and they danced around the issue. My bike lives in a garage and doesn't go out in the rain unless I'm touring (due to the faff of cleaning it and no suitable car wash within 20 mins ride of me). I have put ACP50 on the bike but it's hard to get it everywhere. It's a bit annoying as I treat the bike like a bit of a princess and wipe it down with bike specific wet wipes after every ride (I've no access to a hose where I live) and I avoided riding it when there was salt out on the road during winter. Considering the cost of the bike it's a bit of a poor show from BMW and I didn't have this issue with my F750GS which I needed to ride throughout the winter to get to the shops etc.
7800 Miles - November 2024 - Annual Service - Cost £205
I took the bike in for it's annual service at my new local dealer Dick Lovitt in Bristol. Nothing special, oil and fluids etc. I was considerably cheaper than my last service in BMW Vines Guildford (although I did get a valve clearance check then but I was told in Dick Lovitts this wouldn't have been much extra to do).
6500 Miles - January 2024 - Dead Battery Issue
Having used the bike infrequently in the lead up to Christmas 2023 I discovered my battery was flat. I tried to jump start it using a NOCO booster (make sure it's fully charged or it won't work) and I eventually got the bike running. It would however cut very easily and I would need a jump each time. After 4 cutouts/jump starts, I eventually got riding and thought that was me sorted. However a mile down the road the bike just cut out while I was moving and I coasted to a stop. The battery was totally flat and my jump starter was low on power at this point so I needed to call BMW for recovery (the bike is still under warranty). After an hour or so the bike was recovered and the mechanic noted that the the RNineTs have the battery stupidly located under the tank so there was nothing he could do, so off to the BMW dealer in Bristol. BMW replaced what they called a "faulty battery" for free under warranty and sent a taxi for me to collect the bike a week later.
I've no power outlet in my garage to trickle charge the battery so I guess riding the bike more frequently (which I should be doing anyway) to keep the battery topped up and prevent the tracker killing it is necessary.
5000 Miles - Second Service - Cost £500
A service was due at 6000 miles (valve clearance check) but I got service performed 1000 miles early as I'd planned to go touring in Spain and France for 2+ weeks and it would have been way overdue by the time I got back. In the end I only ended up going to Scotland so I could have waited.
The footpeg clips were replaced as part of a recall although I wasn't told at the time and the recall letter came after this which caused a bit of confusion.
After this service or perhaps it's the mileage, the oil consumption seems to have decreased. Early on the bike seemed to be getting through nearly a litre of oil every 2000 miles.
500 Miles - Bike Purchased
Bike Purchased from Vines Guildford with 2 years warranty and breakdown. The first service was already done when I bought it.