l took possession of my jet black R65 on the 17th of May 1985. We've been together happily ever since. There have been the usual ups and downs, as in any relationship, but we are still friends. My bike cost £1500 from a dealer and had 15000 miles on the clock. I saw myself doing lots of touring but I also needed transport to work. Both of these functions were performed perfectly.
There were lots of clutch problems. It's a single dry plate affair like cars. With practice it can be changed in a morning. The first one wore out under warranty and was replaced free. The second one stripped the inadequate splines after only about 2000 miles, so l was given another one which I elected to fit myself. The third plate lasted 20000 miles but l was never sure whether it slipped due to wear or oil seeping from the rear main seal, so the seal was replaced at the same time. The fourth wore out after 30000 miles but it was secondhand and by then the seal had started to seep again.
The fifth has only just been fitted and I've gone for a heavy duty aftermarket item. The most spectacular breakdown was at 34000 miles on the way to a new job and life in Manchester. At 90mph in the fast lane of the M6 the whole bike skipped about a foot to the right. The engine died as my heart stopped whilst brown gooey stuff seeped over my trouser belt. I pulled in the clutch, indicated left and coasted on to the hard shoulder. There was nothing I could do until the next morning when the bike was picked up.
l took the engine apart in the comfort of my own garage to find, not the suspected dropped valve but a snapped con-rod, no less! The bit left on the crank had managed to hole everything in sight. The whole motor was a useless heap of scrap save for the top ends.
In a long miraculous story during which I saw the light and everything (God rides a smoke grey R90S) I found another motor. 20000 miles old and went despatching in Manchester. No real problems were experienced during this most arduous period. Few weekends were spent in Manchester and a trip to Nord Kapp in Norway was fitted in by my brother (part of the deal which financed my return to the road). In all, 16000 miles were crammed into four months with few complaints except for another clutch replacement. The only other thing was that all the rivets on the flywheel came loose. I had to throw the flywheel away after some moron welded it up eccentrically.
A word about the Norway trip. My very overweight brother overloaded my poor wee 650cc machine with wife, tent and five weeks of kit. He then took her shamelessly over some of the worst roads in Europe to the cold reaches of the Midnight Sun and managed to clock up another 6000 miles. This was the bike's upper 40000 mile region. The maximum recommended service interval was 5000 miles but when he got back with the bike in tatters, its silencer bandaged and the tappets sounding worse than ever, he mentioned that he had to put a whole litre of oil in it! Apart from this formidable thirst for oil, it seemed the bike had behaved impeccably.
Those silencers were replaced with stainless steel stuff which are guaranteed to last for the rest of my life apparently. They've been on for almost 18000 miles now and still look like new. This is a great improvement on the stock items which cost the same and only last 12000 miles. Tyres go for 11000 miles front and rear 8000. I've always used Metzs - ME11 fronts and ME77 rears, but I've recently put a Roadrunner on the back since my Guzzi riding chums claim great mileage from them. It seems OK so far and I haven’t noticed any handling differences.
I've only fallen off on diesel once and a few other times on mud. If you drop the R65 it just sits on whatever pot hits the deck and waits to be picked up. No exploding indicators or cracked fairings or broken levers. l did hear about some poor bugger who had to stand for ages watching his machine break-dancing in the mud because the engine didn't cut out but mine has never done that, I'm pleased to report.
It commutes very well. The engine isn't as wide as the bars so nipping up the queue is no problem. It takes a bit of time to warm up on the coldest mornings. I did a 20 mile round trip morning and night over busy country roads and through small towns in all weathers for over a year without serious complaint.
The electrics were faultless until the 57000 mile mark when they got a bit temperamental. Nothing dramatic but a troublesome thing called a control box. This bit of electronic gadgetry costs £90 new or £35 used (James Sherlock in Dorset is the place to go for used parts). Apart from that the wiring is pretty well sheltered from the elements under than tank. I vaguely recall a fuse going once years ago. Tail lights go once in a while but I can't remember ever having to change an indicator bulb.
Batteries don't like being left for much longer than a few days in sub zero temperatures. Brake pads and shoes seem to last forever. I think I’ve changed both twice. Throttle and choke cables have just been renewed (71000 miles). Speedo cables last forever if lightly oiled regularly. The splines on which the back wheel sits need renewing. I've never changed the shocks but I’ve been thinking about it for the last 20000 miles.
For touring, the 4.8 gallon tank gives a range of 200 miles before reserve but this can drop to as low as 170 miles when despatching. The bike is very comfortable and easy to handle. I rarely use motorways unless by mistake because they are so boring. Why have six hours of boredom when you can have eight of fun? She'll sit at 80mph all day, any faster is too tiring for any length of time. The longest run I’ve done in one day was 498 miles of French N and D roads. I only stopped three times that day and was more tired than sore at the end of it. Tired of having fun on those roads?
The pillion seat too. I'm reliably informed, is comfortable over long distances. The addition of Krauser panniers is more than enough for me alone with the tent on the back seat. A tank bag and back-rack would be all that I'd need should I ever have to tour with-a pillion out back. The bike is small enough to throw around country lanes but fast enough to cope with motorway cruises. I think its natural element is A and B roads.
We've just had our sixth; anniversary together and sale is out of the question now. as it was six years ago. We probably spent a lot on this bike but l'm sure I've saved on buying and selling entire bikes like everyone else seems happy to do. BMW parts cost about the same as Jap bits and they'll always be available. so I probably will give those silencers a run for their money.
l'm sure that BMWs hold their looks as well as their value quite well in comparison with other bikes outside of the classic market. She really is like a Meccano set to work on and a joy to ride. I’ve had other bikes as well and I’ll probably have more but there's none like her - she has a sweet charm and no small amount of charisma. I know most noises now, she is temperamental but in 55000 miles has failed to get me home only twice.
l have ridden bigger boxers and Ks, but the larger boxers seem awkward in some way. I must admit I haven't ridden an R80 any great distance (you really can’t appreciate a BM from a test run) but certainly the litre twins are just too big. As for the Ks, yeah, well, OK but you can't bodge them, they're boring (if you want to corner on rails get the train). and that exhaust note?
Although I’ve probably sung the praises of my bike a bit too much here, l wouldn't take the responsibility of recommending BMWs to anyone. I've heard of some really bad ones and other excellent ones. Mine is abused quite badly and often ignored for long periods (the last clutch slipped for 6000 miles) but she just keeps going and anything wrong can usually be mended. She’s the closest thing I’ve known to a wife, and much more reliable. Until death do us part, I suppose.
Mick McMillan