For over four decades, BMW has been producing GS (Gelände Straße) models, a concept that is unique and inimitable. Today, BMW’s GS model catalog is the most enticing and comprehensive in the motorcycle market.

BMW offers a wide range of options within its varied lineup. This selection includes models of motorcycles that we rent at IMTBIKE, so if you visit any of our offices, we will be happy to advise you and help you make your decision.

Suggestions for Choosing the BMW GS that Best Suits You

The Small G. G310GS

The entry point to the BMW universe if you are looking for a beginner trail bike, simple but with an attractive and convincing appearance. It also features “adult” gadgets like Ride by Wire (an electronic throttle control) or the anti-hopping clutch, which enable optimized mechanical performance and safer riding. A real toy for urban journeys and even some open road trips.

Its engine is a single-cylinder that promises unsophisticated and inexpensive maintenance and laughable fuel consumption, in exchange for a respectable 34 HP. Contributing to its all-audience motorcycle aspect is the fact that this trail bike weighs less than 180 kilograms when ready to ride.

The price of the G310GS is set at €6,930.

The Big F Family.

BMW’s mid-range with inline two-cylinder engines has gradually grown in both displacement and versatility. If we do not consider the F900R/XR, the rest of the models are all trail concepts, always logically faithful to the initials they bear, and they still split into two trends: one more asphalt-oriented and the other more enduro-oriented.

The less asphalt-oriented options have a fairly high seat height, although all these motorcycles offer the possibility of being equipped with a lower seat than the original.

F800GS: Your First Big BMW. 

Ideal for motorcyclists looking for a larger size because the G310GS has become too small for them. With the BMW F800GS, we embark on the Gelände Straße adventure moderately, with a mid-displacement motorcycle with great potential, and a cycle configuration that leans more towards the road than the trails.

Maneuverability is one of its strengths, with a weight of just over 220 kilograms and a prudent seat height that provides security when riding it. Its price is €11,275.

F900GS: New Blood for the Brand. 

With the very young F900GS, the German brand launches what is undoubtedly the most aggressive exponent of what the #SpiritOfGS philosophy aims to convey: a motorcycling inclination linked to adventure, exploration, and sporty character.

Despite sharing the engine block with the F800GS, it represents a significant mechanical leap from it; with a slightly higher displacement, it offers a torque of 93 Nm and a power of 105 HP, figures that are already significant. If we add that its weight does not reach 220 kilograms, long-travel cycle elements (fork and swingarm), spoked wheels, and a 21-inch front wheel, among many other things, we have the ideal machine to get away from the asphalt.

Handicaps: it does not come from the factory with the possibility of attaching a rear top case, and its price, €13,980, is higher than the less sophisticated F800GS.

F900GSA: Let the Adventure Begin. 

If the BMW GS range catalog had a circular shape, we could place the F900GSA right in the center. The rest of the models orbit around it at the same distance.

The adventurer of the F family combines in the right dose all the facets in which the others excel: the engine performance is the same as that of the F900GS, so there is little more to add; its autonomy is a gift from heaven thanks to its low consumption and its 23-liter capacity tank; the ergonomics and general feel of the motorcycle, where the clutch and throttle control are exquisitely smooth, put it almost on par with what the boxer technology offers; and finally, its load capacity and aerodynamic protection, close to the comfort of the most globetrotting BMW, which we will talk about later.

We could say it is a high-seat motorcycle, but appearances can be deceiving; it is not a low or accessible motorcycle for everyone, although it is not as high as it seems at first glance. It would not be the most manageable in the city either, with that long fork travel and 21-inch front wheel, but the center of gravity and weight distribution play in its favor for using it without fear in daily life.

The price starts to rise compared to what we have seen so far, placing it at €15,430.

The R: The Boxer Clan.

After receiving the new 1,300 cc engine and a series of updates at all levels, the twin-cylinder opposed-piston and shaft-drive motorcycles, original and effective in equal parts, have been dominating the market and becoming the object of desire for all those lovers of large-displacement trail bikes.

R1300GS

A brand within the brand. We have been talking for a while about the different options within the GS range, but if we decontextualize and only talk about GS as a concept, a boxer engine inevitably comes to mind. No wonder, it has been 45 years since the first GS, the R80GS, an 800 cc boxer (hence the 80), appeared.

Almost half a century later, the cooling systems of its thermodynamics have nothing to do with it, electronic assistance has been incorporated into practically every corner of the motorcycle (highlighting the customization possibilities of the riding modes), and the elements that ensure riding safety have benefited from technology applied to automobiles.

Let’s focus, however, on the motorcycle itself. A model that has kept more than one of us awake at night. Raise your hand if you have ever sighed for this GS…

We are separated from it by €21,940, which is what you have to pay for the latest version of BMW’s flagship. It is not cheap, true, but it also offers a lot.

Behind that voluminous appearance (although less and less so, it must be said) we find a motorcycle with the center of gravity almost at ground level, making it tremendously stable and manageable, even at low speed. The entire R range, with some exceptions, offers the Telelever system in the front suspension and the Paralever in the rear (perfected generation after generation), providing a balanced compromise between safety and sporty performance.

We are looking at a good option for motorcyclists seeking to reach the top of trail bikes, in particular, and the concept of travel, adventure, and fun on two wheels, in general.

R1300GSA: The Great Rebellion. 

Considering the previous version, the R1250GSA, the aesthetic change manifested by the R1300GSA is striking and has certainly left no one indifferent. Everyone has had something to say about the radical design, so different from what BMW has always accustomed us to.

The latest GSA appears much more streamlined, and despite the engine assembly being heavier than in the R1250GSA, the dry weight is the same in both models. This is a plus because, historically, boxer GSAs have not been precisely light.

The R1300GSA not only represents a radical design change but also improved ergonomics and protection against wind and weather. It also incorporates a radar to assist in riding, an Enduro Pro package, an automatic gear shift system, and many more extras.

Logically, it is the most expensive of the GS, on sale for €24,340. It is also the most capable and globetrotting of all, with a 30-liter fuel tank and unbeatable riding comfort.