BMW R 850 RT (1996-1997) Specs, Performance & Photos

In 1996, the German motorcycle manufacturer launched the BMW R 850 RT, a touring machine created by the House of Munich for those BMW fans who wanted to spend as much time as possible behind bars but also a fuel-efficient machine.

The R 850 RT was a luxurious motorcycle with a large touring cockpit, an electrically adjustable windscreen, a digital fuel gauge, an oil temperature gauge, a clock, a gear indicator, a speedometer, and a tachometer. It also packed an ABS that could have been turned off.

Visually, the motorcycle packed standard features, such as a full fairing, a single headlight unit, a windscreen, a two-piece dual seat with passenger grab rails, a top case, side-mounted panniers, a side stand, and five-spoke aluminum alloy wheels.

Underneath its armor, the 1996 BMW R 850 RT had installed an 848cc four-stroke air/oil-cooled twin-cylinder boxer engine that delivered an output power of 73 hp at 6,750 rpm and 77 Nm (57 lb-ft) torque at 5,600 rpm.

The bike was made around a three-section composite frame with a BMW Motorrad Telelever system on the front and a BMW Motorrad Paralever system on the rear, offering excellent suspension performance and handling.

As for the braking power, the bike relied on two 320 mm brake rotors with four-piston calipers mounted on the front wheel and a 276 mm brake rotor with a dual-piston caliper mounted on the rear wheel.