Most people know the R1200C as the James Bond bike. Because seemingly that’s the only person who ever actually rode one. Or, at least, I’ve never seen one in the wild.
Actually, the bike gets that distinction because it was effectively introduced to the world in the 1997 film Tomorrow Never Dies. It gets used in a highly improbable chase scene involving a helicopter that’s able to defy the laws of physics. Standard Bond stuff. Opinions vary on whether the bike was even half that exciting, though:
Many would say yes. Despite my personal experience of never having seen one, BMW sold some 40,000 units through the course of the R1200C’s run (1997-2005). British motorcycling journalist Mark Graham gives it credit for inspiring a host of other motorcycles.
“The C was the genesis of the later R nine T and its many versions,” he wrote recently in Bike magazine. “It gave BMW the confidence to show Concept 101, which became the K1600B, and to build the R18. It also showed other European makers the way. Triumph’s 2009 Thunderbird 1700 owes its success to the R1200C. So does Ducati’s 2011 Diavel.”
Certainly one thing that it has going for it is that – although it was introduced amid the “Let’s try to cash in on Harley’s success” cruiser craze of the 1990s – it doesn’t commit the sin of being a blatant copy of Harley-Davidson styling. It very much looks like its own thing. And, arguably, performs better than the thing it’s not copying (ie, Sportster 1200).
Driven by an 1170cc flat twin, the R1200C claims 61 horsepower and 72 lb-ft of torque. That power output is markedly down from other R 1200 models of the time. The 2004 R1200GS, for example, promised 100 hp and 85 lb-ft of torque.
This particular example looks to be in reasonably good shape, aesthetically. The seller doesn’t offer much information beyond that except to say that it has 13,445 miles on the clock. The background of the photos seem to suggest they were taken around Halloween, which means this bike’s been taking up space in this seller’s showroom for a while. That may play to your advantage when haggling its $6,998 asking price.
You can find the R1200C for sale in Villa Park, Illinois, here on eBay.