BMW Comfort Seat R1200R

[Liam]

Does anyone have any experience with this saddle?

http://www.BMW-Riders-Gear.com/BMWRA_pr ... plo=&bphi=

I'm riding a standard BMW High Seat and an Airhawk. I'm thinking about getting a Bill Mayers but I don't want to wait for my saddle to come back (and forth and back maybe).

Thanks,
Liam

[deilenberger]

This question arose back around when the R12R was introduced. It turns out YOU have experience with the BMW "Comfort Seat" - all the standard seats are designated as such. There is no other seat available for the bike from BMW (low, normal, tall variations.)

[Liam]

This question arose back around when the R12R was introduced. It turns out YOU have experience with the BMW "Comfort Seat" - all the standard seats are designated as such. There is no other seat available for the bike from BMW (low, normal, tall variations.)

Looking at the "Bench seat" (Part Number 52 53 7 706 418 for the high version) that we're all familiar with, and the pictures of the "Comfort saddle" (Part Number 52 53 7 721 958 for the high version) that appears in the announcements of the "special touring" R1200R it seemed to me that in fact there are, as of the announcement, other seats available from BMW.

So I ordered one.

I got the call that it arrived yesterday (two weeks after placing the order), and as you would expect, it drops into place without a problem. I just road it home from the dealer so I can only give you a twenty-two mile impression. It's wider than the bench seat, and very firm. The cover has a pebble-grain finish. It is no harder for me (5'10" with 30" inseam) to flat foot the bike than with the bench seat or the bench seat + airhawk combination.

My first impression is that it is in the same class as the the Sargent saddle I had on my '04 ST1300 or the old Corbin I had on my '95 CB750. Since butt and saddle both need time to adapt to each other I expect and hope this evaluation gets better. If not, I have the old saddle for getting a custom built.

I'd like to suggest that anyone buying a new R1200R might consider trying to get this saddle as an option rather than suffering with the "bench seats."

[boxerpaul]

Liam, is the seat in this link the one you upgraded to?

http://www.onewheeldrive.net/2009/07/24 ... announced/

Thanks,
Paul

[Liam]

Paul,

Yes, That's the one.

Liam

[MJB]

Paul,

Yes, That's the one.

Liam

Please when you get a chance......ride report.
I'm sure we are all interested on how the seat performed.

What was the cost?

[Liam]

Hi MJB,

I'm not sure how to report on a saddle beside saying my body doesn't hurt. I'm doing a lot of miles on a bicycle (for all the right medical reasons) so that accounts for most of the beating my bottom gets these days. I'll put a few hours straight on the R12R later this week and see if I hit the monkey butt zone. I'll let you know.

With respect to price, it's $554.00. I know, OUCH. Still, I felt compelled to try it. So far, no buyer's remorse, and I still have the custom option using the old saddle.

Liam

[Liam]

Ride report on the BMW R1200R Comfort Saddle, high version.

I've been riding on the BMW Comfort Saddle for about a week now. This includes lots of local riding on town roads, and one test ride. The test ride was two hours plus continuously in the saddle, a three minute break (while I discovered my favorite bakery was closed for vacation) and another twenty minute segment going home. The two hour segment included a mixture of town roads, a parkway (the Taconic State Parkway from 301 to Millwood and back) and a scenic road (301 from Carmel N.Y. to the Taconic and back). The total two hour test miles were about 95 miles. All together I've put about three hundred miles on the bike since I got the seat.

The two hour plus continuously in the saddle segment would have been excruciating after an hour on the old high bench seat. The ride on the comfort saddle was, well, comfortable. Sitting in one position for two hours will cause some discomfort regardless of the seat's qualities. The three minute break was enough to relieve that, making the remaining ride home feel as if I were just setting out.

Subsequent riding has confirmed that, with some caveats, the saddle just seems to feel better as I grow used to it. The connectedness to the bike that the Airhawk removed, is back. This should be the standard equipment saddle and is very well worth the estimated $200 extra it would cost as an option at the time of purchase.

The Saddle

The new saddle is built on exactly the same (same part number) base as the high bench seat. At its widest point it is 14 1/4 inches wide as compared to 11 inches for the bench seat. At their narrowest point both saddles are approximately the same 8 1/2 inch width. This means that the comfort saddle is just as easy to flat foot as the bench seat. Engineering is the art of compromise, and the compromise made to get this feature is that, front to back, the sweet spot for your sit bones is a little short. Not too short, but not long enough to offer a lot of well supported sitting positions. Add this to the lack of anything more than minimal "wings" and (if you are a potato shaped 62 year old like me) the result is that you don't have much forward-backward or side-to-side choice about where you sit. That's no big loss for me, but I don't think hard core endurance riders will like it.

As a rule I don't ride with a pillion. That said, the pillion seat is clearly more thickly padded than the one on the bench seat. I can't say whether or not this will make a difference. The thickness of the pillion pad can be seen in the four inch rise from the seam at the bottom of the pilot's seat to the seam at the edge of the pillion pad. This rise cradled my tail bone in a way that worried me at first. The Sargent saddle I had on my '04 ST1300 had a two inch rise to the the pillion that irritated my tail bone. No such problem here. Sitting in the seat my tail bone feels cradled and comfortable. I'd say it adds to the feeling of connectedness with the bike.

The saddle is covered in what seems to be a pebble grained vinyl. This material seems slightly thicker (sorry I didn't mic it) than the bench seat upholstery. This is consistent with the fact that, unlike the bench seat, the saddle has stitched seams. The foam filler seems stiffer than on the bench seat. The workmanship on the saddle is very good. The appearance is consistent with the design of R1200R in a way the pictures I've seen of some custom saddles don't seem to be.

At this point I'm inclined to think that nothing less than a ride-in custom built seat would be better. For now, I'm satisfied, especially with the sense of connectedness with the bike.

Liam

[websterize]

If the comfort saddle was heated, I'd order one tomorrow. I think I'll stick with a Sargent seat upgrade. Thanks for the thoughtful report.

[Mollygrubber]

"This material seems slightly thicker (sorry I didn't mic it) than the bench seat upholstery."

ROFLMAO, the first thing I pictured was Don, gleam in his eye, crouched beside the seat, micrometer in hand...

Seriously, though, I thought the review was thorough, with a devil-may-care whimsy I found charming. That seat bears consideration although I have a sport size AirHawk on it's way...

[vielzebub]

Excellent write up Liam, thanks for taking the time.
You've convinced me to order the saddle when funds permit...

[deilenberger]

Liam,

Great review.. would it be possible to get some pics of the seat on your bike? The stock pics really don't show the seat detail much at all.

Thanks!

[Don C]

I just measured my low saddle, the one that came with my 2007 R1200R and has been on the bike since new. It is 13 1/4 inches wide at the widest part.

[Liam]

I just measured my low saddle, the one that came with my 2007 R1200R and has been on the bike since new. It is 13 1/4 inches wide at the widest part.

My guess is that's the reason the conventional wisdom is that the low seat is the most comfortable (perhaps until now). When I got set up for the test ride my knees couldn't take anything but the high seat so that's all I've ridden.

Liam