BMW R 850 RT (1998-1999) Specs, Performance & Photos

The BMW R 850 RT was a luxurious touring motorcycle manufactured by BMW for those BMW fans who wanted to spend as much time as possible behind bars but also desired a fuel-efficient machine.

In 1998, the German motorcycle maker released the BMW R 850 RT, a touring machine that came with the same package as the previous one, delivering the same technical, performance, and visual specifications.

The luxurious motorcycle packed 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.

It was fitted with 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.

All those features were bolted to a three-section composite frame with a BMW Motorrad Telelever system on the front that provided 120 mm of travel and a BMW Motorrad Paralever system on the rear, offering 135 mm of travel.

As for the power figures, the 1998 BMW R 850 RT boasted 73 hp at 6,750 rpm and 77 Nm (57 lb-ft) torque at 5,600 rpm, coming from an 848cc four-stroke air/oil-cooled twin-cylinder boxer engine hidden underneath its full fairing.