Telelever

BMW has gone a step further in chassis construction with the patented telelever front wheel suspension. This system separates the two functions of wheel guidance and damping/suspension in a simple and effective manner, thus significantly improving ride comfort. The function of wheel guidance is still performed by the actual fork, consisting of two bars with sliding tubes and fixed tubes providing maximum coverage. This construction with maximum overlap results in a high degree of stability. A trailing link attached at the front of the frame supports the fork and front wheel. A central strut is for suspension and damping. Unlike a conventional telefork, the fork of the telelever system reacts with low levels of bending when braking or going over bumps, therefore the fixed and sliding tubes cannot jam against each other.

Other benefits of this construction with a lower diameter of the telelever stanchions as compared to conventional teleforks are the weight advantage and an extremely responsive performance. The low unsprung masses and the quick reaction of the suspension make for excellent road contact over bumpy surfaces. The telelever system allows the geometry to be designed so that the fork bars and thus the front section only respond with minimal dive upon sudden braking, giving the rider improved feedback. Data recordings have shown that releasing the front wheel from suspension effects provides better tire contact and therefore shorter braking distances. A further advantage of the telelever system: the electronic regulation of the anti-locking system (ABS) is more finely tuned. In spite of the pulsating brake forces, there are no pitching movements. All in all, the telelever system contributes to increased ride comfort, satisfies the riders passion for sport and speed, whilst increasing safety in critical situations on the road.

In the new generation of flat twin models, a revised and weight-optimized version of this telelever system is used for the first time. Thanks to the altered kinematics, higher braking stability has been achieved and brake dive further reduced. For the R 1200 RT the diameter of the stanchion tubes is 35 millimeters. The R 1200 ST and R 1200 GS have 41 mm stanchion tubes. In the R 1200 GS the central strut - optimized for a more finely tuned response - can be mechanically adjusted to nine different positions, providing 190 mm spring travel ( 68 mm negative and 122 mm positive travel) - generous reserves even for off-road use.