BMW aren’t giving us much to go on for now, only describing that the “ergonomic triangle of the new R 1300 GS has been optimised for a sporty, relaxed riding position”, but not offering any details of how it compares to the 1250. MCIA Secured gives bike buyers the chance to see just how much work a manufacturer has put into making their new investment as resistant to theft as possible. Of course, the extra energy in the new R 13 must in part be down to its new chassis and its lower weight. The 1250 GS has legendary natural balance and carries its bulk low, but it still feels weighty, especially when fully fuelled. The new 1300 GS has a similar natural feel at low speed but is now less bulky and intimidating. BMW claim a weight reduction of 12 kilos but it feels like more, particularly in town and some classic Spanish congestion, where I found the new Beemer far easier to wiggle and weave through the chaos. Shorter, lighter, more powerful and gruntier across the revs – on paper, it certainly looks like BMW have done an impressively complete job of the most significant Boxer reinvention in more than a decade.

BMW has made the GS lighter, more compact, more adjustable, more accessible, more responsive, more comfortable, faster, gruntier – and done so without sacrificing the usability of the Boxer platform. It’s now easier to live with, but equally more fun with more punch and better handling. The level of usable technology is, as they say, off the scale.BHS Qualifications (BHSQ) is an awarding organisation recognised and regulated by the Office of the Qualifications and Examinations Regulator (Ofqual) in England, SQA Accreditation in Scotland, Qualifications Wales (QW) and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) in Northern Ireland. BHSQ works in partnership with a variety of organisations to develop and award qualifications for the equestrian industry. This ensures BHSQ qualifications are fit for purpose for the sector. Preload. Optional semi-active suspension including auto preload and optional adaptive ride height control Despite making the new Boxer unit massively oversquare and upping peak power by a claimed 11bhp, you don’t have to chase the revs. The R 13 drives very much like the older bike –it certainly sounds like the old bike –but does so with more of everything. There is a now a deeply satisfying spread of torque from as low as 3000rpm, and I found myself accelerating briskly out of sleepy Spanish villages in high gear with effortless laziness.

There’s a real difference between fully lowered and fully upright. At motorway speeds, you can hear the wind noise vastly reduce as the screen rises. From low to upright the wind protection is greatly increased, too. There’s still some air cooling the rider, it’s not a complete bubble like a BMW RT, but I found the wind protection to be noticeably better than it is on the older GS. And I have to say that the adjustable screen is a game changer, not just for 5ft 7inch me but taller riders too. Shame it’s not standard.As for fuel consumption, the 1300 is only a fraction down on the 1250 – a claimed 58.9mpg for the new motor, compared with the previous bike’s 59.5mpg. What will make a slight difference is having a 1-litre smaller fuel tank, with volume now just 19 litres. That gives a theoretical range of 246 miles, which is down on the R 1250 GS’s max range of 262 miles. For now all these are purely on paper – we’ll bring you tested economy and real-world range as soon as we’ve ridden the bike. Peak torque is a fraction higher than before at 6500rpm, while peak power arrives at the same 7750rpm and, to be frank, you really don’t need to rev above 7000rpm, even when your brain is in sport mode. I deliberately rode the GS in a gear too high as I carved up the multiple Spanish hillsides and was blown away by the endless surge of instantaneous and immaculately metered torque on tap. We all know how fast a GS can be but the way the new bike delivers whilst only using 60% of the rpm is truly impressive. It asks so little of the rider. Power and torque figures both represent a healthy increase over the 1250. Peak power is up from 134bhp to 143bhp, making for the most powerful production Boxer engine ever. Maximum torque is up from 105lb·ft to 110lb·ft, but more importantly BMW say there’s more grunt “across the entire engine speed range”. As evidence, they offer the factoid that the 1300 motor makes at least 95lb·ft of torque (more than the 2013 R1200GS’s peak torque figure) all the way from 3600rpm to 7800rpm. Maximum revs remains the same 9000rpm as the 1250, hopefully offering reassurance that the new motor hasn’t become any revvier than before, despite its shorter-stroke design. Despite the wealth of bigger numbers, not everything has gone up in size. BMW say this is a more compact Boxer engine than before, thanks to moving the six-speed gearbox from behind the engine to a new location underneath it. This means the motor is shorter and better balanced – in fact, the engine alone is now 3.9kg lighter, while the weight savings increase to 6.5kg across the whole powertrain.

On the road, we had the standard Eco, Rain and Road riding modes, plus the optional Dynamic/Pro, which optimises the rider aids, suspension, and power characteristics to the moment. The frontal area is pleasingly neat and gives the new GS a slimmer look and feel. Even without lowering the electronic suspension, I could get two feet securely, if not quite fully, on the ground. Shorter riders can opt for a lower seat option or the adaptive vehicle height control, which automatically drops the seat height from 850mm to 820mm at slow speeds. In addition to the dates listed above, many BHS Approved Riding Centres offer in-house Stage 1 assessments, where candidates book and pay for their assessments directly with the centre. If you are interested in finding an in-house Stage 1 assessment, the following centres may be able to help. Acrecliffe Equestrian Centre DSA moves electronic suspension on to the next level by not only offering the ability to adjust front and rear damping in real time, but now also being able to change spring rate too. We’ve covered the system in detail before, so for more information on how it works, have a read here .

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Passing air/fuel mixture to and from the bigger combustion chambers are larger-diameter valves, with intakes up from 40mm to 44mm, and outlets up from 34mm to 35.6mm. BMW’s ShiftCam system is retained, which can change the valve timing and lift on the intake side by switching between two cam profiles on the same shaft. At lower revs and smaller throttle openings a milder “partial-load” cam reduces lift and duration, and also staggers the opening between each pair of intake valves to deliberately swirl the air/fuel mixture on its way into the chamber, all improving efficiency. Work the motor harder and ShiftCam switches to the “full-load” cam profile, opening the intake valves further and for longer to let the engine guzzle all the air and fuel it desires. Full Integral ABS Pro, Dynamic Brake Control, Dynamic Traction Control, four riding modes, hill-hold control. Optional: Shift Assistant Pro, Headlight Pro, Active Cruise Control with Front Collision Warning and Lane Change Warning, Riding Modes Pro, Dynamic Suspension Adjustment, adaptive ride height control