Some motorcycles polarise the biking community more than others. I'm thinking of Harley Davidsons, electric bikes...and the BMW GS. The GS is one of the most Marmite bikes there is (if you're not in the UK you may need to Google that, but in essence nobody is ambivalent about marmite - love it or hate it. There's no shades of grey.

I have a confession. While I have always been an admirer of the GS' sheer ability, it has never been on my horizon as an object of desire. It's partly an image thing - far too many are seen on any weekday commute with their riders failing to filter but also failing to use their mirrors while equipped (and dressed) as if they're going to the farest reaches of the known world rather than to The City. It's partly the fact that in my head it's a Range Rover with a couple of wheels missing, and I don't live on a farm. And it's partly because I have always owned and ridden sportsbikes.

Trouble is, every time I've spent any time with a GS I have had an absolute ball. Because they are utterly brilliant.

Now as is the way with all things, BMW have evolved the massively successful 1250 GS which we reviewed a couple of years ago and, of course, that evolotion means adding another 50cc and making it a bit bigger and cleverer.

Only it, um, doesn't. Well it does. But not all of it. It has indeed grown to 1300cc. And it is, without a doubt, an astonishingly clever piece of kit. But it isn't bigger. In fact it has shrunk a bit, and oh boy does it show.

Don't get me wrong, this thing is still a behemoth. But it's a really managable one, both on-board and dragging it around in a tight spot. For the first time ever I can get my feet on the floor and climb aboard without feeling I need Cuban heels. And that admittedly considerable size seems to shrink even more as soon as you're moving. But I'll get to that in a bit.

Aesthetically there are some notable changes. The Patrick Moore look is gone - we no longer get assymetric headlights that made the GS instantly recognisable for so long. Instead we get an X with a light in the middle. It's an acquired taste, but it's very effective. Especially as it's at eye level for car drivers. The silhouette, while unmistakably GS, is far more svelte than before. It actually reminds me more of a smaller member of the family - perhaps the 800 - than the 1250 from before.

As you might expect, the options list is vast. This particular bike is a demonstrator from Park Lane BMW and is, surprisingly perhaps, not completely loaded. In fact it's not far off stock, with just the Dynamic Pack, Pillion Pack. centre stand and GPS mount added. That adds the best part of £2500 to the price, but the base bike is surprisingly affordable, particularly in this market segment.

It's funny that the previous GS review I wrote I suggested, with my tongue firmly in my cheek, that the next one would kneel to help you get on. Well, buy the adaptive suspension...and this one does. It will also do your blind spot check for you, help you change lanes (yes, really), help prevent you from ramming the car in front when you doze off on the motorway as it's doing all the thinking (and you've of course engaged the cruise control) and warm your bottom as well as your hands. Surprisingly that only adds another £1800 but personally I can't help feeling that, in this case at least, less really is more.

Enough talking. Let's ride.

First big surprise. Well, the second actually, because being able to get aboard easilywas the first and we've already covered that.No key. As long as you have the fob on your person, just press the button to energise everything and hit the starter. And the real surprise is that unlike every boxer GS before it doesn't immediatley try to flip you upside down as the engine tries to rotate in the frame. You can still feel it, but it's somehow subdued. And I have no idea how. Pulling away is as fuss free as you'd expect, and at low speed the beast is really easy to manage. The weight feels lower, the torque reaction better controlled...it's pretty easy to handle.

It's also narrower than it looks. Having arrived on an S1000RR, I wasfully expecting a considerable adjustment period. It actually took me about 1 miunte to get the measure of the GS and to find it most agreeable.

I didn't expect this.

I really like it. It's easy to ride. It's comfortable. It's narrow enough to ride that I don't feel as though I'm about to give birth getting my legs around it. It's still a GS and it still feels like a GS, but it feels better in every way. A brief bit of exploration on some private ground says that the performance is more than adequate and handling is much better than it has any right to be. Even though it's raining, the GS takes everything I chuck at it without breaking a sweat. Including a bit of soft roading when I discover one of my favourite short-cuts was dug up.

The screen works well. It's manually adjustable (electric option available, of course) and in its lower position pushes just enough air to be a help. Raised, it makes a reasonably effective bubble. There is no turbulence. The Dynamic Pack gives riding modes which tweaks suspension settings and throttle map according to half a dozen presets and offers you the facility to completely muck it up in a custom way as well. Mirrors are excellent, largely vibe-free and well placed. They're wide enough but not too wide. Wider than the cylinders, mind, which is A Good Thing. Like mouse whiskers, if the mirrors will go through the gap, so will everything else. Clocks are a beautifully clear TFT screen with all the information you could possibly need and none you don't. The menus are accessed from the left bar switch and the big roller wheel - dead easy to use. Though the satnav wasn't fitted, the position of the (optional) cradle made it obvious that it would be easy to follow and previous experience says that it's straightforward to manage as well.

If I had to nitpick, and I guess I do, I'd say that the lack of backlit switchgear is a disappointment. I'm used the to S1000RR and that doesn't have it either but it does mean I know where everything is. And in truth, if you owned the bike you'd know soon enough, particularly as BMW seem to have spent a lot of time and money of ergonomics. But it would be nice, regardless.

Overall, in the short time I had the GS I completely failed to find anything I could really criticise. It is staggeringly capable, a huge improvement on its predecessor and will, deservedly, sell by the bucketload. As far as I can see it stands head and shoulders above its competition - while there may be others out there that do something better I don't believe that, right now, there is any other motorcycle that does everything as well as the R1300GS.

I didn't expect to like this bike. I don't actually think I wanted to, if I'm honest. But it's so good, so capable and so easy to get along with that it's pretty much impossible not to like it. The fact that it manages all this and retains some character as well is just icing on the cake. But don't just take my word for it. Give Cara Jones at BMW Park Lane a call and arrange a test ride. Take your credit card, because I fear you may need it.

SB