Why Rear Brake Lever On Right Handlebar?

[Dan_Lockwood]

I've been looking into the BMW C650 GT and love many aspects of it. I think it will be my next bike to downsize to. Right now, I have an '09 Harley CVO Road Glide and I'll be 75 in October. I also have a '98 Honda CN250 Helix and an '85 Honda CH250. I've been riding the Honda Helix two to three times more than the Harley in the last couple years. It's much easier for the wife to get on/off than the Harely and as odd as it sounds, much smoother of a ride. I'm noticing that the Harley is a bit more difficult to keep balanced in parking lots than it used to be. My next bike has to be lighter and more than likely a much lower center of gravity, which the C650 GT can provide. But so can the Yamaha TMAX, Honda Silver Wing and the Suzuki Burgman 650 Exc. I'm leaning very heavily to the BMW of the Maxie's.

My question, being from a motorcycle background for, why does BMW place the rear brake on the right handlebar and front brake on the left handlebar??? This is NOT the industry standard, for sure.

Can one swap the hydraulic lines from left to right and get the front brake on the right and rear brake on the left? This could be a game changer for me. Old habits are going to be hard to break!

Thanks, Dan

 

[davepen]

Hmm...on my 13, the front brake is on the right side.

 

[wspollack]

...
My question, being from a motorcycle background for, why does BMW place the rear brake on the right handlebar and front brake on the left handlebar??? This is NOT the industry standard, for sure.
...

You wouldn't be trolling us now, would you? I mean, first post, and a pretty odd assertion.

As @davepen said, the front brake lever is on the right side of the handlebar (and the rear brake lever is on the left side, both as sitting -- forward -- on the bike). This is the case with all their scooters (just like my '22 and '23 C 400 GTs, and all their other bikes and scooters, etc., etc.).

Here are two pages of the parts fiche for the C 650 GT, from Max BMW's site, https://shop.maxbmw.com/fiche/DiagramsMain.aspx?vid=54688&rnd=09082020 :

Front brake:



Rear brake:



You can see from the positioning of the reservoirs -- inboard of the levers -- and the curvature of the levers that these are, indeed, respectively, pictures of the right side -- FRONT WHEEL -- and then the left side -- REAR WHEEL.

Would you care to share where and how you came by your belief that BMW did otherwise? BMW does some strange things at various times -- their short-lived experiment with power-assisted brakes a decade or so ago comes to mind, as does their unusual placement on some current models of Schrader valves on the wheels -- but lever sides is not one of them.

 

[mjnorris]

My two 13s and my 19 all have left/rear and right/front.

 

[Dan_Lockwood]

Okay guys, sorry!

I read an article that apparently had mistakenly reversed them in the article. As I would have guessed initially, the rear SHOULD be on the left to maintain consistency of the right being the front as in ALL other motorcycles etc.

I'm just going to pick up my new to me 2020 C650 GT tomorrow. And yes, the rear brake is the left side, my bad.

I'm NOT trolling, just misinformed.

Thanks for all the effort to explain my miss quoting.

Dan

 

[Ceesie76]

No worries and congratulations on getting a great maxi-scooter, you'll love it.

 

[Dan_Lockwood]

I have the 650 GT home now and have taken it for a quick spin. In the twenties here, just a bit brisk...

I feel pretty ignorant about my original question now. I did see a video on YouTube that described the levers in reverse, so I took that as gospel... I've played with lever adjustments and they are nice for that custom feeling. Some of my Harley buddies have install them on their rides, but never had a chance to play with them.

So far, I've found this bike to be just what we're looking for, an eventual replacement for my '09 Harley CVO Road Glide. I'm 75 and am having a few concerns when riding 2-up and in parking lots with gravel on the hard top or just plain gravel parking lots. If the Harley tips, I cannot, or will not, try to stop it anymore. The 650 GT is still light enough to give me some hope of keeping it upright.

Thanks, Dan

 

[DrCohen]

I've been looking into the BMW C650 GT and love many aspects of it. I think it will be my next bike to downsize to. Right now, I have an '09 Harley CVO Road Glide and I'll be 75 in October. I also have a '98 Honda CN250 Helix and an '85 Honda CH250. I've been riding the Honda Helix two to three times more than the Harley in the last couple years. It's much easier for the wife to get on/off than the Harely and as odd as it sounds, much smoother of a ride. I'm noticing that the Harley is a bit more difficult to keep balanced in parking lots than it used to be. My next bike has to be lighter and more than likely a much lower center of gravity, which the C650 GT can provide. But so can the Yamaha TMAX, Honda Silver Wing and the Suzuki Burgman 650 Exc. I'm leaning very heavily to the BMW of the Maxie's.

My question, being from a motorcycle background for, why does BMW place the rear brake on the right handlebar and front brake on the left handlebar??? This is NOT the industry standard, for sure.

Can one swap the hydraulic lines from left to right and get the front brake on the right and rear brake on the left? This could be a game changer for me. Old habits are going to be hard to break!

Thanks, Dan

Are you sure you're facing forward?

 

[Dan_Lockwood]

Are you sure you're facing forward?

DrCohen,

I have tucked my tail between my legs already and apologize for making the statement about front brake left and rear brake right. I was wrong!

Everything is as it should be on my 2020, front right and rear left... And, I am aware that ALL left/right references are referenced from the driver's seating area, forward. Sorry, that sounded rude, sorry. But maybe someone else can learn from this anyway.

Thanks, Dan