MichaelJohn
New Member
BMW S1000XR
This bike has been on my radar for a while as I have been looking for something with the acceleration of my Zero and the ergos, user friendliness and long distance capabilities of my NC.
I haven't ridden a manual shift for a while and I was wondering how I would do but it turned out to be a non-issue. My first take-off was smooth and easy and it felt natural again after a few minutes. The XR did feel a lot like the NC, it was incredibly easy to ride. They are about the same size and weight and though the higher COG of the BMW was noticeable, it still felt fine. It turned like a dream and I felt comfortable on it immediately though the suspension is stiff, even on the softest setting (EVERYTHING is electronically adjustable on this bike). The seat was very comfy and I was on the low suspension model which I flat-footed easily with a 32" inseam. Once I got comfortable shifting I tried the quick shifter which works for both up and down shifting. What a blast! Just tap it up or down and forget about the clutch except for stopping and starting. I hit the freeway on-ramp and ripped through the gears amazingly fast. This bike is a beast. The mid-range is probably a little faster than my Zero and the top end is mind-blowing. It's actually hard to compare the two bikes because they're so different. All you hear on the Zero is the whine of the electric motor so you really feel the pull. On the Beemer your senses are overwhelmed by the fierce acceleration accompanied by the screaming in-line four. I would say that the Zero might stay close up to about 70 or so. Beyond that it's bye-bye Zero. The roll-on at 70 mph in sixth gear is astonishing. I was expecting some little hesitation, maybe a little lugging, something…but there was nothing - just instant go and a lot of it. Then I tried downshifting to fifth and fourth and pinning it to see what would happen and all I can say is thank goodness that the bike has wheelie control because I think it would have power-wheelied on the freeway. I guess that's what 160 (underrated) horsepower will do. This is the de-tuned version of the world-beating S1000RR engine with a lower redline (12,000 vs 13,000) but more torque down low. Mine was still in break-in mode and was limited to 9,000 RPMs and I did hit the limiter - I just had to. They say it's even faster when you get it into the higher revs. Frankly, taking it to 9000 RPMs was enough for me.
All was not peaches and cream however. The bike has a well-known handlebar vibration issue between 5000 and 6000 RPMs and I certainly felt it. There was one point around 6000 RPMs where the whole bike was buzzing. The XR forum says that this improves with time and miles so maybe it's not that big of a deal. Another thing that I didn't like was the exhaust note. it's not bad at idle and when you rev it it's not that loud or sonorous. However on the road it's damn loud and I didn't like it at all. I think I am spoiled by my Leo Vince which has a nice growl at idle, sounds great while accelerating but settles into a very pleasing and not too loud rumble at cruising speeds. I was surprised that I didn't like the Beemer's sound because most people rave about it. Different strokes. I also felt quite a bit of heat coming off the engine and today was only 80°. It gets into the 90's and sometimes 100's here so I'm sure the heat would bother me.
All in all the BMW is a thrill ride with all the bells and whistles but I don't think it's for me. It's insanely powerful, maybe too powerful - it would probably just get me in trouble. I hope that the test ride got it out of my system. It's an amazing bike but I was happy to come back to the trusty NC - it still just feels right. It was interesting shifting again but frankly I don't miss it. The more I ride the DCT the more I like it. It frees up more of my brain to enjoy the ride. And even though the BMW is way quicker than the NC I still find the NC to be quite a torquey little machine. It's actually plenty quick, just not at higher speeds.
Well, at least now I can scratch off riding a superbike from my bucket list.
This bike has been on my radar for a while as I have been looking for something with the acceleration of my Zero and the ergos, user friendliness and long distance capabilities of my NC.
I haven't ridden a manual shift for a while and I was wondering how I would do but it turned out to be a non-issue. My first take-off was smooth and easy and it felt natural again after a few minutes. The XR did feel a lot like the NC, it was incredibly easy to ride. They are about the same size and weight and though the higher COG of the BMW was noticeable, it still felt fine. It turned like a dream and I felt comfortable on it immediately though the suspension is stiff, even on the softest setting (EVERYTHING is electronically adjustable on this bike). The seat was very comfy and I was on the low suspension model which I flat-footed easily with a 32" inseam. Once I got comfortable shifting I tried the quick shifter which works for both up and down shifting. What a blast! Just tap it up or down and forget about the clutch except for stopping and starting. I hit the freeway on-ramp and ripped through the gears amazingly fast. This bike is a beast. The mid-range is probably a little faster than my Zero and the top end is mind-blowing. It's actually hard to compare the two bikes because they're so different. All you hear on the Zero is the whine of the electric motor so you really feel the pull. On the Beemer your senses are overwhelmed by the fierce acceleration accompanied by the screaming in-line four. I would say that the Zero might stay close up to about 70 or so. Beyond that it's bye-bye Zero. The roll-on at 70 mph in sixth gear is astonishing. I was expecting some little hesitation, maybe a little lugging, something…but there was nothing - just instant go and a lot of it. Then I tried downshifting to fifth and fourth and pinning it to see what would happen and all I can say is thank goodness that the bike has wheelie control because I think it would have power-wheelied on the freeway. I guess that's what 160 (underrated) horsepower will do. This is the de-tuned version of the world-beating S1000RR engine with a lower redline (12,000 vs 13,000) but more torque down low. Mine was still in break-in mode and was limited to 9,000 RPMs and I did hit the limiter - I just had to. They say it's even faster when you get it into the higher revs. Frankly, taking it to 9000 RPMs was enough for me.
All was not peaches and cream however. The bike has a well-known handlebar vibration issue between 5000 and 6000 RPMs and I certainly felt it. There was one point around 6000 RPMs where the whole bike was buzzing. The XR forum says that this improves with time and miles so maybe it's not that big of a deal. Another thing that I didn't like was the exhaust note. it's not bad at idle and when you rev it it's not that loud or sonorous. However on the road it's damn loud and I didn't like it at all. I think I am spoiled by my Leo Vince which has a nice growl at idle, sounds great while accelerating but settles into a very pleasing and not too loud rumble at cruising speeds. I was surprised that I didn't like the Beemer's sound because most people rave about it. Different strokes. I also felt quite a bit of heat coming off the engine and today was only 80°. It gets into the 90's and sometimes 100's here so I'm sure the heat would bother me.
All in all the BMW is a thrill ride with all the bells and whistles but I don't think it's for me. It's insanely powerful, maybe too powerful - it would probably just get me in trouble. I hope that the test ride got it out of my system. It's an amazing bike but I was happy to come back to the trusty NC - it still just feels right. It was interesting shifting again but frankly I don't miss it. The more I ride the DCT the more I like it. It frees up more of my brain to enjoy the ride. And even though the BMW is way quicker than the NC I still find the NC to be quite a torquey little machine. It's actually plenty quick, just not at higher speeds.
Well, at least now I can scratch off riding a superbike from my bucket list.
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