BMW S1000RR M/Sport (2019) - Long Term Review

Part 1 - BMW S1000RR Sport - Two Weeks In

First Published 23rd May 2019

The 2019 S1000RR story hasn’t got off to a brilliant start as far as BMW are concerned. Despite announcing their headline new sportsbike last November at the annual EICMA show in Milan, 10 years on from their original S1000RR, customers are yet to take delivery of theirs here in the UK.

So, when the phone rang with an offer of an S1000RR fitted with the M Package as a long-term loan from BMW, just like the version I’d ridden at a very damp Estoril on the press launch, I felt a little guilty. Why should I be riding one when the paying chaps and chapesses haven’t got their yet? I soon saw the error of my ways and learned the bike I would ‘own’ for a short while would be a pre-production model so it wasn’t like I was doing any customer out of their machine.

Turns out the M People Package version wasn’t available either so the Sport came my way for a couple of weeks instead. And no sooner had it been unloaded at BikeSocial HQ, it was soon scurried away into our own van and off towards Donington Park for the Bennetts Customer Track Day – what a baptism of fire for the BMW, though it had been run in already.

Turns out that when reducing the tyre pressures, the on-board sensors don’t really like it. In fact, having ignored the amber warning for three laps the bike took its hypothetical ball and went home by telling me to ride to me nearest dealer. The very, very clever computers, sensors and brain of the bike had realised the situation it was in wasn’t terribly safe and went into limp-home mode by only allowing me to use a maximum of 6000rpm which is fine if there is something actually wrong but on track, even with track mode selected, there was no way to out a loving arm around it and say “it’s ok”.

Once the far more scientific version of Ctl+Alt+Del was pressed back at BMW’s press fleet distribution warehouse I was back up and running. On track the bike is fierce yet dainty like a dragon mixed with a prima ballerina. The sexy, smooth in-line four roars into life on the press of the ignition switch and sits at 1000rpm more than it needs to for the first 10 seconds before settling down into more of a tinny rattle. The sweet and instantaneous quick shifter is a gem, one of the best I’ve ever used, though the downshift can be a little spongey, so much so that a quick glance at the very trick dashboard is required to check the gear selection. Rev the pants off it and feel rewarded. While on the road the S1000RR’s motor is all smooth and extremely rider-compliant, yet the sub-9,000rpm Shiftcam threshold is relatively subdued so, just like a 600, to get the kind of urgency that makes your eyes stand on end then treat the accelerator like an on/off switch. However, do that it any gear from 3rd and above and you’re instantly looking at trouble from the law. So, stick to the track if you want to feel the full force of its 204bhp.

Breezes through the back roads with ninja-like prowess. The extraordinary chassis is accompanied by suspension that is compliant with any road, once you get used to where the options are on the iPad-esque dashboard. Still operated by the now-traditional tracker wheel on the left-side of the handlebars, the options are vast. Get a setting that suits your style sorted and reap the rewards. It works so well as a road bike having such rider comforts as cruise control and heated grips, ideal for the journey back from Peterborough to Donington Park early one morning of the following week. This time it was a Ducati day and when I pulled up outside the garage it was like the honey to a swarm of bees as one-by-one riders and even Ducati management started asking questions.

Just like that kid at school, the S1000RR wants to be brilliant at everything, it wants to beat you at everything too – second guessing the road ahead to make your journey that bit more comfortable, for example. It’s certainly eye-catching in the red and black colour combo…

…and then the phone rings. It’s BMW Motorrad UK asking if the can have their Sport model back… uh? Oh, and replace it with the M Package version, phew! It’s +£3000 over the Sport and includes, other than the striking M Sport colour scheme, Riding Modes Pro, M Carbon Wheels, M lightweight battery, M Sport Seat and the M chassis kit reducing weight by 3.5kg. For sure, goodbye my stylish little mate and helloooo to your even racier brother. Good times lay ahead.

Rose-tinted glasses – the view of Steve Rose, BikeSocial Publisher

It’s been a while since I rode an S1000RR. This one is a very different and much more advanced machine than the 2010 version I last rode and you’d have to be dead to not appreciate the amount of thought and technical brilliance that goes into making something this fast, this light and this electronically advanced.

Seriously, as BikeSocial’s Mr Mann went through all the options for adjustment with me, I was lost in the hundreds of thousands (literally) of suspension, fuelling, engine braking traction control and abs options. You can even programme the amount of, and volume of backfire produced (BMW calls it ‘acoustic baffle volume’) when you shut the throttle. Yes, really.

Shame then, that when you ride it the whole experience is so entirely soul-less. On paper the 2019 S1000RR wins every game of top trumps you can think of, but on the road it is brilliant but totally unmemorable.

By the time you get to the top of third gear you’re already going too fast to survive. So, instead you shift between third and fourth gear, changing up at 9000rpm or so, barely even bothering the shiftcam system.

The clutch action setting off from rest feels like it has some kind of assistance, but what actually happens is it takes over from your hard-won experience making you kangaroo like a novice. But once moving everything else is pretty much perfect. Smooth power delivery, a slick gearbox and the best quickshifter I’ve ever used make it all-too-easy to find yourself going as fast as you hoped it would. Suspension (electronically controlled and semi-actively responsive) is firm in Dynamic mode, but not uncomfortable and unflappable (literally) at silly speeds on a very bumpy backroad letting the rider keep a light grip on the bars.

The riding position allows plenty of control and shifting position, but is also comfy enough for a sports bike. The seat is a different matter though - arse-ache sets in within the first hour on a motorway. There’s an awful lot of buzzing vibes too. Plenty of riders complain about BMWs in-line motor being vibey, especially on the S1000XR. I’ve never had problems like this one. The riding position encourages you to make contact with the fuel tank and you can feel it buzzing through your jacket. I thought my phone was ringing in my jacket pocket. There are also finger-numbing tingles through the bars on constant motorway throttle openings.

In the end, it depends what you need from your sports bike. BMW should be applauded for building an engine that can make 200+ bhp at one end of the rev range and still bumble through the Bourne End rush hour at the other. I’d expected Shiftcam to boost the midrange, but what seems to happen is that it has allowed the engine to make the same kind of midrange performance as the old motor, while also giving that extra 10bhp at the top end.

If you’re expecting the new S1000RR to be a throbbing, torquey monster, you’ll be disappointed. But if you want an absolute state of the art, multi programmable, set-it-up-as-you-like 21st century superbike that’ll win this year’s motorcycle Top Trumps game hands down, there’s a lot of sporty goodness here for not that much money by superbike standards.

It’s a great example of what the boffins can do when they put their mind to it, but also a reminder that there’s a lot more to making a great motorcycle than just getting the specs right. Character matters and the S1000RR seems to have sped past the BMW ‘character’ dept in its hurry to visit to the Volkswagen-tribute ‘silly brake light’ building. Just like your mum’s mid-noughties Golf that had those round brake lights with indicators in the middle that you couldn’t see when the brake lights were on, the new S1000 has red rear lights where the indicators should be and the tiny strips of yellow flasher lights are built into these units. They work well until you try braking and indicating at the same time at which point, all the person following can see is bright red with no, er, indication you are turning.

Likes & Dislikes

Part 2 - BMW S1000RR M (2019) - The First 600 Miles

Updated 9th July 2019

Worryingly, it’s already ten years since the 21st century BMW sports bike revolution began. The first S1000RR arrived to a thunderous reception and it didn’t disappoint. Fast forward to today and now in its third generation, the German marque has done it again because the 2019 S1000RR is the new benchmark for track-focused, road-going sports bikes. 

Yes, that’s a hell of a statement for a bike I’ve only covered 600-road miles on (the bike had 400-running in miles on it when I took delivery) but I did get a chance to ride the M Package version at the press launch at a damp Estoril circuit in Portugal followed by the Bridgestone S22 tyre launch at a much warmer and dryer Jerez in Spain. And I know that being wooed by Grand Prix tracks and the romanticism of a sparkly new bike can easily cover the realistic day-to-day ownership of a motorcycle but that’s why I invite you to read on for I have an S1000RR with M Package for the year and will be relaying all its good points and any issues.

Introduction and first impressions: 2019 BMW S1000RR

As we put the first 600-miles on the new BMW sports bike, here's what you can expect to see, feel and hear.

It’s fair to say that good things come to those who wait, Guinness has relied on that saying for its marketing campaigns for donkey’s years, but there’s only a certain amount of patience those who laid down their deposits on the BMW’s new-for-2019 litre sports bike have. Delivery keeps getting pushed further back and once the slight feeling of guilt wore off when riding my press loan bike, I’m now swanning around like the cat who got the cream – having managed to justify to myself that I’m doing a service to my fellow motorcycle enthusiasts so they know what to expect when customers finally get theirs. As I write this, those who signed-up back in October 2018 still don’t have theirs and the official BMW line goes as follows:

In order to meet the unexpectedly strong global demand for vehicles with the exclusive M package, BMW Motorrad had to adapt the originally planned S 1000 RR production schedule as well as the delivery schedules from our suppliers.

The production planning adaptations to the new S 1000 RR, to meet the market requirements for a high M package equipment quota, result in a reduced volume for the market launch in June.

In addition, longer tool and system delivery times on the supplier side are currently reducing and regulating the output on the manufacturing side.

And the manufacturer is also offering a £500 Retailer Credit to be used on servicing, parts, accessories or BMW rider wear. PCP and part-exchange deals are also being adjusted accordingly.

With regular use comes familiarity. So, the glut of electronically-assisted options become more user-friendly the more you ride the bike, obviously. But it’s a real doddle to fire up, leave it in Road mode and off you trot. Each mode comes with its own pre-set characteristics for engine, ABS and tractions control depending if you’re riding in RAIN, ROAD, DYNAMIC or RACE and can be altered on the fly by a simple close of the throttle. Then RACE PRO 1, 2 and 3 are fully customisable including engine performance, engine braking, traction control, wheelie control, ABS and dynamic damping control. Launch control and pit lane limiter can also be activated while in any of the RACE PRO modes. Like I said, becoming familiar with just these options takes a while but I soon found that Dynamic is my preference for pretty much every non-race track scenario. The damping settings especially.

Incidentally, the DTC button on the left-handlebar with + and – works only in Riding Modes Pro setting. You can just turn the DTC (and therefore wheelie control) off by holding down the button to the left of the hazards for a couple of seconds then the potential scary factor goes up a notch. 

Despite sitting astride a 200bhp+ sports bike weighing less than 194kg (without me on board), the ride is unintimidating. Pootling about at 50mph and under is undramatic. There’s no ferociousness, no loud or obnoxious loutish nonsense, you can go about your business almost undetected. Then, when the time and law allows, the sublime and sporty power-to-weight ratio kicks that docile behaviour to the kerb with an astounding mid-range performance. The howl of the in-line four gives aural exposure to the refined German electronics working overtime to control the superb application of a heady mix of bhp’s and ft-lbs, which in turn compensates for the sub-4,000rpm rattle as chains and belts whirr beneath.

Reeling in the country roads in the 30-mile radius of the BikeSocial office while we shot the above video has never been so rewarding. It’s too easy to get sucked in by the euphoria-inducing concoction of power, noise and astonishing road holding that my driving licence would metaphorically tap me on the shoulder and say ‘oi, you need to retain me to do your job’. Those in charge of chassis geometry, suspension set-up and carbon wheel purchasing over in Bavaria can be chuffed (or whatever the German word for ‘well-pleased’ is) with their efforts because the S1000RR has Supersport qualities to its agility. The brakes just about keep up with performance but it’s the dynamic turning and poise that places this machine ahead of every other road-going sports bike. Others come close but there are still ‘buts’, whereas the German entrant and its more refined and classy approach can stand proudly at the front of the class.

Comfort is never a sports bike’s forté and while the saddle-to-handlebar and peg position are all roomy enough, within reason, the M Performance seat on this variation of the S1000RR is rock hard. Some would argue that a sports seat needs to be but after an 80-mile run I was desperate to get off the bike for a stretch. Other than that, the only minor irritations are how often neutral likes to play (and win at) hide-and-seek, as well as the auto-cancelling indicators – which have their place but aren’t configured for my liking. I’m nit-picking because I get paid to pick nits.

Next time: we discover how true the power and torque claims are with a run on the dyno before performance testing at Bruntingthorpe proving Ground. Then fit a full Akrapovic exhaust system and do it all again! 

Likes & Dislikes

Part 3 - Performance testing, dyno and full Akrapovič system

Updated 25th July 2019

Every motorcycle manufacturer will claim their model upgrades are always faster and lighter than before. It’s hardly revolutionary, I mean no Project Leader will say, “come on lads, let’s make it slower and heavier”.

The same goes for BMW when they introduced the 2019 S1000RR. The third generation was to up the ante so far that even dyno operators have been left a little flummoxed in a cartoon style rubbing of the eyes. Up until recently manufacturers have been claiming power output at the crank or with RAM air as opposed to the rear wheel, after all.

203.8bhp @ 13,500rpm said the Bavarian-based marque when the covers were whipped off at the EICMA show in Milan last November. At the crank or the rear wheel though?

It wasn’t until we took it to RPM Bikes’ dyno that we realised stereotypical German efficiency (and for that, read accuracy) should be trusted. After seven runs, we saw a figure just 0.5% off the claim. And it was at the rear wheel!

BMW S1000RR M (2019): Performance testing, dyno and full Akropovič system

We take our long term test bike, the 2019 BMW S1000RR M to Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground followed by a dyno run to test performance then we equip it with a full Akrapovic system and repeat the test.

It was all part of a performance testing day on our long-term loan BMW which saw us visit the Bruntingthorpe Proving Ground with its two-mile runway and stick a VBOX Sport datalogger on the bike for some acceleration and top speed testing followed by the RPM Bikes dyno run. Then it was off to Performance Parts in Daventry to have a full Stainless Steel Akropovič exhaust system fitted before going back to the Dyno and Bruntingthorpe to check the performance differences.

The wind was in my face at Bruntingthorpe for our morning run with the standard exhaust but thankfully the air temperature was a very reasonable 16 degrees Celsius. After four runs using the BMW Launch Control system, which in theory only permits three uses before a 15-minute cool down period is required for the clutch, the indicated top speed was 183mph according to the beautiful dash, though the datalogger showed just 175.1mph.

Launch Control is a gadget not to be messed with. The bike has to be in Race Pro mode then, while running and in neutral, press and hold the ignition button for a second then a white box appears on the dash with a number indicating the amount of runs remaining before the cool down. When you’ve got 200+bhp and a stack of torque waiting to propel you, with an engine yelling at you while being electronically held at 9,000rpm – your instinct to roll-off the throttle while feeding the clutch takes over, resulting in hampered times. Well, in my case as a non-professional racer, that was my excuse for not matching the claimed 0-60 times from BMW.

With no time to waste it was off the RPM Bikes in Northampton for a dyno run… or seven. Because the bike was warmed up already, we could get straight to it. Or so we thought. Connecting the relevant sensors to give accurate power, torque and air:fuel ratio was tricky enough to warrant many panels to be removed although that would help with cooling inside the already warm dyno room.

Dyno runs with power output in mind are run with the bike in 5th gear for any non-race bike that are 1000cc or above to give a broad spread from the low rpm. Anything below a 600cc then it’d be 4th gear. For some of the big twins the runs would probably start at 3000rpm but the four-cylinder BMW started at 2000rpm. Seven runs later to ensure a maximum power and torque output has been reached and the result is phenomenal.

Above: the dyno graph shows the outstanding results

The Results (standard exhaust)

On the dyno, the best run showed 202.7bhp @ 13,500rpm, which is just 1.1bhp shy of BMW’s claimed peak and the difference is no negligible it could simply be down to the air temperature on the day or even the life of the tyre on which is was running.

Torque performance was actually up on the claimed figure. BMW said 83.3lb-ft whereas the dyno showed 83.94lb-ft on the same run where peak bhp was achieved. In fact, on the previous run, the torque figure came out at 84.27ft-lbs. Either way the torque graph showed a very flat line from 7000rpm all the way up. Yet more evidence that the bike, thanks also to its Shiftcam system showing up at 9000rpm, has real pulling strength in the mid-to-high range.

As far as the emissions police are concerned 13.2 is claimed as ‘perfect LAMBDA’, and a dyno run, when it’s connected to the rights parts of the bike, can also show how lean or rich an engine is running. The S1000RR is running a little lean at 5-5000rpm, ideal for a “crisp pull” according to Iain Rhodes of RPM Bikes. It gets richer at about 8000rpm and by 12,000rpm its bang on the money again.

Iain also reiterates the warm weather could easily mean the difference of 1bhp or more where as a tyre could have up to 10bhp worth of difference. “The tyre that we’re using may make a difference, because it’s a Supersport tyre (Metzeler Racetec RR). Whereas on a dyno we tend to run a hard one, I can get 3bhp with a hard tyre. Go onto a slick tyre and you could lose up to 10bhp,” he said.

The Exhaust and its Results

Performance Parts are the official importer of after-market goodies such as Akropovič, Yoshimura, Rizoma and Remus, and they were more than happy to offer a full stainless steel Akropovič system for the BMW mainly because they’d not fitted one to the new bike before. So the test was as much for their skills and interest as ours.

The full Akropovič system is titanium 4-2-1 system retailing at £1663 inc. VAT and includes the carbon fibre hanger from the pillion foot peg mountings. It offers a 5.1kg weight saving to boot, taking the M Performance kerb weight down to 188.4kg making it over 10kg lighter than any rival.

With the full system fitted and no baffle, back to the RPM Bikes dyno we trundle with results offering some interesting viewing. As you’d expect, the gleaming new exhaust system sounds ferocious, especially when the rear wheel is hurtling along on the roller at the equivalent of 192mph. That was during a ‘power run’ using all the gears to achieve top speed.

While peak power was almost identical, and a small increase in peak torque up from 83.94 lbs-ft to 86.88 lbs-ft, it was the midrange where the extraordinary figures were based: +11 bhp and +6.97 lbs-ft @8500rpm. The new BMW was never found wanting in the mid-range with a scorching amount of grunt already evident with the standard system but an 11 bhp is stunning. The near-on flat torque line from 6000 – 11,000rpm shows how potent this bike is in the mid-range and if you’ve not ridden one yet then do yourself a favour and get it booked.

Adding the baffle in will keep the neighbours and track day police happy and while you’re potentially culling a couple of horsepower, it won’t be noticeable unless you’re Tom Sykes dancing around on a knife’s edge in the World Superbike Championship.

In terms of noise, it’s the official Akropovič website that states the standard exhaust makes 93dB at 5500rpm, while the non-baffled full system is 107.9dB at 5500rpm. That said, I was at a Silverstone track day (more about this next month) which had a drive-by limit of 105dB, and with the baffle in, I was fine.

Above: even noisier than before

On the air/fuel mixture affects, RPM’s Iain Rhodes says, “by taking out what we call the blockage (the cat), we’re obviously running slightly leaner at the bottom end of the rpm. As we come up to 8000rpm, it’s running richer because the LAMBDA sensors throw a little bit more fuel in, all the way up to 12,000rpm.”

Interestingly, he also added that the increase in air temperature by around 8 degrees C for the afternoon would decrease the overall bhp output by 1-2bhp.

Back to Bruntingthorpe and with a slight concern the straight through system would see us being thrown off the premises for being too noisy after one run, although at this point is was 6pm on Friday evening which would probably work in our favour. We set the cameras and the bike and boomed off down the runway. The launch to get all that power down in a controlled manner was as tricky as it had been in the morning with the headwind not helping but it was that extra power in the mid-range through to second gear that proved dividends. With a flat-out run the revs rarely drop below 11,000rpm as I keep an ear out for the awesome Akra audio as well as the gearbox popping its way to sixth. The two-mile straight is over before I know it although because it’s a multi-lane runway with and the scenery is more than a stones throw away, the sensation of speed isn’t as mind-numbing as you might expect.

Above: the dyno graph shows standard vs Akropovič

Using a VBOX Sport datalogger, the results is taken from the best of the two runs we managed in the afternoon versus the best of the four from the morning: 

Even though the system was a relatively simple plug-and-play process, with the BMW sorting all the fuelling out courtesy of its near NASA-spec electronics, the Akropovič website recommends ecu mapping “for perfect performance, throttle response and durability, special developed mapping is recommended.” So, guess what we’ll be doing next?

Modifications & Accessories

• Anti theft alarm: £220 | Official BMW accessory

• Black windscreen: £220 | Official BMW accessory

• Akropovič Titanium Silencer Complete Stainless 4-2-1 System: £1663 | Performance Parts

2019 BMW S1000RR Sport - Technical Specification