BMW R nineT 2021
BMW has published an update to the R nineT line for the 2022 model year. Representatives of the R nineT family received an updated engine that complies with Euro 5 emission standards, a new rear shock absorber, as well as a number of new optional components for customizing the Option 719 series. The 2022 line consists of four models: R nineT, R nineT Pure, R nineT Scrambler and R nineT Urban G/S. The café racer R nineT Racer, unfortunately, was excluded from the line.
Ecological framework of the BMW R nineT 2022
In order to squeeze into a narrower environmental framework, the 1170 cc air-oil-cooled boxer engine that powers the R nineT series motorcycles received new cylinder heads with valve covers, new throttle valves and a new turbulence system that swirls the fuel-air mixture for more efficient and cleaner combustion. The updated engine has a peak power of 109 hp at 7250 rpm, becoming 1 hp weaker than the previous version. The maximum torque value remains at the same level and is 116 Nm at 6000 rpm, but according to the manufacturer, twisting the fuel-air mixture has improved engine performance in the speed range from 4000 to 6000 rpm.
All four R nineT models feature a new rear suspension with variable damping (in BMW parlance this is a progressive damper characteristic) and a new manual spring preload adjuster.
ABS Pro with lean angle tracking is now fitted to all BMW R nineTs, as are the Rain and Road riding modes. Other updates include a new instrument panel, LED lighting and a USB port for charging devices.
The Option 719 catalog of customization components and accessories includes new wheels, milled parts and other decorative elements for every R nineT model, including additional paint options.
Those who have read me more than once know what kind of technique I prefer. But just in case, I’ll explain. In my personal report card, without a doubt and by a large margin from their closest competitors, the leaders are street fighters, predators of the big city, descendants of a sportbike and asphalt disease, well, that’s all, you understand. These miracles of the unhealthy fantasies of the twilight genius can look anything, as long as they are aggressive and brutal. And, most importantly, they must fully justify their name, that is, they must ride in such a way that the rider saddles before his eyes and feels real, genuine, pure fear! An adrenaline generator of the highest standard, so to speak. And a couple of years ago I had the opportunity to briefly own a “factory streetfighter” from BMW (S1000 R), and I had very mixed impressions of it. So today we’ll try another Bavarian motorcycle that claims to be a conqueror of the urban jungle. So, BMW R nine T, let's see if it has the devil's spark.
Here we need to make some lyrical digression. Firstly, the Bavarians never positioned this model as evil or aggressive, placing it in the heritage category, but, on the other hand, this is a BMW, it cannot be sluggish. Secondly, stylistically the Nine T is a cafe racer and does not inspire much fear and awe, and the presence of various versions, from Scrambler to Retro Sport, with a torpedo fairing and a huge number of custom projects rather hint at the so-called open base. That is, we buy an almost empty motorcycle for a minimum price and with a minimum of decor, and then - imagination and customization in all fields.
I won’t hide it, I’ve been eyeing this device for a long time. By itself, especially when you look at it from the side or on the pages of advertising, the motorcycle is quite expressive, with a good classic appearance, which allows you to create from it both a good, suitable retro, and go into neo-futurism, without losing the family features. The number of fairly successful custom bikes of all styles and shapes - from bobbers and scramblers to almost cyberpunk fighters - is a clear confirmation that the original motorcycle turned out to be quite successful. So, the news that there is one in the 2018 press park, and it is free, aroused my serious interest. The device that I got turned out to be something of a compromise option for those who want individuality, but at the same time want all the whistles and horns and other customization to be “from the factory.” Well, yes, there is this type of people: everything that is not done is a collective farm, and at least they have a stake on their head. Yeah, the guys from Brabus smiled mysteriously. And therefore, “option 719” was installed on the motorcycle - this is a set of decorative, milled and gold-anodized aluminum elements designed to make the appearance of the motorcycle individual, while remaining within the framework of the “factory options”.
But we will look at the motorcycle a little later, first the papers and pre-flight briefing. And a rather interesting detail immediately emerges. One of my colleagues who rode a motorcycle before me stopped at a certain Moscow car wash with the intention, oddly enough, to wash the motorcycle. Before filming there or just so as not to return it dirty, it doesn’t matter. It is important that at that car wash the motorcycle was washed with something so vigorous that some gray stains appeared on many parts that cannot be washed off at all. This was especially evident on the parts from option 719, apparently due to the different coating process. Probably, it would be possible to flatten them there with a rasp or emery, but I didn’t dare test this theory on my own equipment. In general, in addition to the usual wishes to return the motorcycle on time, and, preferably, as a single unit, and not as a set of separate parts in different bags and boxes (there were precedents), there was an urgent request either not to wash the motorcycle at all or with soap and water. No harsh detergents! In fact, I don’t know who in their right mind would wash a motorcycle (and a car) with a solution of caustic alkali, and this is exactly what some parts looked like, judging by the damage to the anode layer, but the fact remains a fact.
Well, these are all little things, start the engine, place the butt in the saddle and drive off. Having driven out onto the road, I immediately notice a rather unusual landing. I would find it difficult to call it comfortable or uncomfortable, it’s just different. You seem to be sitting almost straight, with a slight tilt forward, your legs are quite bent at the knees, but your feet are not shifted back. In general, the landing can be described as semi-sporty, a compromise between relaxed-impressive and aggressive-combat. And I won’t say that this is a very successful compromise, I would prefer either the first or the second, but this is completely personal. I would also like to note some asceticism in everything related to controls. Engine mode switch? No. And not even among the options. Switching suspension mode? Forget it. At least the ABS was left in place. Of all the nice things, the only nice thing is the heated grips (optional). Two large dial indicators, tachometer and speedometer. Two small LCD indicators in the center with a bunch of moderately useful information. Fuel level sensor? No, only the reserve light. For BMW this is unheard of asceticism. Thankfully, at least they didn’t consider ABS and the gear indicator to be too futuristic elements and didn’t throw them to hell. However, I was spoiled. In the past, I didn’t even have a tachometer; I could only dream of a fuel reserve light. Why is there a backup light, an electric starter - that was the ultimate dream, otherwise the shamanic dance “Uha-Aha. “Eddle, smoke, start a pile of scrap metal”, performed on kickstarter, sometimes for quite a long time, was not given to everyone and not right away.
However, let’s leave these little things aside and move on to the driving sensations. The motorcycle, as expected from a BMW with a displacement of more than a liter, rides quite cheerfully and maneuvers even more cheerfully. I wouldn’t call it a standard of maneuverability; after all, purebred urban predators will give it a good head start, but you can’t call it a clumsy barge either. In traffic, especially not in catastrophically dense traffic, where the cylinders of the boxer engine protruding to the sides begin to play a certain role in the overall size, the motorcycle feels very good. The suspension, although it does not have a wide range of settings, is still BMW. So, I was pleased with the suspension. Its factory settings were just adequate for Moscow and suburban roads with their “high-quality” road surface. The performance of the suspension and a moderately comfortable saddle make parading in city traffic somehow smoothly like a river – as if you are floating along a Venetian canal to the leisurely song of a gondolier, and all this at speeds of 100 km/h+. I must say, this is a rather pleasant feeling.
The most fantastic property of this motorcycle is revealed at dusk or sunset. And not while driving. Just place it on the footrest near an outdoor cafe so that the rays of the setting sun, the color of ripe Moroccan tangerines, fall on the smooth lines of the outline, polished chrome and black details with gold edging. Fantastic view, so warm and calm. The only thing missing is brown leather as a seat material. Yes, and some chrome parts look like they stand out from the general outline... So, stop. Now the playful hands have already woken up, and the brain has begun to frantically think about what to do with the motorcycle to make it even more beautiful. Actually, that's quite a compliment. Few motorcycles, once in my hands, immediately reveal their potential as the basis for something individual. You often have to think about forms, figure things out, and sometimes, having already started doing something, you have to go back and start over, because the resulting form doesn’t look very good. With this motorcycle everything is different. Michelangelo Buonarroti said that in order to get the perfect sculpture, you need to take a block of marble and cut off all that is unnecessary. So, from the height of my years, I decisively declare that even if you are Michelangelo three times and Buonarroti four times, not every block can produce something worthy. Sometimes you just end up with a shapeless mountain of marble chips. Returning to the motorcycle, we can say that it is exactly the same block, of the same quality, from which even the least experienced Buonarroti is quite capable of producing something for which there will be no shame. The bike looks great anywhere, in any environment, in any light. That's really cool. This is something akin to the notorious magic of Harley-Davidson - some kind of positive energy. The motorcycle attracts the eye, some people like it, some don’t, but it doesn’t leave anyone indifferent.
Now let’s add a huge bucket of tar to this barrel of honey. The first warning sign for me was that at a speed of just over 100 km/h+ I felt somehow amazingly uncomfortable. The engine reached the upper speed range and began to produce some fantastically scary sounds. The last time I heard such a sound was before something stuck to something on my Ural motorcycle and jammed (as it later turned out, due to the complete absence of such an important element in the engine as motor oil), and the one that got out The crankcase connecting rod truly demonstrated the famous “fist of friendship”. I somehow immediately lost the desire to rev the engine above the middle of the range. Well, okay, I think it goes quite well until the middle, about a hundred and a hundred liters again... The second bell for me was how unpretentiously and without tension the ancient Suzuki RF600, like a mammoth crap, drove away from me. 600 Karl! As old as a dinosaur! No, of course he didn’t leave me to the point, he just drove quite cheerfully, and I tried to keep up with him for fucking hundred hundred years. A liter of two hundred versus a little more than half a liter, Karl! I suffered great humiliation extremely rarely. In general, from this moment on, I decided to pay close attention to the dynamics. The conclusions turned out to be very disappointing. The bike rode on par with a Harley-Davidson Sportster Roadster or Triumph Speedmaster. God, have I really lived to see the day when I am forced to compare BMW with Harley-Davidson (and not with the most outstanding representative of the latter). Moreover, if Harley and Triumph can still be forgiven for not having the most outstanding dynamics, then I never expected to see BMW among the motorcycles that are chosen more with the heart than with the mind. The situation was further aggravated by the fact that literally shortly before this I had ridden a BMW R1200GS Adventure, and I had no complaints about its dynamics at all - it pushes like a god (for its size and weight, of course). But these two motorcycles have almost identical engines, and according to factory specifications, the “big goose” is only 10 hp more powerful, but our today’s hero is much lighter... In short, frustration and a mystery in one bottle.
When I returned the motorcycle, I did not fail to ask the local specialists: is it such a bug or feature of the motorcycle that, to put it diplomatically, it does not have the most outstanding dynamic data? To which Boris Lamin, you may know him from the blog “Real Motorcyclist,” said that he personally didn’t notice anything like that, and that at the recent BMW Track Day’s he apparently took a leading place in some category (I don’t remember in some, but definitely not cyclists), and you just had to ignore the sound of the engine and turn it further. I didn’t enter into polemics with Boris, I don’t lay claim to the laurels of a great racer, I still can’t get to those Track Days for some astrological reasons (although I really want to), and Boris, we must give him his due, has experience in driving and owning a BMW is far superior to mine.
Well, I guess I'll finish here. Did I like the motorcycle? Well, let's just say it definitely wasn't a disappointment. Appearance, contours, combination of black and gold, mmmm, delicious. As a platform for all kinds of custom projects, it is practically unrivaled and will give very serious competition to anyone, in any genre. As for the motorcycle itself, this is how it is... Well, you know, I prefer something hotter)))
That's all. Thanks for reading. Peace to you. Drive further and, if possible, harder.
BMW R nineT 2022
BMW R nineT 2021
The base model of the R nineT series is available in Blackstorm metallic with brushed aluminum parts, as well as three Option 719 variants : Night Black matt/Aluminum matt, Mineral White metallic/Aurum and Aluminum. Also available for the model is the Riding Modes Pro option with an additional Dyna mode, dynamic traction control and engine braking control.
