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2010 BMW S1000RR - THEY NAILED IT
(Would you like to win a S1000RR? The BMW MOA has you covered!)
This Bike is State of the Art
“Well, what do you think?” asked the BMW engineer before I’d even removed my helmet.
I remove my helmet to reveal a foolish grin from ear to ear and his eyes brighten as he sees my expression, “I feel like I’m getting away with murder out there.”
“What do you mean?” he inquires.
“I’m riding so sloppy out there” …wicked jet lag I suppose, “that if I had to put a number on it, I’d say I should have crashed at least 10 times by now.”
The engineer looks puzzled and concerned. “Is there something wrong with the motorcycle?”
“Are you kidding? So far it’s done everything in the world to save me from myself!” I reply.
The conversation continues as I describe in detail what on earth it is that I’m blathering on about. Woops, that should have been a high side, locked brake, flipped over backwards, etcetera yard sale. I go on to explain my amazement that this bike is actually helping me with my mistakes instead of punishing me for them like other 1000cc super sports bikes will.
The look on the engineer’s face becomes that of a proud parent receiving the praises of a child. In fact, you could sense the feeling of pride and accomplishment from every member of the development team.
BMW Motorrad has built the State of the Art liter class super sports bike. This isn’t supposed to happen when a manufacturer creates an all new from the ground up product competing against well entrenched competition with years of experience. They’ve reached that goal with the new 2010 BMW S 1000 RR.
“Forgiving”
This is not a term used to describe contemporary 1000cc super sport machinery. Anyone with time in the saddle of one of these bikes will agree. Slip up, and it will bite you. The arms race for the lightest, fastest, sharpest handling and hardest stopping equipment hasn’t yielded forgiving motorcycles easy to ride at the limits of their capabilities.
The S 1000 RR is forgiving. Through all of my mistakes riding the very technical Portimao circuit, I kept shaking my head in disbelief that I was still upright (as someone once said, power is nothing without control). Dynamic Traction Control (DTC) and Race ABS make this all possible. Both systems allow the rider to either preselect one of four different modes of operation or change modes while underway by pressing the mode button on the right handle bar. After the mode has been chosen, there is one minute to confirm it by pulling the clutch lever and closing the throttle. The information display on the multi function screen will then confirm the current setting. The last mode chosen is always retained when restarting the motorcycle. The four modes of operation for both the DTC and Race ABS are Rain, Sport, Race, and Slick. Rain = wet. Sport = regular road conditions. Race = race track with super sport tires fitted. Slick = race track with slicks fitted. Both systems can be deactivated separately from one another.
Dynamic Traction Control (optional)
The DTC system utilizes a gyroscope (that’s right) under the front seat section working together with the abs wheel speed sensors. The gyroscope works on a vertical axis (to detect wheelies) and a horizontal axis (to detect lean angle). The abs wheel speed sensors detect if the rear wheel is accelerating faster than the front. Once activated, and depending on the mode of operation, if the system detects front wheel lift or rear wheel spin up, a signal is sent to the engine management system. The engine management system proceeds to first close the throttle butterflies. Then, if necessary, interrupts fuel injection and ignition. The modes operate as follows:
Rain mode- maximum lean angle for acceleration = approx. 38 degrees
No wheelie allowed*
Sport mode- maximum lean angle for acceleration = approx. 45 degrees
No wheelie allowed*
Race mode- maximum lean angle for acceleration = approx. 48 degrees
No wheelie allowed*
Slick mode- maximum lean angle for acceleration = approx. 53 degrees
Leaning angle more than 23 degrees / no wheelie allowed*
Leaning angle less than 23 degrees/wheelie allowed (DTC off for 5 seconds)
*depending upon acceleration and road conditions, the front wheel will still lift for varying, limited periods of time and at differing heights.
A note from the lawyers: Although DTC/Dynamic Traction Control offers the rider valuable support and therefore represents a very significant safety factor when accelerating, it is obviously not able – just like Race ABS – to re-define, let alone change, the limits and laws of riding physics. In other words, the rider may still exceed these limits on account of misjudgment or a riding error, which in an extreme case may lead to an accident.
E-gas
The fuel injection mapping on the new S 1000 RR is set up beautifully without the slightest hint of surging or hesitation detected. The 48 millimeter throttle butterflies are controlled by an E-gas or throttle by wire system. While operating in the Rain mode, maximum power output is reduced to 150hp. Throttle response feels like a complete half turn to full throttle. In Sport, Race, or Slick modes full power output of 193hp is available. The ride by wire system provides increasingly more direct throttle response from Sport mode to Race mode with Slick mode becoming a mere quarter turn throttle. The system comes with a safety mechanical link connecting the cable to the electronic control unit enabling the rider to close the throttle butterfly under all conditions.
Race ABS (optional)
The Race ABS system, when active, operates as follows:
Rain mode- ABS on / integrated pressure buildup on / defined deceleration limit / ABS
at rear, activated by foot on / rear wheel lift off detection on
Sport mode- ABS on / integrated pressure buildup on / defined deceleration limit / ABS
at rear, activated by foot on / rear wheel lift off detection on
Race mode- ABS on / integrated pressure buildup on / deceleration limit defined for
increased performance / ABS at rear, activated by foot on / rear wheel lift
off detection off
Slick mode- ABS on / integrated pressure buildup on / deceleration limit defined for
increased performance / ABS at rear, activated by foot off / rear wheel lift
off detection off
As soon as the rider pulls the handbrake lever, the pressure sensor integrated into the front- wheel control circuit switches on the brake light and the pump, the latter immediately delivering brake fluid through the open valve to the rear wheel circuit.
The pressure set in the rear wheel circuit is measured by a second pressure sensor and is controlled according to the distribution of brake power required and the brake force generated by the rider. The third pressure sensor in the rear control circuit, finally, measures the brake pressure activated by the rider’s foot.
Use of a forth pressure sensor in the front wheel circuit allows further improvement and even finer control of front-wheel brake pressure compared with former BMW Integral ABS II, since the system is able to compare the actual level of pressure in the control and wheel circuits.
As a result, there is now no need for the usual throttle blades, which serves to provide an optimum pressure point and allows perfect dosage of brake power. All pressure sensors are integrated in the pressure modulator and the overall configuration of the system with its integrated pressure sensors now also avoids the need for a brake light switch.
The use of these four pressure sensors in conjunction with the rear wheel lift-off detector (remember that gyroscope) allows even better distinction than before between a bump on the road and the rear wheel locking.
The S 1000 RR is the only super sport machine with DTC Dynamic Traction Control and Race ABS.
(Would you like to win a S1000RR? The BMW MOA has you covered!)
Brakes
It took me 2 laps around the Portimao circuit to stop smashing my groin into the tank under braking. These brakes are strong. Brembo provides the hardware for the job. Up front is a radial master cylinder utilizing a ¾” master piston to push the juice to a pair of radially mounted four-piston calipers with 34 millimeter pistons. The front rotors are floating and measure 320 mm x 5mm. The rear rotor is a 220mm x 5 mm affair. The brake lines are braided steel for maximum resistance to fading and high temperatures. The brakes almost seemed to get stronger as the day progressed.
Engine
I know, a lot of you wanted to hear about this way back almost 1400 words ago. Relax. It’s fast alright. It’ll suck your eyes back in your head and that corner up ahead is a lot closer than it looks so get ready with those Brembos. This power plant sets all sorts of new standards for the industry.
Power delivery is very linear without the brutish hit some liter class bikes throw at you. Max output is 193hp at 13000 rpm. Peak torque is 82.5 lb-ft at 9750rpm. This is the most powerful engine in this class. Redline is a sky high 14200 rpm for plenty of over-rev thanks to the formula one inspired engine technology.
Cylinder bore is 80mm and the stroke is 49.7mm. The large bore makes room for two 33.5mm intake valves and two 27.2 mm exhaust valves per cylinder. This is the largest valve surface area in the segment. The valves are titanium and have 5mm stems. The compression ratio is 13:1.
The engine weighs just 131.8 lbs, the lightest in the class.
Despite the large cylinder bore, engine width at crankshaft level is only 18.23”. The engine has a very low overall height of 22.0” and, tilted 32 degrees to the front, creates a very low center of gravity. She’ll switch from right to left quicker than Arlen Specter and back again.
The crankshaft is forged from a single piece of heat treated steel and comes with the traditional 180 degree crank angle. Both the main and conrod bearing journals measure 34mm.
The connecting rods are forged, extra light, heat treated steel units 103mm in length and weigh just 334 grams. The upper conrod opening measures 17 mm.
Nikasil coated cylinder liners house forged lightweight box pistons with very short skirts. The pistons, pins, and rings weigh just 253 grams each. This engine revs very quickly. To remove and dissipate heat, the pistons are cooled at the bottom under high thermal loads by oil injection nozzles in the crankcase.
Valve angle on the intake side is 11.2 degrees and 13.3 degrees on the exhaust side. The valves are operated by very small and light individual cam followers with an ideal transmission ratio of approximately 1:1.
The engine is a wet sump design with an Eaton oil pump and 3.9L of oil capacity including the filter. An inspection glass is located on the left side of the engine below the alternator. A large oil cooler is fitted below the radiator.
Coolant capacity is 2.9L. The engine never got hot despite prolonged high load operation.
The engine spoiler helps direct cooling air to the oil sump and the exhaust.
The alternator generates 434 W at 6000 rpm.
The clutch is manual, not hydraulic, to save weight and complexity. It is a 5.22” diameter wet clutch with ten friction plates. The pull is light and positive at the lever and even though I abused the ramp type slipper clutch mercilessly, the clutch never faded or objected.
A stacked six-speed gearbox makes room for a longer swing arm in the interest of optimum traction. The dog-shift six-speed is very compact and light. The individual gears are shifted by a light, composite steel shift cylinder and shift forks resting on three points. The primary and secondary shafts are positioned one on top of the other. Typical of liter class sport bikes, first gear is very tall here. I never missed a shift and the ratios are well sorted. Gear engagement was always very positive.
Final drive is by chain of course.
HP Gearshift Assistant (optional), what can you say? This thing is more fun than winning the lottery. Interrupting the ignition and fuel supply for fractions of a second, it allows you to hammer away at your up shifts without the slightest concern for the clutch lever. You ought to hear how it sounds as someone rows up through the gearbox too. Just remember, you still need that clutch for those down shifts.
A variable length intake manifold allows for an optimum torque curve and maximum power. Depending on engine speed, an adjuster motor fitted to the airbox varies the length of the intake manifolds through map control in two stages.
Intake air flows through the ram air inlet between the headlights to the 7.9L airbox. There it meets the vertically arranged plate air filter and passes, without having to be diverted, straight to the intake manifold. Servicing the air filter is a snap by removing the cover over the top of the airbox which sits immediately in front of the fuel tank.
Overpressure within the airbox from the ram air inlet is such that at 155 mph, approximately 5 hp of additional engine output is created.
The stainless steel exhaust system uses a 4-in-2-in-1 configuration. For the best combination of street manners combined with track performance, the system comes with two interference-type butterflies within two connection tubes linking the two outer and the two inner manifolds in the immediate vicinity of the exhaust ports. The collection chamber is mass centralized under the engine and leads to a short, light rear muffler. The Formula One inspired engine architecture yields a similar sound at high rpm’s from the silencer. This thing howls such sweet music.
Chassis
The aluminum bridge frame is comprised of four cast sections. The steering head and side section (with its integrated forward engine mount) are tip cast. The rear section with the rear engine mount, the swing arm supports as well as the mounting points for the foot pegs are low pressure die-cast. A square aluminum tubing sub-frame bolts to the mainframe in the usual way. The frame seems to have the appropriate amount of rigidity without being too stiff as good feed back was received from both ends.
The frame weighs just 26.42 lbs and uses the engine as a stressed member.
Weighing in at just 403.5 lbs, this is the lightest liter class super sports bike with Race ABS. It has the best power to weight ratio in this class of just 2.31 and, respectively, 2.34 lb per horsepower without/with Race ABS.
The steering head angle is a very steep 66.1 degrees and wheel castor is a short 3.776”. The steering is very quick without being twitchy as I discovered avoiding that Canadian journalist who tried to take me off the track with him as he made an unsuccessful pass. A steering damper also helps keep things in check.
A massive, double swing arm made of deep-drawn aluminum plates with a cast dish at the bottom holds things together out back. The unit is a torsionally stiff and light 13.72 lbs. To help put all of the S 1000 RR’s power to the ground, the swing arm is a longish 23.35” from pivot to rear axle. An additional 1.77” range of adjustment for the rear axle support (.69” forward movement & up to 1.08” rearward movement) is on tap for further customization of chassis set up. Move it forward to gain a little traction or rearward to reduce the likelihood of a wheelie. Wheelbase thus varies from 55.69” to 57.46” with the standard wheelbase of 56.38”. The swing arm even has variable height swing arm pivot inserts.
Suspension
Suspension on the new S 1000 RR feels firm yet compliant. I felt that a good tire contact patch was maintained at all times. The damping indexers on the motorcycle are set up with ranges of adjustability of 10 rather than the typical, forbidding 20 to 30 clicks offered competitively which create extraneous minutiae.
The rear shock is a Sachs unit with 5.12” of travel. An eccentric insert (like the swing arm pivot) is used in the upper shock mount which allows the entire rear end to be raised up to 10mm. A single adjustment collar with a set screw makes spring preload changes easier than a traditional double collar design. Color coded compression and rebound adjusters simplify set up. Adjustability is offered via a high speed compression damping (braking bumps) and low speed compression damping (long, stretched out, undulating bumps) as well as rebound damping all with numbered indexers for clickers. t;
Sachs also makes the fork, a stout 46mm upside down/male slider unit. The female tube is adjustable for height to 15mm. The front end can be lowered up to 5mm and raised up to 10mm. Adjustability on the forks includes preload, compression, and rebound settings once again with color coded, numbered indexers for clickers.
Wheels and Tires
Very light, stiff, 10 spoke pressure cast aluminum wheels are fitted. Triangular geometry is utilized in the spokes for strength. In order to save weight, the rotors do not use separate carriers but are still floating. These are the lightest liter class wheels. Paint is applied as the finish for the wheels because it saves approximately 500 grams per wheel versus powder coating. Hopefully the finish will hold up as well.
As far as tires go, the only of the three spec tires to be mounted that I have any experience with are Bridgestone BT016’s. I’ve had good luck with these tires for street use (long wearing in the middle and soft and sticky on the sides). They’ll be the most common liter class size: front- 120/70 ZR 17 and rear- 190/55 ZR 17.
Ergonomics
The S 1000 RR is slender and compact like a typical 600. The seat/tank junction is narrow enough to be comfortable. I wouldn’t say you sit down in the seat or up on the seat but rather sort of in between. The seat is not uncomfortable and the reach to the bars very natural. With all of the chassis and control adjustability, a wide range of riders should feel at home onboard. The windscreen even has pressure relief holes to prevent helmet buffeting.
Instrumentation
A large, easy to read analogue tachometer dominates the display, accompanied by an easy-to-read LCD display embedded in the tach and a second LCD screen to the right of the first. Glare wasn’t a problem. The embedded LCD indicates speed, current gear selected and the Rain, Sport, Race, or Slick mode currently selected. The second display has a road mode which displays coolant temperature, a clock, and the odometer or a lap-time mode which displays current running lap, time of the last lap and current time of the current lap. It can also be configured to display the fastest lap, best lap freeze, display of lap number, all time best, accelerator position in % per lap, time brake light was on, min/max speed on lap displayed and number of gear shifts.
The high-mounted shift light is large and easy to see. It sits atop the two LCD screens and is adjustable in terms of frequency and brightness. The shift light even functions as an engine speed indicator for optimum, race style launches. Flashing on and off at approximately 9000 rpm (to take advantage of the engines peak torque development), if engine speed is too low the light will remain off, too high and the light will remain lit.
Bodywork/Styling/Lighting
This motorcycle is gorgeous but at the same time, very conventional in appearance. Adding a very BMW touch, so as not to get lost in the crowd, the asymmetrically styled headlights are inspired by endurance racing with the high beam being the smaller, round light on the right. Another asymmetrical design cue is the shark gill styled opening on the right side of the fairing conveying a further, subtle touch of distinction.
The small high beam lamp is also functional in that it saves weight and makes room for other electrical considerations. A very bright LED tail light graces the rear, set in a clear lens. Turn signals up front and turn signal / plate holder out back are designed for quick disconnect.
Switch gear is of conventional design.
The fuel tank is aluminum to save weight.
The fit and finish is top notch throughout as anyone who has owned a BMW would probably expect. Sort of unavoidable, I suppose, for something so well engineered. The only complaint some may have is with the textured finish of the frame (cast components) but its visual impact is greatly reduced by the clever addition of textured, matte black trim pieces above and below the main frame spars.
Miscellaneous
A toolkit is located on board.
The electronics system is a CAN bus type.
Over 600,000 miles of final product endurance testing went into this motorcycle over the summer of 2009, 2/3rds of which occurred on race tracks.
The S 1000 RR is built 100% at the BMW Motorrad plant in Berlin.
Valve adjustment intervals are called for approximately every 12,000 miles.
Warranty coverage is provided for 3 years / 36,000 miles whichever occurs first.
Pricing
MSRP*: $13,800.00
Race ABS (excluding DTC): $1000.00
Race ABS and Dynamic Traction Control (DTC) combined: $1480.00
Gear Shift Assistant: $450.00
Anti-Theft Alarm: $395.00
Motorsports Paint Scheme: $750.00
*MSRP excludes destination, freight, license, registration, taxes, insurance, and options.
(Would you like to win a S1000RR? The BMW MOA has you covered!)
Colors
The 2010 BMW S 1000 RR will be available in: Mineral Silver Metallic, Thunder Grey Metallic, Acid Green Metallic, and Non-Metallic BMW Motorrad Motorsport Tri-Color.
Other items to consider
BMW Motorrad accessories: huge selection of HP parts and other items all designed specifically for the BMW S 1000 RR.
Alpha Racing Performance Parts: wide range of motorsport and tuning accessories for circuit racing the BMW S 1000 RR.
DoubleR Collection: single-piece leather suit, helmet, boots and gloves, all color-matched to the BMW S 1000 RR.
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