BMW R1150R Long term update #2

Curiosity being what it is, the ‘R' was hustled down to our friends at Dynobike for a run on the Dyno to see what the numbers really were. The in office sweep put the power at 80PS and torque at about sixty foot pounds, or 8.3kg-m. The results showed that while we were pretty much on the money with the power at 78PS at 6500rpm, the torque had been significantly underestimated. At 2500rpm the engine was already making over 56 ft/lbs (7.7kg-m) before continuing on to record a peak of 69ft/lbs (9.4kg-m) at 5750rpm.

What this means is that although the ‘R' doesn't make a huge amount of power, the torque available throughout the range is always available and makes for a flexibility that other bikes find hard to match. There's just no need to rev the bike hard in order to make quick progress, just roll on - roll off in a high gear and let the engine grunt you away.

As the engine has loosened up so to has the suspension, which previously had been somewhat stiff and harsh. The forks have now reached the point where they soak up most things from broken surfaces to corrugations, which considering the short amount of travel is pretty impressive. The rear suspension has also settled down and has had two extra clicks of rebound adjustment added to combat a tendency to wallow mid corner which was more a nuisance than a major fault. As a result the handling, which is surprisingly capable in full on sports mode despite the weight, is now just that bit more enjoyable, and no longer means that the left hand corners are accompanied by the sound of the center stand clanging and grinding on the bitumen.

The brakes continue to impress and reassure in equal amounts. There can be no doubt that the servo assisted act is a hard one to fault, and pulls what is a heavy machine at close to 250kgs wet up in very short distances. Pacing out stops from about 60 k/ph seems to indicate that the R will stop in a fair bit less then 15 metres without any problem at all, which is pretty good by any standards. (The braking system is going to be the subject of a comparison with other systems and conventional brakes in the near future, so stay tuned.)

On the economy front, fuel usage to distance traveled has risen from 14 km/l to 16km/l on a diet of a commuting and short 350km weekend jaunts around the hills. Based on that I think that it's possible that 18km/l is quite achievable, but time and more loosening up will tell.

By the time the next update is due I hope to have some bigger and more arduous trips under the wheels including some dirt roads in the form of the TTT Rally, which is infamous for its inaccessibility. Admittedly the R is no GS but given that a huge amount of Australia is covered by dirt roads, to test a motorcycle in such conditions is merely reflecting the kind of work the bike should be able to cope with. Come back in a month and see how the ‘R' is coping.

Rob Smith

Click here to go to the first update.