BMW R ninet Urban G/S

Stylish and high-quality retro crossed with a legendary adventure bike? Sounds good to us...

Given the sell-out success of BMW’S heritage-rich R ninet and endless popularity for their R1200GS, the arrival of an R ninet Urban G/S was a case of when, not if. What they call a ’no-brainer’. It doesn’t stop the new bike being rather exciting, however. The Urban G/S is based on the original ninet, not the slightly lower-spec Scrambler, and so benefits from the cast aluminium chassis parts and details of the priciest version of the model. The upsidedown S1000rr-derived 46mm forks are swapped for the 43mm right-way-up jobs from the Scrambler though, and as on this dirt sibling there’s more wheel travel than a regular ninet – up by 5mm at the front and 20mm at the rear. Chassis geometry is different to the Scrambler – a tad less trail, a few more millimetres between the wheels. Seat height is 850mm and it weighs 221kg ready to use. The ninet changes to spoke wheels for 2017, but the Urban G/S has lightweight cast alloy items with a larger 19-inch front for dual-purpose authenticity. Shin-shredding corrugated steel footpegs keep feet in place and ‘highlight the bike’s rustic character’. Styling and colours are based on the original R80G/S from way back. Those tempted to explore the odd green lane will be pleased that the G/S can be ordered with full-on deep knobbly tyres. The engine is the 1170cc, 110bhp flat twin that shoves all the ninet offerings. ABS is standard (Euro 4 and all that); automatic stability control (ASC) can be ordered as an ex-works option along with spoke wheels, chrome headers, hot grips and a brushed aluminium tank. There’s predictably a non-stop stream of accessories too, from luggage to machined whatnots. We’d keep it simple, though.

Bike says: ‘Iconic GS meets charming ninet. Avoid cynicism and imagine how good it’ll look in your garage, and how good it’ll feel on a sunny day down a breezy lane’