FIRST RIDE: BMW R NINET
A gentle refresh of an established favourite.
We liked the R ninet right from the off, in 2014. Here, at last, was a bike that had of-the-moment function to gild its retro shape throwing.
That first go-at-it used the air-cooled boxer engine from the old R1200 family, would touch 140mph on the clock and kicked hard in the midrange. It sounded great from the moment it cracked into life, kicking itself impressively to the right before settling into a menacing-ish burble.
It was comfortable, spacious and equipped with plentiful Brembos, good ground clearance and trucklike stability. The way it would roll from upright to full lean, sending messages from the front tyre to your hands through its S1000rr-style 46mm non-adjustable forks, was sublime. It made you want to lose the piss-pot and dig out the full-face Arai. Aside from ABS it was gloriously free from electronics, too. Accompanying all this goodness was a stout entry fee, but plenty thought, ‘fine, we’re in’. More affordable R ninet versions followed: the Scrambler, Urban G/S and base model Pure. There was a smart M-coloured Racer, too, which had a tortuous stretch to the bars. It’s now been dropped.
The R ninet didn’t change much in the following years; in 2017 it got fully adjustable forks, restyled clocks and some moodier finishes and for 2021 that subtle evolution continues with Euro 5 engine mods and a few extra nips and tucks.
In 2021 it looks the same as it ever did, which is no bad thing, and still oozes luxury from its deep paint, stitched seat and hand-crafted brushed aluminium fuel tank. But now it has LED headlights, white LED indicators, revised speedo and tacho graphics, and a USB charger.
Your £13,150 also gets you a bag full of electronics. It has traction control, but with such a lovely chassis and Michelin Road 5 sports touring tyres that grip like mad, we were never troubled by it during our test. Even in the wet. Cornering ABS is also standard and the R ninet will cut power during an emergency stop, too, to prevent you accidentally throttling against the brakes (a system first seen on the R1250GS). We didn’t use those either. It has two riding modes, but the twin’s ride-by-wire power delivery and throttle is so peachy in ‘Road’ mode you’ll never feel the need to flick to ‘Rain’. Engine braking control and lean sensitive TC are also available as options.
Now marching to the beat of Euro5, the BMW’S potent air-cooled engine remains largely untouched, but combustion chambers are reworked for a cleaner burn and bigger bang, and the cylinder head covers have new fins. Throttle valve components are redesigned, too. It’s lost a bhp, which is no biggie, but its 108bhp arrives 500rpm earlier. Torque stays put at 86 lb.ft.
BMW claim more grunt between 4000rpm and 6000rpm, not that you can feel the extra boost in isolation, but the R ninet was never short of neckcracking oomph – it’ll make a highly-strung, 200bhp super-naked feel a bit wheezy at real-world speeds. Its sticky-out cylinders still keep your feet warm in the cold, too.
Little has changed in the chassis department. It’s still as happy to go as steady or as bonkers as you want and its drivetrain still gently rocks and rolls, giving the R ninet its lovable quirkiness. The rear shock is reworked, though and has more damping towards the end of its stroke for more control under hard load. There’s now a wheel to adjust preload. As you’d expect there are BMW accessories aplenty, like the 3kg lighter ‘Option 719’ spoked wheels (£400) fitted to our test bike. Its R ninet sisters get the same updates.
If you’re lucky enough to have an R ninet in your garage, don’t worry about trading up – the new one isn’t different enough, but the 2021 upgrades add an extra layer of zesty goodness to an already impressive slice of retro modern.
‘If you have an R ninet don’t worry about trading up – the new one isn’t different enough, but the 2021 upgrades add zesty goodness’