Variations of BMW's RnineT...yes
yes
interesting
possibly
nice try
could work
oh pulllllease no
I would like to test ride one.
I really like the look of the R nine T, including the first three above. I would love to ride one and see how it feels.
I don't care for any of them -- the tank is too big, the seat is way too thin and looks like an afterthought, and what's with the G-string for a rear fender? At least the last one doesn't have black rims.
I agree with LR. If they want to tout "heritage" make a homage to the R90S or at least the R90/6. Attractive tanks with beautiful paint with classic pinstriping, nice dual seat with grab bar, a real rear fender .....
I test rode the original which is the second picture with the black gas tank. Nice looking bike but in my view nowhere near as nice as my CB. The boxer engine pumping side to side is also not my speed. Riding position is a bit hunched over ala sport bike ala cafe racer ala not comfortable. Overall, I wasn't impressed.
I often wish I had bought the R Nine T instead of the CB. While I do not envy the maintenance of a German machine over a Japanese machine, I do envy the direction of the bike. They seem to understand that people under the age of 50 still enjoy a sporty motorcycle. Personally a motorcycle should not be overly comfortable. Comfort leads to complacency. Complacency leads to carelessness. This is of course, just my opinion. I'm not trying to change anyone else's mind on the matter.
Well done BMW.
Sent from an undisclosed location
Today when I went for a ride with the
CB, one neighbour had put his old orange
R90S out of his garage. This is a nice looking
BMW besides the 75/5. Although I live in
Germany and BMWs are more than omnipresent
in my country, I never intended to buy on. Neither an old
one, nor a new one. They aren't of any interest to
me. Not enginewise, not in the way they look with
the previously mentioned exceptions.
Wisedrum
In most reviews the R Nine T came in behind the Griso (and the Griso came out first). The motor does not have the "character" of the big Guzzi.
That said, there are more BMW dealers than Guzzi dealers (and I do find the RnineT attractive - the new Thruxton R even more so). So hey. Choices!
I like the R nineT a lot. I does the same thing for me the CB does. Clean simple design with nodes to the heritage of some of BMWs iconic older bikes. I would totally own one. On paper the specs look right too. BUT, I purchased my very lightly used CB for less than 1/3 of the price of these things. That is a lot of farkles and upgrades (if I can ever bring myself to change the bike). I can assure you the CB will be more reliable and cheaper to maintain too.
I would have a hard time justifying the price of these bike with so many cheaper retro-bike options out there, like the XSR, (upcoming) Z900 thing, the new Triumph Thruxton R, the V7 line and so on. I know it's sort of an apple to oranges comparison, but many of these bikes are around 1/3 - 2/3 the price. Seems kinds steep to me.
Great looking bikes though, IMHO.
That's odd that all the other variations lose the radial Brembos that come stock on the orginally bike. I wonder if they've downgraded any other components and if they're trying to cheapen it for a broader demographic.