Latest Posts:
Asphalt & Rubber
Tag

BMW S1000RR

Browsing
News

XXX: The BMW HP4 Race & Its Carbon Fiber Sexiness

By 19 Comments

If you are like us, you can’t get enough of the BMW HP4 Race, which debuted today in Milan, at the 2016 EICMA trade show. Featuring a carbon fiber frame, carbon fiber wheels, and carbon fiber bodywork, not to mention a bevy of premium-spec components, the BMW HP4 Race is the track bike of your wet dreams.

BMW Motorrad plans on making the HP4 Race a production model too, with an expected release date somewhere in the second-half of 2017. Quantities will be limited, and each BMW HP4 Race will be hand-built. So basically, we are telling you that the price tag will be not be cheap.

So for many of us, photos are as close as we are going to get to this supreme beauty. Luckily, we have some ridiculously large photos for you to drool over. Enjoy!

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

BMW HP4 Race Gets a Carbon Fiber Chassis for 2017

By 11 Comments

We already had a pretty good idea what to expect from BMW Motorrad at the 2016 EIMCA show, but it is good to see that the Germans can still surprise us – and what a surprise it was, indeed.

Sort of a “one more thing” moment in Milan, the BMW HP4 Race was teased to the assembled EICMA press – giving us a look at their ultra-premium version of the BMW S1000RR Superbike, and it drips in carbon fiber.

Of course what really sets the BMW HP4 Race apart is the fact that it uses a twin-spar carbon fiber frame, making it, and the recently debuted Ducati 1299 Superleggera, the only production motorcycles with such a feature.

Details beyond what we can see are very scarce from BMW Motorrad, though we do know that we can expect the BMW HP4 Race to debut in the second-half of 2017. The name suggests that the bike might not be homologated for street use, but time will have to tell on that.

Keep Reading
By
News

BMW Motorrad On Track For Another Record Sales Year

By 3 Comments

BMW Motorrad has tallied the sales results for the first half of 2016, and the German manufacturer is on track for another record sales year. BMW says that over 80,000 motorcycles have been sold in the first six months of this year, which is itself a record for the marque.

To be precise, 80,754 BMW motorcycles were sold so far in 2016, a 3% increase over this time last year. Unsurprisingly, Germany remains the strongest market for BMW Motorrad, with 13,792 units sold thus far this year (17% of BMW’s total production).

However, BMW Motorrad saw strong results as well in Spain (+22.6%), Italy (+6.9%) and France (+5.6%). BMW Motorrad also leads the 500cc+ market in Spain, Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Russia, Brazil, and South Africa.

Keep Reading
By
Racing

Michael Dunlop Sets New TT Record: 133.962 MPH

By 2 Comments

To say that Michael Dunlop rode to an impressive win on Friday’s Senior TT, might be an understatement. While winning the Senior TT is his second TT race win for the 2016 Isle of Man TT, Dunlop’s true accomplishment can be found on the time sheets, with his record-breaking pace.

A fortnight of records dropping, this year’s Senior TT was no different, and Dunlop set not only the fastest lap of the Senior TT race, but also the fastest lap of any Senior TT race ever held at the Isle of Man TT: 133.962 mph.

This mark is also the fastest lap ever recorded during an Isle of Man TT race, and is the fastest outright lap ever at the Isle of Man TT. In other words, this is the new mark that all other riders will aspire to surpass in the coming years.

Keep Reading
By
Racing

IOMTT: PokerStars Senior TT Race Results

By 1 Comment

The Senior TT is the blue ribbon event at the Isle of Man TT – it’s the race that every rider wants to win. Don’t let the name fool you, the Senior TT isn’t for riders that are over the hill; in fact, it is the most hard-fought class at the Isle of Man.

Most of the machines on the Senior TT grid are the same as those found in the Superbike TT, but in years passed we have seen specialty bikes built just for the class’s looser set of rules. The last race of the Isle of Man TT fortnight, the Senior TT ends things with a supreme spectacle.

For 2016 though, riders and fans would have to wait a considerable amount of time before the Senior TT would kick off, with the the fog and mist delaying the day’s start considerably. Thankfully the weather gods eventually gave way, and racing commenced. And it was good.

Keep Reading
By
Racing

Sit Back and Watch the Fastest Lap Ever Around the Isle of Man TT Course, Courtesy of Michael Dunlop

By 4 Comments

If you have been following our Isle of Man TT coverage, then you already know that Michael Dunlop was the first rider to break the 133 mph lap barrier, the first rider to do a sub-17-minute lap time, and the outright fastest man ever around the Snaefell Mountain Course.

Mickey D would go on to win the Superbike TT race as well, setting a good tone to his Isle of Man TT race week.

Thanks to the miracle of on-board video technology, and the media-friendly forward-thinkers at the TT press office, we can bring you Michael Dunlop’s full record-setting lap.

If you have an extra 16 minutes and 58.254 seconds in your day, we suggest grabbing a beverage, cranking up the volume, and experiencing two-wheeled nirvana. Enjoy!

Keep Reading
By
Racing

IOMTT: Michael Dunlop Breaks Outright Lap Record

By No Comments

The 2016 Isle of Man TT got off to a blistering start today, with two riders in the Superbike TT breaking the outright lap record on the very first lap, from a standing start no less.

Ian Hutchinson was the first rider to break the outright lap record, which was set by John McGuinness during last year’s Senior TT race, with a 132.892 mph lap.

The record would be short-lived though, as Michael Dunlop was hot on Hutchy’s heels, with a 133.369 mph lap performance on his Hawk Racing BMW S1000RR.

The first ever TT lap under 17 minutes, and the first ever lap that averaged over 133 mph, Dunlop’s performance during the Superbike TT was nothing short of dominant…and he wouldn’t stop there.

Upping the ante on the second lap, Dunlop benefited from less fuel and put down another scorcher – a 133.393 mph lap.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Tamburini T12 Massimo – The Maestro’s Last Work

By 10 Comments

It has been exactly two years since we lost Massimo Tamburini, the father of iconic motorcycles like the Ducati 916 Superbike and the MV Agusta F4.

Despite his passing, the Italian designer’s influence can still be felt in the motorcycle industry today, and his creations continue to be highly coveted pieces for motorcycle collectors around the world.

Many know that Tamburini was the “ta” in Bimota, which saw The Maestro team up with Valerio Bianchi and Giuseppe Morri, and together the three pillars of the industry would create countless exotic two-wheeled examples.

In essence, Tamburini’s name can be linked to the most lust-worthy motorcycles in the modern era, and we are about to add one more machine to that list.

It would seem that Tamburini apparently had one last design up his sleeve before he departed this world, and it is debuting today. Giving tribute to his name, the Tamburini T12 Massimo is a BMW S1000RR powered superbike that is meant purely for the race track, and maybe the museum.

Keep Reading
By
Bikes

Praëm BMW S1000RR – Getting Modern with Retros

By 14 Comments

We really like what we’ve seen so far from the guys at Praëm. Their first proper build, based off a Honda RC-51, was waaaay outside the box, and featured some really interesting design elements for us to chew on. Their follow-up to that work is no different.

The Praëm BMW S1000RR is a modern riff on the classic superbike design – think of it as a 21st century take on late-20th century racing.

As the name suggests, the donor bike is a BMW S1000RR, but the styling comes from something you would see in the 1980s – perhaps at the Suzuka 8-Hour endurance race, as Praëm suggests in their text.

The “Optimus Praëm” build is a logical, yet a highly more functional, response to what we have seen in the café racer scene as of late, and it bodes well for the future of the custom motorcycle community if more of the same is to come from other builders. Fingers crossed.

Keep Reading
By
News

BMW Motorrad Q1 2016 Sales Up 7.7%

By 2 Comments

BMW Motorrad says that its first-quarter 2016 motorcycles sales are the best start to its motorcycle season, ever for the German manufacturer. To this point, in the first three months of the year, BMW sold 33,788 bikes to customers, up from last year’s mark of 31,370 units.

That 2,418 unit increase comes to a 7.7% growth in Q1 for BMW Motorrad, over the equivalent period from last year. The bulk of those sales came in March, with 16,465 units delivered to customers.

The news is a continuation of BMW’s sales growth, and the German brand has been a testament to what motorcycle OEMs can achieve purely with large-displacement machines, though that will begin to change for the marque.

Keep Reading
By
WSBK

Aragon World Superbike Debrief: Shuffling the Deck

By 4 Comments

It’s very easy to jump to quick conclusions during the early stages of a season. Momentum swings from one bike to another, and while some riders are ascending, others are having an off weekend.

However, the third round of the Superbike World Championship has definitely shown that Chaz Davies and Ducati are the form package at the moment.

The Welshman and the Italian bike claimed their first wins of 2016 in Aragon, but having been in the thick of the fight for five wins in the opening six races, their pace has not been in question.

What had been in question was top speed. While the Ducati MotoGP bike is a verified rocket, the WorldSBK specification Panigale R has traditionally struggled to keep pace with the Kawasakis on straights.

In the opening rounds we saw this when Davies was easily overtaken by Rea in both Australia and Thailand. Last weekend the tables were sensationally turned.

Keep Reading
By