BMW HP4
Sportbikes are meant for pushing boundaries, and BMW
Motorrad is looking to remind you of that with its new HP4 RACE. Faster,
lighter, and exceedingly more expensive than any base-model S1000RR, this limited
production racebike will hit the performance-hungry enthusiasts right where it
counts, and to 750 willing buyers, right in the wallet, too.
You probably recognize the HP4 RACE name. That’s because BMW
already pulled the cover off one at the 2016 EICMA show. If you want to make a
splash, you do it there—in Italy, at EICMA, regardless of whether or not the
details are finalized. At the time, they weren’t. “It was initially left open
as to how far the advanced prototype reflected what the final motorcycle would
look like,” BMW said.
Five months removed, we know exactly what the HP4 RACE will
look like. And more importantly, what its spec sheet looks like. Think 215 hp
and a 377 lbs. curb weight. Because racebike That 215 hp comes courtesy of a
factory racing engine that’s built by hand and revs to 14,500 rpm (rather than
14,200 rpm on the standard engine). Intake and exhaust camshafts are new, as is
the crankshaft (updated via boreholes in the counterweights for reduced
weight), connecting rods, and variable-length intake funnels. Pistons and rods
are specially selected based on weight, for perfect balance, while BMW has
optimized bearing clearances and changed gear ratios in the new, close-ratio
transmission (the exception being third gear). Peak power is at 13,900 rpm,
while the inline-four engine produces a claimed 120Nm of torque at 10,000 rpm,
which is actually 500 rpm lower than where a standard S1000RR makes peak
torque.
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The HP4 RACE’s main frame is fully carbon fiber, with metal
bearing mounts and bolting points that are directly integrated in the carbon
manufacturing process. Weight savings? A claimed 8.8 pounds over the aluminum
frame on the 2017 RR, with the HP4 RACE’s carbon fiber piece weighing in at
just 17.2 pounds.
A rear frame/seat support is made of carbon fiber as well,
but whereas the frame was constructed through a Resin Transfer Molding (RTM)
process for optimum stiffness and torsional rigidity, this piece was made
through a more conventional hand lay-up technique with epoxy resin. Through the
finished piece, the seat height can be raised or lowered, from 32.7 inches to
32.1 or 33.3 inches.
Carbon fiber makes its way down to the wheels. Here, BMW has
used a “braiding” process, which essentially means the entire fabric structure
is wrapped by machine in one piece. They are 30 percent lighter than the forged
aluminum wheels, with 40 percent less gyroscopic force, BMW says.
Curious about what all this means in a crash? Don’t worry,
BMW says that, “The damage chain in the new HP4 RACE is structured in such a
way that the carbon fiber frame and wheels are the last motorcycle components
to fail in the event of a fall.” Would hate to be the guy to test that…
Suspension is meant to keep you on the road, and here BMW
has gone all in as well. The bike comes with Öhlins’ FGR 300 fork, the same
used in “World Superbike and even MotoGP,” BMW says. Out back, an Öhlins TTX 36
GP shock works on a longer, fully aluminum swinger—the same arm that BMW has
used on its World Superbike-spec S1000RRs.
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As you might expect, all of this is adjustable, the end user
(err, team?) being able to adjust the swingarm height, steering head angle, and
offset. All this through inserts that will ship alongside each HP4 RACE. Extra
sprockets and chains included, in varying sizes and lengths.
What doesn’t come with it? A tech guy. Then again, if you
have the money for an HP4 RACE, you’ve probably got the money to pay someone to
come look at data for you and basically do anything that doesn’t include
riding. For him, BMW has set the HP4 RACE’s 2D dashboard up with a Mechanics
mode, which appears when the bike is idling and displays pertinent information
for him. In rider mode (activated when you click to first gear), the display
shows things like lap time, traction control setting, engine brake control
setting, and more. The 2D data recording system records lap times through GPS,
and is designed to be used with additional sensors for things like brake
pressure and suspension travel, which you can add separate.
“Standard" electronics include Dynamic Traction Control
(DTC) with an adjustment range of -7 to +7, Engine Brake (EBR) with an
adjustment range from -7 to +7, and Wheelie Control, with an adjustment range
from level 1 to 5. Each of these systems can be tuned for each gear, meaning that
you can, as an example, set the traction control system to intervene in a
certain way in first and second gear, but be less restrictive or off in higher
gears. Launch control and a pit lane speed limiter are standard equipment, too.
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Is all of this worth the roughly $87,000 price tag? That’s
probably a question that doesn’t need answering, because the people who have
the means for one obviously won’t care, and anyone who’s not one of those 750
people will just be arguing about it for the sake of arguing.
What’s worth considering, then, is what this means for the
future of BMW’s standard S1000RR. Racing is the driving force behind
technological advancements, and BMW investing in a project like the HP4 RACE
bodes well for the bikes that us less fortunate (or less financially well off)
folks will be throwing a leg over.
I’m not suggesting that we’re going to see carbon fiber
frames roll off production lines in droves, but maybe the electronic evolution
BMW has made here (and at the track) will trickle down. Or maybe something else
that it’s learned in the very painstaking process of building a bike like the
HP4 Race, will.
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