First Ride: 2004 BMW R1100S Boxer Cup Replika
BMW's take on 'race bike for the road' makes a refreshing change from the usual Jap fare.
My short relationship with the limited edition BMW R1100S BoxerCup Replika was an adventure to say the least. Yes, it was a little traumatic - not to mention expensive - at times, but an adventure none the less.
All I had wanted to do was get a few miles under my belt in the hope I'd acclimatise myself to the big Bee Emm before racing one at the British GP round of the BoxerCup race series. But I got more than I bargained for. In the space of a few days I experienced my biggest ever 'Oh shit!' aquaplaning moment while on a trip to see Jim Whitham in Doncaster; I was stopped at 1.30am on the M1 by a strange man in a Volvo who put three points on my licence and relieved me of sixty quid; then the thing pinned me to the floor in the Donington Park paddock as I tried to put a Kit Kat and a packet of cheese and onion crisps in my rucksack.
All self inflicted, I hear you say, except maybe the falling over one, which was definitely due to this particular Bee Emm being the tallest road bike I've ever sat my tight wee arse on - the Replika comes with taller, sports-spec suspension over the standard R1100S to help keep the cylinder heads off the floor at big lean angles. And just in case that's not enough, the bike comes with carbon fibre cylinder head protectors too.
But this time big is bonnie, so long as you get at least one foot on the floor and your balance sorted. The contours, colours and graphics are all pleasing on the eye, copied as they are from the BMW Boxer Cup race bikes, and so too are the underseat pipes. And, apart from some slight vibration through the bars, riding is a comfortable experience as I found on two non-stop, 130-mile trips. The high riding position gave good vision over cars, hedges and the like, and my upper body at least seemed to have decent weather
protection.
Considering she weighs in at nearly 230kg the motor delivers reasonable acceleration while sounding quite raspy through the five gears thanks to the 'sound optimised' Laser exhaust. Shifting itself has a positive efficiency to it, and being German I guess it should. Revving it in the gears to 8000rpm feels good, but torque is what this opposed twin is all about so short shifting makes more sense if you're in a hurry. The Telelever front suspension feels and works pretty much like conventional telescopic forks, except there is much less dive under braking. When I tried some extreme front braking the powerful brakes would either lock the front wheel or the front end would hop, which is exactly what would happen with conventional forks. I couldn't fault the shaft drive rear as it behaved well at all times.
Not many negatives here but I have to say BMW's 'sided' indicator switches really wind me up. Okay, maybe my thumbs are always in the wrong place but operating them is just too confusing for my little brain.
Verdict
All in all the R1100S Boxer Cup Replika (and yes, it is spelt with a 'k') is a really individual, fun to ride sports bike that oozes quality and comes with a ton of presence.
TYPE - SUPERSPORTS
PRODUCTION DATE - 2004
PRICE NEW - £9200
ENGINE CAPACITY - 1085cc
POWER - 96.5bhp@7500rpm
TORQUE - 71.5lb.ft@5750rpm
WEIGHT - 208kg
SEAT HEIGHT - 860mm
FUEL CAPACITY - 18L
TOP SPEED - 135mph
0-60 - n/a
TANK RANGE - N/A
 MPG, price, review, for sale, parts, forum, specs, top speed, tyres, specifications, bhp, BMW, R1100S, Boxer Cup Replika, horsepower, pictures, seat height, oil, uk, exhaust
|
|
Discuss this story
There is a reason why the Boxer cup is a one make series and that is , that the Boxer cup BMW is not competetive with other machinery..If telelever worked on the track then all the big teams would be running a version of it...the additional weight and lack of power from a 60+ year old design engine are other limiting factors .. Probably a very capable road going machine but no way is it a realistic track machine...
Posted: 13/04/2009 at 09:30
I wrote a nice, detailed reply but the damn thing didn't stick and I lost it so... long story short now... You're wrong... These bikes are on the track they're just not accessible to most people. How many 1098s have you seen on the road or racing at your local track? The telelever front suspension isn't on inline fours because the engines are not load bearing like the R bikes and they would be too wide because the engines are longitudinally mounted like a front wheel drive car. The 60+ year old engine has evolved alot, just look at the 130bhp, 85ft/lb HP2. I would take on any liter bike with the HP2. The BCR is not exactly the same as the R1100S either, the suspension is designed for track use, the heads on the regular bike would not allow you to scream around turns the way the BCR can.... Anyway, that's what tracks are for, answering these questions. Racing on a BCR is done all the time, against comparable machines like the 600-750cc inline fours producing similar horsepower. The 1100cc boxer engine can easily be made to produce 120bhp and 80ft/lbs which would make it more than capable. See you on the track!
what a load of old cock...you might well see me off on the track ( I suspect that would be rather easy..) but the lack of BMWs in club racing, BSB/WSB ( apart from the new S1000thingy which doesn't have telelever..) is testimony to my being right...If they were competetive then the experts would have found that out by now.. when a boxer twin gets to win against traditional machines will be the day you win this discussion
Posted: 13/04/2009 at 18:32
Nate chose the underrated BMW R1100S Boxer Cup bike to race during the 2005 season. With 123 races in the CCS Mid Atlantic and Southeast Championships, 50% podiums were achieved, 94% top ten finishes, and 23 wins. Nine class Championships were achieved and as overall Champion in the CCS Mid Atlantic and Southeast regions, Nate walked away with his first #1 plate.
Posted: 03/11/2010 at 15:16
|
|
