BMW has built its best midweight roadster yet, the F 900 R, by adding more character and fun to a very accessible package

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Photos: Lionel Kong, Derryn Wong

SINGAPORE

The BMW F 900 R succeeds because, in riding terms, it’s like Tintin and friends. 

Unlike say, Asterix or Obelix, Tintin doesn’t have a huge personality. But there’s a theory that he’s popular exactly because of that, for being a ‘blank slate we project our desire for adventure on to.’ Sounds like the exact reason most of us got our Class 2 in the first place.

In fact, you could argue the entire adventure bike segment is built on exactly the opposite approach, but the truth is that just like SUVs, most adventure-style bikes all drive pretty much like regular ones.

But the F 900 R is a great bike because it goes further than its predecessor ever did and adds a whole supporting cast to the star of the show.

The F 800 R, last facelifted in 2016, was perhaps Tintin alone - a fun, agile bike that could do whatever a rider wants, but it was entirely on the rider to bring all the fun to the party.

Not a problem if you’re a stunt-riding phenomenon, but normal riders needed something with a bit more personality, and that’s exactly what the F 900 R is. 

Continue to page 2: Looks that thrill

As a naked roadster, the F 900 R now bears far more of a resemblance to the R 1200 R, with a hunched stance, strongly-sculpted tank, and forward projecting radiator covers, plus the pillion seat cover (which is removable) for that monoposto look. In other words, it’s the angry Captain Haddock to Tintin’s calmness.

The new headlight unit - full LED - strongly resembles a futuristic robot overlord, and the light up ‘R’ logo is a nice touch. It all gives the bike far more visual verve than the F 800 R ever did.

Our only complaint is that the large exhaust can looks unflattering and styled solely to make Akrapovic a little extra cash, though no doubt Euro 5 is partly to blame as well.

Then there’s the digital smarts as well, the Professor Calculus of the equation. Like every other modern BMW (bike or car) a full-colour digital infotainment system comes as standard, in this case a 6.5-inch TFT screen with a rotary-controller mounted on the left handlebar. 

It’s still the easiest system to use while riding - you don’t need to take your hand off the handlebar just your thumb - and the screen is sharp and clear even in daylight. The smartphone app also allows you to listen to music and navigate (via Bluetooth) for even more functionality.

For data junkies and control freaks, it now reports even more information, with a dedicated sport mode now reporting lean angle and braking input to make you feel even more inadequate as a rider. 

The smarts also extend to a more important, unseeable part: Safety. The F 900 R comes with all the bells and whistles, so it has cornering ABS, traction and stability control, plus five ride modes (Rain, Road, Dynamic, Dynamic Pro), Dynamic Brake Control (prevent gas input while braking) and MSR (prevents rear wheel locking while off-throttle or downshifting).

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Continue to page 3: Bigger bore

One of the chief complaints about the F 800 R is that it never quite felt like its claimed 90hp because of the torquey parallel twin that became buzzy at higher revs, and thus encouraged a short-shifting riding style.

The F 900 R is a huge evolution, with the new parallel twin also seen on the F 850 GS, but with a bump to 893cc in capacity and 10hp more. This engine is far more rev-happy, and sounds it too thanks to an uneven firing order, which gives it a more V-twin-like grumble. 

Thanks to keyless, the fob stays in your pocket and no messing around with gloves and pockets, you hit the ignition switch and then the starter. It’s not loud, but it is more characterful than we’ve come to expect from an understated BMW roadster.

Hopping onto the saddle reveals a relatively comfortable rider triangle, but more sporty than before, with a slight forward lean thanks to the flat handlebars. At low speeds, the bike is pure BMW: Light clutch and throttle feel married with sensible ergonomics, so no lurching your way out of the parking lot. 

In its base riding mode ‘Road’ the bike feels smoothly setup, such that Rain might only be needed if you’re riding in very tricky conditions (cold and wet, for instance which hardly happens here), but the F 900 R immediately excels as an urban bike. 

This is the Tintin bit: Ride like you’re going to work, and the F 900 R delivers. Sporty, but not overly jarring suspension, the up-down quickshifter almost entirely negates clutchwork above 10km/h. Nothing roasts your nether regions, it’s slim and nimble to slip between gaps easily, and like most parallel twins it’s relatively frugal if you ride it gently. Expect fuel consumption in the mid-3.0L/100km range. 

Continue to page 4: Lederhosen on fire

And while the F 900 R no longer looks like it wears lederhosen and high socks, there’s definitely a party animal inside waiting to get free. If you want to dump the frustration of a 45-minute Zoom call, knock the bike into Dynamic mode and it wakes up. 105hp isn’t a tremendous amount, but we believe it’s more than enough for most bikers.

The F 900 R won’t wow you with its acceleration, although it is fast, it’s not a full-bore, nut-rage litre-naked like the S 1000 RR is, the real magic happens when the tarmac isn’t straight (there’s sort of a Tintin reference here). 

The wonderful thing about this is, it isn’t an ability gained by the expense of stability. Some bikes go around corners wonderfully, but also feel like they might buck you off if you hit a depression or make abrupt adjustments. File that under ‘character’, and some we wonder why some people actively enjoy dating crazies.

The F 900 R isn’t like that. In a straight line it feels entirely normal, but you notice something’s up when you go around corners at increasing speeds and angles of lean and the bike utterly calm, as if to say, “Is that all you got? 25 degrees? Meh…” Then you look at the speedo and find out you’re going rather more quickly than you’ve ever been on that particular piece of tarmac. 

When travel to Malaysia is once again legal, it’s very likely the F 900 R will be an absolute blast on B-roads. In fact, BMW specifically says the bike is ‘dedicated above all to sporty, active riding on winding country roads in terms of chassis design and ergonomics.’

The test bike came with the options package: adjustable electronic suspension (ESA), side pannier racks, top case rack, main stand, cruise control and GPS mount for a total S$37,800, which brings it into competitor Ducati 821 territory.

ESA is a definite want in our case, but it’s only available as the above package, though at S$31,000 the standard bike comes with keyless, quickshifter, LED everything and the TFT screen, so it’s not shabby, though the riding experience may be different as the normal suspension is only adjustable for rear preload/rebound. 

But we think the key competition is likely to be from the F 900 R’s own brother: The adventure-touring F 900 XR, which has a slightly less racy setup and more wind protection and of course, adventure bike styling. 

The F 900 R shows BMW is now playing with a full ensemble, and the result is a naked roadster that has an extremely overall set of qualities, the most enticing of which is it’s a bike that can rip bends with the best of them, but, when you wish, is equally brilliant at making the mundane less so. 

BMW F 900 R

Engine	895cc, 8V, parallel twin
Power	105hp at 8500rpm
Torque	92Nm at 6500rpm
Gearbox	6-speed manual with up-down quickshifter
0-100km/h	> 200km/h
Top Speed	3.7 seconds
Wet Weight	211kg
Seat Height	815mm optional
Agent	Performance Motors Limited
Price	S$37,800 (machine only)
Availability	Now
Verdict	The eminently rideable nature of its predecessor, now with more ability and fun