BMW has done something we weren’t expecting, producing both a superbike and a naked bike that share the same engine and power – the M 1000 R isn’t a diluted S 1000RR, the engines are transferable. The M 1000 R is a true naked superbike.
What we have here is the Germans flexing their muscles, and showing what they can do when they put their minds to it; welcome to the 207bhp M 1000 R.
Ducati’s Streetfighter V4 and MV Agusta Brutale 1000RR are both in the 200bhp club, with Kawasaki’s supercharged Z H2 SE just a couple of horses shy. In the real world it hardly matters that the excellent standard BMW S1000 R makes a peak of 165bhp, but sometimes the real world doesn't matter. It's the numbers that count, that’s what matters to some. Hence the introduction of BMW’s new M 1000 R, with 206.5bhp/154kw.
BMW has taken the new ShiftCam engine from the 2022 S 1000 RR superbike and inserted it into the S 1000 R's naked chassis. It has the same power and torque and the same gearbox.
BMW hasn’t stopped there. Aerodynamic wings create 11kg of downforce at 220kph (137mph). New stoppers, again taken directly from the S 1000 RR, give improved braking. Chassis dimensions remain the same as the S 1000 R but the standard electronic suspension (DDC Dynamic Damping Control) has been recalibrated
