BMW have whipped the covers off their 2023 S1000RR superbike, which builds on the current machine introduced in 2019 with more power, more advanced electronics, an updated chassis, and winglets courtesy of the £30,640 M1000RR.
Dressed in three new liveries, the new RR is immediately distinguished from the old bike by its dual front wings wrapping around the frowning front LED lights, which are said to reduce unwanted wheelies on track with up to 10kg of additional downforce.
There’s also a taller front screen and a claimed lighter, subtly re-styled rear end, but the changes are way more than skin deep. For starters, the ShiftCam-equipped 999cc inline four has climbed to a suggested 206.5bhp – around 2.7bhp more than previous – thanks to subtle revisions like redesigned intake ports based on the M1000RR.
The rear sprocket has also lost a tooth to 45 to provide more traction to the rear wheel, with an up/down quickshifter – programable as either road or race shift – helping to feed power to the ground.
Also keeping the rider in control are more advanced electronics – using the steering angle sensor to provide controlled slides both on the throttle and under braking – for use when on the racetrack.
Starting with acceleration, the ‘Slide Control’ functionality is added to the bike’s traction control package and allows the rider to select two pre-set drift angles. Up to that angle, the bike will cleverly allow the rear wheel to slip and perform controlled drifts, without an unwanted 500GP-style highside to follow.
Decreasing in speed, the ‘Brake Slide Assist’ and ‘Slick’ ABS modes again makes use of the steering angle sensors to let you back it in to bends in a controlled manner. Very cool.
But it’s not all about electronics. Housing the liquid-cooled motor as a stressed member is an updated aluminium twin-spar ‘Flex Frame,’ which builds on the old design with several openings in the sides for greater lateral flex.
BMW have also altered the steering head angle by 0.5° – taking it down to 66.4° from the previous 66.9°. They’ve also reduced the triple clamp offset by 3mm and extended the wheelbase to 1457mm – up from 1441mm. This should slow down the steering and add stability at speed.
Moving away from the front end, the underslung rear swingarm now also gets an adjustable pivot as standard, which will help race teams and trackday enthusiasts make any rear geometry and ride height changes required.
A feature previously only available on the M Sport version, other features of the new RR include a lightweight battery, USB charging port, hill hold control, riding modes for both track and road use, a pitlane limiter, revised 45mm upside down forks, and a 6.5in colour TFT with updated displays.
Want one? Prices start at £17,150 and climb to £18,610 for the Sport model. An M Package option also allows the opportunity to equip forged wheels instead of carbon. Fancy.
- Power 206.5bhp @ 13,750rpm
- Torque 83.4lbft @ 11,000rpm
- Engine 999cc liquid-cooled inline four
- Kerb weight 197kg
- Seat height 824mm
- £17,150 [Starting price]
Video: Explore the BMW M1000RR in detail
2023 BMW S1000RR gets updated aero technology.
The 2023 BMW S1000RR superbike has been officially revealed. It comes out as a heavily updated model sporting more power than the outgoing bike, new aerodynamics technology [winglets] and a range of fresh features, to make it faster and safer, than ever. Thanks to these updates the bike has been priced at £17,150 [converts to Rs 13.70 lakh as per current exchange rates] in the international market.
The bike comes dressed in three new liveries that immediately distinguish itself from the old model. It features dual front wings wrapping around the frowning front LED lights. This, as per BMW, has been integrated to increase the downforce [10kg] at the front and prevent the front end from unwanted wheelies on track. In addition to this, the aero has been further tweaked with the use of a taller front screen and a claimed lighter, subtly re-styled rear end.
Coming on to the powertrain, the bike now churns out around 2.7bhp more power [206.5bhp at 13,750rpm] than the previous model thanks to the updated intake ports derived from the BMW M1000RR. Also, the rear sprocket on the bike has lost a tooth to 45 to boost traction on the rear wheel and there is also a new programable up/down quick shifter which can either be set to road or race shift. Housing this 999cc liquid-cooled inline four-cyl engine as a stressed member is an updated aluminium twin-spar ‘Flex Frame,’ which as per BMW, builds on the old design with several openings in the sides to deliver a greater lateral flex.
The new S1000RR has also been updated with more advanced electronics with the help of a steering angle sensor to offer controlled slides [power and brake] which can be used when on the track. The bike has been added with the ‘Slide Control’ functionality on its traction control package. It allows the user to pick two pre-set drift angles. As the name suggests, these options offer the motorcycle to cleverly allow the rear wheel to slip and do controlled drifts. Also, it now gets ‘Brake Slide Assist’ and ‘Slick’ ABS modes that make use of the steering angle sensors.
2023 BMW S1000RR highlights:
Power 206.5bhp @ 13,750rpm
Torque 83.4lbft @ 11,000rpm
Engine 999cc liquid-cooled inline four
Kerb weight 197kg
Seat height 824mm
£17,150/Rs 13.70 lakh [base price]
That said, other key updates on the bike include the use of a lightweight battery, revised 45mm upside down forks, riding modes for both track and road use, USB charging port, hill hold control, a pitlane limiter, and a 6.5in colour TFT with updated displays.