BMW Motorrad Roadsters in India – a brief look

BMW Motorrad range of motorcycles have models covering various ranges like Adventure, Roadster, Heritage, Sport, Tour. Each of these ranges have a unique identity and cater to a specific requirement of the target market and the motorcycles under each of these ranges perform true to their names winning BMW many a good name across the motorcycling fraternity. The BMW Roadster range consists of motorbikes which have a retro styling, a modular build, making it an instant hit among the custom builders.

The BMW Roadster range have a common four-piece frame containing the engine and gearbox unit, the main frame and two rear sub frames. The six speed gearbox unit acts as the stressed member. The drivetrain is again a common 1170 cc boxer twin engine which is air cooled and good enough for a 110 hp at 7750 rpm and a strong pulling power of 116 Nm at 6000 rpm.

The Indian launch of the BMW Motorrad Roadster range will definitely see two models R nine T scrambler and the more standard R nine T.

Though both the BMW standard R nine T and the BMW R nine T Scrambler share the same engine with similar power outputs of 110 bhp at 7750 rpm and 116 Nm at 6000 rpm, BMW has brought in subtle differences to differentiate the two models. The Scrambler features slight modification to the suspension setup to appeal more to the soft roading community. While the standard version features a 46 mm inverted forks up front with an adjustable mono shock at the rear, the Scrambler version features a slightly thinner 43 mm inverted forks but with increased suspension travel of 140 mm, 15 mm more than the standard version.

The BMW Scrambler also has one rear sub frame subtracted compared to the R nine T standard and gets alloy wheels compared to the wire spokes of the standard. The other differences in the Scrambler compared to the standard includes larger tyres, taller saddle height, and a slightly lesser fuel tank capacity. Though both the bikes carry ABS as standard, the stability control is offered only as an option in the standard version which is surprising, considering that the standard version at rs.17.9 lakhs ex-showroom retails at a much higher price compared to the Scrambler which retails at Rs.15.9 lakhs.

Anyway, both the bikes are true to their heritage and none of the choices can go wrong.