I really like this guy. He looks like he was up till 5 in the morning having beers with his mates and then woke up at 8 A.M. to do the review. And it's a really good review.

You don’t by a cafe racer to be comfortable, practical or to carry luggage!

I love my racer and find its good for stretching my back. I took it on a tour from England to Istanbul and back last summer, not a single problem.

Stunning looking bike. My favorite R9T variant by far.

I brought a white one in 2019 (a mint S upgraded model with 600 miles on the clock for £7250 from those nice folk at Bahnstormer ) and put Helle raised bars on it and the footrests from the R9T road bike, which interchange perfectly, the result is a very usable back road scratcher which is no longer a mobile torture chamber. With the Akropovitch can and the integrated seat hump indicators and plate holder, plus a bubble screen the bike looks absolutely superb and at under 5ft 7" fits me like a glove . It is such fun to ride and on long sweepers I am touching down the side of my boot, this is definitely a keeper and everything BMW wanted it to be.

That's beautiful. Love it 👍👍

Cool, objective long-term review. The guy seems so genuine!

great bike, love it, like the Thruxton R, and the now old Ducati Classic Sport 1000LE Paul Smart.

Thanks for this great video, it significantly contributed to me buying a R9T Racer. Personally I do not feel the need to upgrade the suspension. It works fine for me, even in fast corners with a little bit of bumpy asphalt. If you really want to ride it like a super bike and brake it to the max while at the same time downshifting a couple a gears while leaning into the apex, the rear may try to overtake you. But then, that is just not what the bike is about. It's an absolutely stunning machine which looks gorgeous and has more than enough grunt to make you go really fast. Also there is no need for an aftermarket exhaust to me. The standard exhaust has been engineered to pass the homologation test but is quite loud outside those boundaries. You'll love to slowly close the throttle and hear the exhaust rumble like it is an old fighter plane. And as for riding position, it's somewhat stretched out and takes some time to get used to. But I can do easily 3 hours on the bike after which it's time to refuel anyway.If you're looking for a track bike, it is not for you. If your looking for a super cool quality made café racer which attracts a lot of thumbs up along the way, just go for it.

Enjoyed this review! Definitely prefer the longer term reviews to the test rides. Looking for a 2nd bike to have shorter rides and fun on. This one looks great

I really enjoy mine and I’m 6’3”, wonderfully sorted machine

Nice review, i experience the same with my ninet racer. After about 1 hour it is time to stop for a cup of coffee and look at it again. Never had so many people standing around to look at it with any motorbike. Some see it for the first time which suprises me since they are around already for a few years. Maybe they are scarce. Heard they stopped production 😢

As much as I would have liked the spoked wheels still glad I picked the solid rims for my Pure....I would love to see a video of someone comparing the Pure with the version with the Ohilins

Great video thanks :)

Love the sound

Good video. Could you add some notes about how it compares to a conventional sportsbike in terms of performance? Would it be able to keep up with an R6?

I was looking for a retro bike and had one of these to test for an afternoon back in the summer. It's drop dead gorgeous. I could spend hours just looking at it. The motor is a real stonker too. More than adequate low down grunt and things get quite interesting after 6,000 revs which encouraged me to ride hard. However, it is still a heavy-ish bike, I didn't think it was that nimble and bloody hell, that riding position..... If i'm spending that kind of money I want to at least be able to ride it for a couple of hours without it crippling me. It wouldn't be a commuter friendly tool either (if you were ever mad enough to want to ride it into work) as that is one wide engine sticking out which discourages filtering. If I won the lottery i'd buy one, but back in the real world I took my hard earned cash elsewhere.

Best motorcycle review I have ever seen... period.

By the way, the Germans (ABM) have elaborated a kit of clip-ons which let you open and raise the grips into much more comfortable position. And with Gilles rearsets fully adjustable (and superbly crafted in black, btw…), you can really transform the pain into pure joy. They worth the money hands down…

I love who it looks, and I love the wieght of the R9t's everything on them feels perfect. However when I sat on this, the weight of it felt completely different like i was going to drop it.

Was at Donnington on a track day, quite a few of these there, bloody blasting round against 4cyl 1000`s etc and dint seem 2 slow compared to the 1000`s? Can get a 2nd hand one for 7-9k with lots of goodies etc Had BMW flat twins, wished I`d not sold me R1100S tremendous value for money 2nd hand back in the day. . .

I love mine.

It was a dream bike for me. I absolutely love the style. With lower pegs and higher bars there is no discomfort penalty for the amazing looks. My only gripes after couple of years owning the bike are: 1-suspension is basic and feels harsh and soft at the same time. Easily fixed as shown in the video. 2- lack of power. Don’t get me wrong, it has adequate power but not enough to scare you or entertain you. No power wheelies out of corners for this bike. No available fix as of yet.

Is there a passenger seat under the cover at the tail?

I’m sold, I want one!

I added Helibars 50mm higher 50mm back, transforms it ,great bike!

look at all the people bashing the bike.. im sure not even 1% can ride it to the max where the suspension starts to be a limmiting factor.

Would have one of these but for the riding position.

I have to say, this was a fantastic review by Matt Wildee.

Love mine. Few tweaks here and there. I don’t find the position that much worse then some other sport bikes

with the coffee great :D

Hey friend I thank that's one cool bike 😊I see it's a one men bike enjoy your bike and have a bless day, 😚😃😄😅😆😎

Love it, but at 6'2", I just don't fit. I took one out for a test spin, but it was a world of pain from my waist down :-(

Great review, knowledgeable reviewer!

how tall r u ? is it comfortable than thruxton R ? and why there is no inverted forks for better cornering?

I'm sad that BMW chose to discontinue this bike. They call this their heritage line and in that vein I'd love to see this in 1973 R90S Daytona Orange and red pinstripes. I will have one someday and I will do this to it!

Man spreading at its finest 😀 great review

Serious question. What if you drop/slide this?

Well this peculiarity of the crank and its tilting properties are dont require a long term test to be experienced.

Spencer Arai - class

Can take a trip down europe on it, or is it more god for short trips.

I wonder why they do not use the standard rninet's front fork. this is race version isn't it ? it's rummy.

It needs cruise control. Then riding position is a moot point. I commute on my S1000RR & the 8 hour ride is no problem with cruise control. Or 3 hours to Phillip Island do a track day and ride home. Cruise control is key.

How much is the bike & more importantly, how much were the mods? BMW is a premium brand; if I bought one, I wouldn’t want to have to get my hand in my pocket to upgrade forks, shocks etc. Ouch! 😖

I heard they aren’t making these for 2021. Thought I had more time to find and buy one.

Do you think it would be a good starter bike?

1hr of ride time before it becomes painful? Not for me. Looks good but that is all.

Chicken strips on rear tyre 🤫….. think those suspension mods gave you the confidence to really push it 😂😂😂

Where are these roads?!?! Looked good

Tubed tires? Hasn't BMW figured out how to have a tubeless spoked wheel?

Ouch, gtx332, does this mean you're not going to share your moisturiser with me anymore?

is this now out of production?

Surely there must be something wrong if you spend over £12 grand on a top end motorcycle and then you have to spend more money because it doesn't ride properly out of the box to change tyres, front suspension and rear suspension to get it to ride properly. I don't get it, how can you wax lyrical about a production bike that's not right, yet you have to make it right. 🤔🤔🤔🤔

Same as Mark painful/uncomfortable to ride unless you’re doing 90mph, and I don’t want to spend another 2k on a 12k bike, same money as my ZZR1400!

The gearbox's soft 1st gear has thrown me numerous times,.. I can't get used to the feel of where the gears are without having to check the dash. Annoying

Top speed ???

Break fluid change is a pain in the arse.

It seems its too small for you. Isn't it?

Clunky shifting noise reduced by shorter final gear ratio. Refined drive train illusion created at the expense of a high consumption.

As an ex owner, some words of warning. This is a fun bike with a great engine. BUT. But BMW aint what they used to be. Mine had umpteen warranty fixes on 4 rear ABS sensors, rear light cluster, corrosion on the timing cover and alternator driveshaft and bearings, three kill switches failed and a tank sensor. After the warranty ran out, each time it was serviced by the dealer or the bike was MOT’d, more expensive problems turned up, it became a money pit. The last straw was an MOT failure due to a second rear disk wearing out in 34,000 miles on a fully dealer serviced bike and the drive shaft pinion and crownwheel wearing out, £1,500 worth of repairs. The disk was blamed by the dealer on me touching the brake pedal and riding on it, which was poppycock, my foot rests nowhere near it. The fault was with the brake calliper. Servicing is expensive as well, needing three seperate lots of oil. I cannot really recommend BMW to anyone.

Obviously not in winter with that bent fairing

Yeah lovely.. Can anyone actually buy one?

mcn never run a bike down , because they have bmw adverts and bmw invite them to review and sell there bikes in the mag

sat on this at a dealer, day on the s1000rr too why would you even look at this twice

Storage? It’s called a backpack on something like this

Fam

Yeah, "Nimbler" with that "Tall Centre of Gravity" Just like those MOTO GP Bikes with their HIGH CENTRE OF GRAVITY.. GIZ A JOB MCN...

Alot of modifications to make it great (?)

We didn't even get to see you actually sat on the bike and the riding position unfortunately.

How is the XSR9 uncomfortable? it it because you are tall or just soft, Nancy.

And I Hat the XR style so forget it.

Tubed tires.....? You've got to be kidding me ! Someone has to tell BMW we're in 2017

Never put you helmet on the ground

*oil cooled

The most uncomfortable bike I’ve ever ridden. Couldn’t wait to get off it. The riding position is just ridiculously extreme. So stretched out. That said, owners who get used to it, love it.

reviewer looks hungover as f**k.

Sorry to see it go but NOT going to Purchase it!! I'd Love to ride it for free for ages.. Probably couldn't say anything bad about it.

The gear change is dog poo such a long action.The whole time on the test ride i thought it would be easy to do it yourself

Yeah gotta pass on this one. Like the others have mentioned for a premium bike the upgrades should be included.

The Boxer engine is no good for a sports bike.

Surely the whole goal of a MCN review is for the professional (buyer) to give the novice (buyer) guidance with their decision to buy/not buy a STOCK motorbike. I want/wanted a Racer however after watching this awful review I'm totally put off. MCN have changed the total riding characteristic of this machine therefore the review is of a non-stock bike. You don't even offer upgrade costing guidance. Please show the"majority" buying public a before review and then a post mod review as all you're doing here is putting potential R nine T Racer buyers off spending their hard earned wages on this beautiful bike ! I'm certain that when BMW offered you this "Free" review bike that you weren't going to totally rubbish it's original design .............. I 100% wanted a Racer but I'm now looking at alternatives .............Thanks Matt/MCN !

Form over function. Not for me.

This bike is just a styling exercise and should stay that way. Unless you're some rich fop like David Beckham why spend 12k on something which is uncomfortable to ride after one hour? Can't get a girlfriend on the back and can't fit any luggage. This is a useless toy. Get a BMW R1200r, pre 2014 -ish. Same engine, same shaft drive, gyroscope handling, perfect riding position, great for pillions, hard and soft luggage available. I've got one and feel like I never need to buy another bike (assuming I don't stuff it up a tree or similar).

It is NOT "An interesting Torque Reaction" it IS a dangerous design flaw.

No, not everybody loves a cafe racer

are you actually speaking english 😂

In plain English, riding position Sucks! Who ever designed it should be canned!

the dude is so drunk

Pure BS, what a failure of a bike if it can't be ridden for an hour. Why not spend time reviewing good machines with good R&D like Ducatis and not pushing BMW. brand