After teasing us with a prototype last year BMW has finally revealed the final version of the most extreme production bike it’s ever made – the HP4 Race.
And you’re unlikely to be disappointed. Let’s cut straight to the chase; the carbon-framed, track-only wonder is kicking out 215hp from its race-tuned S1000RR engine at a towering 13,900rpm, backed up by 120Nm of torque at 10,000rpm. Those are impressive figures, but not as astounding as the bike’s weight. BMW is claiming a dry weight of just 146kg, and even track-ready with a full 17.5l of fuel in the tank, it’s just 171.4kg.
That means it’s about as light as a MotoGP bike (157kg without fuel), and not a million miles away in terms of power, either. A WSB bike is heavier than the HP4, with a minimum of 168kg before fuel is added.
One other number that counts is 750. That’s how many of the bikes BMW will be making. Price? That'll be £68,000.
The key to the bike’s light weight is its use of carbon fibre for the frame, subframe, bodywork and wheels. Made using production processes developed to eliminate the usual carbon drawback of labour-intensive manufacture and to address the oft-cited criticism that carbon fibre is too rigid for a bike chassis, it’s the most advanced carbon fibre frame seen to date.
In weight terms, the chassis is just 7.8kg, which is 4kg less than the latest S1000RR’s aluminium chassis. The wheels are similarly around 30% lighter than their alloy equivalents, reducing gyroscopic forces by 40% to make the bike turn much faster.
BMW has introduced three forms of carbon manufacturing for different parts of the bike. The first – dubbed ‘Carbonview’ is a fairly traditional hand lay-up method, and is used for cosmetic, non-structural parts like the bodywork. The second, ‘Carboncore’, is a Resin Transfer Moulding (RTM) system that injects resin into carbon fabrics that are in a mould. And finally there’s ‘Carbondrive’ which combines RTM with non-woven, bonded carbon fabrics with continuous fibres to give a balance of flexibility, strength and weight. It’s the last of these that’s used for the frame and wheels.
At the back, there’s a carbon subframe that allows the whole tail to be mounted at three different heights to suit the rider’s size and preference, and everything else is similarly adjustable. The steering head angle, swingarm pivot point, fork offset and of course the footpegs can all be adjusted to suit your needs.
Moving away from the chassis, the engine is more than just a straight S1000RR unit. It’s modified enough to get its own series of engine numbers. New camshafts, milled con-rods, a balanced and lightened crankshaft and all new injection settings give the performance boost. Behind it there’s a race-spec gearbox with a reversed shift pattern (up for first, down for the rest), and revised gear ratios. Each HP4 gets a selection of different sprockets to adjust the gearing. HP Shift Assistant Pro, giving clutchless up and down-shifts with an auto-blip, is standard.
New BMW HP4 Race walk around | Milan 2016 | BikeSocial
Unveiled to the public for the first time at the Milan Motorcycle Show in November 2016, this BMW HP4 Race is dripping with carbon fibre!
Which brings us to the bike’s electronics package. As you’d expect, it gets the full suite of traction control, engine brake control, wheelie control and launch control, with race-spec switchgear on the bars to operate it all. There’s even a pit lane speed limiter.
The dashboard is again race-spec, revealing lap times, electronics settings, gear position and water temperature but not fussing about details like speed. In the pits, it can give even more info including front and rear brake pressures, spring travel, throttle position, front and rear wheel speeds and bank angles. Basically, it’s a race-style datalogger.
Aside from all the HP4’s USPs, there’s a solid backing of high-spec parts from other manufacturers. Like the Ohlins FGR 300 forks and TTX 36 GP rear shock – the same stuff that’s used in WSB and MotoGP. Or the Brembo GP4 PR Monobloc brakes, which again are Superbike racing refugees. Basically, the HP4’s spec means that if you’re not the fastest guy at the track day, you’ve only got yourself to blame.
Deliveries to the lucky 750 buyers are due to start later this year, and the bikes are expected to sell out just as quickly as they perform on track.
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