Car and bike makers love to mix things up; hence the Sports Utility Vehicle (a multi-purpose motor) and the Adventure Bike, great for a little off-roading but also for touring.
But what happens when you cross an adventure bike with a sports bike? The Adventure Sport, of course, and that goes some way to defining one of the more exciting bikes in BMW’s line-up; the S1000XR.
It burst onto the scene in a blaze of revs and attitude in 2015. It was a thrilling machine, capable of warp-speed acceleration from its 163hp four-cylinder in-line engine, packaged in a tall-riding, upright-seated machine that shunned the low-down ‘hunched over the handlebars’ feel of a traditional sports bike. It was a kind of superbike on stilts.
In its latest incarnation all that still stands, but much of it is new from the ground up. There were revisions to the looks and riding position, the engine was ‘borrowed’ from the most recent super-fast S1000RR but without the ShiftCam variable valve timing, the weight was trimmed a little, semi-active suspension became standard and the running gear was revised.
Result? A fast, super-fun bike claimed to be capable of notching up high miles at some speed and with a high degree of comfort, aided by most of the electronics and equipment you could dream of, with high luggage capacity thanks to capacious (optional) £889 panniers and a £435.44 top box, and with attitude to spare.
In other words, the kind of bike that you can load up with enough gear for a week or two away, happily ride all day thanks to its upright seating position, and arrive feeling invigorated and fulfilled after hundreds of miles.
Fishing tackle
What you almost certainly wouldn’t do is tackle anything more than the gravel car park of your hotel, or one or two (mildly) muddy verges when performing a navigational u-turn; you’ll be fishing for grip. It’s simply not built for that, its ‘adventure’ vibe reflecting its seating position rather than any mud-plugging aspirations, not least thanks to its lofty seat, decidedly road-going tyres and suspension travel better suited to undulations in the tarmac.
So what is on offer on the 2024 S1000XR? The engine now produces 170hp which is heaps more, even, than BMW’s R1250RS sports tourer, which feels plenty fast enough and produces 134 bhp. Like the old XR it still produces 114Nm of torque, at 9,250rpm.
The seat has been redesigned for more comfort, says BMW. It now has an extra 10mm of height taking it to a tip-toe-y 850mm, also offering more space ‘for the buttocks’, as the firm puts it. Three different seat heights are available, although not on the M seat fitted to the test bike, which felt quite tall.
There are new side panels for a more integrated look along with a colour-coded ‘beak’ over the front wheel, while, inevitably, there are more toys as standard than before, including headlight pro, which ‘shines’ around bends, daytime running lights for better visibility, keyless ignition and a USB charging outlet.
Shift Assistant Pro - quick shift to you and me - is claimed to be more precise, the suspension tweaked for a more comfortable ride and there are new colours.
First impressions - especially with the panniers and top box fitted - are of a large, slightly bulky bike. It feels tall, too, requiring quite a stretch to throw a leg over the nicely sculpted seat. Even laden, it’s easy enough to hoist off the side stand, however, even if the bike’s mass feels much higher centred than with, for instance, the R1250RS, which has a lower-slung boxer engine.
Qualms about a slightly top-heavy feeling when stationary instantly disappear on the move; this is an easy bike to pilot through dense London traffic. It’s beautifully poised, the fluid steering and progressive brakes making it a good city companion.
It’s out on the open road that the magic happens however. Even in ‘Rain’ mode it leaps at the chance to overtake swiftly. Switch to ‘Road’ - better still, ‘Dynamic’ or ‘Dynamic Pro’ and it’s a regular fireball - always keen to accelerate hard, accompanied by an intoxicating, turbine-like howl from that four-cylinder engine.
Lean times
It feels almost like a racetrack bike; extremely quick to respond to steering or lean input, even faster to respond to a twist of the right wrist. On open, winding roads during a 600-mile tour from London to Lincolnshire via Norfolk, it was a scintillating, engaging ride with crisp, crisp handling, making for safe, assured overtaking, time after time. The engine does like a handful of revs, however, for its best performance, though.
On longer hauls the screen did a good job of wind deflection and the seating position was comfortable - to a point. After two hours or so in the saddle I needed to stretch my legs out, and the saddle began to dig in. But part of the fun of touring is finding decompressing with a cup of tea now and again.
Only when manoeuvring the bike when lost - in slippery, narrow country lanes, for instance, or on steeply cambered, cobbled hills in Lincoln - did the bike feel a bit of handful, a little on the tip-toey side, and I’m of average height. It’s one of those machines that repays careful consideration as to where you park; you won’t want to paddle it backwards uphill. The only other niggles were its inability (a shortcoming of Bluetooth) to listen to both navigation instructions and music from my iPhone 15 Pro Max simultaneously, and a slight tingliness through the ‘bars at motorway speeds.
Speaking of which, the Motorrad app is handy; showing tank range, weather, and recording your rides, including lean angle, as well as facilitating navigation, service appointments and connectivity.
The bike’s TFT screen is easy to read, while the thumbwheel and menu button on the left handlebar make it easy to scroll through the options. Other likes? The useful (though unlockable) cubby hole just in front of the petrol tank filler was handy for storing oddments such as ear plugs, and the HSC Pro came in handy for holding the bike in check when stationary on steep hills. The small screen was easily adjustable and the brakes powerfully reassuring at all speeds.
We rode the TE model, dripping with equipment, sporting the Dynamic, Touring and M Packages, boosting the price to a heady £23,461. BMWs aren’t inexpensive, and most riders want most of the toys. BMWs are about luxury and refinement, after all.
Above all, the S100XR makes travelling fun, a lot of fun. It offers that useful characteristic of being a bit of a doddle to ride in town, while offering towering, mile-munching performance on the open road. It’s not a bike you’d ever, really, tire of. Or on.
The facts
BMW S 1000 XR TE
Price: £18,340
Weight: 227 kgs
Consumption (claimed): 45.6 mpg
Range: 200 miles
Seat height: 850mm
More at www.bmw-motorrad.co.uk
Klim Latitude 2 jacket and touring pants
Just as motorcycle tech has moved on, so has motorcycle clothing. In spades. Not long ago it was generally a matter of performance and practicality over comfort. Now you can have both at the same time and one jacket that proves this, is the Latitude 2, introduced recently.
Made by Idaho firm Klim, which is obsessed with quality right down to the tiniest detail, it proved a brilliant companion - with similarly constructed Gore-Tex Latitude leggings - for a week’s tour in mixed conditions, and general commuting.
The surprisingly versatile two-layer, laminated Gore-Tex jacket was perfect for the combination of rain, brief hot sunny spells, long chilly days in the saddle - and for wearing while walking around sightseeing.
Straight off the hanger the jacket was about as comfortable as a protective bike jacket can be thanks to a soft, supple, nice-to-the-touch outer layer, light, malleable (level 1 Ghost, upgradeable to Level 2 for an extra £50 at Motolegends) D30 armour at the elbows, shoulders and back and its overall lightness. There’s plenty of ‘articulation’ for freedom of movement too and the ‘Small’ weighs 2.3 kgs with weight nicely distributed. It was lucky I did downsize; on the advice of Klim specialists, Motolegends, I dropped into their smart, boutique showroom at Guildford as sizing can be tricky. I duly spurned my usual Medium (which felt Large to me) and went for the smallest size, which was a great fit. Note: like Idaho state, Klims come up big.
Whoever designed this jacket must have spent miles - and miles - developing it. It is supremely easy to live with and I found only one (piffling) niggle despite consistent, hard, long-hours wear.
Riders on the storm
What’s it offer? It’s a great-looking jacket with smart Cordura shoulder overlays, grey colour-matched on my blue jacket to soft perforated leather elbow patches. Neatly arranged Scotchlite (fellow riders say) made it stand out in the gloom. One of my favourite touches is the generous storm flap, culminating in an ‘gutter’ to drain excess rain, an example of detail-obsession.
This is complemented by a double-headed, chunky YKK front zip (with large, nicely styled soft toggle) plus grippy two-way zips on the cuffs (close them then open in reverse for extra ventilation), backed by Velcro tabs. Even the zip toggles are ‘soft’ and angled, to avoid digging in under gloves. Neat touch; not all makers do this.
The excellent fit and finish don’t stop there. Not even on the sleeves, where there are two separate easily-used straps for ‘volume’ adjustment as well as, on the left arm, a neat zipped pouch in which I stashed BMW key fob). The cuffs are trimmed with leather for comfort and durability.
At the waist are two further straps on each side, for adjustment, in addition to side-zips; useful for boosting ventilation, or ensuring that the jacket sits low on the hips when seated. (Chris pointed out that the Latitude can bunch up on some riders because it is fairly long; I found that by adjusting the waist, this wasn’t a problem). Other nice touches include an elastic hem adjuster, stretchy Gore Tex under the arms and across the shoulders - and no fewer than six pockets, four of them internal (one so well hidden I temporarily lost my wallet).
Thanks to Gore Tex it endured torrential, driving, coastal rain. Being a laminate jacket, it didn’t ‘wet out’. The Latitude doesn’t include a separate, detachable liner, which is fine with me. On warmer days I used a light fleece underneath. On colder days I used Klim’s cosy, squashable, Maverick Down Jacket (of which more another time). So no fiddling around zipping in a liner.
Collar and ties
Other facets of obsessive detail on this touring jacket? The collar is a masterpiece. Not only soft-lined, it has a cinch... with the toggle in the shape of Idaho state. For hot days, two elasticated collar-mounted loops can easily be attached to ties near the collarbone, so the ‘flaps’ stay wide open instead of flapping against your neck. Brilliant.
My only (First World) problem? When walking around with the jacket open, the adjustment strap on my right sleeve kept catching on the Velcro tabs on the front. Hardly a calamity.
One observer commented that the Latitude - especially in blue - resembled a smart ski jacket. It’s tempting to agree; Klim’s founder did start by making uniforms for ski resort workers. I really like the look and liked wearing it, day in day out.
Other little details are well thought-out. I could use the zips while riding, with gloves on. My iPhone 15 Pro Max fitted nicely in the inside pocket, where it remained dry. Female riders aren’t forgotten; the Altitude jacket is similarly specc’d, but differently cut.
The Latitude isn’t only nice to wear thanks to strategic use of heavier protective fabric where needed and lighter fabrics where not (leading, it appears, to it being A-rated rather than AA-rated) there are also zipped ‘hand-warmer’ pockets, useful when you’re walking about, and a tiny pouch inside one for keys or coins. It’s even easy to pack thanks to its malleability, making it useful for anyone flying and hiring abroad.
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Paired with (black, how much blue do you want?) Latitude pants, I felt unassailable, even if I didn’t get the same cosy fit as with the jacket. Baggier in style than the jacket, I subjected the A-rated leggings to green-laning in soaking - and steamy, hot - conditions.
Despite being doused in water - and mud - they didn’t let in a drop, were comfortable, flexible and highly adjustable. When the sun appeared, large upper leg vents front and rear kept the air flowing nicely…. even if they do give a fairly baggy, untailored appearance when open.
Knock knees
Motolegends boss Chris – not a stranger to off-roading - recommended them for green-laning even though they’re really ‘tourers’ and, with plenty of room to fit over heavy-duty boots, lots of adjustability and material tough enough to withstand brambles, spills and knocks, they did the job well. Using them on tour was a bonus, especially with the stretch Gore-Tex in strategic areas, and goat leather overlays on the inner knees for grip. Like the jacket they come with Level 1 Ghost armour, upgradeable to level 2 for an extra £25.
The mesh-lined pants have one generous thigh pocket (best for soft objects such as visor wipes or neck tubes) and two slash pockets while the waist is adjustable via Velcro tabs, as are the ankles where there are also big poppers, backed by a zip. The knees are also adjustable, and the pants, which come in three lengths, can be zipped to the jacket.
Latitude is the kind of gear which - by adjusting layers - could be worn short or long trips year-round, which is just as well considering the price; the Latitude jacket is £860, the pants £690. When it’s warm there’s loads of ventilation in the jacket, including generous chest vents, plus two generous vertical rear vents. When it’s cold, zip up and layer up. It feels built to last and, clearly, is sold by people who know motorcycling and its need inside out. Only time will tell whether – after more miles of riding – pants and jacket remains as impressively waterproof. More at www.motolegends.com. Just be sure to go for an expert fitting first; this kit was, it seems, designed with larger Americans in mind.
Klim Adventure GTX Glove
You have to hand it to Klim - they really did cram in the technology Klim with their ‘shortie’ GTX Adventure Glove. As you might well expect, at £180. Made from goatskin with a laminated Gore Tex lining, it’s designed as a waterproof summer glove although with heated handlebar grips, you could be wearing them well into autumn.
Beautifully crafted but a little stiff on first acquaintance when I tried them for size at Motolegends, they broke in reasonably quickly. On tour they proved 100 per cent waterproof and comfortable. Nicely thought-through design touches include useful pull-on loops to get a snug fit, a very effective Velcro strap to make sure they remain in place, and padding in all the ‘right’ places, including an impressively high-tech, tough- looking carbon protector on top of impact-absorbing Poron on the knuckles, with more Poron on the palm and pads over the finger knuckles.
Klim thought of everything; there’s a (very effective) visor rain wiper on the left forefinger, while the forefinger and thumb are screen sensitive; no need to remove gloves when fiddling with the sat-nav. It’s hard to think how a summer touring glove could really be any better; it looks smart and ‘technical’ too. My only niggle was breaking in the thumbs in time for my tour; for speed and comfort, I gently stretched them over wooden spoon handles. Job done.
