BMW R nineT Racer vs Triumph Thruxton R Competition Check

BMW has launched the R nineT Racer at the 2017 India Bike Week today. The bike is a café racer with a neo-retro appeal. It directly competes against the Triumph Thruxton R which sports a similar body style. Let’s see how the café racers fare against each other. 

Design and features

The BMW R nineT Racer unmistakeably draws inspiration from the ’70 motorsport bikes. It features a half-fairing mounted on the frame which displays the bike’s engine and houses the round headlamp. It also gets a rear seat cowl that acts like a bum stopper, again, reminiscent of the early motorcycle racing days. It offers an aggressive riding position thanks to the low-slung handlebars and rear set foot pegs. To complete the look, the R nineT Racer gets a vintage BMW Motorsport livery that runs all the way from the fairing to the seat cowl. 

The R nineT Racer’s cockpit features a twin pod classic-looking analogue instrument console with small digital displays. Suspension duties are taken care of by 43mm conventional telescopic forks up front and a preload adjustable monoshock at the rear. Braking is done by twin 320mm discs up front and a 265mm single disc at the rear. It is not as electronically equipped as the R nineT as it only gets ABS as standard and BMW’s ASC (Automatic Stability Control) traction control as an option.

The Triumph Thruxton R also sports a modern-classic design and the optional ‘Track Racer kit’ makes the bike look like the BMW R nineT Racer’s perfect competitor. The bike sports a half-fairing, round headlamp, seat cowl and dual upswept exhaust. Riding position on the Thruxton R is also aggressive with the clip-on handlebars and the rear set footpegs. Unlike the BMW’s alloy wheels which give off a more modern feel, Triumph has gone with spoke wheels on the Thruxton R for a classic look.

The Triumph Thruxton R is far more superior in terms of hardware and technology as compared to the BMW R nineT Racer. It features 43mm Showa inverted forks and fully adjustable Ohlins twin shocks at the rear. Stopping power comes from Brembo calipers that hold onto twin 310mm disc up front and a Nissin caliper with a 22mm disc at the rear. The bike not only gets ABS as standard but also ride-by-wire throttle control, traction control and three riding modes- road, rain and sport. 

Engine 

The Triumph Thruxton R is powered by a 1200cc liquid-cooled parallel-twin engine that produces 96bhp at 6,500rpm and 112Nm of torque at 4,950rpm.  It is mated to a six-speed transmission and final chain drive.

The BMW R nineT Racer sports a 1170cc air-cooled twin-cylinder boxer engine. It is more powerful as compared to the Thruxton R and delivers 110bhp at 7,750rpm and 116Nm of torque at 6,000rpm. This unit is mated to a six-speed gearbox and final shaft drive. 

Pricing

The BMW R nineT Racer comes with an exorbitant Rs 17.3 lakh (ex-showroom) price tag. Given the number of features and technology it is equipped with, the Triumph Thruxton R is exceptionally priced at Rs 11.16 lakhs (ex-showroom).  On the other hand, the optional Track Racer kit is priced at Rs. 81,357.