Technology - BMW S1000RR // Adjustable valves for safety and pleasure
Development is what drives us forward, and new technologies allow us to drive machines that motorcyclists only dreamed of 20 years ago. I am sorry! They didn't even know they might want something like that. The BMW S 1000 RR has revolutionized yet again and, a decade after its arrival on the scene, introduced the variable valve engine to the supercar world, setting new standards. We tested it at the MotoGP track in Brno.
Petr Kavchich
We now live in a period where the supersport motorcycle class has dwindled to a group of those for whom motorcycling is an adrenaline rush that they release on the tracks, and have begun to unite in a kind of brotherhood in leather suits. Few go to be pursued on the road, and this is also correct. When I visit such a company several times a year, I see that in some places a ponytail of women's braided hair hangs from under the helmet. It doesn't matter whether the motive is beaten - to break a record or just a pleasure delivered only by the track, when for a 20-minute exit on hot asphalt it is filled with a mixture of serotonin, dopamine and adrenaline.
Still, BMW developed its sports car with 207 "horses" also because it a second faster than its predecessor, which also coped with a diet that reduced weight from 208 kg to 197 kg (193,5 kg with M package)... At the heart of this new concept is a newly developed engine with BMW ShiftCam technology to further increase power at low and medium engine speeds and improve performance across the entire engine speed range. The inline four-cylinder engine, now 4 kg lighter than before, brings a whole new level of efficiency on the road and on the track. For this purpose, not only the geometry of the intake and exhaust ports has been optimized, but also the BMW ShiftCam technology, which changes the timing of valve opening and valve movement on the intake side.
This is the same system used in the best-selling flat-engine motorcycle, the R 1250 GS. SA redesigned intake manifold and a new exhaust system, which is 1,3 kg lighter, also contribute to improved overall efficiency. When we take a close look at what they've all been doing to lose weight and get extra "horses," our skin itches. To make it even lighter, the valves, which are already made of titanium anyway, are now hollow! Until a few years ago, this technology was unattainable, but now it is available in production engines. After all, the driver who accelerates consistently and calmly, even under the highest loads, benefits the most from the significantly increased torque across a wide rev range. I know it sounds paradoxical, but the new BMW S1000 RR doesn't make you feel like you are sitting on a rocket motorbike while driving and you panic when acceleratingwhere it is difficult for you to keep the situation under control. No, just the moments when you notice how calmly and easily you overtake the rest of the bikes on the track, and a glance at the time tells you how incredibly faster it is.
On the race track, consistency is a value that leads to improvements, and here the S 1000 RR excels. You can analytically approach each trip to the track, gradually adjust the operation and transmission of auxiliary systems that do not require control, and thereby hone your knowledge. BMW also offers training and upgrades through electronics and accessories, opening up new, even greater possibilities for the pleasure of the track for the amateur rider.
