Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1980's

ASS pre ssure m odulat ors (on e on each side) control hydraulic pressure in the brake cyl inder. and pre ve nt the wheels f rom staying locked t ight. spe cial sh ims and BMW reco m mends that this job is also best left to an a uthor ized deal er. ' Rem o vi n g th e ABS-equipped wheels also dem ands special atten tion. When pulling off the front wheel, both brak e cali pers must be r emoved and ca re is n eeded to maintain th e co rrec t senso r-to-gea r gap wh en putting it back on. When changing the rear wheel, a job made easier by the one-sided swinga rm , care mu st be used not to put force on the sen sor, thus altering the sensor gap. BMW also advises caution when cleaning around electrical compo nents, sea ls and wire insulation. The limits of ABS The ABS will not prevent all kinds of mishaps, as one of our test riders .di scovered - the hard way. While bra king on wet pavement. the tester a ttemp ted to turn the KIOO, as if avoiding a car blocking his path. With the bars cocked and the brakes on, the BMW turned its front wheel in and p lowed, dropping to the gro und as a ny norma l machi ne would. " As lo ng as one is riding in a stra igh t li ne, th e rider can apply the brakes in full without fear of wheel locking," states the BMW press kit o n ABS. "Not even ABS ca n change the laws of physics. A motorcycle with or wit hout ABS loses its steering a nd directiona l potential when ' a pp lying the brakes in a corner. " The Special will react like any motorcycle wh en th e brakes a re used in mid-corner, o n slick or dry pavement. Jam on th e an chors and th e b ik e w i ll sta n d up a n d try to straigh ten o ut, or slide ou t. Even with ABS, th e brak es can add eno ugh lateral corne ri ng force to overco me tire trac tion a nd steering ability, starting a low-sid e slide, just lik e on a ny o ther bike. This is because th e ABS works -on ly wh en th e tires are nearly locked - and th ey do n ' t have to be locked tight to slide in a co rn er. The Special ca n save some of its riders some of th e time, and all of its riders some of th e tim e. But it can 't save all of its riders all of th e tim e. Beyond anti-lock Aside from the ABS, the KIOORS Special isn't that special. It has nearly the same specifications that accompanied the KI OO introduction in 1983. T hey weren 't eye-openi ng th en a nd they are n 't today. However, it wor ks - for the most part - so who needs change? ' The bike is still powered by th e , lo n gi tud inall y Flop ped-over, mou nted, 1000cc fue l-i n jecte d , double-overhead-ca m four. It's held in pl ace by the same, round-tube, bridge-st yle frame th a t u ses th e ' engine as a load-bearing element. It rides on near ly th e sam e running gear, featuring the softly-sprung 41mm front fork and single-shock, which bo lts to a single-sided swinga rm , devoid of any linkage system . The fork has no adjustments and the rear shock comes on ly with - three spring-preload adjustments. This is eq u ip me n t that has no place o n a $11,500 machine. With the exception of paint, the ever -trad i t io n a l BMW compan y h asn 't even changed the KIOO's appearance much. The tank and sea t are old and so is the fairing - aside from its blacked-out windscreen which most of our testers found e££ective as a blast deflector. However, with a new pearl white and meta llic-blue p ain t schem e, the Seeeial is arguably the best looking bi ke ever to ro ll out of Munich. While touring down th e freeways d uring o ur tes ti ng, va rious car drivers pulled alo ngsi de the Special to have a lo ng and close loo k. The overs tyled square chro me muffler is the only p iece that mars th e Special's stunni ng appearance. Not so stu nning are th e m in or, but traditional, glitches that continue on the K-bike lin e and annoy most folks, aside fro m die-hard Beemerphiles. There are aspects of the BMW th at riders simply have to get used to, or fix with aftermarket modifications. Engine vib ration spoils freeway speed riding, with a buzz that com es through th e pegs a nd even th e ru bber-mounted, foam-gripped bars. At highway speeds , the motor also bleeds a n unpleasant amount of heat o nt o th e rider 's low er legs. This might be fin e in a cold climate. Otherwise, stoc k up on Reynolds Wrap and cover your calves. T he KIOO's shaft drive pogo e££ect is also an ite m on the love-it-o r-leave it list. Twist th e throttle and th e rear of the machine rises. Back it it o££ and down yo u sink. The soft shock o n ly adds to th e elevator sessions. Sto p -and-go situatio ns do n 't help either. The steeri ng-head-mo unt ed fork lo ck m a y be sturdier th a n th e . ignition-operated type, but getting to it betw een th e triple clamp and the fair ing is like digging deep into a cookie jar. Finall y, th e stu bby bars come with a bizzare set of turn-signal switches - three of them. One, located underneath the left bar , operates th e left signal. Another, on the right side, opera tes th e right signal. A separate paddle, on th e right, cancels both signals. Making a left turn means using two switches a nd two thumbs. Sigh . . . . The minor annoyances ar e strange co unt erparts to th e thoughtful conveniences p laced on the KIOO. Starting, which is already easy due to th e Bosch fuel injectio n, is made even easier wit h the lar ge and adjustable bar-mounted choke. The Special 's instrument pa nel comes with gauges to keep a watch on fuel level and wa ter-temperature, and a fou r-way flasher switch to keep traffic at bay should you ever be parked at roadside . H oistin g the bi ke on its sta ble centerstand is simplified by a springloaded, pull-out handle. And, as usual, the BMW comes with a real and long-lasting too l ki], complete with a tire-repair package. It also fits easily - 10 and behold - into its box ben eath the seat. While riding, the Special delivers an overall sensation of being ponderous. T he bike revs slow ly, shifts slowly and steers slo wly, assuring you that it is no t so much a sportto urer as it is a sporty tourer. The Special can be h ustled alo ng a t a q uick cli p , but doi ng so demands some un iq ue tech ni q ues. The suspension gives the rider a vag ue sense of what the road is like and what the tires are do ing o n i t. Wi th corn eri n g, th e rider must br ake early a nd ge t on th e th rottle early, to set the suspens ion in the " up" mode, avoid wa llowing and give maximum clea rance. Most of all, being smooth mea ns being fast. O f course, th e KIOO wasn't meant to dic e with the likes of Ninjas and GSXRs. It was designed with a more san e pace in mind, a nd wh en used at that level, the BMW succeeds admirably. Despite the slow and heavy feel, th e Two 1OO-tooth impulse generator gears ri de on the front and rear wheels. The sensors mounted above them detect when the wheels lock up. Special is friendly and forgiving. It 's a pl easant place to spe nd a da y. And, as many BMW owners will attest, it 's a pl easant way to spe nd 100,000 mi les. T he Special treats its rider to a com fortable perch, wi th its cushy b l u e, co lor-coordinated seat, correctlY-p'laced pegs, a nd handlebars th at tilt him forward at j ust the right am oun t. T he soft suspensio n gives a soo thingly smooth ride on th e freeway and over th e fast stuff. The Pirell i MP7R radials add to the com pliant fee l , and stick well enough to boo t. The BMW's motor ma y not have that m uch power, compared to the one-liter Japanese overachievers, but the power it does have is available throughout th e rev-range. Shifting is not a maj or concern. Merely ro ll on the throttle and go - as you listen to th e wonderful , throaty exha ust note all the while. The Special ma y soon become a better sporting mount, if it's fitt ed with the rumored l6-va lve, 100 horsepower motor, a n d BMW ' s Paral ever swi ngarm - whi ch all bu t elimina tes rear-end rise and fall. Bu t in th e end, th is is one mach in e that is better at slowing down th an it is at speeding up. And that poin ts to the only ma jor drawback with the KIOORS Special. The tro ub le comes wh en its ow ner has to ride another mach ine and stop hard wi thout ABS. It forces him to ta ke extra care , and remind himself that he is slowing do wn all on h is own - the old-fashioned way. • BMW K100RS Special .Engine type ••• • • Uquid-cooled. four-stroke. DOHC in-line four-cylinder. Bore x stroke •••••• 67x70mm Displacement •••• • •••• 987cc Compression ratio •• ••• 10.2:1 Carburetor ••• Bosch L-'Jetronic fuel injection Claimed horsepower ••••••• 90 Valves per cyl inder •••••• ••• 2 Intake valve size ••••• •• 34mm Exhaust valve size •••••• 30mm Included valve angle 19 degrees Starting system Electric Ignition •• • • • • • •Transistorized _ breakerless Redline ••••••••••• 8500rpm Primary drive • • • • • Helical gears Final drive • •• . •• •• Shaft-spiral bevel gears Gear ratios (transmission ) 5th • ••• ; •• •• •. • ••• 1 .67:1 4th • •• •••• • •• • ••• ; 1 .88:1 3rd •••• • • • ••• • •• • • 2 .30:1 2nd •••••••• •• • • •• 2.96:1 ·1 st • •• •• •• ••• • • • •• 4 .50:1 Frame • ••• • Round tubular steel Front suspension ••• Telescopic fork Fork tube diameter • • . 41 .4mm Front wheel travel • •• 5 .3 inches Rear suspension • •• • Monolever with gas -filled shock Rear wheel travel • •• 4 .3 inches Front brakes ••• 11 .2 inch discs Rear brakes •• • •• 11 .2 inch disc Front wheel ••••• 2 .50-1 8 cast alloy Rearwheel ••• •• • 2 .75-17 cast alloy Front tire •• ••• • 100/90VR -18 tubeless. radial ply Rear tire • •• • •• 140/80VR-17 tubeless. radial ply Claimed dry weight ••• 534 Ibs. Overall length ••••• •• • 87.4 in. ,Overall width •••••••• 31 .5 in . Wheelbase ••• • •• • ••• 59.7 in . Se8t height •••••••• • 31 .9 in . Ground clearance ••••• • 5 .9 in . Fuel capacity •••••••• 5 .8 gal . Colors •••••• •••• Pearl white/ Bermuda blue Retail price ••• '••• ••• $11.500 17

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