Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/127413
eRIDINGIMPRESSION BMW RlOOR . color options: Royal Blue or Classi Black. The KlooRS features a BM by Showa rear shock, standard Anti Lock- Braking System (ABS) and color choices: P earl Silver, Classi Bla ck or Royal Blue. The K75RT an . K75S now feature ABS as standar equipment, a BMW by Showa fork an four-way flashers. The standard K7 ($63 90), BMW's most affordabl motorcycle, also gets the Showa for and four-way flashers. Little has changed in 1992 for th Boxers. The RlooRT now features Marzocchi fork , a one key system an new colors - Classic Black and Pacifi Green. The RIOOGS gets a new name the PD rather than the Paris-Dakar and the RIOOGS is completel unchanged except for a new ' color Carica Blue, to go along with the oth choices, Marakesh Red and Avu BlacklYellow. 01 m The all-new BMW RIGOR is based on the popular R I OOGS; the RIOOR features classic styling and BMW's. boxer twin. The classic Beemer By Pau l Carruthers eri ous spon bike enthusiasts tune out, For the rest of you, welcome back to the seventies and the BMW S aroca. 48 Using simple, yet classic styling, and BMW's unique horizontally-opposed, 980cc twin-cylinder boxer engine, the all -new for '92 RlooR should appeal to not only the BMW purist but to those growing tired of the mundane, fairing-clad clone bikes of the nineties. Simply put, the RlooRisan RlooGS in street clothes. It features the same frame and running gear of the popular on- off-road GS, yet its styling is straight from the '70s. From the rounded valve covers to the wire spoke wheels to the chrome instrument clusters to the large gas tank, this BMW is a throwback of sons - thus the designation R, as in Roadster. In addition, the Rl ooR is styled with fea tures such as its silver-painted frame -r- unique in the nine-bike lineup two-tone dual saddle, silver-painted grab handle/luggage rack, 28.3-inch handlebars, and love 'em or hate 'em K-style tum indicator switches. The engine is pure German boxer, a distant cousin to those which first saw production in 1923, and the same powerplant that sits in the other three Rloo's cradle frames. With an oversquare bore and stroke of 94mm x 70.6mm, a compression ratio of 8.5:1 and its two-valves-per-cylinder configuration, the 980cc twi n produces a claimed 58 horsepower at '65oo rpm. The cylinders are fed by two 32mm Bing CV carburetors. The major difference between the other three R l oos (RlooRT, RlooGS and RlooGS PD) and the RlooR is the exhaust system. While the on-off road . models GS and GS PD (formerly the Paris-Dakar, but now simply the PD because Paris-Dakar promoters would no longer allow their name to be used) use two-into-one upswept systems, the RlooR has a downswept two-into-one exhaust which uses a rounded muffler similar to the one used on the KI. While the RlooRT tourer also uses the downswept system, its exhaust supplies a tad more horsepower (60 instead of 58) and slightly less torque (;;4.8 Ib/ ft. at 3500 rpm as opposed to 56 Ib/ ft. at 3750 rpm). For the first time in BMW's history, the German manufacturer is purchasing Japanese components for their motorcycles. In this case, a BMW by Showa 41mm fork and a new gas -filled monoshock that works in conjunction with BMW's Paralever rear suspension. The rear suspension has infinitely adjustable rebound damping and a progressive 'spri ng with six preload settings. Rounding out the package are the cross-spoked wire wheels 17-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels; both are shod in Metzeler tires. Stopping the RlooR is a single floating I I.2 -inch disc up front and a 7.9-inch drum brake on the rear. The lightest of the nine BMWs, the RlooR tips the scale at 434 pounds. It is available in either Classic Black or Purple Haze and will carry a suggested retail price of $7990. We had the opportunity to put in some 350 miles on the RlooR during a ride in the mountains north of Los Angeles, California, organized by BMW. We rode the bikes on a vari ety of highways, from twisty mountain roads to California freeways, and had little to complain about. The RIOOR is a light handling motorcycle. It 's ergonomically sound and extremely comfortable to ride. The wide bars give the bik e a GS-Iike feel, and that makes for peace of mind in traffic. Although the RlooR won't easily be confused with a similar capacity sport bike, it does have adequate power if it's kept in the right part of the powerband. We noticed a slight vibration when the RlooR isn't kept in the sweet spot of its powerband - it will vibrate a tad at high rpm and also when overloaded at low rpm. Our only gripe was with the front brake; just not enough stopping power to keep us happy. BMW, however, offers a second front disc as an option, so the problem could easily be cured. In addition, BMW offers heated hand grips, saddle bags, tank bags, luggage rolls and chrome kits. Eight other BMW motorcycles return for 1992, led by the K-bikes. The Kloo returns for a third year with two