BMW HP4 RACE VS. BMW S 1000 RR
COMPARISON TEST
P94
As I swing a leg over the motorcycle, I
feel my heart rate spike and my muscles
tense. This rarely happens to me. I make
my way around the first few bends of the
Circuit of the Americas, trying relentlessly
to relax. At some point, I let out a sigh of
relief, mumbling "I've got this." That mo-
ment was short lived.
The instant I hit the back straightaway,
all hell broke loose. I'm slammed against
the tail section, fighting to hold onto the
handlebars as I click through the gearbox.
Fourth. Fifth. Wheelie. Sixth. My vision
is blurred. I grab the brakes, getting my
weight thrown to the front of the bike and
slowed down for the hard left at the end.
My heart rate is at its max.
This is what an adrenaline rush feels like
on the BMW HP4 Race.
The BMW HP4 Race is anything but an
ordinary literbike, nor is it a special ho-
mologation model that BMW Motorrad is
using to push the boundaries in the World
Superbike Championship. It's more than
that. With the HP4 Race, BMW is expand-
ing beyond any rules package and build-
ing what it says is the best motorcycle it
can produce. A motorcycle it built, simply
because it can.
The marvel of the HP4 Race begins with
its twin-spar carbon fiber frame, which is
built with the same Resin Transfer Mold-
ing process used on BMW's i3 electric
car. The specialized process allows for
the frame to be constructed with a single
piece of carbon fiber rather than layered
segments that can alter the consistency of
construction from frame to frame.
The BMW
HP4 Race
is extremely
agile getting
in and out of
the corners
thanks to its
featherweight
378-pound
build.
