The BMW R18 Transcontinental - Sean’s Motorcycle Review
A couple of years back when I first heard rumors that BMW would be launching a boxer cruiser, my immediate thought was it will be some sort of 1200cc boxer engine straight out of the GS.
It was much to my surprise when I laid eyes upon this 1800cc masterpiece of German engineering. I had never got to experience the Torque of this giant engine so when a Rent A Ride opportunity came up we grabbed this bull by the horns and headed to the Swiss alps to experience this Soul Fuel for ourselves!
comfort:
Never before has a motorcycle seat given me comfort levels comparable to that of my couch at home! The large floorboards made me feel like my feet were on the ground, the protection against the wind was fantastic and at times too much in the heat of midday - a quick adjustment of the wind deflectors do however divert the air straight onto the rider giving some added ventilation. Combined with an upright riding position, all the luxuries of heated elements, active traction control and a TFT screen larger than my first television make for a truly comfortable ride. Top gear cruising albeit a new sensation for this daily adventure bike rider really made for a truly relaxed ride where I imagined one could soak up thousands of miles with ease in the saddle of this cruiser. There’s also the option of the highway pegs if you prefer to put your feet up and relax even further, this model didn’t have them so I can’t say too much however in think they would be well worth adding to the list. As for the pillion seat, well I think I will give Em a shout to see what her thoughts are.
Emily Rose: One word … luxury! I’ve spent countless hours on the pillion seat but I have to stay this is the first time I have ever felt like I could have fallen asleep. The top box surrounds you and it almost feels like a hug with the heated seat turned on, I could really sit back and just enjoy the ride. I wasn’t sure at first if I would use the seat handle but I found myself grasping for it when we hit the mountain passes. The large pillion foot rest made mounting and dismounting the motorcycle conformable and easy!
Storage:
On first impressions I thought storage space had been greatly sacrificed in the name of style and in a way I was right, although the figures would suggest otherwise. Now the R1250 GSA has just over 110 liters of space and the R18 Transcontinental boasts an impressive 102 liters. That’s all very well until you want to put say a bag into the side panniers and you find that nothing actually fits unless you use your dishwashing stacking skills and pack things individually. That said would I prefer 2 big square boxes strapped to each side ruining the aesthetics? - not at all! As that’s what this bike is all about. The top box however is very impressive at 48 liters and can even take 2 strategically placed full face helmets! If you opt the additional speakers in the side panniers and top box expect to lose an additional 1.5 liters of space per speaker. There’s even a place on the tank for you to keep your smartphone charged and ventilated so it doesn’t overheat whilst providing music and information to the navigation system.
All in all there’s plenty of storage space, we travelled for a week with camera and video equipment and managed to get it all in with no bother. Moto campers might even be able to make use of the space and rails below the top box to secure their tent and sleeping bag.
Safety:
All modern bikes come with the usual safety equipment as standard such as ABS, ACS, Dynamic Engine Brake Control and this modern classic is no different. The adaptive cruise control worked especially well maintaining a safe gap between us and the vehicle in front - although lets face it with 1800cc’s at the throttle you won’t be sitting behind anybody for long! LED adaptive headlights, indicators and brake lights both let you see well at night and be seen. Hill start assist is there if you need it although I never really see a situation where this is necessary, the reverse gear however I will include in safety as this could get you out of a lot of downhill parking situations without doing your back in! The 3 aptly named riding modes of Rock, Roll and Rain are self explanatory and I really appreciate a rain mode to tame this beast if you get caught in adverse weather meaning you can worry more about the aftermath of chrome cleaning than being spat off on slippy surfaces.
Equipment:
As you would expect from a machine like this it comes fully loaded with all the toys, comfort accessories and technology all combined in a very stylish package. For me what really completed this bike was the Marshal speaker system. The model we tested had the 2 speaker option and I must say the sound was very impressive, even cranked fully up cruising at 120km/h you could really hear the music although at times this wasn’t a good thing as Em was in charge of the playlist! I would be really interested to hear the sound from the full 6 speaker option! As just with 2 the sound was very impressive. The DAB radio worked very well and even gave you the option of filtering the music Genre which should in my opinion be set to Rock as default.
The Ride:
Last and most importantly the ride. I must admit I was at first intimidated by the size and weight of this machine - was I man enough to handle this beast in the Alps? - There was only one way to find out. Firstly this is the first cruiser style motorcycle that I have ridden and just the day before we picked up the R18 Transcontinental I was at the race track with the M1000 RR, “quite a contrast” I thought as the bolt under the floorboards grinded on the tarmac as I threw it into a sharp bend.
As you prepare to start up the massive 1800cc engine and look down at this cockpit of dials you brace yourself for the legendary boxer kick. As the bike bursts into life you really feel the soul of this giant Boxer as it fires up. Fully fueled you’re looking at 400kg so before you know it you’re at over half a Tonne with rider and pillion. The R18 does carry this weight well and like most big bikes you really don’t feel this weight whilst in motion. The big Boxer sits characteristically low to the ground which is also a big help. The 158 NM of Torque is something everybody should experience for themselves and makes short work of propelling this half Tonne machine all the way up to its maximum speed of 180 km/h.
As we got ever closer to the Swiss Alps my thoughts switched to how and if this beautiful cruiser was up to the challenge of the switchbacks of the famous mountain passes. I must say that I laughed as I threw it into the first long sweeping hairpin, music blaring and feathering the throttle, then blasting out the bend with the power reserve dial on zero. I felt an exhilaration different from that of the sport bikes I had previously been on and a sense of accomplishment with every corner we navigated. The 19’’, 120mm wide front tire and the 16’’, 180mm rear tire puts plenty of rubber on the road for confident turning. Slow speed maneuvering was possible but not particularly enjoyable which is to be expected from this cruiser style of bike, riding through some of the smaller twisty cities of Ticino presented a challenge but having said that I soon got used to it and we didn’t drop the bike once in the 7 days we had it.
The R18 is truly a beautiful motorcycle and yes its heavy and a challenge to maneuver at slow speeds. However, when you’re ready for it, it’s an exhilarating experience!