Group test
Delicious engineering, leading-edge tech, staggering amounts of garage appeal, and eye ‐watering prices. This is what lust looks like…
Got the money? Want something glamorous, exciting and suitably exotic? You’re spoilt for choice…
Coming out from the homologation special corner and swinging hard is the new M1000RR – the fat-winged, carbon-clad, full ‐bling version of BMW’s superbike. Next up we have the collector’s piece in the shimmering form of Norton’s V4SV, the reworked, revised and reintroduced version of the British firm’s superbike – abike built for the sheer wow and hell of it, rather than to satisfy race requirements. And zinging between these big four-stroke animals comes the Langen Two Stroke, an exquisitely-engineered lightweight roadster for those who get giddy at a whiff of fully synthetic and wailing expansion chamber.
All three are hugely appealing in their own right. But how do they stack up ridden wheel-to-wheel on glorious British roads? Let’s find out…
BMW M1000RR
The regular S1000RR is hardly low-rent, but the new homologation-special M version is something else again…
From its carbon fibre wings and ingenious front brake cooling ducts to its colossal 209bhp performance and hefty £36,040 price tag (as tested with the M Competition package) – everything about BMW’s M1000RR screams race ‐ready exotica.
But surprisingly, this homologation-spec superbike is not quite the uncompromising, all-or-nothing beast I’d expected. In fact, my first few miles aboard this winged wonder couldn’t be more civilized as I pick my way through Peterborough’s endless warren of roundabout ‐punctuated 30mph limits in search of open tarmac.
Low-rev fuelling is flawless, the controls deliciously light and responsive. Riding position aside (I’ll come to that), the M doesn’t feel at all extreme at leisurely speeds. Even creature comforts get a look in, with cruise control and heated grips as standard.
Yet, as impressive as its ability to potter about may be, the M1000RR didn’t emerge from BMW’s M Sport facility to perform such menial tasks. This is the base of a World Superbike racer. And given half the chance it’ll do what it does best – devour tarmac at a ferocious rate.
Out on A-roads the
