The Affable Buddy - BMW F 900 XR Review

What we like:

Disarmingly charming personality that will make riding as easy and accessible for you as possible.  

What we dislike:

It will always live in the shadow of its bigger brother. It gets a little lost in the crowd if you don't pay attention.  

The BMW GS is arguably Motorrad’s most iconic motorcycle. A full-on adventure bike, it is the one you’d pick to literally go anywhere and everywhere, a Swiss army knife on two wheels.

But since COVID-19, it has made a lot less sense when nearly all trips we can do these days are within our congested little island. That means mostly urban roads and with the need to navigate dicey gridlocked situations.

Sure, the GS can do it, but it isn’t quite in its element. Here’s where the ‘XR’ range comes in. Being styled like adventure bikes, the XR motorbikes are biased towards on-road manners and conditions, yet can still do some light off-roading. Think of them as the SUVs of the car world that we don’t really bring off-road.

There’s the stunning range-topping S 1000 XR, which takes the phenomenal inline-4 engine from the now-legendary S 1000 RR, and then there’s the smaller F 900 XR, which has a completely different inline-2 engine updated from the F 850 GS.

Conceptually, it makes so much sense for Singapore. The higher ride height gives a great view, while the narrower body (compared to the S 1000 XR) makes for a seriously easy-to-ride demeanour.

Its looks are also inoffensive, if a little generic. If you removed the BMW badges, one may mistake it for a Japanese motorbike. Apparently, BMW lost a fair bit of market share to Japanese bikes with a similar concept, and so sought to make the ‘XR’ range to reclaim it back. It could do with more distinctive looks, though.

There’s no mistaking the F 900 XR is a BMW though from the moment you mount; you can feel the tremendous quality throughout. There is a beautiful large 6.5-inch TFT display with carefully designed graphics and plenty of customisation. All buttons and controls are superbly weighted, while there is an adjustable windshield.

Ergonomics is simply spot on. Because the F 900 XR is a mid-range motorbike with a more compact engine layout, even beginner riders will find the bike extremely easy to control. In size, the slim chassis feels more like a Class 2A bike, making U-turns and sharper corners an ease to tackle. The F 900 XR features a world’s first plastic-welded fuel tank, which may have reduced weight high up in the bike, further lowering its centre of gravity. The seat is set low, so even though the bike appears tall it allows the rider to have both feet firmly to the ground.

With such an approachable nature already apparent before moving off, the F 900 XR lives up to its promise when on the move. The engine, though not possessing necessarily the smoothest configuration, has two opposed counterbalance shafts to counter most of those unwanted vibrations, and it really works.

From the get go, there is plenty of low-end torque for point-and-squirt riding, but there is also a powerful mid-range that ensures the bike never feels slow. In fact, there is still a meaningful shove even to the redline but it doesn’t feel particularly happy being brought there. Make use of the power in its meaty range and you’d be forgiven for thinking you really don’t need more.

Happily, the chassis is all too ready to oblige in a bit of fun. With the electronics keeping things in check, there is genuine ability to thrill even the novice rider. Auto shifting up and down keeps the bike throbbing at its best easily, while leaning towards a corner feels more assuring than it looks on a pseudo adventure bike. The electronic suspension option isn’t fitted to the test bike, but for the situations I’ve been in for the few days it was nothing but a well-judged, comfortable setup that will allow the rider to go on for hours and hours.

The F 900 XR is just so likeable. It’s the person in class that gets along with everyone and has seemingly no disagreeable traits.

I think the main issue with it is actually its bigger brother, the S 1000 XR. The F 900 XR is not really a bike you put on the poster wall, craving to own one day. The S 1000 XR just has more of that X-factor with it being a range topper, even though it didn’t feel as friendly when I sat on it due to its larger body. If you can live without having a range topper, the F 900 XR is actually the better bike to use daily and on a regular basis, I reckon. What a chap!

Find all your motorcycle needs on Carousell: https://bit.ly/3sVygSu

Credits: Text by James Wong; Photos by James Wong and Clifford Chow