BMW HP4 and BMW S 1000 RR in a comparison test

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BMW HP4 and BMW S 1000 RR in a comparison test

A draw? Yes and no!

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In 2015, the new BMW S 1000 RR will replace the BMW HP4 at the top of the BMW superbikes. How does the new model fare against its predecessor??

This comparison test could provide the script for a classic Marvel comic. The superhero BMW HP4 has to prevail against its rebellious offspring, the 2015 BMW S 1000 RR. A superhero fight with lots of ZACK, BUFF and BÄÄÄMMs breaks out, the collateral damage could be gigantic. The end of the earth is imminent?

BMW HP4 and BMW S 1000 RR in a comparison test

A draw? Yes and no!

Catfight in the night

“What does it have that I don’t have?” Asks the established HP4, marketed as a premium version of the old BMW S 1000 RR. And must recognize that her opponent adorns herself with many extras that she herself is given as standard. There are the semi-active DDC chassis, the deflection of the shock absorber and the lighter forged wheels. With the automatic gearshift, which now even works when shifting up and down, the cruise control and the already familiar heated grips, it even adds something to it. And then this vulgarly large Ram Air opening of the newcomers … Outraged at this “full equipment”, the BMW HP4 turns up its nose angrily. And proudly remembers its polished Brembo brake calipers, which cannot be found on the new one.

Speaking of the nose. The new BMW S 1000 RR has been lifted and the BMW HP4 stretches out boldly towards it. The RR makes it cool and tough, but still examines the HP from the corner of its eye with its newly designed headlights. Chic carbon, chic Akrapovic muffler, chic footrests and levers, she thinks. Yes, such an old car like the HP4 still looks attractive with the “performance package”, which was subject to a fee. But I have the more powerful engine, the improved DDC chassis with revised driving modes, the refined, adjustable traction control and the sharper geometry – and by the way, I look even sharper! Baaam that sat!

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BMW S 1000 RR is confident of victory, almost arrogant

Of course, the extras cost extra, are only available in the “Race” and “Dynamic” accessory packages, but when I use them to drive around the BMW HP4, nobody cares anymore. Well, and the forged wheels, they have to be so that I can better demonstrate my increased handling skills. And if you like a carbon dress and Akrapovic on me, you will find what you are looking for with the HP parts …

The BMW S 1000 RR is confident of victory, almost arrogant – it trusts that its creators have done their job properly.

Exchange of blows in daylight

The pit gate opens at exactly eight o’clock and the test day in Grobnik begins. Single-digit temperatures guarantee oxygen-rich air, which the BMW HP4 and the BMW S 1000 RR will greedily draw through their intake ducts. The track is empty, and if you listen carefully in the quiet of the morning, you can hear the grippy asphalt smacking happily. He will gnaw the rubber off the skin with greedy dicks.

When maneuvering the BMW S 1000 RR, the very tight, mechanical steering damper is uncomfortable. Feels like the old Suzuki GSX-R 1000 K1 or K2 – really retro, so to speak. With all of their electronics expertise, why didn’t the BMW people use a clever, electronically controlled component like Honda did? Oh right, they still need food for the facelift in two years. But now in the saddle and out onto the wild slopes. Roll in, determine the position, calibrate the driver and be amazed.

Cornering ABS of the BMW HP4

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Man and machine get together

What a beet field! The super-grippy track surface is furrowed, pocky, pitted, torn, bumpy and wavy. Even when rolling cautiously, the BMW S 1000 RR jams around wildly, is unwilling and brittle on cold tires and with cold damper oil. But the four-cylinder goes rocket-like. Pushes hard from idle, turns light-footed and hits around 11,000 rpm so much that you can hear and see. ZACK! BUFF! BÄÄÄMM! The pilot’s eyes widen, the 206 measured horses of the RR wedge as if someone had pressed a glowing branding iron on their bum.

Man and machine come together, the laps become smoother, the S BMW 1000 RR more transparent. It is not an unpredictable racket, but an ultra-powerful superbike with more than a decent must in the cellar. It’s just sharper than usual. Much sharper! Especially on the Croatian beet field and at low temperatures, it shows that its revision is moving away from the good four-cylinder superbike, such as the Honda Fireblade or Suzuki GSX-R 1000, towards the sharpened and sharpened racing weapon à la Aprilia RSV4 . She turns in more nimbly than before, powers more brutally out of the corners, twitches the handlebars and does not allow her pilot to rest. It feels incredibly fast and demands maximum concentration.

BMW HP burns much more forgiving about the course

ZACK, this blow was right. In the box, traction control and damping settings are corrected, the TC reduced to level -4 in slick mode, the rebound damping of the shock absorber tightened, the compression level softened. Despite these measures, the BMW S 1000 RR does not calm down on bumps when accelerating hard. Especially when accelerating out onto the "back straight", which has a slight bend to the left, it rocks so much that you have to take your foot off the accelerator in order not to let the load become a catapult. Further interventions on the chassis follow, including maximizing the negative suspension travel on the fork. But the symptoms remain. Our suspicion: The damping of the DDC hardens automatically when you accelerate. If you shoot over a lot of hard bumps in quick succession like here in Rijeka, then these edges are no longer dampened, but instead introduced directly into the chassis by the hardened shock absorber. Which can inevitably lead to unrest like the violent pendulum described above. Even a trial lowering tire pressure did not bring any relief.

The BMW HP4 reinforces our suspicions. With 10,000 kilometers on the watch no longer brand new, it burns much more forgivingly over the course with the same DDC settings. It steers in a little less lightly and does not tear as brutally as the new one on 11,000 tours, but also does not distribute so nastily on the chassis side. As a result, it spares its pilots a little more – although the term gentle should also be used with caution.

So a tie? Yes and no!

So does the new BMW S 1000 RR degrade its noble ancestor to scrap? The subjective perception says yes. The fully equipped RR has what it takes to iron a BMW HP4. You feel on it much faster, fight harder with it and tire more quickly. The objective truth in Rijeka says no. Because PS was only three tenths of a second slower with the HP4 than on the new iron, despite sporadic fork flutter when braking at the end of the start-finish straight.

However, Rijeka is a very special place. Basically, the new BMW S 1000 RR with this extensive range of special equipment is faster than the BMW HP4. Your revision is bearing fruit, and the lead of the new ones over the HP4 should be considerably greater on other routes. But this lead, as Rijeka shows, is clearly bought at the expense of good nature. The weapon is now considerably sharper and therefore more extreme. She’ll show us how she drives on the country road, but we already love her after this first ride.

You have to like them just for their handling and their power. And this blipper gearshift that also works when downshifting is wonderful! And the cruise control and its heated grips – it’s so unreasonably sensitive, I love it! But is that why the HP4 is an old goat? Never ever! Because large parts of its DNA make the new BMW S 1000 RR what it is. To an unearthly one! But the BMW HP4 is the original. It bears the serial number on the fork bridge. It is already cult and is being collected. And she lives forever in the grace of early birth.

Technical data BMW HP4 (2013)

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BMW HP4.

Technical data BMW S 1000 RR (2015)

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BMW S 1000 RR.

Readings

MOTORCYCLE

Readings.

It’s just amazing how the new BMW S 1000 RR works. Its performance level is never below that of the BMW HP4 with the old engine. On the contrary, from 8500 rpm the revised four-cylinder reaches even more powerfully than before and unpacks an additional hammer at over 11,000 tours. The visible kink in the curve, when variable intake funnels and flaps act in the interference pipes of the manifold, can only be felt when driving through brilliant acceleration. Then the storm turns into a hurricane, the fat acceleration turns into WARP 9 and Captain Kirk on the bridge gets his ears long.

Racetrack rating

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The unearthly: BMW HP4 and BMW S 1000 RR.

drive

  Max.
Points        		Bmw
HP4 (2013)       		Bmw
S 1000 RR (2015)
Power delivery 10 9 10
Responsiveness 10 9 9
Load change reaction       10 8th 8th
Running culture 10 8th 8th
Gear actuation 10 9 10
Gear ratio 10 9 9
Clutch function 10 9 9
Traction control 10 10 10
Subtotal 80 71 73

landing gear

  Max.
Points      		Bmw
HP4 (2013)        		Bmw
S 1000 RR (2015)
Driving stability 10 6th 5
Handiness 10 8th 9
Cornering stability 10 8th 8th
Steering precision 10 8th 8th
feedback 10 8th 9
Suspension tuning in front        10 5 8th
Chassis set-up at the rear 10 7th 6th
Braking effect 10 9 9
Brake metering 10 9 9
ABS function 10 10 10
Sitting position 10 9 9
Lean angle 10 10 10
Subtotal 120 97 100

Round time

Max.
Points     		Bmw
HP4 (2013)      		Bmw
S 1000 RR (2015)
Lap time * 20th 18th 20th
Total       220 186 193
placement 2. 1.

* Key points: Best time: 20 points. Delay up to 0.2 s: 19 points; 0.21 s to 0.4 s: 18 points; 0.41 s to 0.6 s: 17 points; 0.61 s to 0.8 s: 16 points; 0.81 s to 1.0 s: 15 points; 1.01 s to 1.2 s: 14 points; 1.21 s to 1.4 s: 13 points; 1.41 s to 1.6 s: 12 points; 1.61 s to 1.8 s: 11 points; 1.81 s to 2.0 s: 10 points; 2.01 s to 2.2 s: 9 points; 2.21 s to 2.4 s: 8 points; 2.41 s to 2.6 s: 7 points; 2.61 s to 2.8 s: 6 points; 2.81 s to 3.0 s: 5 points; 3.01 s to 3.2 s: 4 points; 3.21 s to 3.4 s: 3 points; Etc. 

Conclusion

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The new BMW S 1000 RR prevailed against its predecessor, the BMW HP4, in a comparison test.

1. BMW S 1000 RR
The king is dead, long live the king! How often did you have to write this sentence? Progress prevails once more, the new BMW S 1000 RR just outperforms its predecessor. However, only with special equipment that costs extra. And that clearly raises its price level in the direction of the BMW HP4, without lending it the nimbus of the noble, beautiful and expensive.

2. BMW HP4
It is and remains a great superbike. She is the original, she is the mother and pioneer of the new BMW S 1000 RR. Swap an HP4 for a new RR? Never ever! Buy a RR for the race and put the BMW HP4 in the living room? At any time, as long as the wallet and the living room play along.

Thank you very much:

Our thanks go to Pirelli for providing us with the excellent test tires for this test. In addition, a big thank you to BMW Mayer in Hassloch (www.klaus-mayer-bmw.de), from whose collection the beautiful BMW HP4 comes.

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