THREE OF A KIND A SPORTY, NAKED ADVENTURE
Share and share alike, my grandparents used to say to me, it makes the world go around…. Or was that money? I can’t remember, but I know sharing does help. And in the world we live in, where manufacturers can’t afford to design, test and manufacture unique engines for every model of bike they produce we’re seeing a growing number of motors being shared between different models. Take Yamaha’s CP3 motor, for example, which provides ponies for not only the MT-09 and MT-09 SP, but for the Tracer 900 (and GT version), XJR 900, and the all new three wheeled wonder Yamaha NIKEN. This isn’t a new phenomenon, though. Back in the 90s, you could go out and buy a Honda CBR600F or a Suzuki GSX600F, or if you wanted to you could buy the less faired, wider barred Honda Hornet or Suzuki Bandit, respectively. Both came with the same (albeit slightly detuned) engine as their sportier siblings. It’s not a bad thing, especially when manufacturers do a little bit of fettling to suit the end product, a prime example of which is BMW’s S1000 engine which came about in 2009 with the S1000RR but can now be found in the S1000R and S1000XR too. Producing 199bhp in its ‘RR’ guise, the S1000 engine is a force to be reckoned with on track. But on the road the RR’s naked brother the S1000R is sure to put a grin on even the most miserable of faces, and its lanky all-rounder S1000XR brother would be a great companion in the adventuring department.
“ THE RR ATE UP B-ROADS FASTER THAN A FAT BLOKE AT A CHINESE BUFFET”
Here at , we have got a lot of time for all three models of S1000, and while we are excited to see what the incoming S1000 is like, we were really keen to figure out which model has put the current litre engine to the best use. So that was it, Dangerous, Frodo and I decided that as a celebration of what is an awesome motor, we would plan an epic three-day road trip with every type of riding we could think of to find out which set-up reigns supreme. Has the sportsbike had its day? The
