The R's Braking Performance: A Testimonial

[silverstreak]

I've had my 2004 R (no ABS) for about 4 months now and have been happily learning it's handling characteristics after many years on a cruiser. I'll spare you all of the details, but yesterday I came as close to a serious accident as I have in 20 years. The fault was entirely mine. It was early in the ride and my attention was still on a problem at work rather than on my environment and I came into an unusually configured rural intersection at about 60 MPH and did not, as I thought, have the right of way. That belonged to a large station wagon coming into the intersection from my right, traveling about as fast. It's hard to judge how far I was from the car when I realized that I was in trouble--100 feet, 150 feet?-- but it seemed close and hard braking was the only option. I would like to say that I applied gradual pressure to the breaks, but I can't. I hit both pretty hard. The point is that the R performed terrifically. I got a bit of a slide in the rear tire which straightened quickly, and she slowed fast--fast enough for me to swerve and to miss the rear of the station wagon by about 5 feet. Not the recommended way to test rapid braking but it's a lesson learned and it has certainly increased my confidence in the R's handling.

[Just-Beeming]

Holy sh*t!

Bet you had to wash your drawers.

Happy that you, the R and the passengers in the car are around to talk about it.

Thanks for the reminder to keep our minds on the here and now!

[DJ Downunder]

Lucky you were still not on the cruiser.

DJ

[CycleRob]

I've been in a similar "OH SH*T!!" situation and you soon realize the only problem with the non-ABS brakes is that they are TOO powerful. It takes a lot of repetitive experience using them until your non-thinking, hard squeeze, reflexive response to a traffic emergency is correct enough for a hard stop without locking the front wheel.

In my case, coming from a single front disk, floating single acting caliper on my Suzuki VX-800, it was a rude awakening when I applied the same hard squeeze to the 1150R's non-ABS, dual disk, dual acting front brake. In the beginning of Roadster ownership I skidded the front wheel a few times with more drama than I needed. . Once with my wife on the back. Eventually my brain became the near equivalent of BMW's ABS computer and hardware.

If I had it to do over again, I still would not own the ABS BMW bike, mainly because of it's totally annoying LINKED feature, P.I.T.A. maintenance, all too common expensive component malfunctions and extra cost. That's just my intolerant old-guy way . . . . . and not a wise recommendation to the group.

[sjbmw]

Glad you dodged that one. I had a moment like that about a month into ownership. Locked up the rear wheel and the bike went exactly where I needed it to go. I remember thinking if I was on my old nighthawk I was tumbling.

[Arbee]

BMW are very proud of their ABS

They are making a fortune out of its ability to scare the consumer
into believing a bike cannot and should not be ridden without an ABS
system whilst managing to fleece thousands of dollars in repair /
maintenance costs from them to produce a unit which cannot be repaired
and has the abilty to fail its self test more times and for more reasons that it passes them.

[riceburner]

All those who are sliding the front, take heart.

it IS possible to stop quicker, with good tyres.

[motorcyclepanzer]

BMW are very proud of their ABS

They are making a fortune out of its ability to scare the consumer
into believing a bike cannot and should not be ridden without an ABS
system whilst managing to fleece thousands of dollars in repair /
maintenance costs from them to produce a unit which cannot be repaired
and has the abilty to fail its self test more times and for more reasons that it passes them.

Disclaimer: I am not a member of the Quandt famile nor do I own a BMW dealer but I have relatives who do....I'm not endorsing BMW but rather ABS in general.

I mean no disrespect to your opinionm but wholeheartedly disagree. Some riders...namely myself...see ABS as a godsend.

Why, you ask?

I work 3-11 shift so half of my daily 25 mile commute is in the dark on absolutely deer-infested Wisconsin rural roads. It has saved by butt a couple of times. Factor in the fact that these night time roads also have very numerous and thick "tar snakes" which can be slick as ice and we're talking a lot of things to remember when braking.

Remember also, these are German motorcycles. Ever drive on a cobblestone street like those in Das Fatherland? Those stones are really slick even when they're dry.

I don't use ABS as a panacea for good riding technique and slowing down at night but I also know that when that doe and her two fawns decide to run our of the loong grass on the shoulder I can slow myself effectively.

[frbank6]

I also disagree with Arbee...I have ABS, have had for four years, and have never had a failure of any kind. I came to riding late(forties) and I can tell you I probably would not be here to write this had I been without it. More expensive to buy? Yes. More expensive to work on? Yes. But a huge revenue stream for Germany? I don't think so.

I'm inclined to think that ABS in general has been around for decades, it is now almost universal on cars, and if it were not a valuable asset to have on both bikes and cars, it would have rapidly disappeared from the marketplace. YMMV

[hirsty]

Glad you're in one piece silverstreak, that must've shaken you up a little bit...

Had a similar (but less extreme) experience yesterday on my way home from Silverstone - the slip road exit I take from the London orbital motorway has a filter lane at the bottom - you can take the turn without giving way if the traffic lights are green.

Unfortunately the girl in the car I was following decided to stop dead - I had to brake VERY hard and just steered around the back of her car & pulled up level with her door. Increased my faith in the brakes, and my ability to use them - if not anticipate the requirement ...

[silverstreak]

Thanks for the sentiment. What was unusual about this incident, for me, was that I stayed perfectly calm. I have had my share of close calls over the years, just like all of us here, and in some of them I've had such an adrenalin rush that I've had to get off the bike and wait to stop shaking. But in this one, as awful as it might have been, my heart rate didn't accelerate a beat. And for that, I think, I credit the bike. I never felt out of control or even on the edge of losing control of the bike. The R just did what it was supposed to, and I had a pleasant 2 hour ride afterward. I have, however, been thinking of the incident a lot since. That I got into such a predicament, as I said, was 100% my fault. I was driving with my head up my-- well, where it shouldn't have been, and I know better. But why I avoided a crash, I think, was a combination of factors. I'd say about 20% goes to whatever skills I've acquired over the years, 30% to luck (like DJ said, if I was on the cruiser instead, not so good) and 50% to the bike. Even without ABS, I was impressed and grateful and still am.

[cruiser]

BMW are very proud of their ABS

They are making a fortune out of its ability to scare the consumer
into believing a bike cannot and should not be ridden without an ABS
system whilst managing to fleece thousands of dollars in repair /
maintenance costs from them to produce a unit which cannot be repaired
and has the abilty to fail its self test more times and for more reasons that it passes them.

Unwarranted cynycism in the extreme...

Silverstreak... glad you're ok!

[duke]

I was big ABS fan ... until 1 month ago when after applying brakes I got no response, different whining sound from the servo and "ABS Failure" light blinking rapidly. Luckily all I had to deal with was 20 - 25 Mph on a quiet road. With the same luck I could have been trying to do so at 80+ mph.

Scary. I had the brakes serviced 2 weeks before this has happened. And then all it took to get it back to normal was to switch the ignition off and switch on back again. Has not failed since and the brakes bite hard if you ask them to.

I even considered trading in the bike, so much I lost confidence in braking.

The other option (not quite sure if possible, viable or necessary) is to find engine management from written-off non-ABS bike, replace that, remove ABS pump/servo, replace brake cylinders if necessary and so forth ...

I am losing my (ABS) religion.

The remark about ABS on cars - sure, I like having it, no doubts about it.

[Arjen]

I am losing my (ABS) religion.

Don't. It's not the ABS that sucks, but all that crap BMW added to it. ABS
itself is in most circumstances a life saver on panic emergency breaking.

My previous bike was a R1100RT with ABS and I liked it. It did exactly
what it should. I needed it just once on a wet brik road.

My current bike is a R1150R Rockster with ABS and linked brakes and
servo-assist.
I like the ABS.
I see no need for linked brakes.
And I HATE the servo-assist. Much too grabby and an incredible irritating
whining sound when applying the brakes.

BMW doesn't admit they agree, but the new R1200R ABS does not have
that crap added to it...

What I really would like is just ABS with an on and off switch like the GS
has (for those circumstances you don't want the ABS to kick in).