BMW Motorrad recently unveiled its new concept, the 9cento (pronounced 'nove cento') at Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este in Italy. The 9cento looks like the sporty R 1200 RS (albeit on stilts) and may join the company’s line-up as an adventure sports bike in the near future.
BMW says that this new model provides a look ahead to what an exciting adventure sport model might look like. BMW adds that the bike will combine ‘performance with an adventurous spirit, agility and riding fun’. We don’t have trouble believing any of this; but as with most concepts, the styling on the production-ready bike will be toned-down quite a bit to meet regulations. While the beak-like front end styling may remain, the production bike will probably get a significantly different (and more practical) rear-end.
As we know, with the HP4 RACE, BMW has become the first manufacturer to use carbon fibre for the frame. It is doing this to increase rigidity and reduce the overall weight of its bikes. BMW also recently showcased a mass-production-ready carbon-fibre swingarm. The frame triangle of the Concept 9cento is reinforced with CFRP (carbon-fibre reinforced plastic), reducing the bike’s overall weight. The concept bike also has futuristic panniers, which attach vie an electromagnet underneath the seat, making it easy to unclip and attach. The panniers also come with a larger space for the pillion seat. So with the panniers on, you have a larger seat for your pillion, but if off, you get a smaller and sportier tail.
Powering the 9cento is the same 853cc parallel-twin engine seen in the F750 GS and F850 GS. However, the motor will most likely be running in a different state tune, in order to produce higher performance figures. It could be a similar flavour to the S 1000 XR but with the smaller engine family. We believe when launched, this upcoming motorcycle could be a more road-biased ‘adventure touring’ solution that will exist alongside the more off-road-focused F750 and F850 GS.