All-new superbike spotted on test ahead of official launch with some substantial changes
Last year BMW hinted that a new generation of four-cylinder superbike was on the way when it unveiled the Concept RR at the Villa d’Este concours event at Lake Como – and now that’s been confirmed after the near-final production version appeared at a public session at the infamous Nürburgring Nordschleife circuit in Germany.
Pictures of the bike were published online by German tuner Wunderlich, which was also present at the event, and while copyright prevents us from republishing them here you can seem them on the company’s Instagram and Facebook pages.
The styling takes its cues from the Concept RR that was shown last year, which comes as little surprise as when BMW gives show vehicles the title ‘Concept’ it usually means they’re close representations of an upcoming production model. Wilder, less viable show vehicles get called ‘Vision’ instead.
But there are some substantial changes.
Starting with the styling, the overall profile and the shapes of the side panels are close to those of the Concept RR, but the production bike actually has more extreme winglets than the show bike: a triple-decker design with large vertical endplates, while the mirrors also feature aero wing shapes moulded into their outer shells. The central intake between the headlights also mirrors the design seen on the Concept RR, with a shape that’s a development from the version seen on the current M1000RR homologation bike.
The headlights flanking that intake aren’t quite as extreme as the show bike’s design but they have echoes of: like the Concept RR,, the headlights sit within a bodywork sections that also form two more intakes.
At the rear, the production bodywork isn’t as extreme as the concept – after all, the production bike is designed with two seats in mind – but the profile is generally similar.
If the styling changes are toned down compared to the Concept RR, the chassis upgrades are, if anything, ramped up. The 2025 show bike used a frame that appeared to be based on the existing production S1000RR/M1000RR design, with a distinct kink halfway along its main rails. That’s gone on the production model, replaced with beams that take a straighter line from the headstock to the swingarm pivot, which itself is adjustable. That adjustable pivot, along with vast swathes of carbon-fibre including the whole inner fairing and instrument panel support, suggest the spied bike is the ‘M’ version rather than the base S1000RR. The swingarm behind it has an underslung brace, mirroring MotoGP trends, but it’s more substantial than either the current S1000RR/M1000RR design or that of the Concept RR.
At the front there’s electronically-adjustable suspension, going by the wiring disappearing into the top of the lefthand fork leg, and the latest Brembo Hypure radial brake calipers grabbing lightweight front discs that do without the usual separate disc carrier, instead attaching directly to a braced section towards the centre of an unusually-designed front wheel. Both the brake master cylinder and that for the hydraulic clutch are also from Brembo, while the bars feature new control pods with even more buttons and switches – including a four-way rocker and a separate three-way rocker on the left bar, along with a ‘+/-’ rocker and a return/home button, all on the lefthand bar. All those will control functions via a large TFT screen.
The engine appears to be a development of the existing four-cylinder, sharing the same layout and cases. It’s already near the top of the superbike league when it comes to outright performance, but BMW is sure to have squeezed even more horses from the new generation.
How close to production is the bike? Very. The machines seen at the Nordschleife even featured showroom-style warning and manufacturing labels on components including the frame’s headstock, as well as QR codes and barcodes on others, all giving the impression that this is a machine that’s already been signed-off for production and is undergoing only the smallest remaining tweaks ahead of its official launch.
