This YouTube video supposedly shows us the new R Nine T Scrambler, one of five new bikes BMW says they’re showing off at EICMA.
What makes the bike a scrambler? Fork gaiters and high pipes, it seems, with a dash of classic styling. Let’s face it, scramblers are really just re-purposed street bikes, and they’re not aimed at serious off-road use — and there’s nothing wrong with that. This bike doesn’t appear to be aimed at intense dirt action either, and that’s fine: BMW has other models in their lineup for that.
BMW issued a press release saying they plan to unveil five bikes at EICMA, and it’s safe to guess this machine is one of them, along with the G310R. It’s also safe to guess the eRR will be there, although whether that machine counts or not, is hard to guess — we suspect it’s going to be a concept, not production-ready, for a while.
So what else is coming? Along with this R Nine T variant and the G 310R, BMW’s press release says “a new BMW Motorrad model from the R series will be presented to the public,” indicating we’ll likely see a new naked bike. The press release also promises something new in the F series, so we’d guess the 800 cc range is going to see updates; perhaps the engine is going to be further refined to lose some of its high-rev vibration, or perhaps all the vertical twins will be tuned to the level of the F800R.
FINALLY! A BMW that isn’t butt ugly. They must have ceased their policy of hiring sight impaired designers, noble attempt at bridging the disability gap though it was. A very harmonious look to the whole bike, though hopefully that seat has padding lower down, as it seems to be tampon thin. I could see myself on one of these. Those are exactly the type of roads I ride all the time. Great effort BMW!