Item: BMW R nine T Scrambler

[Drew Dowdell]

Name: BMW R nine T Scrambler
Category: Vehicles
Date Added: 2023-01-09
Submitter: Drew Dowdell

 

BMW R nine T Scrambler

 

[oldshurst442]

Awesome bike!

A couple of other songs for your ride back home AND for your rides that you will be making on that bike

 

 

 

[Drew Dowdell]

They all need baths, but my fleet is finally filled out to where I want it.

 

[David]

Congratulations Drew! Great looking Fleet!!!

[Drew Dowdell]

[ykX]

That bike is cool as hell! Congrats!

[A Horse With No Name]

Very impressive bike!

 

[Drew Dowdell]

Only have ridden it 3 times so far because of the weather here, but I'm getting more comfortable with it. The clutch is heavy, I'm going to need to do hand exercises or just ride it a heck of a lot more to work up the muscles in my left hand.  I brought it to work this morning so I can drop it off for state inspection.

Thinking back, this is the biggest bike I think I've ridden, maybe not the heaviest, but certainly the largest engine and most powerful.  It's a lot of bike and I'm still getting used to it.

One of the nicest things that makes me glad I bought it is that once I'm rolling, it doesn't really matter what gear I'm in, I can just roll on the throttle and go without having to downshift. Love the torque.

[A Horse With No Name]

51 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Only have ridden it 3 times so far because of the weather here, but I'm getting more comfortable with it. The clutch is heavy, I'm going to need to do hand exercises or just ride it a heck of a lot more to work up the muscles in my left hand.  I brought it to work this morning so I can drop it off for state inspection.

Thinking back, this is the biggest bike I think I've ridden, maybe not the heaviest, but certainly the largest engine and most powerful.  It's a lot of bike and I'm still getting used to it.

One of the nicest things that makes me glad I bought it is that once I'm rolling, it doesn't really matter what gear I'm in, I can just roll on the throttle and go without having to downshift. Love the torque.

It's an impressive beast. 

 

Visually, I find it quite attractive. BMW bikes just kind of do it for me. 

right now....falling off the wagon buying things myself. Setting up a home stereo with decent used components, and negotiating on antoher large heavy woodworking tool I have no bisness owning. 

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

One of the nicest things that makes me glad I bought it is that once I'm rolling, it doesn't really matter what gear I'm in, I can just roll on the throttle and go without having to downshift. Love the torque.

I rode a buddy's Aprilia Tuono 1000(1000cc Vtwin naked sport bike, if you didn't know the bike) and it felt that same exact way. It was awesome. You could almost live with it being a 3spd transmission as the torque EASILY pulls through at any gear and any speed(reasonable - I didn't get crazy on a buddy's bike). 

After having my inline 3 in my Daytona, I would NEVER want an inline 4. They have nothing under like 10,000rpm. 

[Drew Dowdell]

19 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

I rode a buddy's Aprilia Tuono 1000(1000cc Vtwin naked sport bike, if you didn't know the bike) and it felt that same exact way. It was awesome. You could almost live with it being a 3spd transmission as the torque EASILY pulls through at any gear and any speed(reasonable - I didn't get crazy on a buddy's bike). 

After having my inline 3 in my Daytona, I would NEVER want an inline 4. They have nothing under like 10,000rpm. 

I'm still being very gentle on it as I'm getting comfortable with it, but yeah, it's just like that.  I've read reviews where the reviewer wishes 6th gear was a bit taller, but I haven't been at 6th gear speed long enough to comment on that yet.  I'm just doing all back roads to work and back, and haven't gotten it over 60mph yet. Still pretty nervous. 

[ccap41]

21 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I'm still being very gentle on it as I'm getting comfortable with it, but yeah, it's just like that.  I've read reviews where the reviewer wishes 6th gear was a bit taller, but I haven't been at 6th gear speed long enough to comment on that yet.  I'm just doing all back roads to work and back, and haven't gotten it over 60mph yet. Still pretty nervous. 

I'm a very easy driving person so I have thought every vehicle I've ever driven could use a little taller top gear... If I'm just cruising, I don't need many RPM. I'll downshift(or it'll do it for me) to pass if I really need to. 

[Drew Dowdell]

3 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

I'm a very easy driving person so I have thought every vehicle I've ever driven could use a little taller top gear... If I'm just cruising, I don't need many RPM. I'll downshift(or it'll do it for me) to pass if I really need to. 

Yeah, that's probably true for most vehicles.  The big GM (and probably Ford and Chrysler) V8s are probably the exceptions as they just loaf along at 1500 RPM at 65 and dropping below that would lug them. 

This BMW doesn't mind being lugged... just twist and go. 

[ccap41]

On a side note, all of my closest friends recently bought bikes either this year or last year and it REALLY has given me the itch. I just don't have a garage for one yet and couldn't justify spending the money when we have a home to finish and garage to build.. Two of them have some Harley of sorts and two of them have Indians, none of them are my style or anywhere near what I would want to ride. I'm a HUGE fan of the naked sporty bikes. 

Something like a Monster 796,  Triumph Street Triple 675, Yamaha MT-09, would be perfect for me

[Drew Dowdell]

24 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

On a side note, all of my closest friends recently bought bikes either this year or last year and it REALLY has given me the itch. I just don't have a garage for one yet and couldn't justify spending the money when we have a home to finish and garage to build.. Two of them have some Harley of sorts and two of them have Indians, none of them are my style or anywhere near what I would want to ride. I'm a HUGE fan of the naked sporty bikes. 

Something like a Monster 796,  Triumph Street Triple 675, Yamaha MT-09, would be perfect for me

My friend who will be my riding bud has an older Ducati Streetfighter... he likes it but he complains that getting anything done to it is expensive.  I'm sure I'm going to be in the same boat with a BMW, but at least being aircooled, shaft drive, boxer the amount of maintenance it will need is lower.  Of your list, I like the Triumph the best, but the Yamaha would probably be lowest cost of ownership.  I looked at the Yamaha XSR900 very early on in my search (years ago) because it reminded me of my dual-sport I had in my teens, but it was uncomfortably too tall for me. 

[ccap41]

23 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

My friend who will be my riding bud has an older Ducati Streetfighter... he likes it but he complains that getting anything done to it is expensive.  I'm sure I'm going to be in the same boat with a BMW, but at least being aircooled, shaft drive, boxer the amount of maintenance it will need is lower.  Of your list, I like the Triumph the best, but the Yamaha would probably be lowest cost of ownership.  I looked at the Yamaha XSR900 very early on in my search (years ago) because it reminded me of my dual-sport I had in my teens, but it was uncomfortably too tall for me. 

The Yamaha would be last on my "want" list but I'd have to at least give it a thorough look before actually crossing it off. 

Yep, anything European is going to be a little pricier to repair/maintain but they just have so much more character than Japanese bikes. I'd sacrifice the money for what the European bikes offer, even if they're slower around a track or in a straight line. I'm not good enough to care about that stuff and I'm not buying a supersport anyway.

A Streetfighter would be pretty much THE top of the list but I know if I was buying, it wouldn't be that price bracket. Then again, it would be tough to turn down a Speed Triple so I'd have to look at those two closely. the Streetfighter might actually be too sporty than what I'd want. 

And, in all honesty, your bike would be high on the to-ride list if my price range would be higher as well.  Naked and sporty are my sweet spot.

[Drew Dowdell]

On 4/15/2021 at 1:39 PM, ccap41 said:

The Yamaha would be last on my "want" list but I'd have to at least give it a thorough look before actually crossing it off. 

Yep, anything European is going to be a little pricier to repair/maintain but they just have so much more character than Japanese bikes. I'd sacrifice the money for what the European bikes offer, even if they're slower around a track or in a straight line. I'm not good enough to care about that stuff and I'm not buying a supersport anyway.

A Streetfighter would be pretty much THE top of the list but I know if I was buying, it wouldn't be that price bracket. Then again, it would be tough to turn down a Speed Triple so I'd have to look at those two closely. the Streetfighter might actually be too sporty than what I'd want. 

And, in all honesty, your bike would be high on the to-ride list if my price range would be higher as well.  Naked and sporty are my sweet spot.

I let my friend with the Streetfighter ride the r nine t and now he's considering trading for one.  His issue with the Ducati is that he finds it hard to ride calmly.... he can't just go out and cruise because the bike wants to go fast all the time.  That's a problem if you just want to commute to work on your bike a couple of days a week because it make the commute exhausting.   I've taken the bike to work 4 times now and it's just perfect. It is completely happy just puttering along at moped speeds while we slog our way through suburban rush hour traffic.... and when I want to pull on the throttle it's ready to go fast.

You can get on my bike at a lower cost, mine only cost what it did because of what I was looking for. But you can get a 2014 R nine T original (lower to the ground, higher end suspension, higher end brakes, more instrumentation, shorter rake) for $8,280. Or you can get a 2018 R nine T Pure (my bike, lower to the ground, shorter rake) for $9,250, but this one has upgrades, including one that I plan to do which costs about $700. Mine was $10,900, but it only had 2,600 miles (hit 3,000 last night) and also has upgrades like the wire wheels, heated grips, and stability control. The seller also threw in the bag + mount, phone mount, and a throttle lock. I feel like I got a fair deal because even though I plan to do upgrades, absolutely none are necessary like that bag + mount would have been had I bought it without. 

I've had it at speed now that I agree with the reviewers that more higher gears would be good.

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I let my friend with the Streetfighter ride the r nine t and now he's considering trading for one.  His issue with the Ducati is that he finds it hard to ride calmly.... he can't just go out and cruise because the bike wants to go fast all the time.  That's a problem if you just want to commute to work on your bike a couple of days a week because it make the commute exhausting.   I've taken the bike to work 4 times now and it's just perfect. It is completely happy just puttering along at moped speeds while we slog our way through suburban rush hour traffic.... and when I want to pull on the throttle it's ready to go fast.

You can get on my bike at a lower cost, mine only cost what it did because of what I was looking for. But you can get a 2014 R nine T original (lower to the ground, higher end suspension, higher end brakes, more instrumentation, shorter rake) for $8,280. Or you can get a 2018 R nine T Pure (my bike, lower to the ground, shorter rake) for $9,250, but this one has upgrades, including one that I plan to do which costs about $700. Mine was $10,900, but it only had 2,600 miles (hit 3,000 last night) and also has upgrades like the wire wheels, heated grips, and stability control. The seller also threw in the bag + mount, phone mount, and a throttle lock. I feel like I got a fair deal because even though I plan to do upgrades, absolutely none are necessary like that bag + mount would have been had I bought it without. 

I've had it at speed now that I agree with the reviewers that more higher gears would be good.

Oh I believe it. It just LOOKS like a high strung bike but, more than likely, it would strictly be a toy to me so there wouldn't be much commuting anywhere with it. There probably are computer settings for "comfort" driving through that would likely soften up the throttle and make it easier or calmer when just commuting. There's probably a "rain" setting that really softens the throttle up. 

I need to worry about a garage before getting a bike...unfortunately... 

[Drew Dowdell]

3 hours ago, ccap41 said:

Oh I believe it. It just LOOKS like a high strung bike but, more than likely, it would strictly be a toy to me so there wouldn't be much commuting anywhere with it. There probably are computer settings for "comfort" driving through that would likely soften up the throttle and make it easier or calmer when just commuting. There's probably a "rain" setting that really softens the throttle up. 

I need to worry about a garage before getting a bike...unfortunately... 

The 2020+ R nine T has those settings... I do not.  But I think his Ducati is old enough that it also doesn't have those settings... I want to say his is a '15 or '16?  Not sure. 

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

The 2020+ R nine T has those settings... I do not.  But I think his Ducati is old enough that it also doesn't have those settings... I want to say his is a '15 or '16?  Not sure. 

Dang, sometimes I forget how long it's been since I've had a bike. I think it's been like 10-11 years already and I just assume everything "modern" has those features. I forget that a '15-'16 is already 5 and 6 years old, respectively. 

I'd still per perfectly okay with buying the same thing I had except the naked version. I had a 2006 Daytona 675 and I'd love a Street Tripe of that age, because I could probably find it for only a few grand. That's all just a dream as I don't have a place I'd be happy keeping it yet. Three of my friends have said "Keep it at my place!" ...No. 🤣 

[Drew Dowdell]

The world is flat.

[David]

19 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

The world is flat.

When ya have a BadAss riding a bike!!!

[Drew Dowdell]

So I’m riding this all the time now and I finally got Albert to 2up with me a couple days ago. I always intended to take it on adventures so I bought some plain black plastic frame fillers and I’m collecting stickers on it from the places I go. 
 

Back in July I loaded it up on the truck and drove down to Miami with it to finally go riding with my dad which was a bucket list item for me. On that trip I also rode the bike from Miami to Key West with my sister and nephew following in the car.

 So I got badge one:

 

Today I scored badge 2 for Rehoboth Beach Delaware:

 

Sometime next week Albert and I are going to take the ferry over to Cape May and score badge 3.

[Drew Dowdell]

Third adventure sticker achieved. This morning we got on the bike and took the ferry to Cape May. Toured the Victorian houses, got some seafood for lunch, went to the boardwalk at Wildwood NJ (90% closed for the season), and then went to the Cape May lighthouse to wait for the ferry back.

If you’d like to see some of the other pics you can follow my Instagram -

https://www.instagram.com/rocketfella307/

[Drew Dowdell]

leader of the motorcycle gang waiting for the ferry back to Rehoboth Beach.

[ccap41]

I hope you had pants and a jacket in that backpack. 

[Drew Dowdell]

18 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

I hope you had pants and a jacket in that backpack. 

Na, it was all slow speed cruising. 90% under 30mph and the other 10% under 55 on some 2 lane highways. Aside from a cicada to the face shield I didn’t get hit with anything.

Higher speeds than that, yeah I wear gear.

[Drew Dowdell]

This has been such a cool trip!

[oldshurst442]

4 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

cicada to the face shield I didn’t get hit with anything.

 

Dont judge me. I got kids. To THIS day, my daughter, 16, LOVES this movie...

 

 

[ccap41]

14 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Na, it was all slow speed cruising. 90% under 30mph and the other 10% under 55 on some 2 lane highways. Aside from a cicada to the face shield I didn’t get hit with anything.

Higher speeds than that, yeah I wear gear.

Good think you can't get hit or anything bad can't happen under 30mph!

13 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

This has been such a cool trip!

Your BMW is, hands down, the prettiest and coolest bike of the bunch. 

[Drew Dowdell]

3 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

Good think you can't get hit or anything bad can't happen under 30mph!

Your BMW is, hands down, the prettiest and coolest bike of the bunch. 

I know, I know, but the risks are much lower. It also wasn’t really feasible with what we were doing. I need to find a bag solution that works with a second rider. My current bag that I use for commuting leaves no place for him to put his right leg.

[ccap41]

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I know, I know, but the risks are much lower. It also wasn’t really feasible with what we were doing. I need to find a bag solution that works with a second rider. My current bag that I use for commuting leaves no place for him to put his right leg.

They don't exactly look good but they're really useful, a rear trunk or a small rack you can strap things to. 

[Drew Dowdell]

11 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

They don't exactly look good but they're really useful, a rear trunk or a small rack you can strap things to. 

Yeah, as long as it has a quick detach mount id be fine with that. I’m going to need tires in the spring and I don’t mind making a bit more scrambler looking

[ccap41]

3 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Yeah, as long as it has a quick detach mount id be fine with that. I’m going to need tires in the spring and I don’t mind making a bit more scrambler looking

Yeah, I'd need it to be easily removable as well...of course for aesthetics. 

[Drew Dowdell]

 

Top Picture:  Hoboken, NJ across the river from Manhattan - taken a week ago today
Bottom Picture: Key Largo, FL at Gilbert's Resort - taken over the winter holidays

Below, got some new shoes.

[ccap41]

Why'd you go for more of an "adventure" style set of tires? 

[Drew Dowdell]

3 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

Why'd you go for more of an "adventure" style set of tires? 

Matches the look and intent of the Scrambler style. These are very much "for the looks" rather than being true adventure tires.  I'm quite happy with them.  The rear tire of the original set was very much gone and I had a couple of scares on it. 

[ccap41]

3 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Matches the look and intent of the Scrambler style. These are very much "for the looks" rather than being true adventure tires.  I'm quite happy with them.  The rear tire of the original set was very much gone and I had a couple of scares on it. 

Ahhh gotcha gotcha..

Not the route I would have taken but I can understand wanting to keep a certain look for the bike. 

That's one thing I love about the bike. You can have an adventure style tire or a street tire and both manage to work perfectly into the bike's design, imo. 

[Drew Dowdell]

1 minute ago, ccap41 said:

Ahhh gotcha gotcha..

Not the route I would have taken but I can understand wanting to keep a certain look for the bike. 

That's one thing I love about the bike. You can have an adventure style tire or a street tire and both manage to work perfectly into the bike's design, imo. 

Given the condition of Pittsburgh (and NJ/NYC for that matter) roads, true off-road tires would be the most appropriate. 🤕

But yea, if I had the R nineT Original I'd have gone with a typical street tire.  I've just really liked the Scrambler style from any manufacturer.  While I'll never take this true off-roading because it's too heavy for that, I like that I can take it down some dirt/gravel trails that are well compacted.