BMW Motorrad has launched the F900R and F900XR in India, with prices starting from Rs 9.90 lakh, and Rs 10.50 lakh respectively.
While the F900R is the naked sports version, the F900XR is a sports tourer with fairing and this one comes in two variants; standard and Pro. The bikes were first showcased at the EICMA bike expo in Milan last year. BMW Motorrad is bringing the bikes as completely built units (CBUs) which adds extra import and custom duty to their cost.
The F900 series comes with the same 895cc, inline-twin engine that puts out 105hp of power and 92Nm of torque. This unit is mated to a six-speed transmission, giving ample room for rider to shift gears while accelerating.
Since the F900R is a naked sports bike, it gets a smaller 13-litre fuel tank, while the sports tourer F900XR understandbly gets a bigger 15.5-litre fuel tank. The XR also comes with greater suspension travel – 170mm (front) and 172mm (rear) – which is ideal for long touring, and in comparison the F900R gets suspension travel at 135mm (front) and 142mm (rear).
In terms of riding modes, the standard variants of both the bikes get Road and Rain, you also get traction control. The bike comes with a 6.5-inch TFT screen which supports Bluetooth connectivity, allowing riders to pair their phone to the phone for navigation and other purposes. LED headlamps are the standard, but the XR Pro gets additional features like cruise control, a bi-directional quick-shifter and Dynamic ESA.
BMW is offering the F900R in Black Storm Metallic and Style Sport Hockenheim Silver metallic/Racing Red colour options. While the F900XR comes to you in Light White and Style Sport Racing Red variants.
So who do these bikes compete with in India? The F900R goes up against fellow sports racers like the KTM 790 Duke, Kawasaki Z900 and Ducati Monster 821. Whereas the BMW F900XR is pretty much on its own in the segment, while it does have the more powerful Kawasaki Versys 1000 in its sights.