Performance Mods: What is the best bang for the buck?

[Beemeridian]

7689

[riceburner]

In the US the R1150RT and the R1150R use the same manifolds:
11611340769
11611340770
Must be a European thing.

hmmm - that's interesting.

[boxermania]

My R "in a state of flux" had quite a bit of external tweeks, just before the final iteration I went on a ride with some speed freaks....one of them had a new 1200 GS with a can and he decided to break from the group.

The road is one of the nicest in the area, little traffic a few cueves and you can do some high speed runs....well, I took off after him, he on the inside of the lane and I chasing him the outside.

Tacked my bike on all gears and when he looked at his rearview mirror I was in 5th gear on his back wheel.....I think he was in shock, I shifted to 6th and was gone.....I think he slowed down because I didn't see him after a few curves.

I'm not sure if he could have run away from me, he certainly didn't, at least up to 5th gear since I caught up with him, of course my bike wasn't stock either, 20 minutes later we stopped at a service station for a drink and he beelined to my bike looked it over, looked me over and said.....Hmmm....that bike hauls!!!!

I was beside myself and responded, yours is a nice bike too.....

[bikermeow]

In the US the R1150RT and the R1150R use the same manifolds:
11611340769
11611340770
Must be a European thing.

Actually I have a R1100RT's manifolds on my R1150R. Larger diameter.

Cheers

Cat

[Beemeridian]

567

[zax1150]

Ok am I the only 1 to see the obvious, the mods you're suggesting are pretty basic......nothing solid in improvement.....

I use the BBS powerchip....with remus y pipe, carbon muffler & K&N filter
& a personal mod 96HP
gets to 8600 very quick...keeps up top the R6 till 130Mph

as for the 1200 engine when they get it right I'll buy one, seen waaay too many knackered ones here, they run @ 12:1 compression
weight loss on they new bikes seems to have made them sorta fragile
hence the mangle factor in an accident....lotta money for a cpl of HP more

stock R1150R 85HP
R1200GS 98HP
R1200R 109HP 12:1

rule of thumb with bee em's was always wait till the 3'rd model @ least so they've got the bugs out, as they did rush the new engine out without the usual long term testin, probably explains the odd broken crank

[riceburner]

My R "in a state of flux" had quite a bit of external tweeks, just before the final iteration I went on a ride with some speed freaks....one of them had a new 1200 GS with a can and he decided to break from the group.

The road is one of the nicest in the area, little traffic a few cueves and you can do some high speed runs....well, I took off after him, he on the inside of the lane and I chasing him the outside.

Tacked my bike on all gears and when he looked at his rearview mirror I was in 5th gear on his back wheel.....I think he was in shock, I shifted to 6th and was gone.....I think he slowed down because I didn't see him after a few curves.

I'm not sure if he could have run away from me, he certainly didn't, at least up to 5th gear since I caught up with him, of course my bike wasn't stock either, 20 minutes later we stopped at a service station for a drink and he beelined to my bike looked it over, looked me over and said.....Hmmm....that bike hauls!!!!

I was beside myself and responded, yours is a nice bike too.....

non quod, sed quomodo.

[telliott]

Boxermania says
"My R "in a state of flux" had quite a bit of external tweeks, just before the final iteration"

So, did I miss it? What have you done to yours? and what ia the "final iteration?"

Lots of praise of the "Y" pipe but what can you do if you don't want to run a muffler? I have full size cases and really don't want to put the can back on or buy a new bag.

[crashfaster]

Any opinions on the Sebring vs. the Remus Y Pipe?

[Hendrikus]

anybody know something about these y-pipes?

http://www.wunderlich.de/shop.php?rubri ... 1c52b7ee5a

http://www.wunderlich.de/shop.php?rubri ... 84f28f9e0c

[Beemeridian]

567

[OU812]

The Can I have (Remus). I run a diff. Y pipe. It is not really loud at all.

[telliott]

but what can you do if you don't want to run a muffler? I have full size cases and really don't want to put the can back on or buy a new bag.

Just remove the muffler when using the bags, utilizing only the catalyst.
Then put the muffler (can) back on when you shelf the bags.

Miss something there? If I do the mods and add a "Y" pipe, I won't have a cat. so if I take the can off I won't have anything but a straight pipe at the end of the "Y". Might be a little loud!

What I was trying to get was what can I do without a "Y" pipe? So I don't have to put the can back on. Any ideas?

Thanks,

[Beemeridian]

657

[telliott]

If you don't use a Y pipe, do as the above states and run without the muffler, many around here do.

If you do use a Y pipe (as I do), get BMW part # 99 99 0 000 491, which is a lowering pipe, then you will have to fashion a bracket to hold the muffler out of a strip of metal from Lowes, (it's easy, Boxer did it, PM him and he will send you a pic)

I am really feeling dumb, I guess I'm not giving enough info or being unclear. I'll try again. All of the above performance mods seem to start with or include the Y pipe. I already have the can off and have been running only the cat for about 6 months. I really like the way this looks and bought full size bags to fit. I don't want to put the can back on, low or high.

Is there anything worth doing if I don't use a Y pipe? Or is the pipe the critical part?

Thanks for trying!

[Beemeridian]

89

[shake1150]

what about a performance chip? rhinewest, bbpower etc... does anyone think that these are worthwhile performance mods? any mods you can make without cracking the engine open (i.e. cams) are worth it IMHO.

if anyone has experience with these chips, lets hear it!

would also like to hear Cyclerob's take on these performance chips.

[Lobo1625]

I don't have any experience with the 'chips' per say, but I recently installed a power commander on my bike. I've got a Remus Titanium exhaust with 'Y' pipe and K&N Filter. Part of the purchase of my PC was a custom map built on the Dyno. I don't have the exact numbers yet, but it's nothing staggering. The rideability of the bike has increased substantially though. No surging at all. The biggest change was the Torque curve. It's now just a flat line, the bike will pull front wheel in first and second, using only the throttle. As soon as I get the graphs I'll post them so you can see what the before and after were. You're not going to get awesome performance from these bikes in a straight line, but bring on the twisties.

[CycleRob]

After wacking the throttle for over 1,100 bikes doing DynoJet dynoruns over a 9 year period, I do not recommend spending money on a chip for performance -unless- you have engine mods where the stock fuel/ignition parameters are inadequate, like racing cams, K&N filter & big snorkel kit, and performance exhaust. You'll also need disposable income for all the parts and final dyno tuning req'd. Our 1150R has performance limitations intentionally designed in. The camshaft profiles are intended for what the bike IS. Like all BMW's of old, it was never intended for high performance. Air/Oil cooling is the first clue. Pushrods in the valvetrain is another. It's an all around do-it-all standard with gratifying everyday performance, great fuel economy and (yuk) mandatory emissions compliance. You may not want to trade what you have now for a thirsty engine that needs to be downshifted and reved, all for another peaky 15HP. Not advisable since the 70.5 mm stroke throwing around the huge 101 mm BMW pistons also forces the redline to still be only 4 digits.

About the chips, the RhineWest chip was one of the most UNremarkable. They proudly claimed 10HP gain on a K1200RS. Our Dyno showed a before/after, same hour of the day, 0.5 HP gain, but much improved (discovered later) driveability - - - for $350 to Rhine West. Joe P, the very angry owner was on his cellphone to Rhine West while the bike was still running on the dyno.

Many Power Commanders, each owner with wide-eyed enthusiasm and sweet numbers downloaded and programed in with a laptop, watched in amazement as either minuscule gains, no change from stock or frequently worse HP numbers were kicked out by the rear wheel. We advised Power Commanders only for driveability problems like all the Suzuki TL-1000 models had.

For an R1150R I wouldn't stray too far from the tried and proven. The way it is stock is just like a really good wife (I'll leave it at that). Money will be better spent on shock upgrades, a Y pipe and muffler, snorkel/inlet tube upgrades and at most cams from an RT. That will put a bigger smile on your face while not making any trade-offs that hurt normal riding. Add a GPS unit and a heated vest for the off season and your smiling year-round . . . . without getting lost AND cold.

[mcollect]

Cycle Rob, in response to the last post is the Staintune a good option?