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Things you DO NOT LIKE about nine T...

155K views 442 replies 180 participants last post by  BMWMG 
#1 ·
I only have 300km on the bike, not even 'run in' yet but what are the things you guys dislike about your nine T or think...why did they do that....

I know its design is retro, fully customisable bike, completely different to say the R1200R...

so here goes:

Previous bike=S1000RR... I was spoilt by quick shifter, slipper clutch and 3 modes...

1) why tubed tire??

2) whats with the INFO display? Fuel flow....really??
why not Eng temp, remaining distance.

3) no adjustable fork? surely if they are catering for 1 up or 2 up with adjustable Shock, then forks should be adjustable. Can the forks deal with 1 up at 80kg vs 2 up at 160kg at its default setting?

4) the fixed mirrors..... it would be nice to be able to fold the mirrors, whether it be for parking, getting into tight spaces.

Initially I was interested in R1200R 2015 vs the Nine T, two very different bikes and uses I know, but I'm thinking, if they can put so much tech into the R1200R for the same price, surely my above 4 points is next to zero cost, expect the tubeless tire/wheel....adjustable Forks, a hinge on the mirrors and software for the INFO.

I guess its just sales tactic which every other brand does.
mudguards, rearsets, levers, mirrors, suspensions, wheels....are all upgradable.

Time to go for a ride, yes, I do really like the bike :p
 
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#3 ·
The info display is a bit annoying and i agree it would have been better to have other options but i guess i can live with it.

Upgrading suspension will probably be my next choice as I've pretty much finished with the cosmetics.

But my pet grumble is with the rear ABS as i feel it comes in too early, especially when riding a bit harder than normal, i'd like to be able to turn the thing off.

I have a track day next weekend so will get to test it out properly and see if it is as annoying on the track as it is on the road (the shudder is distracting - thats my only complaint - feeling it start to activate and thinking I'm not even braking that hard yet).
 
#4 · (Edited)
Dont use the rear brake then....ABS wont kick in >:)
The front brakes have plenty of stopping power on its own....and on track I never touched the rear brake (potential highside)

Think the only time i use the rear is when lane splitting at very slow speeds, to keep balance
 
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#5 ·
I too was between the R1200R and the R nine T... I picked the R nine T for something "different". My previous bike was the R1200GS.


Things I miss / expected to see on this bike:
- Fuel gage
- Linked brakes
- Heated grips
- Tubeless tyres
- Seat removal w/o tools


Things I don't particularly like:
- Steering damper


Things I love:
- Riding
- Riding
- Riding
- The looks I get whilst riding


Overall, I'm happy, and I get happier every time I ride it.
 
#10 · (Edited)
I too was between the R1200R and the R nine T.......
...
.

- Seat removal w/o tools
....
.
yea, one thing I missed out.....rear seat with a tool??....what is with that????
so I put the toolkit or part of it under the seat, eg a screw driver for the 1up to 2 up damper on the Shock, I need to carry a tool/key to open it?? seriously? haha
 
#6 ·
Only big dislike I had was knowing I was signing up for a bike with tubed tyres, since rectified with an Alpina tubeless wheel upgrade.

Minor gripes are:

Stock mirrors that gave a great view of shoulders and look pants. Bar end mirrors to the rescue!

The diving board rear end (rectified by a Motobox kit).

Embarrassing horn! lol

No centre stand.


All of this is/was a minor irritation really. I love my bike and think it's the best bike BMW have produced in years.
 
#299 ·
Only big dislike I had was knowing I was signing up for a bike with tubed tyres, since rectified with an Alpina tubeless wheel upgrade.

Minor gripes are:

Stock mirrors that gave a great view of shoulders and look pants. Bar end mirrors to the rescue!

The diving board rear end (rectified by a Motobox kit).

Embarrassing horn! lol

No centre stand.


All of this is/was a minor irritation really. I love my bike and think it's the best bike BMW have produced in years.
Did you do anything about the horn? I’ve tried three after market horns and am always disappointed at how puney they all sound. I want BIG sound from a tiny horn if possible. Otherwise ?
 
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#7 ·
Been discussed to death, but IMO a for a premium motorcycle it should have had:
- Tubeless wheels
- Oil temp gauge
- Fuel gauge
- Aluminum gauge cluster
- Adjustable front suspension
- Seat hump included
 
#8 ·
Things you DO NOT LIKE about nine T

I love my bike, it's one of those that you just can look at and appreciate, rather than taking the key out and just walking away. But...


  1. Rear Brake ABS - By a long margin, my number 1 hate, so so intrusive to hard road riding, Most times I feel it almost makes the back brake redundant and that isn't how I ride, you may, I don't...
  2. Non-adjustable suspension, especially front forks, would it really have cost BMW that much money to leave it on the RR forks ?
  3. Tubed tyres - I knew this beforehand, but I'd rather have had tubeless, no idea what I'll do if I get a puncture out on a ride..
That's it for me, no.2 will be rectified in 5 weeks times, so that just leaves 1. and 3. and little option on the former I think :(


Marky Mark
 
#11 ·
Two major 'first-world-problems' over here:
- Fuel guage. I know it's an old school bike but come on?

- No room for disc brake lock under the seat, ie forcing me to always ride with a back pack or Kreiga bag on the back. This is starting to irritate me more and more.

But, considering that these two are my major problems with the bike. It means I love it more than I thought i would. Yeah, the suspension is not superb, some OEM parts look like **** (mirrors, tail). But we all knew that. And we all love to customize with new bits and bobs. I never had a bike where I was 100% satisfied. Its a work in progress
 
#12 ·
What really, really annoys me is when getting caught in the rain,and happens a few times being in Scotland. I then have to spend hours cleaning my jacket and the rear of the bike.

I believe it is caused by the creation of a VORTEX between your back and the end of the bike. Engineers out there how is it possible to stop this happening? I have tried sitting forward and further back, but makes not for the best riding position. BUT in saying this the 9T is a fantastic bike.
 
#15 ·
With 5k miles on the bike now, 4300 of them being mine...

CENTER STAND! - an optional type available at the dealer that could be attached/de-attached for maint would be fine.

Gas gauge - what a weird setup as far as info on the 9T; what were they thinking? Heck, I think the old "bike sputters, switch to reserve" is a better method.

More comfortable seat (admittedly, a complaint I have had about most of my motorcycles' seats.)

Tubeless tires…well, maybe. But read below...

Rear ABS too sensitive. I can leave my house and go down the cobblestone hill into town with the rear brake on "max" and the ABS engaged the entire time without slowing the bike at all. But read below...


Here are things I was initially concerned about but some time/adjustment/re-evaluating worked it out

Suspension too harsh for me. I was convinced I needed Ohlins/Wilbers to reduce the harshness/"plant" the rear better in twisties but a tire pressure adjustment did the job. 32/33 works great for me and eliminated any "need" for a suspension change. Obviously this issue is totally weight-driven. I weigh 155 and the bike never has a passenger or cargo load other than (sometimes) a small backpack with a rain suit and a camera. With me on the bike the oem pressure - 36/36 - makes the tires act as if they are made of some sort of hardwood.

Rear ABS too sensitive. Back in April of this year, just after buying the bike from the previous owner, I installed a cut-off switch to disable/enable the ABS in gravel/dirt/cobblestones. BUT…after months of actually using the bike, I concluded that the F/R ABS actually works very well under those conditions and I never disable it anymore. So although I still think the rear is too sensitive, I have adjusted how I use the brakes in such conditions so it really doesn't matter. I should remove the switch/put it back to oem.

Diving board. I have never disliked it as much as some folks but after I discovered that it actually does "sort of" work as a rear fender in the wet, that was enough to put me off of "tail tidies."

Tube tires - Certainly tubeless tires are far easier to patch in the event of a puncture and I'd prefer that the bike came with spoke wheels/tubeless tires. OTOH, I have been riding my 1973 Norton Commando with the oem rims/tube tires for 10 years and have never had a puncture on the same roads (or lack of them) that the 9t encounters. So although I'd rather have tubeless, it just doesn't come up to me as a "problem" to be fixed.

Steering damper - the OEM damper made handling too heavy in every aspect of riding. The solutions? An adjustable damper OR simply removing it. I chose the 2nd option after my first ride on the bike and have never seen any reason to go with the first option. BMW should give me cash for the price of the damper the bike doesn't need. :)

Overall, I think it's a great bike and it actually "needed" less than probably any other bike I have owned to do what I want it to do.
 
#16 ·
With 18 month and 5000 miles on it, I can sum it up with this: I don't have any issues with equipment level (display, mirrors, tube tires, etc) as this is what I bought into - I wanted the NineT to be stripped down with as little modern gadgets as possible so not having an engine temp gauge or other "modern" but not really necessary things does not bother me. The things I didn't like (mirrors) I replaced with better after market solutions - and that's fine.

What drives me completely F%&^% mad is the suspension and handling. I can not believe how crappy the NineT handles.... the turn-in is dreadful, slow and heavy; the mid-corner stability on slightly bump roads is plain scary. I ride fast on twisty canyon roads and the NineT is just not keeping with it. I have/had some other BMW's (R1100R, R1150RT, R1200GSA) and all of them, even the oil-tanker (1150RT) offered a reassuring and fast handling on my favorite canyons.

Just yesterday I test-rode the new R1200 R and RS and this clearly demonstrates where BMW messed up. Back to back riding of these 3 bikes shows the glaring deficit of the NineT. On the properly set up bikes (R and RS) there is no second guessing on how fast you can take a turn safely, you always feel the bike and how fast it wants to go around and how much safety margin there is left. Switching back to the NineT you are just plain nervous all the time because it buckles, shimmies and twitches in fast corners. I tried adjusting the tire pressure to get rid of the teeth rattling harshness but that made the mid corner stability even worse. So that did not work for me.

I have not yet removed the steering damper, but it sounds like that is an option to enhance the turn in - I don't go over 90 on the freeways anyway so I assume that hi-speed stability is not an issue.

But really what it comes down to is - a front fork replacement wth Öhlins might just be the only solution. BMW should re-imburse me for that because the current handling is not even close to what a safe bike should offer...
 
#21 ·
I can not believe how crappy the NineT handles.... the turn-in is dreadful, slow and heavy; the mid-corner stability on slightly bump roads is plain scary.
This seems somewhat exaggerated, based on my experience in the twisties. But it's more true than not.

It costs $5-6K in suspension and wheels to turn the 9T into a superb handler. Until you do that, you've got a nice retro bike that shouldn't be pushed as hard as the bike you would have bought if bang-for-the-buck performance was your priority.
 
#17 ·
"I have not yet removed the steering damper, but it sounds like that is an option to enhance the turn in - I don't go over 90 on the freeways anyway so I assume that hi-speed stability is not an issue."

I have had the bike up to an INDICATED speed of 240KPH at end of the speedo without the damper. The bike is totally stable. Dampers reduce rider fatigue over a long day in the saddle which is nice. But I don't think it's worth the handling downgrade with the stock damper. Maybe the Ohlins damper could manage both issues but at the moment I don't see the cost-benefit.
 
#18 ·
I hate the clocks.

i hate the fact that i can't get out on it enough because of the time of year i bought it and i really want to go out but work and weather prevent this.

Sold a treasured Hayabusa to buy a brand new R Nine T and everyone thought i was mad to do so but you know what? i don't miss the Hayabusa one bit.
 
#20 ·
Pillion space and security

I don't take pillions out very often but the ones I have have found the seat not very spacious at all, and felt a bit exposed because of it - particularly with nothing to grab hold of behind.

Other than that it does everything I like in bikes.
 
#22 ·
I think the bike handles fine for it's design/intention. Clearly, if you need S1000RR handling/power, an S1000RR would be a better choice. :)

Surely no one purchases a 9T expecting it to run with sport bikes that weigh considerably less and with 2x the HP. My only complaint - and it's not a real one - is that on our last ride I scraped my boots several times in the twisties which was a little disconcerting because it surprised me. But that's a function of the bike's riding position design and it wouldn't happen at the same lean angle on the 1000RR.
 
#34 ·
Lost, what happened to your T ? Besides you have raved so heavily about your R and its do all capabilities, and it's your only ride and "go to" bike etc etc, why do you miss your T ?
As you have seen in some other forums, I'm floundering about upgrading my GS-TC to an LC and keeping my T or keeping my GS and trading the T for an RR-LC. So what gives ? Have you fallen out of love with your RR ?
 
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