And now for something completely different...
By TMX Archives on 18th Jun 08
THE styling of the G450X is, for a bike that incorporates so many never before seen technical features, surprisingly non-radical. While some will certainly welcome the fact that the bike looks significantly different to pretty much every other 450cc enduro bikes available, others won't. With a mix of contemporary, angular, straight lines and somewhat old school' curves the bike certainly doesn't shout I'm a BMW'. With the all white body work featuring little in the way of additional colour, the radiator shrouds are surprisingly the only place where the bike announces itself as a BMW.
What is encouraging and, as a German-built motorcycle, something that most will be expecting, is the high level of build-quality the bike appears to have. With very few parts looking or feeling cheap all major components are well machined, well fabricated and well finished.
When you first climb aboard the G450X you can't help but immediately pick-up on a few things – most noticeably a high handlebar and seating position. While the bike is extremely narrow between the legs, there's no getting away from the fact that the bike initially feels better-suited to taller riders.
Next up is the fact that the motor feels slightly wider on the clutch side than it does on the ignition side. With the clutch fitted directly onto the crank, BMW haven't been able to keep the right side of the motor quite as slim as they have the chassis, which results in a rear brake pedal that is slightly further ‘out' than on other bikes but 30 minutes of riding is all that's needed before things no longer feel strange.
The narrow seat allows for incredibly easy forward and backward movement. With the fuel tank access point, which is located in the rear of the seat, not at all noticeable when sitting on the bike, the fact that there is no filler cap in front of the rider means you can almost sit on the triple clamps and are so free to move around on top of the bike. What the unrestricted forward access results in is footpegs that feel further back than on most bikes. In reality they're probably not, it's just that when you move a
little too far forward they feel like they're-attached to the swing arm. The bike feels sporty, narrow and spacious.
Starting the bike is simply a case of pushing the starter button – and push the stop button when you want to turn the engine off. Simple, effective, non-complicated.
When you do start the bike, you notice that the engine is a little noisy when the clutch is disengaged. But pulling the clutch lever in stops this instantly and although the bike has some noticeable clutch noise when stationary, the motor itself runs smoothly with no vibrations noticeable through the handlebars.
The cable-operated clutch set-up is one of the things that sets the BMW motor apart from all other 450cc enduro engines. Rotating 2.6 times faster than a more traditional ‘geared down' clutch, its action is as different feeling as its design is unconventional. It's also one area of the bike that takes a little time to get used to. The reason is because its action – the way in which it engages, is very instant. While on most other bikes you are able to find the biting point, start feeding the clutch out and then fully disengage the clutch. On the BMW it is a much more instant action. By the time you've started disengaging the clutch it's already disengaged. On occasions that can catch you out when you're not expecting it, especially in tighter going.
Taking to the short, dry, tight and twisty special test laid on by BMW in Spain, more of the bike's traits become apparent. The bike's acceleration is noticeably very instant with the forward drive impressive when traction is good. One thing there's no mistaking is the fact that the motor is DOHC. Think more Yamaha WR style power than KTM EXC.
But while the motor's power certainly isn't lacking, the spacing between the first and second of the five gears is a little too wide. With first feeling a little like a crawler gear that wasn't really designed for anything other than slow, technical trails, second was occasionally a little too high in tighter corners.
The power delivered by the DOHC, fuel injected engine is smooth, strong and useable, with no nasty surprises. It also comes, in Europe at least, with two power settings. One that is the ‘homologated' Euro III setting, and the other is designed for competition. The difference between the two is 11bhp, which, as you'd expect, is easily noticeable. Extremely linear right from the moment you first turn the throttle, although a little punchy on occasions thanks to the DOHC effect, even in the lesser power setting the motor generally has more than enough power for most riders. What it lacks in the homologated setting is real 450 bottom-end grunt and the ability to chug its way up technical climbs at low rpms.
Initially, when riding along flowing fire roads in third gear and above, the difference that the ‘power' setting makes isn't instantly noticeable. Yes, the motor feels a little stronger in the mid range and on top end, but it doesn't feel that much different. The bottom-end power is much, much stronger, which allows the motor to pull stronger and climb more easily.
But when you start to ride the bike harder you do notice that the power is increased across the rev range and not just added to the bottom-end. It still remains linear and useable, but it strengthens the mid-range as it does the top-end. There's still no hit to the power and you notice just how long you can hold second or third gear before needing to up shift.
One other thing you notice when you ride the bike a little harder is the engine braking effect. Not always but on occasions. Simply by accelerating hard into some flat turns before and then chopping the throttle, braking hard and also starting to turn in, the rear of the bike seems to almost magically re-position itself having helped you make the turn. What, other than the engine braking, causes the bike to do this is hard to pinpoint.
The somewhat unusual actions of the rear of the bike when turning, and the general ride that the bike offers, is the second thing, after the clutch action, that makes the BMW different to other bikes. With the bike having no linkage system as well as the swing-arm spindle running through the gearbox, the bike does little in the way of squatting when under acceleration, which feels a little strange at first.
Where most all other bikes ‘settle' into the stroke of the shock under modest acceleration, the BMW seems not to. Even when lifting the front wheel into the air, the rear end of the bike doesn't lower itself much at all. The bike feels to just tip backwards, rather than the seat coming closer to the rear tyre as the front wheel lifts.
While increased static sag may well have eased the sensation of having a high rear end, the feeling when riding the bike was of something fundamentally different to a bike that simply had a wrongly set-up shock. With time you get used to the feel of the bike, but it is very different to other 450s and hard to put into words.
With BMW having worked tirelessly to ensure the bike remains as lightweight as possible, while also as agile as a 450cc enduro bike can be, the manoeuvrability of the bike is impressive. Incredibly easy to throw around, the bike can be made to change direction both easily and quickly and feels anything but big and bulky. When riding slowly, the bike feels incredibly light and when riding at speed it remains nimble and responsive.
Saying that the G450X does this or that ‘differently' to other bikes, which it does, might seem a little non-committal or non-descriptive but, in many instances, it's truly the only way of summing up what the BMW is like to ride having spent just one day on it. It simply does some things differently to other bikes.
During my time on the bike, a number of things became very clear. Firstly, that BMW's enduro machine feels very – here's that word again – different at times to other woods bikes. While secondly, in order to understand how the bike works, and to get the best from it, you have to put in a good few hours of saddle time. You can't just jump on it and expect to feel instantly at home.
The quickness with which the clutch engages will take some riders by surprise initially, but is something that you find yourself adapting to quickly. Likewise, the general feeling of the chassis set-up, the high feeling rear-end, the link-less suspension, the way the bike turns, and the way the bike reacts to rider input, all require saddle time and to a certain extent an open minded rider that isn't looking for a riding experience that's exactly the same as the one he gets from the bike he currently owns. The bike does do certain things differently and, as such, it needs to be understood before it can be enjoyed. It is well built and offers a motor that produces strong, meaningful and useable power and has a great front brake.
Just don't expect it to be just like a Honda, a KTM or a Yamaha. It's not. BMW's G450X is a unique and enjoyable machine that in some ways is as different to ride as it is technically innovative.
ENGINE
Type: Water-cooled, single-cylinder DOHC four-stroke, four valves, dry sump lubrication.
Capacity: 449.5cc
Bore x stroke: 98 x 59.6mm.
Rated output: 30 kW/ 40.8 bhp @ 7,000 rpm.
Torque: 42.8 Nm @ 6,500.
Compression ratio: 12 : 1.
Fuel: Premium unleaded (RON 95).
Carburetion: Electronic intake pipe injection/ Keihin digital engine
management.
Emission control: Closed-loop 3-way catalytic converter.
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM
Alternator: 280 W.
Battery: 2 V/ 7 Ah (maintenance free).
TRANSMISSION
Clutch: Multiple-disc clutch in oil bath, primary clutch sits directly on the crankshaft, mechanically operated.
Gearbox: Constant mesh 5-speed gearbox integrated into crankcase.
Rear-wheel drive: O-ring chain.
CHASSIS
Type: Bridge-type frame made of stainless steel tubing with cast aluminium dual swing arm.
Suspension front: 45mm diameter Marzocchi USD fork.
Travel: 300 mm.
Suspension rear: Ohlins rear shock.
Travel: 320 mm.
BRAKES
Front: 260 mm single disc, double-
piston floating caliper.
Rear: 220 mm single disc, single-piston floating caliper.
WHEELS
Front: 1,60 x 21 (wire spokes).
Rear: 2,15 x 18 (wire spokes).
TYRES
Front: 90/90-21.
Rear: 140/80-18.
DIMENSIONS & WEIGHTS
Length: 2,200mm.
Width (incl mirrors): 806mm.
Height (not incl mirrors): 1,475mm.
Seat height: 955mm.
Castor: 118.8mm.
Wheelbase: 1,475mm.
Steering head angle: 61.8 degrees.
Dry weight/ DIN unladen weight: 111/
121kg.
Maximum authorised weight: 280kg.
Fuel tank capacity: 8 litres.
FUEL CONSUMPTION
Fuel consumption 90 km/h: 4.5 l/100km.
Fuel consumption 120 km/h: 6.6 l/100 km.