2023 BMW R 18 Roctane Review | Motorcycle Test

2023 BMW R 18 Roctane Review

Motorcycle Review By Kris Hodgson

BMW’s Roctane marks the fifth instalment in the R 18 model-line, each of which offers riders a slightly different take on the cruiser segment. The Roctane brings a 21/18 inch wheel combo and revised rider stance along with new styling.

Having not tested the R 18 previously, this was an all-new experience for me.  Roland Stocker of BMW Germany came out to Australia to give us some more insight into the development of these models and rode the Putty with us. One thing that should be abundantly clear is that BMW Motorrad had no intention of just copying the existing cruiser market in entering this segment, a single look at the R 18 tells you that, and Roland reinforced that point.

Instead they focused on building ‘The BMW Cruiser’, although it’s important to note these fall within their Heritage category, where there’s more focus on ‘heart and soul’, compared to the more scientific and performance orientated approach we’re used to seeing from BMW.

The R 18 Roctane is a stunning machine, with clean lines and a staggering presence dominated by that enormous egg-like engine with those huge exposed heads extending proudly. The detail and build quality is undeniable, the black chrome incredible. I’m not a cruiser guy, but man is this a looker.

Naturally being a BMW there’s a nice dose of technology included, ride modes, traction control, cruise control and ABS. The bikes we tested are the Highline version, adding options like Hill Start Assist, reverse, TPMS, anti-theft, adaptive headlight, and heated grips, for a small-ish premium. Kind of an obvious choice if you’re spending this much on a bike though…

So have BMW revolutionised the cruiser category with the R 18, and more specifically the Roctane?

We spent a mid-week day doing a loop up the Putty Road and back, covering about 300 km in total, enough to get a feel for the Roctane.

The Roctane apparently straddles the cruiser-tourer segment, but the lack of wind protection and taller mini ape-hanger bars, leave a bit of room for improvement if that’s your primary focus. I’d guess you’d be looking at the R 18 B or Transcontinental though, if that’s your thing.

The loop demonstrated a pretty impressive package in the Roctane though, ideal for having a bit of a punt with a little more speed, or just cruising along and enjoying the scenery. Being surrounded by a herd of other Roctanes added to the experience.

Jumping onto an-almost 374 kg cruiser is always a little intimidating when your daily is about 170 kg, but in all honesty the R 18 Roctane makes that an easy transition.

The stock panniers add to the width across the tail when it comes to throwing your leg over, but the 720 mm seat is low, if somewhat off-set by the width of the bike. I’ll never say no to standard luggage capacity though, especially when so stylishly integrated into the bike.

Rocking the bike off the stand is an easy affair, the balance is good, with those taller ‘bars requiring a little more of a reach. There’s no forward controls for the obvious reason, the heads make that kind of setup impossible, with floorboards and a heel shifter in the mix. You feel the big slugs in the boxer lurch when starting the bike up though, enough so you’d want your feet planted.

Talking of feet… for my size 11 boot, the clearance for the toe-shifter is real tight for up-shifts, and it’s the same situation with the foot brake. I needed to squeeze my toe in there by feel. The heel-shifter solves the shifting problem on one side of course.

Setting off in ‘Roll’ mode, or the regular mode, there’s nice torque, with smooth acceleration, although shifting through the gearbox required a bit of thought on my part as I had not used a heel-shifter in yonks. No complaints about engagement or feel with the transmission though.

Heading for the open roads through Windsor the Roctane proved easy to manage in traffic, with the relatively narrow wheel and tyre choice aiding agility.

With just five kilometres on the odometer, the four-pot caliper set-ups at both ends did feel a little limited, despite the welcome dual-disc front, but then pulling up 450 kg with me on board is obviously the issue there, and is a similar trait shared with the heavier cruisers I’ve tested.

The R 18 Roctane is in its element out on the open road, all that weight translates to a planted and stable ride, which is easily punted through the twisties, and appreciates a more measured approach – typical of a cruiser.

Following the more experienced cruiser riders who set the pace, ground clearance was never an issue, and the handling of the R 18 Roctane was the standout here, very much living up to the BMW reputation of refinement and precision.

The ‘bars are perhaps a little taller than I’d personally pick for my 180 cm frame on the leggier side, but it works, the seat is comfortable, the dash easily visible, sans tachometer, and while toe room is tight, the floor-boards feel natural, and the heads actually provide quite a bit of wind protection to your legs.

With probably one of the most perfect days of the riding season, you couldn’t ask for better weather to test the R 18 Roctane.

The 1802 cc boxer twin is an interesting powerplant. There’s a nice roar on start-up but the Roctane is fairly quiet once idling and while there’s a bit of running noise there, this is one cruiser that is definitely screaming out for an aftermarket exhaust. I tend to say this about every bike I ride these days, with manufacturers increasingly producing bikes that sound like electric mowers, but cruisers are all about the experience, and a big part of that is the sound track.

Of course replacing the stock exhaust means losing that frankly amazing set of black chrome mufflers, but no cruiser, let alone any bike should be this quiet.

The 91 hp and 150 Nm figures are also impressive on paper, but the engine seems to lack a little of the immediate bite found in a V-twin. Noticeable vibes develop in the bars through the mid-range. At first I thought that was the bike’s donk warning me it was nearing the limiter, but that definitely wasn’t the case, as you could rev well through those vibes.  I can confirm that something approximating the 180 km/h top speed is achievable with a big enough straight, and subsequent distance to wash off speed.

The big factor in reaching that kind of speed though is wind resistance, you’re certainly more likely to appreciate the acceleration and torque at more normal speeds.

It is a loping beast, even in Rock mode, which is your ‘sport’ mode, the throttle connection was not as direct as I would have preferred.

Pushing past the vibes however, there is decent torque there, and it pays to ride the Roctane a little harder and let it rev. It would be easy to baby the engine though, just going on feel, and I think you’d be doing the bike a disservice there.

It could also be the fact that 150 Nm of torque is available from 2000 rpm in such a refined form, through to 4000 rpm, that gives the bike that more laid back performance feel, as it’s not really ramping up, the torque is just there, and easy to take for granted…

The R 18 Roctane also runs a 16 L fuel tank, with a reserve light, and I didn’t think to flick through the dash for fuel trips, with the odo starting at five km. I didn’t see a fuel gauge though with limited dash space in the digital readout, but you can set the bike to show L/100 km consumption actively.

We filled up at 160 km travelled, where it looked like the bikes took eight or nine litres each, so an expected range of 250 km or so seems safe. The reserve is also four litres, but having not reached it I’m not sure if the bike swaps to a reserve range readout, there.

The ride was also good for a cruiser, with beefy BMW 49 mm forks doing the job well, the shock also sports good damping and control overall.

There was a couple of times the road undulations were felt through the front end with a bit of chatter, but I rate the suspenders pretty highly by cruiser standards overall.

Add generous ground clearance and I keep coming back to the handling as what impressed me most. Not that the pace was ridiculous, but following the more experienced cruiser riders I never touched the floorboards down, and for a hefty machine the handling inputs required were minimal.

There’s no fairing or even a screen between you and the road, just look where you’re going and the R 18 Roctane takes you there, with flowing momentum the descriptive that comes to mind.

Granted an opportunity to set my own pace later in the day after getting stuck at road-works revealed that wisdom and experience pays dividends, as I definitely could run out of clearance, taking a less measured approach into the tighter corners.

Granted I can’t fault the bike for that, I was just getting a bit too excitable carrying speed into the corners, where being more measured and using the torque on the way out is just more rewarding, and honestly… it’ll be faster overall too.

Brake performance was also more impressive on the sweeping bends of the Putty, compared to around town, and while still on the gentle side for bite, there was good stopping power there as the brakes wore in.

My biggest issue was trying to get my toe in and onto the foot brake lever, as that clearance was tight, and a corresponding lack of feel made it hard to gauge whether I was even on it at times, especially with the front in use and already providing some stopping power. Now with ownership, or just smaller feet and boots, you’ll figure that out, but fumbling for toe foot controls ain’t great.

Interestingly for a bike with no slipper clutch the R 18 Roctane has controlled engine braking, although this is a boxer, with electrickery no doubt helping make a slipper clutch less necessary, thanks to nice off- and closing-throttle fuelling.

So the R 18 Roctane impressed me, and while I think overall the refinement and ride dynamic is exceptional, there’s perhaps a little too much refinement on the engine side of things for me. Certainly the boxer vibe is still there, very much noticeable at idle, visibly twitching the front end, but I would enjoy a little more bite from the twist-grip.

Where the R 18 Roctane also really shone though, was in the details.

The mirrors are adjustable by turning the round mirror, which in turn changes and the angle and orientation. Now I couldn’t get mine quite perfect, but it’s a very cool feature, and adjusting the stem a tiny bit would fix that.

On the same note, Roland mentioned they’d chosen not to integrate every component, so as to keep the bike very modder or customiser friendly, which probably contributes to the overall weight. I feel like that’s a happy compromise for the possibility of extra personalisation.

Features like separate brake and clutch lines off the top triple thanks to a joiner mean that changing ‘bars will be relatively easy.

The headlight integrated dash was also pretty suave there too, with the dual rear tail-lights very eye catching, particularly when you’re riding in convoy.

Likewise those panniers run a very elegant locking system, with a generous amount of storage, and as mentioned are well integrated into the lines of the bike.

Reverse gear, run off the starter motor is also a really nifty addition, considering how chances of rolling this bike back up a slight incline if you park in the wrong spot is fairly low. The reverse gear kicks in quite powerfully, and having not used it before I wouldn’t have minded a smoother and gentler acceleration, but that’s really scraping the bottom of the barrel for things to complain about.

The R 18 Roctane is very much a work of motorcycling art.

Of course whether that’s the choice for you, is going to come down to an enormous number of factors, including how you feel about a boxer-twin cruiser. There’s certainly a great machine here, if one that differs from the more traditional offerings. Nothing wrong with that.

Australian Pricing of the R 18 Roctane starts at $27,890 in Black Storm Metallic, with Mineral Grey Metallic Matt or Manhattan Metallic Matt demanding a $475 premium.

The R 18 Roctane Highline as tested, starts at $30,990, and adds Adaptive headlight, lockable fuel filler cap, DRL, Hill Start Assist, Headlight Pro, Heated Grips, Tyre Pressure Control, Reverse Gear, and the Anti Theft Alarm.

And of course as with all BMW models, you have a fantastic five-year warranty that certainly adds plenty to the value equation when comparing it against the opposition.

2023 BMW R 18 Roctane Specifications

2023 BMW R 18 Roctane Gallery