Demystifying ABS Pro for BMWs S1000 RR
Race ABS, ABS Pro and more marketing terms that BMW is using are different ABS features the BMW S1000RR offers. ABS Pro is BMW lingo for Cornering ABS that is relying on Bosch’s MSC base. At the time of writing this it is the latest safety feature that is added to BMWs motorcycle lineup and it is available in numerous models in 2017. It is also possible to retrofit the system to some older models, which is explained in detail in the attached BMW press release.
A Brief ABS History
Before we jump into the details around ABS Pro and how it works specifically on the S1000 RR, I collected some easy to digest information about ABS in general as well as cornering ABS for motorcycles.
So what did we learn? ABS Pro is not changing the laws of physics, but it is an ABS system that now also considers the forces that apply to a motorcycle while cornering. This allows it to stop a rider from locking up the tires while carrying lean angle and potentially helps to avoid some hairy situations. Notably here is that through smart usage of the front and rear-brake the bike maintains it’s lean-angle and course. This is a huge change, as the use of ordinary brake systems mid corner always cause the bike to stand up, which easily leads to running a corner wide or even leaving your current lane.
But what about the cost ?
So just the software for the update runs around 484$ and that prior to tax. Obviously you are going to ask :
Is that worth it? — well safety features on motorcycles might safe your and a passengers life in the most extreme case. That considered, yes it is worth it especially if you run your S1000 on public roads. If your’s is a track only bike and you are an experienced ride: don’t get it.
Why does BMW charge so much for a feature my bike should already have anyway ? — Originally BMW announced the 2015 model to have corner ABS at the time of launch. This was later silently dropped from the marketing material and the bike shipped with the necessary hardware installed but no ABS Pro. Probably liability reasons for such a crucial safety feature needed to be properly researched, to avoid making BMW Motorrad a target for lawsuits. Further software development, testing and licensing the product from Bosch must have cost BMW a small amount. Just think about the brave test-riders that had to go down numerous times, until the settings were perfectly adjusted for use on the S1000 RR.
How-to setup ABS Pro on the S1000RR
Once your bike has ABS Pro installed from the factory or your local dealer, as an retro-fit. It will be always on, IF you are in the supported ride modes. There is no extra ABS Pro switch or configuration. Being an actual German engineer, of course I consulted the manual and searched it completely for any ABS Pro mentioning. (A link for the download is at the end of this blog available and I highly recommend reading the manual for your exact bike version)
The most interesting manual section of the 2017 model year in regards to ABS Pro is this part below:
To capture the key information :
- ABS Pro is available in 2015, 2016 and 2017 Models for RAIN, SPORT and RACE modes. HP4 and earlier than model year 2015 owners are limited to RAIN and SPORT modes — probably due to limits of older Bosch hardware used on those bikes.
- ABS Pro is not supported in SLICK mode
- ABS Pro is available in USER mode if ABS modes (RAIN, SPORT or RACE are used) IMPORTANT: Only for 2017 models. I checked the manual of 2015 models and they explicitly state “The SLICK and USER riding modes are not supported by the ABS Pro function”
- ABS Pro was developed for road use, but can be a great tool to support less experienced riders also on the track.
Further the manual mentions right here :
That as part of the Pre-Ride-Check aka motorcycle startup, the ABS Pro letters are only displayed if you are in a mode that supports ABS Pro. So in plain english this means, if you start the bike and ABS Pro is displayed on your dash for a few seconds, then it is active. Unless you of course change to a riding mode later on, that does not support it.
This is however a point where the manual is WRONG! I went to my bike, put it in SLICK mode, switched it off and on … and it still displayed the ABS Pro letters. Quite honestly this is shitty engineering work from BMW Motorrad. There should be an easy to understand indicator that shows while the bike is running, if ABS Pro is active or not. In future version this will hopefully be better integrated, but right now it looks like a hack-job of a feature, that was not fully integrated into the user interface and thus only displayed as a message during start-up. The only sort of reliable way to know if ABS Pro is on or not is to read the manual for your exact bike version. BMW, this is confusing and potentially dangerous!
So in summary this is a great and potentially lifesaving feature. However BMW Motorrad could have done a much better job of displaying this feature and making it easier to understand, especially when they charge over 500$ for it. I hope this helped you to find some useful information about the feature and please comment below for any additions or questions.
Your German Engineer
