SPY SHOTS: BMW 2018 S 1000 RR caught out in tests

There’s not many pics (as in, there’s one) that’s broke surface at the moment, but this is the first picture of the 2018 BMW S 1000 RR.

The bike has been caught out and about by the top German magazine Motorrad. And, as you might expect, is the star of the next issue of the long-running German title.

From what we can see on the picture, the new bike is getting a raft of changes including a new swingarm, bodywork (check out the swanky new fairing), a very race-oriented rear end, smaller exhaust  end, new headlight/face, mirrors in the indicators and widely-rumoured revisions to the engine for more mid-range and top-end.

Here’s the old bike so that you can compare the two:

Overall, this next-gen version of the Germanic superbike is pretty Italian-meets-Triumph looking. It’s impossible to say whether the new trellis subframe that we can see in the picture will remain exposed – but if it does then that’s really going up the sex-appeal that bit more.