Review: 42130 BMW M 1000 RR
Posted by Huw,
Technic motorcycles have traditionally played second-fiddle to Technic cars, lacking the size and functionality of their 4-wheeled counterparts.
That's now changed, though, with the release of 42130 BMW M 1000 RR which is the largest motorbike ever made. It's packed with a complex gearbox and an unusually high number of brand-new elements, and the size of it is breathtaking.
Let's take it for a spin...
Summary
42130 BMW M 1000 RR, 1,920 pieces.
£214.99 / $249.99 / €249.99 | 11.2p/13.0c/13.0c per piece.
Buy at LEGO.com »
A great looking complex model, but its functionality is largely hidden.
- Challenging build
- Impressive size
- Contains a lot of new parts
- Fantastic display model
- 80 stickers
- Gearbox and engine are hidden
- Instructions could be clearer in places
The set was provided for review by LEGO. All opinions expressed are those of the author.
The BMW M 1000 RR is "the most potent street-legal production bike BMW has ever made" [1]. Weighing in at just 192Kg, the one litre 4-cylinder inline engine delivers 209bhp to propel it from 0 to 60mph in 3.1 seconds. I was surprised to learn that it's fairly affordable, particularly compared to supercars. It can be yours for a mere £30,000.
Stickers and instructions
Instructions are provided in a single 380-page book and information about the bike and the Technic version are provided in the introduction. It reveals that Samuel Tacchi, who used to design real motorbikes, designed it.
The sticker sheets look daunting, there are around 80 that you'll need to carefully position, with just once chance at each, before the model is complete.
LEGO has never made a motorcycle at this scale before so a lot of new parts have had to be developed. You can view them, and the recoloured elements, in the set inventory.
The new wheels, which have a diameter of 107mm are huge, as are the tyres. The front one is about 25mm wide -- the same as on my road bike -- and the rear 35mm. They make the goat look miniscule!
A new 18-long shock absorber is used for the front forks, which compresses down to 15.
A new shock absorber for the rear wheel has been required, as well. It's very stiff, which of course it needs to be to support the weight of the bike, and compresses from 9 to 7.5 studs.
The windscreen piece is very thin and quite flexible. There are two pairs of holes on the sides to attach it to the model.
A new much larger brake disc element is used on the front wheel, while the older smaller one is used at the back. It's dual moulded in black and light grey and looks excellent.
Finally, a new right-angle wheel connector is used to attach the wheels to the bottom of the new shock absorber.
Construction
Construction begins with the gearbox which is compact and complex. Extreme care needs to taken at this stage: you won't want to get to the end of it and find you have a gear or two spare!
The main block of the bike also houses the inline 4-cylinder engine which you can just about see between the gaps. Transparent clear cylinder blocks make a welcome return.
As you can see the chain is gold: it's the first time the links have been produced in that colour. Even at this stage of the build, the gear which drives it is inaccessible which makes it difficult to re-thread should it break and be removed accidentally.
Once the complex engine and gearbox is completed a small display stand is built. It may seem odd doing so early on during construction, but it's used to make building the rest of the bike much easier, because otherwise there's no way to keep it upright.
As you can see it has an 'ultimate collector series'-style information panel, which does not appear to contain any mistakes!
Next, this small section of the chassis built upon the display stand before the engine/gearbox block is attached to it.
Work continues at the rear of the bike and after the complexity of the main block you might hope for some respite, but there isn't really any let up. It's a challenging build throughout.
Once the internals are completed attention now turns to the fairings and bodywork. Progress at this stage is slowed by the application of those 80 stickers on virtually every panel and flat surface.
Parts are attached at all manner of angles and building challenges continue even at this stage. I found it quite difficult at times to see exactly how the fairing subassemblies attached to the frame.
Finally, building does become easier right at the end, when constructing the workshop stand.
The completed model
It's massive -- 45cm long and on the display stand it's about 35cm high -- and looks stunning from every angle. It certainly looks like the real thing, helped no-end by the stickers which attempt to replicate the distinctive livery. They are largely successful in doing so, but there are a few unsightly gaps between them.
One of my pet peeves with Technic motorbikes is that the drive chain is usually incorrectly positioned externally from the swing arm holding the rear wheel, but the large scale of this model has allowed it to be positioned inside it where it should be.
Here it is on the workshop stand with a goat for scale.
Functionality-wise, there's front- and rear- suspension and steering, and of course the gearbox which provides three gears plus neutral, operated using the foot lever on the left of the bike, exactly as it's done on real bikes.
Unfortunately the effect of it is virtually impossible to discern: the cylinder heads are hard to see on the finished model, so Sariel suggested in his video review to look at the speed at which the end of an axle visible in the side of the gearbox rotates as you push it along!
Have you noticed what's missing at the front? Something essential for rider safety? Wing mirrors! The bike looks fine until you notice the lack of them, then it looks a bit odd. However, it does seem that they are removed for racing, as seen in this article. Perhaps the designer thought it would look better without them, or could not find a way to effectively model them.
The bike features a large LCD in the cockpit which, presumably, can show different screens, so three different stickers and tiles are provided allowing you to chop and change.
Verdict
If you're looking for a challenging Technic build, look no further: it's as hard as it gets! It takes about 5 hours and, unlike building cars which are often straightforward once the chassis is out of the way, there is nothing easy about this model: parts are densely packed and often mounted at unusual angles, and it'll take all your concentration to follow the instructions to work out what goes where.
That said, I did enjoy building it and once it's finished it's a joy to behold, and much larger than I anticipated. Not only does it dwarf the goat in the picture above, but also 42107 Ducati Panigale V4 R, which held the record for largest Technic bike until now.
Its aesthetics depend almost entirely on the stickers, though, so if you're not keen on applying so many, you might want to give it a miss.
Functionality-wise, I guess it's nice to know there's a working gearbox and engine inside and that you built it, but it's largely superfluous given you can't see it. However, if there wasn't one I'd probably complain about that too!
It's available at LEGO.com now, priced at £174.99 / $229.99 / 199.99€, and will be sold by other retailers from March.
138 likes
59 comments on this article
Thanks for another great review, @Huw. I don't have any interest in owning this but I really enjoyed seeing the new parts and how it all goes together. Impressive model, for sure. I assume motorcycle enthusiasts will be pleased with it.
Loving that summary section. You guys have nailed it. As for the bike... looks great but whats the point if all the best bits are hidden. And all those stickers just put me off. Only takes one bad sticker placement to spoil the show. But it does look great.
I want one (or more) for that blue shock absorber alone. We need more stiff but compact shocks. Even smaller ones would be great!
Good review by the way.
Disk brakes are still just for show. Functioning brakes and a clutch really should be present by now. Good there's finally a gearbox, but makes the model too big in my opinion. Can't display next to the cars.
Although the model is not for me this is another great review by @Huw, so thank you!
I wholly support the inclusion of a summary section for an at-a-glance impression of the set in question, but would you consider moving it to the end of the review so as not to "ruin" the contents of the review before reading it?
I guess including a link at the beginning of the review to the summary section - if it were to be relocated toward the end of the review - would solve any issues for those just wanting to see the summary.
Curious how it compares, size-wise, with 10269.
I have a mighty need for this one, but it is soooo big D : Technic motorbikes are the only Technic sets I collect, so it is on my list. Beutiful thing but... SO BIG...
I just completed bag(s) 4 of 5 a few minutes ago and was pleasantly surprised to see the great review here. Normally a system builder but picked this up for a change and really happy I did.
As Huw says, a really challenging build - which for me equals fun - and it does look wonderful. The fact that the engine/gearbox is hidden isn't that much of an issue for me, I know I built it, it's there and it works!
@The_Cellarer said:
"Although the model is not for me this is another great review by @Huw, so thank you!
I wholly support the inclusion of a summary section for an at-a-glance impression of the set in question, but would you consider moving it to the end of the review so as not to "ruin" the contents of the review before reading it?
I guess including a link at the beginning of the review to the summary section - if it were to be relocated toward the end of the review - would solve any issues for those just wanting to see the summary."
I think in another review they mentioned that the norm is to put it at the top of the review. I vary on this opinion but today I saw some of the negative points and actually was encouraged to read the article to see those points expanded upon.
Tempted, but I guess we will see further bikes of this scale to? so may wait to see what else comes out!!
Its much like the large technic cars most of the functions and gearbox are hard to use and not really played with, most are on the shelf!
Seeing these review pics it looks much better than the official Lego pics!
@imemine98 said:
"I think in another review they mentioned that the norm is to put it at the top of the review. I vary on this opinion but today I saw some of the negative points and actually was encouraged to read the article to see those points expanded upon. "
We will continue to have this debate in every review by the looks of it! You make a good point, though. Most people that have commented elsewhere so far have considered it a spoiler, but it can also act as teaser, and encourage further reading, as it did for you.
Maybe I'll make its position configurable in an attept to please everyone!
Wow, almost 80 stickers? Must have been fun applying them.
Complex build: Yes, please!!!!
80 stickers: No, thanks!!!
Woah, thanks for that comparison pic. I knew the Ducati was sizable, but that really puts the BMW's size in perspective!
@Huw said:
" @imemine98 said:
"I think in another review they mentioned that the norm is to put it at the top of the review. I vary on this opinion but today I saw some of the negative points and actually was encouraged to read the article to see those points expanded upon. "
We will continue to have this debate in every review by the looks of it! You make a good point, though. Most people that have commented elsewhere so far have considered it a spoiler, but it can also act as teaser, and encourage further reading, as it did for you.
Maybe I'll make its position configurable in an attempt to please everyone!"
I'll vote (again) for keeping it up top, or at least having that option. I think of it like the abstract for a technical (pun intended) paper. I enjoy reading the review to see how the summary bears out.
There's a lot to love here, it looks mighty impressive and overall I think they did about the best they could have done. And this (great!) review again confirms that. And so many new parts!
That you can't see much of the functions when it's all done, unfortunately that's what Technic is nowadays, looks over functions. The stickers however are what I hate most about it: so many of them, and for most part absolutely essential for the look of it. Couldn't they have picked another BMW that wouldn't need that many, like before with the R1200? I'm looking forward for a review by Held der Steine, just to see what it looks like without stickers. But I'm quite sure it won't be pretty. And obviously you can't expect Lego to produce so many printed pieces....
....or could you? Because the other problem I have with this set is the price. Less than 2000 pieces for €200. And sure, some new, rather specialized pieces that will bump up the price. But it was only a few years ago that the 42055 Bucket Wheel Excavator got me out of my Lego Dark Ages. Double the number of pieces including several new ones, Power Functions, and even a B-model. For the same price. And before anyone argues that wasn't a licensed set, take the Arocs as a comparison. What went wrong?
And like I said before: I don't mind Lego to ask premium prices, as long as they also deliver premium quality. This set comes close, a lot of it is absolutely great, but just that final step....
Oh wow!
I have literally just taken delivery of this today, along my last coin.
I was already looking forward to getting home to have a good look. Can’t wait now.
I’m shutting down my pc and walking out :-)
Well, now you've said there are no wing mirrors, I can see the Ducati doesn't have any either.
Looks really cool but 80 stickers...that is too much
Great review - been waiting for this one. I'm not a motorbike fan, but I really like this set. I like a challenging build.
If (when) I get it, I might even be tempted to strip down the body panels to make a street-fighter.
Great review. Bizarre why the display stand is yellow, even though it's fairly inconsequential.
@Huw said:
" @imemine98 said:
"I think in another review they mentioned that the norm is to put it at the top of the review. I vary on this opinion but today I saw some of the negative points and actually was encouraged to read the article to see those points expanded upon. "
We will continue to have this debate in every review by the looks of it! You make a good point, though. Most people that have commented elsewhere so far have considered it a spoiler, but it can also act as teaser, and encourage further reading, as it did for you.
Maybe I'll make its position configurable in an attept to please everyone!
"
I don't mind either way where it is located - I read the rational for its actual location - I will always read fully every review. I believe @the_cellarer suggestion is a nice compromise: (link at the beginnning for the summary at the end).
Or a "spoiler" button on the summary which upon pressing it reveals the info.
Maybe one of these two options is less work than a configurable positioning (with some people not knowing that it is (would become) customizable). Good review as always. Tempted but those stickers...
I see no problem with stickers in models like this. The real thing also has stickers.
The gaps are annoying though.
Impressive, despite the stickers. The lack of mirrors doesn't really bother me as their exclusion feels justified. 2nd best Technic motorcycle of 2022 so far, behind 42132!
@Huw said:
"Most people that have commented elsewhere so far have considered it a spoiler, but it can also act as teaser, and encourage further reading, as it did for you.
Maybe I'll make its position configurable in an attept to please everyone!"
You won't be able to please everyone, but I want to give kudos because you've made it easy for folks who don't want to see the summary box to scroll past without reading by having a different background color (in both Light AND Dark mode). Folks who skip can then click the "^ Top" button that's in the bottom right of every page to jump back to the top and see the summary box that way. Thank you for the continued improvements!
As you've noted previously, summary boxes at the beginning are pretty standard, so maybe this means folks don't go to many other websites and spend most of their time here!
Good gravy, that is a big bike.
I like the goats for scale, though I do wish I owned one so I knew how big they were!
Having ridden this bike many times I was excited to see what it looks like, and maybe pick it up. The 80 stickers just ruins it for me. I have a hard enough time with the square ones and getting those centered let alone some of these ones that are shaped the way they are. I understand why they do it, but for something like this I would have expected a little less and using printed or different colored pieces.
Great review with excellent pictures. Thank you!
I like the summary being at the top, as a teaser, as mentioned by others.
Edit: I think what is putting me off buying this is the time it takes to dismantle large Technic sets. I spent 2 evenings disassembling and bagging up the Land Rover. I was watching a movie at the same time, but the most vivid memory is taking apart the Lego set.
With the emphasis on display aesthetics and de-emphasis on visible functionality of this subset of larger/premium "Technic" models (hiding away functional components with paneling, etc.), it's a mystery to me why a high-tier Creator style approach isn't taken while incorporating Technic insides, e.g., 10262 Aston Martin DB5 and 76139 1989 Batmobile. It seems a reimagining of the old Model Team theme (& likely rebranded to fit within the 18+ line) would be a very appropriate solution, rather than muddying up the Technic brand.
The goats are really useful after all. It's thanks to them that I have understood the scale of the model
A general comment: why did Lego stopped mentionning the set number on these bigger instructions manuels? Should you, as I do, have many of, it is obviously easier to sort them by set numbers, isn't it?
Is this the most complex and challenging set they have so far produced? With the complexity of the build and the precision placement of the multitude of stickers it sounds like it.
Great review!
This is a hard pass for me but I enjoyed the read. Just looking at the complexity of the main block makes my eyes cross. Not my preferred kind of challenge, but the finished product looks amazing.
@ajp31 said:
"Curious how it compares, size-wise, with 10269."
Harley is bulkier than the ducatti, but having seen the bmw on display it still makes the Harley look like a midget's bike.
I agree that 80 stickers is a lot. Actually too much. But my experience with them is not that you only get one shot at the correct placement. As long as you don't firmly rub them after application, it's very doable to peel of a tip with a knife, and then slowly peel the whole sticker off, after which you may go for a second attempt, or even a third. The stickers are pretty tough.
@Wrecknbuild said:
"I agree that 80 stickers is a lot. Actually too much. But my experience with them is not that you only get one shot at the correct placement. As long as you don't firmly rub them after application, it's very doable to peel of a tip with a knife, and then slowly peel the whole sticker off, after which you may go for a second attempt, or even a third. The stickers are pretty tough."
Can also get a lot more shots at placement using the soapy water method.
@FuddRuckus said:
"As you've noted previously, summary boxes at the beginning are pretty standard, so maybe this means folks don't go to many other websites and spend most of their time here!"
Is it standard, though? Every other site that I read with reviews puts their summary at the end, not the top. I prefer it at the end myself.
Wow, so many new pieces! I wonder how Lego can justify this many new molds for just one set?
It makes it hard to swallow when other sets could benefit from one simple new mold and we are constantly told that it would be too expensive.
@Dare_Wreck said:
" @FuddRuckus said:
Is it standard, though? Every other site that I read with reviews puts their summary at the end, not the top. I prefer it at the end myself."
Look at any of the reviews @Huw has linked as examples in previous articles, or check out the reviews on TechRadar, or Consumer Reports, or PC Mag, or CNet, or Engadget, or MotorTrend, or...
As a someone who rides bikes on both road and tracks i have to add that the exclusion of mirrors makes perfect sense. Track bikes dont have mirrors (i.e. MotoGP machines). If you take your streetlegal bike to a trackday you are often asked or required to remove the mirrors from your bike before you are allowed on the track.
@Peter_X said:
"As a someone who rides bikes on both road and tracks i have to add that the exclusion of mirrors makes perfect sense. Track bikes dont have mirrors (i.e. MotoGP machines). If you take your streetlegal bike to a trackday you are often asked or required to remove the mirrors from your bike before you are allowed on the track."
Very interesting, thank you for that insight. Presumably they are designed to come off easily?
@Huw
"As you can see it has an 'ultimate collector series'-style information panel, which does not appear to contain any mistakes!"
The title says "BMW Motorrad", which is perfect German, and the specifications are in English. That in itself is fine with me, but I think that the numbers should have a point before the decimals (when the specs are in English), and a comma in between the thousands. Please correct me if I'm wrong (edit:) or if you disagree.
Genuine question. For the people who complain that the engine and gears are hidden away in the belly of bikes, cars etc, how would you want to view them without impacting on the overall look of the vehicle?
RE the lack of mirrors: I'd say that with the inclusion of a racing style paddock stand, and also the omission of a conventional side stand and rear fender/numberplate holder seen on the street version, this bike looks like it is set up to emulate a track bike. And modern racing Superbikes also have stickers on the fairings to represent the headlights of the street versions, so that's accurate too!
The only question is the gearbox. Which way are the gears selected? Conventional, starting with neutral where you click down for first, then up for the next gears, or is it race pattern, where you click up for first, then down for the next gears?
@Huw yes, mirrors do come off fairly easily. Most bikes only have a couple of nuts to remove and they come right off.
@Huw said:
" @Peter_X said:
"As a someone who rides bikes on both road and tracks i have to add that the exclusion of mirrors makes perfect sense. Track bikes dont have mirrors (i.e. MotoGP machines). If you take your streetlegal bike to a trackday you are often asked or required to remove the mirrors from your bike before you are allowed on the track."
Very interesting, thank you for that insight. Presumably they are designed to come off easily?"
Correct, usually its a matter of simply loosening 1 or 2 allen bolts per mirror.
@Wrecknbuild said:
"but I think that the numbers should have a point before the decimals (when the specs are in English), and a comma in between the thousands."
Certainly for UK English the points and commas are the wrong way round... Maybe American notation?
I really like the tweaks that have been made to the review style, especially the summary box.
Oh and 80 stickers! bloody hell.
Oh wow seeing it next to the Ducati really shows how large and impressive it is! That thing is huge!
@sjr60 said:
" @Wrecknbuild said:
"but I think that the numbers should have a point before the decimals (when the specs are in English), and a comma in between the thousands."
Certainly for UK English the points and commas are the wrong way round... Maybe American notation?"
"American notation" uses a comma for one thousand (1,000), for example, and a point before decimals, such as one and one half (1.5).
Commas are used as decimal separators in quite a few countries:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decimal_separator
And, from a Microsoft document about thousand separators: "In the United States, this character is a comma (,). In Germany, it is a period (.). Thus one thousand and twenty-five is displayed as 1,025 in the United States and 1.025 in Germany. In Sweden, the thousands separator is a space."
So, the separators on the sticker are both correct in Germany.
@Scottchay said:
"Genuine question. For the people who complain that the engine and gears are hidden away in the belly of bikes, cars etc, how would you want to view them without impacting on the overall look of the vehicle? "
Half-and-half! Design one side of the model with panels & stickers for 'display', and the other side more, well, 'skeletal', to show off the functions; the guts-out side would be hidden when on display (unless you want the beautiful gubbinz on show!). Oh, and make it 'reversible' so people can chose which way round to display it.
That is actually a brilliant idea, I would love to see that! And while that wouldn't really work for a car, for a motorbike this size it would be perfect.
I was thinking of removable panels, but that would be nearly impossible on a build like this. It's not like the fairing is one big separate piece, it's all integrated.
@SinKiller_Nick said:
"Wow, so many new pieces! I wonder how Lego can justify this many new molds for just one set?
It makes it hard to swallow when other sets could benefit from one simple new mold and we are constantly told that it would be too expensive."
It's possible that Lego intends for this set to be the first in a series of 1/5 scale motorbikes, much like the GT3 RS which was the first of the 1/8 supercars. So most of the new parts could be used again in future sets.
Huw said:
" @Peter_X said:
"As a someone who rides bikes on both road and tracks i have to add that the exclusion of mirrors makes perfect sense. Track bikes dont have mirrors (i.e. MotoGP machines). If you take your streetlegal bike to a trackday you are often asked or required to remove the mirrors from your bike before you are allowed on the track."
Very interesting, thank you for that insight. Presumably they are designed to come off easily?"
Looks like it, some of the photos on BMW's official website show the bike without mirrors or a numberplate. https://www.bmwmotorcycles.com/en/models/sport/m1000rr.html It would have been nice if Lego had included them in the set as optional parts though.
@Scottchay said:
"Genuine question. For the people who complain that the engine and gears are hidden away in the belly of bikes, cars etc, how would you want to view them without impacting on the overall look of the vehicle? "
By building a skeletal vehicle, like 8448, 8480, 8880, 8868. Edges are effective in hinting at the shape, but panels are not necessary and tend to obscure the internals - which are the point of the whole Technic line.
@Huw said:
" @Peter_X said:
"As a someone who rides bikes on both road and tracks i have to add that the exclusion of mirrors makes perfect sense. Track bikes dont have mirrors (i.e. MotoGP machines). If you take your streetlegal bike to a trackday you are often asked or required to remove the mirrors from your bike before you are allowed on the track."
Very interesting, thank you for that insight. Presumably they are designed to come off easily?"
In addition to the mirrors, it also is lacking a headlight and tail light, as racing bikes do.
@Wrecknbuild said:
"I agree that 80 stickers is a lot. Actually too much. But my experience with them is not that you only get one shot at the correct placement. As long as you don't firmly rub them after application, it's very doable to peel of a tip with a knife, and then slowly peel the whole sticker off, after which you may go for a second attempt, or even a third. The stickers are pretty tough."
I would love to see an article on applying stickers perfectly. Or at least the top techniques to do so. @huw?
I just had a look at the online instructions and i see what you mean by vague instructions. especially where the suspension attaches to the main frame.
@blokey9 said:
"I just had a look at the online instructions and i see what you mean by vague instructions. especially where the suspension attaches to the main frame."
Yes -- attaching subassemblies to then main model is shown as it is normally, but that's not quite good enough in this case due to the size and complexity of the model.
Lovely review, Good info and nice pictures. Thanks for informing us. As a bike-fan i like the model very much. I did not notice it was THAT BIG until it came out. Then there was no stopping me in getting this model. I build the model without stickers. It still looks good! Only had changed 2 parts from black to white and added two more panels to "close up" the model.