BMW F 450 GS: New protection components from Wunderlich

The accessories specialist offers engine crash bars, a skid plate and tank crash bars, which can be fitted individually or combined. The components are designed to protect sensitive areas of the bike without restricting ground clearance or maximum lean angle.

With the BMW F 450 GS, BMW expands its GS line-up with an adventure bike centred on a lightweight build, a twin-cylinder engine and an accessible overall concept. The bike is intended for both everyday use and unpaved tracks. With bikes like this in particular, the question of additional protection comes up. While on the road it's mainly a tip-over that can cause damage, off-road brings further stresses. Stones, flying debris and ground contact can take their toll, especially on the engine area, the fairing and exposed vehicle components. In developing its protection components, Wunderlich draws on experience from several BMW GS generations. For the new F 450 GS, the parts have been adapted to the specific geometry of the bike. The protection range consists of three matched components: an engine crash bar, an engine guard for the underside of the bike and a tank crash bar. All three products can be considered independently of one another. According to Wunderlich, however, they can also be combined into an integrated protection concept.

The engine crash bar is a key part of Wunderlich's protection range for the BMW F 450 GS. It is designed to protect the engine and adjacent components from damage. Wunderlich pursued two goals in its design: the highest possible level of protection and optimised weight. To achieve this, the manufacturer relies on a compact tubular structure that closely follows the engine contour. This design is meant to prevent the engine crash bar from protruding unnecessarily far beyond the bike's outline. At the same time, the construction is intended to offer enough stability to protect the engine's sensitive areas under corresponding loads. Another point concerns ground clearance and maximum lean angle. Especially on an adventure bike meant to be ridden both on tarmac and off-road, the positioning of additional add-on parts matters. According to Wunderlich, the engine crash bar was therefore designed so that neither ground clearance nor maximum lean angle is restricted. The engine crash bar is available in two colours: black and white. This gives Wunderlich different options for visually integrating it into the BMW F 450 GS.

While the engine crash bar is mainly intended to protect the sides of the engine, the Wunderlich engine guard focuses on the underside of the bike. Especially when riding on unpaved tracks, flying stones or ground contact can cause damage. For this, Wunderlich has developed an engine guard in its so-called Tool Design. The construction is designed to cover several sensitive components at once, including the crankcase, the oil sump, the header pipe and the lambda sensors. The engine guard is intended to shield these parts from stone chips, flying debris and bottoming out. Wunderlich paid particular attention to the shape. The skid plate sits close to the bike and is thus meant to offer as few contact points as possible for off-road obstacles. At the same time, the design is meant to retain the existing ground clearance and maximum lean angle.

A technical highlight of the Wunderlich engine guard is its angled deflector plates. These are designed to divert splash water in a targeted way, thereby additionally reducing thermal stress on the engine. According to the manufacturer, the construction thus doesn't just serve a mechanical protective function but also takes into account how splash water is handled around the engine. Wunderlich describes the engine guard as a robust and functionally integrated solution for adventure riding.

Beyond the engine area, Wunderlich also offers a protection solution for the upper and side sections of the BMW F 450 GS. The tank crash bar is intended in particular to protect those areas that could be damaged in a tip-over or under corresponding off-road loads. These include the tank, side fairing, front section and radiator. For this task, Wunderlich relies on a compact and rigid tubular construction. The forces involved are meant to be distributed across several mounting points, which is intended to reduce point load peaks and high local stresses. The aim of this design is not to absorb forces at a single mounting point alone, but to spread them across several points.

According to Wunderlich, the tank crash bar was specifically tailored to the BMW F 450 GS. Its lines are meant to blend into the design of the adventure bike without fundamentally changing the bike's characteristic look. Particularly interesting is the option of combining the tank crash bar with the engine crash bar. This creates an extended protection concept covering both the engine area and the tank, fairing and radiator. Wunderlich intends this combination for use both on the road and off-road. As with the engine crash bar, the tank crash bar is also available in two colours: black and white.

Wunderlich offers three different protection components for the BMW F 450 GS, each designed to cover different areas of the bike. The following overview shows the available versions and their prices.

Combining all three components in black adds up to a calculated total price of 817 euros. A combination of white engine crash bar, black engine guard and white tank crash bar comes to a total of 857 euros.

Wunderlich's protection range has a modular design. Riders can therefore opt for individual components or combine several products. If, for example, you mainly want to protect the lower engine area from stone chips and bottoming out, the engine guard is the right solution. The engine crash bar, on the other hand, focuses on the sides of the engine and the adjacent components. The tank crash bar additionally covers the tank, side fairing, front section and radiator. Together, all three components form the protection concept Wunderlich has envisaged for the BMW F 450 GS. The manufacturer places emphasis on the most compact design possible and integration into the existing contour of the bike. Further information on the protection components and the accessory range for the BMW F 450 GS is available on the official Wunderlich website.