BMW creates diamond chain: no need to be lubricated or tensioned

BMW created a motorcycle chain, called ‘M Endurance’, and says it does not need to be lubricated or tensioned, that is, completely maintenance-free.

According to the brand, the ‘M Endurance’ chain has a permanent lubricant filling between the rollers and the pins, surrounded by ‘X’ rings.

What is completely new, however, is that the addition of additional lubricant previously required for the rollers and therefore the familiar “chain lubrication” is no longer needed, nor is any tensioning required from time to time due to normal wear and tear.

This enormous gain in comfort was made possible with the use of a new coating material for the rollers: tetrahedronically amorphous carbon (ta-C), also known as industrial diamond.

This coating is characterized by extreme hardness and resistance and in this respect it is placed between the well-known DLC (Diamond Like Carbon) coating and the pure diamond.

In contrast to the metal surfaces used so far, the coating with the industrial diamond ta-C does not wear out. At the same time, this type of coating also offers a drastically reduced friction coefficient.

Thanks to the excellent dry lubrication properties and the elimination of wear, the tetrahedral rollers with amorphous carbon coating of the ‘M Endurance’ chain, offer maintenance comfort equivalent to that of a motorcycle with axle transmission.

This includes all the cleaning work that is inevitable with a conventional chain due to splashes of lubricant. Consequently, ‘M Endurance’ also offers the ultimate in environmental compatibility.

The ‘M Endurance’ chain with step 525 is now initially available for the two 4-cylinder models: BMW S 1000 RR and S 1000 XR.

It is available as an accessory or directly from the factory as an option. Other BMW Motorrad models are being prepared for this feature.