R18 Classic windshield

All depends on your height. If I duck down 2-3 inches the buffeting goes away. I’m 6’4” though, I added an MRA touring lip to mine. In the tallest position it adds about 6 inches to the screen. No buffeting and blocks a lot of the wind in colder weather.

I imagine if someone is shorter or even average height especially in the torso, the buffeting wouldn’t be an issue. For those taller or who want more coverage an extended lip is a good option. I’m also looking forward to some aftermarket screens becoming available.
 
nielsm said:
All depends on your height. If I duck down 2-3 inches the buffeting goes away. I’m 6’4” though, I added an MRA touring lip to mine. In the tallest position it adds about 6 inches to the screen. No buffeting and blocks a lot of the wind in colder weather.

I imagine if someone is shorter or even average height especially in the torso, the buffeting wouldn’t be an issue. For those taller or who want more coverage an extended lip is a good option. I’m also looking forward to some aftermarket screens becoming available.
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I am only 5’10” and I get buffeting straight at the helmet. So much for German engineering.
 
Msokeefe said:
I am only 5’10” and I get buffeting straight at the helmet. So much for German engineering.
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I’d suggest trying moving around to see if it is buffeting from the screen. On the bike torso height and arm length rather than overall height will determine where your head position is. Moving slightly foreword or back can also really change the feel.

Also is it buffeting (shakes your head back and forth in a cycle whose interval is speed dependent) or just wind noise?

I still get wind noise and airflow with the lip, but all the head shaking is gone.

For me it is the same with both an Arai Defiant X and a Shoei Neotec II. Both are full face. And with 3 different jackets, a mesh, leather and waxed cotton.

Some others have gotten fork mounted deflectors to tame buffeting. In that case it addresses the wind that comes up from below the screen and interacts with the rider and helmet with a different flow than air coming over the screen. When they mix you get dirty air and buffeting.
 
Msokeefe said:
No, it doesn’t. It is the windshield.
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It is the combination. If the windshield edge is hitting the right spot on the helmet and the kind of helmet is more susceptible to buffeting it will be more intense. Generally speaking full face helmets are less affected by buffeting as they are smoother themselves. An open face has exposed edges which catch air and thus light buffeting on a full face could be intense on an open face. A modular in the open position has even more edges to catch air and shake your head. Thus the shape of the helmet directly affects buffeting.

Jackets also contribute to this. As does the flow of air around the windshield. This is why wind deflectors can also have a positive impact on buffeting as they change the flow of air on the lower part of the bike.

Of course the shape of the bike itself also affects this. Look at an RT or a K1600 and you can see why they can minimize buffeting. The more you make the cockpit feel like a car blocking all wind, the less intense it will feel. But there is an aesthetic tradeoff.

Bottom line, the bike, any windshield or other wind management devices, the rider’s position on the bike and the riding gear they use all affect the dynamics of airflow. This is why the same bike can feel very different to different riders and even modifications don’t affect everyone in the same way.

It is a bit of trial and error. Riding position is usually the easiest to try out on the bike. Try moving closer to the screen and further away to see if that has a positive or negative impact. Try moving your head higher or lower relative to the top of the screen. Try putting your hand near where the air comes from around the tank under the screen and see if the updraft is the cause. This at least gives you a basic direction to try. I did this on my test ride of the Classic and found if I ducked down 2-3 inches the buffeting went away. So I knew I needed a taller screen to eliminate the buffeting for me with all other things being equal.
 
This is getting retarded now. When the windshield is too short and it is angled with the fork, it will deflect the air right into the helmet. What does a jacket have to do with windshield buffeting? A Harley Heritage Classic or Road King windshield is vertical, not almost laying down like this garbage BMW produced.
 
Msokeefe said:
This is getting retarded now. When the windshield is too short and it is angled with the fork, it will deflect the air right into the helmet. What does a jacket have to do with windshield buffeting? A Harley Heritage Classic or Road King windshield is vertical, not almost laying down like this garbage BMW produced.
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That’s not how aerodynamics work. Air hitting the helmet isn’t buffeting. It’s caused by the vortices where 2 different airflows come back together. The position of those vortices and how volatile they are depends on the shape and surface elements of the displacing features. On a bike, the windshield is one of those features just as is the rider (and their gear) and thus affect airflow. I wish it was simpler… would have made my college fluid dynamics classes easier.

I’m sorry the R18 doesn’t work for you. Some bikes work out of the box for one person but not others. Some can be addressed with minor tweaks using the techniques I’d described. Take another look at a Road King’s screen: https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/motorcycles/road-king.html. It is also parallel to the fork, not vertical.
 
nielsm said:
That’s not how aerodynamics work. Air hitting the helmet isn’t buffeting. It’s caused by the vortices where 2 different airflows come back together. The position of those vortices and how volatile they are depends on the shape and surface elements of the displacing features. On a bike, the windshield is one of those features just as is the rider (and their gear) and thus affect airflow. I wish it was simpler… would have made my college fluid dynamics classes easier.

I’m sorry the R18 doesn’t work for you. Some bikes work out of the box for one person but not others. Some can be addressed with minor tweaks using the techniques I’d described. Take another look at a Road King’s screen: https://www.harley-davidson.com/us/en/motorcycles/road-king.html. It is also parallel to the fork, not vertical.
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I would like that BMW have had at least the half of your knowledge. That Classic Windshield sucks, that's a fact.
 
Msokeefe said:
This is getting retarded now. When the windshield is too short and it is angled with the fork, it will deflect the air right into the helmet. What does a jacket have to do with windshield buffeting? A Harley Heritage Classic or Road King windshield is vertical, not almost laying down like this garbage BMW produced.
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R18C and Neilson,
This is my first season with my Classic after having a Shadow Aero with a windshield. I, too feel the buffeting and I’m only 5’4”. Therefore, I think the wind may be coming from under the windshield. I’ll try both the windshield (just ordered online) and the fork mount deflectors. Thanks for the suggestions!
 
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I installed 20" tall 7Jurock windshield (with a flip). Combined with Memphis Shades fork deflector it gives me great wind protection. I'm 6'4 tall and have no issues with buffeting anymore.
 
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