Now, this is a new fresh breath !

[Baja Explorer]

I am not into cruisers, but this is a beauty..

 

[WJBertrand]

Pipes are super ugly, flanged seam and everything. Of course most owners will toss those immediately I suspect.


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[Baja Explorer]

It is supposed to have a nostalgic look.

 

[2talltoo]

I like adv Beemers these things are hideous at best.

 

[RCinNC]

I love the look of the BMW in Baja Explorer's post, and it's obvious that BMW was trying to evoke the spirit of that bike in their new cruiser. The problem (my opinion, of course) is that they "Harley-ed" it up just enough to drag it too far away from that classic. They fattened it up, and took away the elegance of the original, and then added those godawful tokens of biker ridiculousness: ape hanger handlebars.

 

[Baja Explorer]

I love the look of the BMW in Baja Explorer's post, and it's obvious that BMW was trying to evoke the spirit of that bike in their new cruiser. The problem (my opinion, of course) is that they "Harley-ed" it up just enough to drag it too far away from that classic. They fattened it up, and took away the elegance of the original, and then added those godawful tokens of biker ridiculousness: ape hanger handlebars.

I totally agree with you, but " Harley market" is considerable enough to even convince a German mind.

 

[tallpaul]

You hit the nail squarely on head there, RCinNC. The old bike looks light and simple. The cruisers look bloated.

 

[fac191]

View attachment 65640

It is supposed to have a nostalgic look.

Well the engine is a 100 years old.

 

[Jlq1969]

Footpeg for cruising, WHERE?

 

[RCinNC]

I totally agree with you, but " Harley market" is considerable enough to even convince a German mind.

Maybe so, and in many ways I hope so; we all benefit from a healthy motorcycle industry, even when we aren't interested in the particular bike or brand. As for the Harley market, I think at this point Harley itself is having a hard time convincing the Harley market to buy bikes, let alone another company trying to penetrate the bloated cruiser market. I hope it's a roaring success for BMW, even though the chances are almost zero that I'd buy one.

Now on the other hand, if they recreated that R5 (I think that's what it is) in those exact dimensions, and put something like a modern 500cc fuel injected engine in it, that would be the cat's ass.

 

[VRODE]

I don’t care for the flanged pipes at all. It’s a great effort for a retro BMW, but I’m not sure there’s much of a market for it. But I hope I’m wrong and they sell a lot of them.

 

[gv550]

I had a 1939 R51, I restored it and rode 3-4000 kms over 10 years. It was similar to the R5 shown above except for the addition of rear plunger frame suspension. It was a 500cc twin-cam engine with hairpin valve springs, 4 speed gearbox with manual neutral lever, manual spark advance, backward hand levers. Sold it in 2004....................

 

[RCinNC]

I know it's all subjective, but that is easily one of the most beautiful classic motorcycles I've seen. Even better looking than a Vincent. It just has this streamlined, clean, art-deco look that makes a motorcycle a work of art rather than just a machine. I totally get the sad face emoji at the end of your post, but the one bright spot is that at least you can say that, at one time, you owned it.

 

[gv550]

Ya, that was at the end of my BMW disease era, the last of 15 bikes to go. 6 were ground up restorations and the rest were original collectors. It was sad to see them go to new homes but I lost interest in them and switched to restoring old farm equipment and then 2 sports cars, a '67 Mercedes 250SL and Triumph TR4A.

 

[Don in Lodi]

Much better looking attempt than their last "cruiser". Remember that one? I'd put those Vance and Hines on any of those models.

 

[Stantdm]

Well the new on the left is a good attempt. I at first wrote that it was a bit bloated but after watching the video I think that with a decent set of pipes that single seat model would look just fine. I have never owned a BMW but the 1939 above is one I would like to have. When I was about 15 a neighbor had a 250 single BMW that he bought for his son. We rode together once in awhile. This would have been about 1959 and that bike was of no interest to me at the time. Years late I saw one and was impressed with its looks. I am pretty sure it was a R25 as the R27 was not out until 1960.

 

[Sierra1]

I'm just not seeing it. Not pretty, sexy or cool. . . .to me. BMW's version of the Valkyrie? I really wasn't a fan of the Honda, but I'd pick it over the Beemer because. . . .it's not a Beemer. So, does this mean a GSA1800 is on the way? Hard to believe that will be the only chassis that will have that motor. I do think that RC is onto something; a 500cc version would have made more sense, and sold better in today's market(s).

 

[regder]

I find it a real shame that they didn't stick closer to the concept. The concept was utterly gorgeous, and had what most of you are describing above. Clean, uncluttered, and simple. I don't even see anything on the concept that couldn't be automatically transferred to the production design except the exhaust, seat, and maybe handlebar position.

BMW missed the mark

 

[gv550]

This was my 250. 1953 R25/2. And me....... circa 1980s.

 

[Mak10]

Nice pictures.