Deeper into the culture of BMW
The R100 RS was the products of Bayerische Motoren Werke’s efforts to produce an effective sports tourer that could be ridden vast distances with minimal effort. Despite attempts by the Japanese factories to broaden the appeal of their machines, when the R100 RS broke cover the Oriental plants were still turning out what we now call musclebikes. The Beemer may not have cut it on paper but on the road where it really mattered the bike could cruise all day at 100mph without issue; as long as the rider remained fresh and alert the only thing that stopped the bike was the need for petrol. And even this was minimised, thanks to a 6.1 gallon (27 litre) fuel tank. Japanese machines were, in reality, no match the Beemer’s long distance abilities – primarily due to that wind defying fairing. The product of innumerable hours of design modification and wind tunnel evaluations the nine-piece, frame-mounted fairing transformed an underpowered twin into a class leading long distance machine. Finished to an exceptional level externally, with a flush fitting headlamp, the plastics simply sliced through the air. And ironically the technology wasn’t exactly new to BMW either. Ernst Jakob Henne had given the company a world speed record in the late 1930s with super sleek flat twins. At its launch and subsequently the R100 RS was often perceived as being odd, weird or even ugly by many yet fairings were the future of modern motorcycles. With just 70 horses on tap, BMW ably demonstrated the sublime efficacy of wrapping a motorcycle in plastic. It would take Kawasaki’s game-changing GPZ900R to convince the vast majority of enthusiasts that the future was truly swathed in ABS and
polycarbonate! Riders were actively encouraged to go long distance touring via the optional Krauser luggage systems offered and should youalsobetakinga passenger, the rear shock