BMW’s electric boxer

It has the look of a boxer, but what’s inside is all electric

BMW’s iconic two-cylinder boxer engine is about to go electric. The Bavarian company has released pictures of this Vision DC Radster, which retains the boxer engine’s shape, but uses electricity to power the bike. This is still a concept bike at the moment, but it will be spearheading the fleet of electric production bikes in the near future.

To create the familiar BMW shape, the Vision bike fills the space previously occupied by the engine with a vertically fitted, longitudinally oriented battery with protruding cooling systems to mimic the boxer cylinders. The compact electric motor is placed underneath.

Apart from the electric motor and battery, the concept bike uses familiar high-end components. The frame is milled from aluminium. High-tech materials such as carbon fibre and aluminium reduce the overall weight. The power is delivered to the rear-wheel through BMW’s favoured shaft drive, and the Duolever fork carries on the company’s tradition. Lights are LEDs front and back. The tyres are exclusively made for the bike by Metzeler.

“The boxer engine is the heart of BMW Motorrad – an absolute stalwart of its character. But BMW Motorrad stands for visionary zero-emissions vehicle concepts, too. In view of this, one question that arises is: what would happen if we were to replace the boxer engine with an electric motor and the required battery? The Vision Bike shows how we’re able to retain the identity and iconic appearance of BMW Motorrad in distinctive form while at the same time presenting an exciting new type of riding pleasure,” explained Edgar Heinrich, Head of Design BMW Motorrad.