BMW marks 90th anniversary with one-off retro concept bike

How do you commemorate two major landmarks of your history? Well, if you are BMW Motorrad, you'd do it in style. To celebrate 90 years in the two-wheeler industry and 40 years of its first faired motorcycle, the BMW R 90 S, it unveiled a unique one-off bike, the BMW Concept Ninety. And BMW couldn’t have asked for a better venue to showcase its special motorcycle -- the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este 2013 in Italy. 

The BMW R 90 S was unveiled back in 1973 and was the first bike from the German bike manufacturer to boast a fairing which helped it achieve a top whack of over 200km/h making it one of the fastest production bikes of its time. The Concept Ninety draws a major influence from the R 90 S but has been given a café racer twist and draped in the same Daytona Orange paintwork which gave the R 90 S a distinctive identity. The bike was designed in close collaboration with world-renowned custom bike manufacturer Roland Sands Design from California, USA, which has been instrumental in providing many of the high-quality parts featured on the bike. The body panels have been handcrafted from aluminium while the traditional circular headlamps with halogen light have given way for LED lights to give the machine a modern touch. 

Special attention was given to the front cover of the boxer engine and the valve covers which were meticulously milled and the same treatment was given to the exhaust also. The parts were milled using a contrast cut technique which has been helpful in giving the parts an alluring contrast with respect to the black mechanical components. Sadly though BMW has no plans to produce this piece of art on two-wheels, so all you classic sportsbike fans have to be content just watching the Concept Ninety on your screens or later at the BMW museum.