A complete technical, model-by-model, history of BMW's most popular motorcycle: the machine that invented the modern adventure touring activity.

A definitive guide to the iconic BMW GS, the model that revolutionized the dual-purpose adventure bike in 1980. Combining all-terrain capability, high performance and on-road ride comfort, the GS is the bestselling large-capacity motorcycle in the UK and is still evolving today. Including comprehensive specification details, owners' experiences and previously unseen pictures, BMW GS - The Complete Story covers the original R80G/S and its impact on the industry; design and development of all the updated models; radical engineering concepts and technology; worldwide racing success for the GS and finally, the all-new R1200GS of 2013 and the future of the GS. Superbly illustrated with 196 colour and 8 black & white illustrations, many previously unseen.

Celebrate BMW Motorrad’s first century with BMW Motorcycles: 100 Years. This comprehensive history is accompanied by historic and contemporary photography from BMW’s archive.

The Complete Book of BMW Motorcycles offers a thorough year-by-year guide to every production machine ever built by Germany’s leading motorcycle manufacturer. From the first model, the 1923 R32 that launched BMW's motorcycle dynasty, to the latest (and fastest) superbike, the S1000RR, this book captures nearly a century of motorcycling excellence in a combination of historic and contemporary photos. Technical specs are provided for each model. This comprehensive review covers all of BMW's bike families: The side-valve machines from the early years The early overhead-valve performance bikes The modern Airheads and Oilheads The four-cylinder and six-cylinder touring bikes The early pushrod singles The modern overhead-cam singles The latest parallel twins, and inline-four cylinder sport bikes Among them, you'll find all the classic bikes—pre-World War II BMWs like the R5 that defined performance in that era; the military R12 that carried the Wehrmacht as it blitzkrieged its way across Europe; the Earles-forked R69S that offered the perfect platform for mounting a Steib sidecar; the R90S café racer; the K1 “flying brick”; and the GS (Gelände Sport) series that launched a dual-sport revolution right up to today’s world-class S100RR and retro-inspired R nine T. Like the other titles in Motorbooks' Complete Book series, this guide to BMW's motorcycle output offers the most complete reference to the subject available.

Practical guide for anyone planning a long-distance motorcycling trip. Choosing, preparing and equipping a motorbike, documentation and shipping, life on the road, trans-continental route outlines: Asia, Africa & Latin America. Updated and now in full colour, this best-seller has been in print for almost 30 years.

Every red-blooded motorcyclist dreams of making the Big Trip--this updated fifth edition shows them how. Choosing a bike, deciding on a destination, bike preparation, documentation and shipping, trans-continental route outlines across Africa, Asia and Latin America, and back-country riding in SW USA, NW Canada and Australia. Plus--first hand accounts of biking adventures worldwide.

No motorcycle manufacturer is more closely associated with one type of engine than BMW: the air-cooled boxer twin or 'airhead'. It was included in BMW's very first motorcycle in 1923 and virtually every machine the company made, of every type, from radical road bike to TT winner, to land speed record holder, to 1970s style icon and even to the creation of an all-new adventure bike class with the R 80 G/S, right up to the mid-1990s. Phil West celebrates the success of the BMW airhead twin motorcycles. This book, with over 290 photographs, includes a history of the company pre- and post-War; the personalities behind the development of the bikes; profiles of each of the 'R' bikes in turn, including detailed specification guides and production numbers. These wonderful machines are regularly celebrated and now BMW itself is harking back to them with an all-new series of machines.

The air-cooled boxer BMW twins were among the most significant motorcycles of the 1970s through the 1980s, providing an unparalleled combination of comfort, reliability, and performance. From the /5 series, a complete series of sport and touring motorcycles evolved that earned a huge following and which was never emulated by other manufacturers.

BMW began its life in aero-engineering--as anyone who’s ever ridden one of its motorcycles might guess. These are bikes as close to airborne as any get. And what’s more, fifty percent of all the motorcycles BMW has manufactured are still flying down the world’s roads. These are the best, and in this book, the best of the best get their due, with brilliant, full-color photographs of BMW’s classic models and detailed descriptions of their features, all located within the context of a concise history of this legendary marque. From the first of BMW’s bikes, the R32, through the models that catapulted the company out of the ruins of World War II, to the latest bikes with the revamped opposed-twin-cylinder “boxer” engines that brought BMW its first fame--these are the bikes that made history, and, better yet, gave the most demanding riders a taste for flight.