FAQ

BMW R series 2 valves per cylinder, known also as Airheads, were produced in their hundreds of thousands since 1968 until 1996 and are quite famous for their build quality, reliability, good handling and engineering excellence. Because there are so many survivors, these bikes tend to be underrated and under priced, but with a loyal legion of cognoscenti giving it its true value.
Parts are plentiful, used or new, at very decent prices.

So, no wonder that a lot of these bikes, with quite a few over 30 years old, are still used everyday, even for commuting!

Any /6 Series bike onwards (1973 on) will be a good starting point as /5 Series (which have Short Wheel Base chassis) are quite sought after, with prices inflating all the time. The lowly R45 that appeared in 1978 along with the R65 is quite gutless, the R65 is sweet to ride and quite light, derived from a similar chassis but made of thinner gauge steel, and fairly fast at close to 110mph, so quite a good option as they are already equipped with nice features such as Brembo brakes. The iconic R90S is quite valuable and a pity to transform in a Cafe Racer, R90/6 is quite fast but rare in UK, the /7 Series R75 or R80 are very sweet and better balanced than the 1000cc engines, especially perky after 1981 with lighter flywheels. R100's have more torque but vibrate more, nevertheless are quite fast with potential for 124mph+.
 
I would recommend a BMW R80/100RT or RS as a good starting point as they are quite easy to find and you can sell easily the plentiful surplus parts (panniers, fairings, seat, tank etc) to offset the conversion costs, keeping the budget at an acceptable level.

Of these bikes, the /7 Series still have the heavy flywheel to smooth power delivery, which is advantageous for touring but hinders acceleration figures. Ignition is by contact breakers, which although reliable, do require some maintenance and never quite as nice as a proper electronic ignition. Several aftermarket ignition kits are available such as the Boyer Brandsen or Dyna or owners can simply retro-fit the electronic ignition kit from the later (post 1981) bikes. Brakes can be marginal in their performance with the dated sliding ATE brake callipers and the remote, Bowden cable operated brake master cylinder, sited under the tank. Beware of cracked or bent “Snowflake” cast alloy wheels, which were recalled in period due to their notorious softness but there could be machines that escaped this recall.
Post 1981 bikes saw an improvement by having more powerful Brembo brakes, lighter flywheels and electronic ignition.
 
The Post 1984 bikes are known as the Monolevers, due to their single sided swing arm design and later turned into Paralevers (very refined swing arm and driveshaft arrangement), with more modern forks and Brembo 4 pot brake callipers. After 1987, the engine and its heads were modified to run on Unleaded Fuel. These are quite excellent bikes but with more modern looks that may not suit an old style Cafe Racer but are an excellent proposition for those requiring a more modern feel to their bikes.
 

Tanks have proved to be very resilient to fuel as we provide a special coat on the inside (based in vinyl ester and isophthalic materials) to further enhance its leak proof capabilities but please note that if you use some of the Alcohol based fuels in higher concentration, we have no chance to assure you that ethanol fuels (like the common E85) will not affect the tank on the long term. In fact, the best material for ethanol storage would be stainless (preferably 304 or 316) as ethanol absorbs vast quantities of water and can corrode certain types of metal, plastic and rubbers, with disastrous consequences to our engines
 
We can assure you that normal fossil fuel (gasoline) will not affect the tank, in fact, we’ve got a fibreglass tank from end of Fifties made in Germany for a R50 BMW in an amazing condition!

Please note that Ethanol fuels can also damage your bike through water accumulated which can create backfires in your engine and bad running, destroy the rubbers and plastic components in your steel tank, fuel lines and carburettors internals and promote corrosion within your combustion chambers if the bike is laid for too long. This is the reason why modern vehicles designed to run on E85 come equipped with different construction materials and water filters from factory, to resist corrosion in rubbers, plastic, steel, etc.

Some countries do not permit the use of a GRP fuel tank for normal road use (in UK it is allowed), its use being restricted to private and off road and racing events. The theory being that in an event of a crash, the fuel tank could crack and spill its fuel, causing fire although a metal tank would probably split easier along its seams in the event of a violent crash. Obviously, the best material to safeguard this would be a fuel cell employed by racing teams, using Kevlar and other man made fibres but its cost is prohibitive and not suitable for cosmetic applications such as a bike tank.

It is your responsibility to ensure you obey your country legislation so please ensure that you are not breaking the law by consulting your relevant Government officials.

Currently we can offer all the conversion parts sold either individually or as a kit. We are not in a position to offer professional fitting services at the present, although it's something we would hope to be able to do in future.

However, if you need any advice or info or are just struggling with your bike tune up, please do contact us, we’ll be more than happy to help and impart advice in the best of our knowledge.

We'll be writing very soon a few technical articles how to maintain, repair and tune these BMW R2v Series so stay in tune for some useful information!

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