BMW Motorrad launches the R 18 in India at Rs 18.9 lakh

BMW Motoradd has launched the R 18 in India at a price of Rs 18.9 lakh, ex-showroom, Pan India. It will also be offered in the First Edition trim, at Rs 21.9 lakh. Ever since its international debut in April this year, the BMW Motorrad R 18 has been making the news globally. The new bike has already reached BMW Motorrad showrooms across our country.

In the limelight, is BMW’s 1802 twin-cylinder boxer engine which makes 90bhp and more than 150Nm of twist. The air-cooled engine makes torque all 150Nm available from as low as 2000rpm, making it great for all sorts of highway touring.

As for the chassis, it’s based on a double-loop steel frame which harkens back to the R 5 which broke covers in 1936. The rear swingarm covers the rear axle by way of bolted connections. Suspension duties are handled by old school telescopic forks up front and a centrally mounted preload-adjustable cantilever strut out back, providing 120mm of travel at the helm and 90mm at the rear. The R 18’s anchors come in the form dual 300mm discs up front and a single unit at the back, both operated by 4-pot calipers enabled with ABS.

Speaking of electronics, the R 18 gets three Riding modes, named Rain, Roll and Rock! It also comes with Automatic Stability Control (ASC) and engine drag torque control (MSR) as standard and hill assist and a reverse assist as optional. Ergonomics are exactly what you’d expect from a vintage cruiser with a rear-swept handlebar and mid-mounted pegs, both of which are fully adjustable.

The design takes inspiration from the R 5 as well, such as the metal tear-drop tank, open-running driveshaft and a pinstriped paint scheme. BMW has also made it clear that it encourages custom builds on the R 18 with an easy to dismantle rear frame and body panels. Infact, we even featured some wicked custom jobs on our site last month.

The special First Edition features a unique black paint scheme with white pinstripes, which incorporates chrome in a lot of parts such as the side covers. The First Edition features adaptive headlight technology which BMW calls Headlight Pro. It also comes with a Welcome Box which contains a lot of BMW Motorrad merchandise.

At a Rs 18.9 lakh price tag, would you pick the BMW Motorrad R 18 over its arch nemesis, the Triumph Rocket 3 GT which costs Rs 50,000 less than the beamer?