In an age of fully faired, 140+ horsepower sport bikes it’s hard to imagine a time when the BMW R90S was one of the best sport bikes on the road, but when BMW introduced the bike in 1973 the R90S set a new standard for performance bikes.The R90S left the factory with an 898cc boxer engine that put out 67 BHP, and powered the bike through the quarter mile in just over thirteen seconds. The bike came with a five speed gearbox, and a drive shaft transferred power to the rear wheel. The 478 pound bike (dry weight) came with a hydraulic steering damper, telescopic front forks and twin shocks at the rear. The R90S also had a unique “bikini” fairing and a two tone paint scheme.
In 1976 Reg Pridmore competed on an R90S in the first year of the American Superbike series, and won the championship. The team was a privately funded effort that received no help from the factory, but they developed the bike and increased the engine’s output to approximately 100 horsepower. The success of the bike surprised everyone, including BMW, who told the team that they would give them two R90S bikes if the team would give them one of their race bikes. The team declined the offer.
BMW eventually replaced the bike with the R100S, but between 1973 and 1976 they produced 17,455 of the bikes and helped define the sport bike class with their unique engineering approach. BMW’s latest entry in the sport bike class is the S1000 RR. At this stage of its development the bike looks more like other superbikes than a BMW, and it remains to be seen if it can compete with bikes like the Yamaha R1 and the Ducati 1098 on the track and in the show room.
BMW R90S Slideshow
1976 Cycle Magazine Review
