BMW Bikes in India

The first BMW motorcycle, the R 32, was released in 1923. Until then, the company had only supplied engines rather than complete vehicles. The R 32, designed by Max Friz within just a few weeks, founded BMW’s illustrious motorcycle tradition in 1923. The centrepiece was the new BMW Boxer engine concept. 

In 1925, BMW Motorrad’s R 37 opened up the doors to motor-racing. By then, the BMW Boxer concept was implemented with a high level of quality, based on the reliable high-performance technology BMW two wheeler had used in building their aircraft. The BMW Boxer soon became the ideal starter model for professional racing. In 1939, German racer Georg Meier made headlines on the international scene as he became the first non-British rider of a foreign-built bike to win the legendary ‘Senior Tourist Trophy’ on the Isle of Man. He achieved this feat on a supercharged BMW RS 225 Kompressor. 

In October 1945, the US military ordered the BMW two wheeler plants in Munich and Allach to be dismantled. This meant that BMW biks lost the power of disposal over its assets until 1949; in Allach, this loss of control, in fact, lasted until 1955. 

Then, after a major company rebuild, the first BMW motorcycle to hit the roads after 1945 was the R 24 motorcycle, introduced in March 1948, which was an enhanced version of the pre-war R 23 model. However, shortage of materials and machinery delayed series production until December 1948 but the sales success of the R 24 then exceeded all expectations as in 1949 alone, 1,944 units of the R 24 were sold. 

While BMW bikes India had been set up in 2006, BMW Motorrad did not bring their motorcycles to the Indian two-wheeler market until 2010. From December 2010, BMW Motorrad started selling and importing its flagship superbike, the S 1000 RR and other bikes from its R and K series as well in India. To do so, the company had selected two official importers, Deutsche Motoren in Delhi and Navnit Motors in Mumbai and Bengaluru, thus, having three official importers and retailers at the commencement of their sales operations.

However, after much anticipation, BMW Motorrad officially launched its entire range of sports bikes in India under the BMW Bikes India Group in 2017. Even though the bikes were still brought through the CBU route, their sales and service operations were now being handled through independent BMW Motorrad dealerships, the first lot set up in Pune, Mumbai, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru. As of 2018, BMW Motorrad has 7 dealerships and service centres across the country. 
        
The range of BMW bikes in India consists of the G 310 R, G 310 GS, F 750 GS, F 850 GS, R nineT, R nineT Racer, R nineT Scrambler, R 1200 GS, S 1000 XR, R 1200 R, S 1000 R, K 1600 B, K 1600 GTL, R 1200 RT, R 1200 RS and the S 1000 RR. 

BMW bike prices in India start at around ?12.2 lakh for the 2018 F 750 GS and go up to ?28.3 lakh for the 2018 K 1600 GTL. All BMW bike price listings can be found on the website of autoX.