THE REASONING
Why, then, introduce a giant, lowriding cruiser, more Milwaukee than Berlin? The answer, in a phrase, is new markets. BMW’s recent retro obsession boils down to a desire to capture a younger, hipster market. Faced with a saturated touring market (of mostly older, white men), the marketing gurus suggested a fusing of BMW history and the current vogue for all things retro. First were the so-called naked bikes, the R nineT range – emotive machines conjuring up the marque’s own halcyon days of the R27 back in 1967, recalling the Fonda/Dean years of no limits, no responsibilities and boundless freedom. Add the inherent style of the 1960s, mix in a dollop of German technology, and Bob’s your Bavarian uncle – a new market and a jump in sales.
Next, is this – the affluent urban-weekender market, dominated by cruisers rather than café racers, mostly Harley-Davidsons – mobile middle fingers from a tribe of surrendered baby boomers who are weighed down by responsibility, spreadsheets and entitled teenage children.
Into this demanding ring steps Roland Sands’ leviathan R18: layers of cutting-edge technology clothed in a suit of BMW history, aiming to steal market share from Milwaukee’s Fat Boy.
THE BIKE
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