1973 BMW R-Series

4007528

Clear

1973.5 BMW R75/5 LWB Recently Dragged Out of the Shed After 25 years' Dormancy Engine Partially Rebuilt, Serviced, Tires, Battery & Much More - Runs and Rides! NO RESERVE! Please Wait for all Pictures to Load! One of the last /5 US BMWs, this amazing survivor quality BMW R75/5 long wheelbase just emerged from 25 years of storage last fall here in Central Virginia. Its long-term owner brought the bike down from the Philadelphia area (where it was sold new) around that time and never got around to getting it sorted out and running. Please note that this is the rarest of the /5s with a lengthened swingarm to correct the instability complaint many had with these when they were new. The bike was purchased last fall (2012) by a good friend of mine as his winter project. He made quite a bit of headway immediately - both cylinders had some rust in them from the long period of storage, so he removed both heads and barrels, replaced the pistons with new 1mm oversize, one exhaust valve and had the heads gone through by our best local machine shop, Ballos. Ballos also bored the jugs and fitted the pistons for Milo to put it all back together. Milo's business picked up quite a bit and the BMW became a side project that he was not getting around to finish. As I do quite a bit of work with Milo, we talked frequently and he offered the bike to me in that state. I immediately purchased it and turned it over to one of my favorite BMW gurus, Eppa Wimbish. Eppa removed the 1970s-era Pirellis and replaced them with fresh rubber, fitted a new battery, cleaned and reset the carburetors, replaced all fluids (oil, transmission, drive tube, rear drive and forks), adjusted the brakes and fitted new cable boots, replaced the steering head bearings and fitted new plugs. The bike sprung back to life and ran well for a few minutes, until both petcock rubbers went bad. We then replaced both petcocks with new Karcomas (old petcocks were tired, so rebuilding was not the best route) and put 3 gallons of non-ethanol Super 93 in the very clean, dry gas tank. A few warm-up cycles later, the heads were retorqued and the valves re-set a final time. It's a great running and riding preservation bike! My camera makes the original Blue paint look really good in these photos. It is very flat and checked on the top of the tank and generally without lustre. The tank emblems are the originals as are the plaques on the engine and back of the seat. The seat cover is also original. The plastic trim is missing around the handle as shown. The exhaust may have been replaced at one time. It has some small holes and sounds like the baffles are largely gone. Everything works on this bike save the horn. I have not diagnosed it beyond changing both (dirty, but not blown) fuses inside the headlamp housing. Which, by the way, is incredibly clean, all wiring looks like brand new therein. Lights, signals et.c. work without complaint. Close-up of the seat. Sticker beneath the seat. Original dealer sticker on the taillamp. We believe this to be this bike's last inspection, performed in May of 1986. The new sealed battery, just bought earlier this month. The bike's original tool kit appears complete down to the original rag and toolbox tray that sits below the seat. I am unsure whether the Denfeld-marked pillion peg rubber is original, but they are the same left to right. You'll note that the side stand is an unusual aftermarket item or perhaps hand-made by someone crafty! Left side of the engine. Right side of the engine. We believe that the right carburetor is original and that the left one is from a /6. Speedometer, odometer and tachometer all work though the original fiber needles disintegrated. I recommend sending this for a cleaning and two new brass needles to Terry Vrla in Oregon, who not only does the best work but charges a very reasonable rate. This is a matching-numbers bike as you would expect from a low mileage survivor. All numbers match the VIN on the title. The long-term prior owner just got a Virginia title for it in November, 2012, which you will receive with the bike. Here's the VIN plate on the head tube. Frame number adjacent. Engine number. Engine block casting date - 29.5.73 (29th May 1973) followed by a 2 which I believe indicated P.M. One of the receipts from the recent engine work. I can't find the ticket from Ballos and I got none from Eppa Wimbish but I'll be happy to put you in touch with either if you have any specific questions for them. terms - payment - shipping Inspections welcome during the course of the auction at our mutual convenience. Test rides are open to those who have a valid motorcycle endorsement on their license, adequate safety gear and the ability to immediately pay full retail for the bike should it be dropped while in your care. There are no exceptions to this. Full payment is expected within seven days of successful auction close unless mutually agreed to prior to your bid. Accepted forms of payment include cash on pickup, wire transfer, received and cleared cashier's cheque within the week. I am not a bank, do not extend financing or payment terms and requests for same will go unanswered. Bidders with a feedback rating less than (10) need to contact me prior to your bid to confirm your intent. Interesting non-needy British and European swaps up or down will always be considered, no Harleys, Hondas (except perhaps a cherry GB500 and I shouldn't want another one since I just sold one of the nicest in existence during 2012) or other rice desired. Pickup or shipping needs to occur within fourteen days of auction close unless mutually agreed to prior to your bid. I recommend Keyboard Motorcycle Shipping out of Kentucky if you'd like to have this trucked. I accept no responsibility for your choice of shipper but I have used Keyboard numerous times and have always been happy. I will not make your shipping arrangements but I will help your designated shipper when it is mutually convenient if it comes to that. QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? CONCERNS? E-MAIL ME OR CALL 804-357-4926