1975 BMW R-Series

4980268

Clear

1975 BMW R 90 S..... Daytona Orange..... 66,900 miles..... VIN 4980268..... Matching Numbers..... We are listing this R 90 S for a very old friend of our motorcycling family who has been forced to terminate his motorcycling enthusiasm due to the relentless aging process, complicated by increasing health issues... We may not have all of the answers, but we will do what we can to encapsulate our recollections and observations, to the best of our ability..... There were three series of the R 90 S model produced... Total production numbers for the three series being 17,455 units... Model year 1974..... September 1973 to August 1974..... 6,058 units produced... Model year 1975..... June 1974 to September 1975..... 6,413 units produced... Model year 1976..... August 1975 to June 1976..... 4,984 units produced... This example, in other words, is one of only 6,413 total units produced, year and model, being generated in the second series..... The R 90 S was visually designed by Hans Muth, and was the first AMA super bike champion, being ridden to victory in 1976, by Brittish rider Reg Pridmore for BMW..... All of the above having been said, the following observations represent the down side of things as we see them.... This bike has been sitting in the rear of the owners garage for the better part of the past four years... We did get it to turn over, after some effort, remembering that these units are a little bit cold blooded, and it did sound quite strong, but please do remember, it has been sitting for a bit, and could use a good cleaning, servicing, and sorting..... We chose not to run it extensively, or at exceedingly high RPMs, but in giving it a "good listen", it appears that the left cylinder might have a bit of a valve tick... The travel on the front suspension seems a bit spongy, and the brakes only fair... The tires, although they don't look too bad, please be advised, they are not exactly new... The bikini faring, and the duck tail of the saddle are wearing the brunt of the cosmetic damage... The ducktail, although not broken or cracked, or suffering from any structural damage, is somewhat beaten up in a superficial sense, and one of the rear blinker posts is mildly bent... The bikini faring has all manner of issues... It has a couple of cracks which have been repaired, but not particularly well... There are also present on the faring and windscreen, an abundance of scratches, scrapes, scars, mars, chips, etc. etc. etc... and one of the front blinker posts is also mildly bent... On the interior, or the riders side of the faring, there is a sizable chip in the deck above the guages, as well as a moderate sized piece broken off of the steering damper knob... The clock had been removed to be repaired, and we have it in hand, but it never made it to the shop... The fuel tank, although dent free on the top and sides, save for a couple of tiny dings up front near the steering column, has a good sized linear dent on the lower, back area where it comes in contact with the front right corner of the saddle... The original hard bags are, of course, included, but they are not in the greatest of shape... The bag hinges are fine, but the bags themselves are presently not lockable due to the keys having gone missing some time ago, as well as one of the "on bag" brackets becoming detatched... As is often the case with older machines that have been used, there are bits and pieces that tend to go missing... In this case, some of those items would include the pair, both right and left, of battery covers. We searched high and low but they were nowhere to be found... Also not present are the tire pump, the tool kit, the owners manual, and the shop rag..... The following observations represent the upside of things as we see them..... For a 39 year old motorcycle with 66+k mi., this bike appears to be in relatively good condition... It has the matching numbers 4980268, and is one of only 6,423 total units produced, for the year and model... The California title is free and clear, and the tags are current up through December 2014..... This fine example would not only provide one with very efficient and stylish transportation, but would provide the basis for an excellent investment, which is to say that it would seem that this Motorcycle would be an excellent candidate for "getting it up and running now", to ride, and a really excellent restoration candidate for "later"... The rims and spokes are certainly serviceable... The seat is in very good condition, but is probably a factory spec re-wrap... The battery appears to be relatively new... The motor seems to have plenty of compression and in the few service records which we were able to locate, we found a work order to rebuild the transmission, which was done at 61k mi....... The header pipes, crossover, and silencers are all in very good condition...There is presently an aftermarket "Dyna" ignition booster wired into the ignition system... The speedo and tach gauges, bezels and lenses are all in great shape... The chrome and shiny bits are, for the most part, in good to better than good condition, and the racks are undamaged and remain firmly in place, thus easily accomodating a set of hard bags......... All in all, this is a very sound and easily restorable example of a really great piece of motorcycle history.......This machine was designed to look great, and go like hell... Now when deciding if this motorcycle, may in fact, be right for you, and in case we have not been perfectly clear, make no mistake, this motorcycle is not in mint condition... It looks pretty good in the photographs, but there is an unquestionable patina of age and use present..... PLEASE do bear that in mind if you plan to engage in the bidding process..... This sale / auction goes forward AS IS / WHERE IS, with no warranties or guarantees either expressed or implied.... The shipping and / or transport is to be the sole responsibility of the buyer, however, we will be most happy to assist in coordination and logistics..... For interested parties with a positive feedback score of 2 or less, please contact me in advance of bidding... All others with a 2 or less positive feedback score will be deleted and blocked... Thanks for looking, and have a nice day!.....On Jul-15-14 at 21:17:44 PDT, seller added the following information: Since the original posting, the elusive tool kit, tire pump, and owners manual have presented themselves, having been found neatly tucked away in a cabinet drawer in the back of the garage...Also with them, was a workshop/repair manual which, of course, will be included....