BMW Lo Rider Concept

[Mr Lefty]

wadda think?

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/08nov...bmwconcept.htm

Introduced earlier this week at EICMA, the BMW Lo Rider concept is fascinating and, to us at least, quite attractive. The concept includes individualization by the customer. For example, different headlamp units are available, as well as a customer choice of exhaust position, solo or dual seat, etc. As BMW indicates in the press release below, the Lo Rider combines both classic design elements and modern high performance technology. Please email us with your thoughts on the Lo Rider.


1. The facts in brief.
The BMW Lo Rider – sporty, purist roadster study with an individually variable design.

Purist, powerful, unfaired and reduced to the absolute essentials – these few words provide an incomplete description of the BMW Lo Rider, the new concept study by BMW Motorrad. At fi rst sight, the focus would seem to be on the creation of a roadster with a muscular appearance, openly displayed technology and powerful flat twin engine for pure emotion and maximum motorcycling fun. But behind all this is in fact a completely new custom concept.


The bike’s low weight, the powerful and high-torque fl at twin engine and high-quality chassis technology give it a high level of sporty riding dynamics, while the lowered chassis and the relaxed yet active seating position with the broad handlebars are more of a loan from cruisers and naked bikes.

The concept is such that, for the first time, the customer can be involved in the design of the BMW Lo Rider to an extent which goes beyond what has previously been possible to date. Numerous options including different exhaust systems, seats, headlamp units and paint finish variations allow for a level of customisation which is far greater than the familiar individualisation by means of special equipment features and accessories. This means that the entire character of the vehicle can be adapted to the customer’s individual taste: the customer can take full pleasure in assembling a machine just as he wants it – from a cool cruiser to an aggressive muscle bike.
2. An overview of the conceptual highlights.
Combines current technology with modern and classic stylistic elements.
Design elements can be individually combined by the customer.
Raised or lowered exhaust system, as preferred.
Seat for one or two as preferred, or aluminium perch seat.
Headlamp unit in classic shape or in streetfighter style, as preferred.
Fuel tank with or without aluminium trim, as preferred.
Four paint finishes for the fuel tank.
Three paint finishes for the engine casing.
Front and rear wheel wings finished either in black or chrome, as preferred.
3. The idea in detail.
Leading the way with concept studies – a BMW Motorrad tradition.
BMW Motorrad has a tradition of coming up with new ways and ideas when it comes to motorcycling. Fascinating studies and designs have been produced in the past using ideas which then found their way into serial production.

But studies by BMW Motorrad are about more than just trying to develop a motorcycle which has not existed in a given form before. In addition to functions and quality, BMW developers focus on the emotional component – the connection between man and motorcycle. The guiding principle is that a motorcycle should not just function perfectly but should also appeal to all the riders’ senses simultaneously, arouse an emotional response in him and fill him with enthusiasm at every moment – when stationary and when moving, as a whole and in its detail. In short: it has to light the fire.




Emotion through interaction – individualisation made-to-measure.
With the BMW Lo Rider study presented at the EICMA in Milan, BMW Motorrad is not just demonstrating a continuation of this policy but is in fact taking a significant step forward in focusing on the interaction between man and motorcycle. The idea is that for the first time, the customer should be interactively involved in the design of his BMW – going far beyond the familiar adding of special equipment features and accessories. The customer is to be given the opportunity to be much more deeply involved in the design of the Lo Rider from the outset, creating a customised, made-to-measure machine based around the principal components such as engine and chassis.

Classic meets modern – a combination of stylistic elements from different eras.
The study Lo Rider does not fi t into any of the classic motorcycle segments – and it is not supposed to. It combines the latest technical attributes of high performance sports motorcycles with the traditional, classic principles of motorcycle construction. State-of-the-art chassis components from sports motorcycle construction such as the powerful upside-down fork, 6-piston brake calipers with real bite and wide 17-inch tyres are combined with styledefining elements of motorcycle construction from the fifties and sixties. For example, with the exhaust system in a more traditional lower position in side pipe style creates a classic roadster or cool cruiser look, while a raised exhaust system is reminiscent of legendary racing machines or typical scrambler models of days gone by. Together with a range of variously designed seat concepts, also based on styles of the fifties and sixties, as well as differing paint finish versions, the BMW Lo Rider offers the motorcycle fan a wealth of possibilities by means of which to interpret the roadster theme in a highly individual way according to his own personal taste founded on a single basic motorcycle. In fact the Lo Rider gives the creativity of its rider almost completely free rein.

Chassis and engine – state-of-the-art technology based on classic principles.
The mixture of classic and modern stylistic elements of motorcycle construction combined with state-of-the-art technology is what gives the Lo Rider its defining look from all angles. A torsionally stiff space frame of sophisticated architecture openly displays the bike’s technology and together with the upside-down telescopic fork at the front and Paralever rear-wheel swing arm provides the modern basis in terms of chassis technology - just as it is to be found in some current models of the BMW Boxer series. What is more, the chassis of the Lo Rider has been lowered as compared to conventional roadsters.

In terms of tyre dimensions, the 17-inch wheels represent the current state of the art for sports motorcycles, though with their chrome wire spokes, black hubs and steel rims they ingeniously echo the characteristic stylistic elements and flair of a past era. By contrast, contemporary technology and a high level of riding dynamics is provided by elements such as the high performance dual brake disk with powerful 6-piston calipers, together with wave brake discs borrowed from motor racing

Personally I like it