BMW has unveiled a new concept R nineT with GS styling influenced by the Dakar winning G/S from 1985.
The bike was revealed at the Wheels & Waves custom bike festival in Biarritz, France, the same place that the R nineT was originally revealed as a concept not too long ago.
Seeing as the latter subsequently made it onto the production line, the hope and expectation is that the same will happen with the ‘Concept Lac Rose’, as it has been named.
The name for the concept comes from the French name for rose-coloured salt lake near the Atlantic Coast which played host to the end point of the old rallies. The podium was right beside the lake and it’s a place where BMW’s factory machines picked up three victories in the ‘80s.
BMW’s Head of Design Edgrard Heinrich explained the background of the concept bike saying: “The BMW Motorrad Concept Lac Rose is our laid-back and very individual interpretation of the bike that won the Paris-Dakar Rallye in 1985 – fully in line with the spirit of Wheels & Waves and its visitors.
“It puts the BMW R nineT into an exciting new context and shows what passion for our brand heritage, imagination and a few modifications can achieve.”
While the concept may take a lot of inspiration from the R80G/S, you shouldn’t truly expect it to offer too much away from the black stuff. “Essentially the bike is a cool and laid-back roadster with a few typical off-road features which allow you to leave the street and follow a dirt track into the unknown,” Heinrich added.
The concept harks back to the legendary bike thanks to the characteristic headlamp with high mudguard, a large fuel tank, short rally seat bench and a windshield with typical rally equipment.
You can also expect longer suspension travel, spoked wheels with studded tyres and a head turning colour combination of signal red on alpine white. Underneath it all you’ll find the 1170cc air-cooled boxer-twin engine of the R nineT.
We get the feeling that this concept is likely to split opinion, so be sure to let us know what you think of it on Facebook, Twitter, or in the comments below.
