BMW is represented by models at the top of all motorbike ranges, and the R18 is a masterpiece of American cruising in the European range. As a tribute to the classic series, the BMW R18 brings two luxury cruising models, the BMW R 18 Ranger, the Bagger version I released last December, which was pre-priced at $365,000 and officially priced at $280,800 this time.
The other is the BMW R18 Intercontinental Tourer, the Transcontinental version, which I also posted earlier with its pre-order price of $425,000, and this time the official price starts at $340,800. Both are $84,200 lower than the pre-order price.
Both the BMW R18 and R18 Classic versions are currently available in China. Finally, BMW has officially announced that the R18 Ranger and R18 Intercontinental Tourer have officially landed in China. Their imposing stance and high quality workmanship is a marvellous sight to behold. In the cruiser segment, BMW is strongly deploying efforts to expand their sphere of influence, just as BMW executives said “We will join the largest motorbike market in the world – The Cruiser Market – and we think it is only natural that we do so, after all, we have developed and designed all the cruiser range.”
The R18 series is the largest displacement boxer engine BMW has ever introduced. Both the R 18 Ranger and the Intercontinental Tourer are powered by the same 1802cc petrol-cooled OHV 4-valve horizontally opposed boxer engine as the other versions, which delivers 91 PS at 4750 rpm and 158 N-m at just 3000 rpm. The outward-facing cylinders, the open shaft drive system and the striking, hand-painted and imposing stance are BMW’s masterpieces for its “Super Cruiser” rivals.
Both the R18 Ranger and the Intercontinental Tourer have been fitted with a larger, oversized windscreen than the regular version, which provides a very good windbreak. Both feature front adaptive LED headlamps with Premium Headlamp PRO, as well as round fog lamps on both sides for a retro charm.
The R18 Ranger is equipped with two side boxes at the rear, giving the whole bike a retro and sporty look, while the R18 Intercontinental Tourer turns into a motorcycle side box kit at the rear, with an oversized rear backrest for a different comfort and feel.
As the contestant who went head to head with the Harley Glide, both bikes show a perfect combination of modern and retro on top of the cockpit, retaining the retro elements of the mechanical instruments while embedding large modern full colour 10.25 inch LCD instruments, as well as the audio system, heated handgrips and other luxury features all loaded on this super cruiser.
The R18 Ranger and Intercontinental Tourer have a low height of 720mm, making them easy to handle for those over 1.7 metres tall, with a relative weight of 398kg, but BMW has equipped them with a reverse gear function, which is very much needed on such a heavy model. Above the fuel tank, a small storage compartment has been specially designed for it to hold some cards or a mobile phone for easy access.
As cruisers, the footrests on the BMW R18 Ranger and Intercontinental Tourer differ from the forward-facing design of their competitors by having the footrests directly underneath due to the oversized boxer engines protruding from the sides, which are less relaxed and loose on the road, but the raised handlebars and the new riding triangle allow the rider to pedal more naturally and have a relaxed lower body driving position.
Clearly, the R18 Ranger and R18 Intercontinental Cruise are aimed at Harleys and Indians, so would these two BMW cruisers be your choice?
