Almost exactly five years ago, BMW presented the R18 concept bike at the Concorso d’eleganza in the park of the Villa d’Este on Lake Como. It wasn’t long before the 1.8-liter boxer was offered in a production bike. Now BMW has shown the R20 concept. At the same place. A roadster with an even larger boxer.
Back then, we had the headline “Mike Tyson is weak compared to that,” but that’s a big improvement. Markus Flasch, the new boss of BMW Motorrad, has already achieved a lot in his short time in office. You can trust him to take the bold step to series production: “The BMW R20 concept is a mechanical masterpiece. At the heart of it is the big boxer. Unmistakably BMW Motorrad.” Sounds like a promise. The chassis has been completely redesigned and forms the backbone with a black double-loop chrome-molybdenum steel frame. With the black 17×6.25 inch disc wheel at the rear, on which a 200/55 tire is mounted, and a 17″ spoked wheel with black spokes and a 120/70 tire at the front, the BMW R20 concept is intended to combine tradition and modernity.The BMW Paralever has been designed in a new two-arm variant, in which the swing arm is made of chrome-molybdenum steel and the Paralever strut is made of aluminum. The kinematics are designed so that the drive torque is completely balanced. The two aluminum rear axle wheel carriers milled from solid represent another high-quality detail.The exposed cardan shaft, which was conceptually adopted from the R18 – the visual highlight of the R18 models – was shortened for integration into the roadster architecture. Fully adjustable Öhlins Blackline components work as suspension elements at the front and rear. The basic geometry of the vehicle has a steering head angle of 62.5° and a wheelbase of 1,550 mm. Deceleration is provided by radially bolted brake calipers from ISR on the front and rear axles – with six pistons per caliper at the front and four at the rear. The 2-in-2 exhaust system also provides the appropriate sound character. The heart of the BMW R20 concept is the air-oil cooled big boxer engine with a displacement of 2000 cc. New cylinder head covers, a new belt cover and a new oil cooler were developed for the concept bike, also to enable the oil lines to be partially hidden.The side view is a special highlight: the eye follows the path of the air that flows through the open intake funnels into the throttle valves and the cylinders, then escapes from the open exhaust system and the tailpipes in the megaphone design, creating the typical big boxer sound.Bold in styleThe aluminum tank has been given a new design and has a progressive color in the “hotter than pink” color from the 1970s. The color of the BMW R20 concept is rounded off by the cylinder head covers, belt cover and the air intake funnels made of polished and anodized aluminum as well as the Paralever strut, the footrest system and the ISR brake callipers in gunmetal.The tail light has been integrated into the single seat covered in quilted black Alcantara and fine-grain leather and underlines the dynamic roadster appearance with the compact rear. The modern LED headlight is presented in the form of a 3D-printed aluminum ring with integrated daytime running lights. The main headlight appears to float in the middle of this daytime running light ring. “The BMW R20 concept takes the Big Boxer culture to a new level,” says BMW. Now they just have to bring this work of art into series production.
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