Photo: BMW Motorrad
It’s very likely most adults alive today know a thing or two about the Speedy Gonzales character. Part of the crazy Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies lineup, Speedy has been running fast on TV screens around the world for about 70 years now.
Being such an iconic character, Speedy Gonzales inspired a lot of people over the years, spreading far beyond the world of cartoons and reaching even totally unrelated fields, like say that of German-made motorcycles restyled over in Poland…
Enter the BMW R 18 Speedy Gonzales, a custom work part of BMW’s November release of customized cruisers. It was put together over in Poland by the Bavarians’ sales partner Inchcape Swadzim as part of growing effort to take the fight to Harley-Davidson in this segment.
The bike started life as a regular R 18, but got transformed into a chicano-style one that more than perfectly matches the bike’s chosen name, especially given how this is one of few R 18s to be shown in this form since the bike’s introduction not long ago.
Meant to be ridden in style “on the highway in the northern Mexican desert, riding past huge cacti and nothing but a seemingly endless ribbon of asphalt ahead,” the blue apparition packs large front and rear fenders of this kind of build, fishtail silencers on the exhaust, and enough bling to be easily mistaken for a Harley-Davidson from afar.
We’re told the design of the bike was “inspired by automobile construction of the 1920s and 1930s,” but to be honest that inspiration kind of fades when faced with the lines and colors of the chicano breed.
As said, the Speedy Gonzales is part of a larger group of R 18s shown by BMW last month, and just like all the others, it’s a one-off meant to show how far customizers can go with the German cruiser.
Enter the BMW R 18 Speedy Gonzales, a custom work part of BMW’s November release of customized cruisers. It was put together over in Poland by the Bavarians’ sales partner Inchcape Swadzim as part of growing effort to take the fight to Harley-Davidson in this segment.
The bike started life as a regular R 18, but got transformed into a chicano-style one that more than perfectly matches the bike’s chosen name, especially given how this is one of few R 18s to be shown in this form since the bike’s introduction not long ago.
Meant to be ridden in style “on the highway in the northern Mexican desert, riding past huge cacti and nothing but a seemingly endless ribbon of asphalt ahead,” the blue apparition packs large front and rear fenders of this kind of build, fishtail silencers on the exhaust, and enough bling to be easily mistaken for a Harley-Davidson from afar.
We’re told the design of the bike was “inspired by automobile construction of the 1920s and 1930s,” but to be honest that inspiration kind of fades when faced with the lines and colors of the chicano breed.
As said, the Speedy Gonzales is part of a larger group of R 18s shown by BMW last month, and just like all the others, it’s a one-off meant to show how far customizers can go with the German cruiser.
Google News