BMW R 100 GS

The BMW R 100 GS is an off-road capable motorcycle from BMW, introduced in Florence on 24 August 1987 as the largest-engined travel enduro in the world. In 1988 it became the best-selling motorcycle in Germany. Its air-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke boxer engine of 979.9 cc, based on the R 100 engine, breathes through two 40 mm Bing constant-vacuum carburettors, takes 4.8 seconds from 0 to 100 km/h and reaches 181 km/h, with the maker quoting 4.9 litres per 100 km at a steady 90 km/h. It was the first BMW with the Paralever rear suspension and an integral shaft with two universal joints, on a double-loop tubular frame, and its spoked rims were the first to allow tubeless tyres on spoked aluminium rims. The name stands for Gelände und Straße, off-road and road. From 1989 a Paris-Dakar special with a 35 litre tank was offered, and a black Classic variant was built in 1995 and 1996. In all 34,007 were built at the Berlin plant, and production and sales ended in 1996 because the air-cooled boxer could not economically meet stricter environmental rules.