Issue link: https://cp.revolio.com/i/1512588
12 | WheelsOfGrace.com | #70 BMW Motorrad USA proudly presents the 2023 BMW R 18 100 Years Edition and the BMW R nineT 100 Years Edition to commemorate 100 Years of BMW Motorrad. In keeping with the year in which BMW Motorrad was founded, each model will be limited to 1,923 units globally. In December 1922, BMW chief designer Max Friz put the first full-scale BMW motorcycle on the drawing board. At its heart was a 494 cc, 8.5 hp, air-cooled two-cylinder, four-stroke boxer engine. The first BMW motorcycle, the R 32, was unveiled in September 1923 at the German Motor Show in Berlin. Production began that same month in an area of the BMW engine works on the edge of the Munich's Oberwiesenfeld airfield. Just 56 motorcycles were built that first year. Those humble beginnings of BMW motorcycle production launched an unprecedented success story that would span a century. BMW R nineT 100 Years Edition The design of the R nineT is shaped by 100 years of motorcycle production and by BMW Motorrad's unwavering passion for the boxer engine. The classic roadster design recipe begins with a compact tank and an upright seating position and extends to premium materials and stylish design elements. The new R nineT 100 Years becomes an exclusive anniversary edition thanks to numerous special features. The heart is still the air/ oil-cooled, 1,170 cc, 109 hp two-cylinder boxer engine. In the anniversary edition, the legendary engine is accompanied by T h e 2 0 2 3 B M W R nineT 100 Years and R 18 100 Years Editions chrome and Option 719 parts, including paint- on-chrome surfaces and exquisitely milled parts and wheels. Paint finishes in combination with chrome surfaces also have an almost 100-year tradition in motorcycle production. Chrome surfaces, usually consisting of a copper, nickel and final chrome layer are known for their hardness and resulting high durability, very good protection against corrosion, but above all by their radiant, mirror-like shine. This made chrome a common stylistic device for designers, from the late 1920s onwards. The BMW R 75/5 with its chrome-plated tank sides and side covers, for example, is legendary within BMW Motorrad enthusiast circles. With the new BMW R nineT 100 Years and R 18 100 Years and the Classic Chrome surface finish, BMW Motorrad is reviving this incomparably beautiful and sophisticated interplay of paint and chrome. 50 years ago, the "paint on chrome" technology did not pose much of a problem for motorcycle manufacturers. At that time, the solvent-based paints combined well with chromium — significantly better than the solvent-free paints of today. Today, the 100 Year Edition models use only REACH compliant Chromium III. The chrome plating process and the preparatory work are extremely complex: In preparation, the metal tank for example, is first polished to a high gloss. The surface must be completely free of dust and scratches for further treatment. After this step, the part is immersed in various electroplating baths. Layers of copper, nickel and ultimately chromium are applied.