This custom bike is BMW Motorrad’s birthday present to itself

BMW has celebrated 100 years of its motorbike division by giving one of its R18s to a German fellow to mess around with. 

Dirk Oehlerking is apparently well known in customising circles for his Essen-based outfit Kingston Custom. Oehlerking’s first order of business was to chuck the efforts of the many specialist BMW designers and engineers into a skip and bodge some new bodywork in his fancy garage. 

“As always, I worked with hard foam and cardboard to create the shape, the lines and the design,” explained Oehlerking about his high-tech approach. “The aim was for it to look powerful, elegant and fast combined with an innovative look.” Mission accomplished? Perhaps. 

Dirk calls his bike the R 18 The Crown (nothing to do with the Netflix series as far as we know, but he could be a fan), and it features a bespoke eight-litre fuel tank and bodywork made from 2mm thick aluminium, two stainless steel exhaust manifolds made by hand and the whole lot topped off with a tasteful Champagne Platinum paint finish accented with a spot of mother of pearl. The little crown on the BMW logo is a nice touch too.

A completely new front suspension had to be developed for the bike, but the engine and rear suspension are unchanged. Indeed, the headlight, instrument panel and footrests are also stock parts from the R18 donor bike that have been effortlessly integrated into the Oehlerking special.

You won’t be able to buy the R 18 The Crown because it’s just a little birthday present from BMW Motorrad to itself, but would you want to? Looks awfully uncomfortable, to be honest. Even the one-off commemorative specials make you spend extra for a cushion from the options list these days. Tsk.