1st post, love the look of the R18. Confused over current used pricing First Edition & Classic 2021.

[speedkelly]

I really love the look of first year BMW R18's. Are re-sale prices really this low. I looked at this bike below today. It is in amazing condition, has vance & hines pipes, only 2k miles. Are prices really this low? I would love to buy one of these models and do the floating solo seat, with the rear bobber fender. Why are used prices going so low? just curious. I feel like these will be future classis. My main concern is these bikes are now out of warranty.


https://www.bmw-ducati.com/default....ort By)&d=D&l=charlotte&fr=xPreOwnedInventory

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2021-bmw-r-18-3/ love this build. Even bib on it, but went way higher than I thought it would.

Hopefully I don't get too roasted here. Think one of these would make a great project and fun crusier.

 

[NM_Jason]

If you are willing to travel, you can find them marked down. I bought my 2023 Classic local this summer. It was brand new and no where near that price. Thousands lower. Look for older ones that haven't sold yet the dealerships mark them down. I am always keeping an eye on the market. There are always deals to be made if you are looking and flexible on traveling to get it or have it shipped.

 

[Star-Lord]

If you purchase that R18 FE for $8k, and duplicate the build of that Bobber on BaT; surprisedly, there's about +$10k worth of parts between the LMC fender, seat, seat pan, BMW floor boards, Beachbar handlebars, mini-LED and the Roland Sands Design Machined parts on that bike (not including labor).

The R18 platform is super reliable and very easy to self maintain (engine oil/filter, transmission fluid and rear bevel gear fluid changes, as well as air filter changes; in addition, adjusting the valves is also fairly straightforward).

I say, go for it..!!! Everyone on the forum loves the custom work that others are building, and there's tons of folks with first hand knowledge on the forum to help you through it...

 

[R18CentennialRider]

The reason the R18 is marked so low here in the USA is multifactorial:
1. The cruiser market and motorcycle market in general is in a slump. You can find Indians and HD cruisers marked down from new and lightly used as well.
2. The USA cruiser market is dominated by Indian and HD cruisers. The R18 is a new comer and is different than the v twins. So people go with what is comfortable.
3. The relative lack of dealership support compared to HD and even Indian. HD has 632 dealers here in the USA. Indian has 203. BMW only 141. So that is a real thing if you need service.
4. Repair expense and procuring of parts. The r18 will be more expensive to maintain and parts will be harder to get. Sometimes if you need a part it will have to come from the mother country (Germany). HD parts are everywhere and easy to source for the most part as are Indian to a lesser extent.
5. The big Jugs! People are turned off by the boxer engine because of the leg position and lack of true highway pegs like the V twins. There are mitigation strategies for this and once you get used to it it is no big deal but the perception is there and if you have spent 20 years riding a v twin with your legs stretched straight out the boxer seating position is often a deal breaker.
6. Perception of BMW as an upper class product not in touch with the “common man”. This is also a real thing and many middle or lower class bike riders wouldn’t be caught dead riding a European luxury bike.
7. It is not an American brand. This also is a deal breaker for many people.
8. Lack of aftermarket support. The HD aftermarket support and the ability to customize is nearly infinite. Indian isn’t anywhere near that but still vast. BMW r18 does have a good selection but far less than the others.
9. The lack of respect from other BMW riders. Many loyal BMW Motorrad riders give no love at all for the r18. It is not seen as a true BMW because it is a cruiser and heavy and relatively low horsepower. It looks way different from the others in the BMW line up so loyal BMW riders have been staying away. You may even see comments like “ it’s not a real BMW” or “I hope the r18 fails” I have seen both on various BMW forums.


Combine all those and you see the low prices. About 4000 r18s have been sold in the USA since 2020. It is an awesome bike in many ways and you will stand out and get noticed. If you can accept those issues above then it may be the bike for you. The people on this forum for the most part love the r18. I think it is an awesome bike with a beautiful engine and ride dynamics and overall cool look. I say go test ride one and make sure you have a dealer within a hundred miles or so then go for it. At the price point it cannot be beat IMO.

Good luck!

 

[Rufus]

Excellent summary R18CentennialRide. In addition to that, from a UK perspective and possibly the US aswell, I would add that prior to launch (at the beginning of the Covid pandemic) there was sooooo much media hype in the motorcycle press that it was almost never going to live upto it and plenty of low end Youtubers got hold of them when the demo bikes eventually got out to dealers, the rear suspensions weren’t set up properly and they rubbished the bikes (just for clickbait). Mud sticks. The American HD market already struggling itself wanted it to fail and I’m sure plenty of favours were pulled in here & there to hasten any negativity towards the bikes.

So, Speedkelly. You’ve already got ahead of the game because you are on the forum doing your due diligence, and you are paying nowhere near original MSRP anyway and sometimes you’ve just got to get the bike YOU want and ignore all the haters.

These are fantastic bikes, they ride well, have huge presence and personality, life is short. Best of luck.

 

[Star-Lord]

A forum member was selling his Bobbed R18 for $10k (pictures at the bottom); me personally, I thought it was at an amazing price, especially since it was nicely customized ...

My 2022 R18 B has approximately 13k miles on it, with zero issues and regrets...

There's bikes already "Bobbed" out there for sale, or you can purchase an R18 for under $8-9k and customize it yourself...

 

[motoxcz]

I really love the look of first year BMW R18's. Are re-sale prices really this low. I looked at this bike below today. It is in amazing condition, has vance & hines pipes, only 2k miles. Are prices really this low? I would love to buy one of these models and do the floating solo seat, with the rear bobber fender. Why are used prices going so low? just curious. I feel like these will be future classis. My main concern is these bikes are now out of warranty.


https://www.bmw-ducati.com/default.asp?page=xPreOwnedInventoryDetail&id=17460962&p=2&s=(Sort By)&d=D&l=charlotte&fr=xPreOwnedInventory

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2021-bmw-r-18-3/ love this build. Even bib on it, but went way higher than I thought it would.

Hopefully I don't get too roasted here. Think one of these would make a great project and fun crusier.

It's the same in Australia for second hand prices on these. My 2021 First edition Classic has cruise control and reverse (not all had these) 1500 km on the clock and was $15,000 AUD. I expect in the US will be a little cheaper comparitively. Would have cost the first owner about $34,000 AUD! New prices have fallen since they were released too.

 

[Star-Lord]

@speedkelly

There's a great deal on the forum for a 2022 R18 Model B; which, I'm partial too as a Bagger owner, who enjoys riding...

That said, I also have a great appreciation and admire the look of a Bobbed R18; it was a great project to work on, and sad to see it depart the garage.

If you are looking to ride long distances....the Model B is worth considering..

If collecting and or keeping a low mileage bike for poking around downtown, a Bobbed R18 is a nice choice... I agree on what you mentioned earlier; I actually think that nicely customized and well maintained R18 Bobbers will be worth something down the road - how far down the road, who knows.. All motorcycles are in a slump..

https://www.r18forums.com/threads/2022-r18b-first-edition.4037/

 

[speedkelly]

Thank you all for the responses. Star-lord, I feel honored that you took the time to respond. Your bike is very inspiring. Has all the perfect character traits for a modern retro classic. You have quite the eye for design. Amazing build. Question, to install the floating seat and rear bobbed fender and lights. Would you say that's around 4-5K? I love the original fishtails. Thanks again to all for the informative replies.

 

[Anibal]

I ride my R18B daily to work in London. A mixture of motorway and A roads and plenty of traffic jams as soon as I enter the London suburbs, all the way to the city centre. I split lanes like every one else and although a naked bike would have been better suited for the task, my bagger cuts through traffic like hot knife through butter. On the open road she offers a relaxed ride at 70mls/h. She can go way faster but where is the rush? I prefer to get on my zone and cruise all day long at sensible speeds. I love everything about her, the rumble, the shakes, vibrations and the way she propels forward. I am lucky enough to have a dealer within 25mls and the guys there are fantastic. I agree that there are not many custom parts to add personal touches but she is perfect the way she is (although I have added a few bits to make it more unique) which reminds me that they are very unique in their own right and the fact there are not many around, amplifies that feeling.
Go and try one for more than one hour and see how you feel about it. Go with the knowledge that she is not a V twin and therefore the riding position is different as mentioned before, but the riding position is not at all uncomfortable, it is just different and I actually like it. This is from someone who rode V twins for over 30years.
Good luck.

 

[Star-Lord]

Thank you all for the responses. Star-lord, I feel honored that you took the time to respond. Your bike is very inspiring. Has all the perfect character traits for a modern retro classic. You have quite the eye for design. Amazing build. Question, to install the floating seat and rear bobbed fender and lights. Would you say that's around 4-5K? I love the original fishtails. Thanks again to all for the informative replies.

Thank you for the kind words; however, my bike build was inspired and assisted by others from the forum - many PMs, e-mails, hard-to-get parts (@Anibal), wiring diagrams and pictures provided by others on this forum, helped to pull the Modern-Analog together..

Parts Cost: Definitely closer to the $5k-$6k range; depending on which manufacturer you choose to go with, exchange rates and shipping cost certainly add up and need to be considered...

Recent examples:

 

[Randy Kahn]

I really love the look of first year BMW R18's. Are re-sale prices really this low. I looked at this bike below today. It is in amazing condition, has vance & hines pipes, only 2k miles. Are prices really this low? I would love to buy one of these models and do the floating solo seat, with the rear bobber fender. Why are used prices going so low? just curious. I feel like these will be future classis. My main concern is these bikes are now out of warranty.


https://www.bmw-ducati.com/default.asp?page=xPreOwnedInventoryDetail&id=17460962&p=2&s=(Sort By)&d=D&l=charlotte&fr=xPreOwnedInventory

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2021-bmw-r-18-3/ love this build. Even bib on it, but went way higher than I thought it would.

Hopefully I don't get too roasted here. Think one of these would make a great project and fun crusier.

Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on whether you are buying or selling, the R18 line has terrible resale. If your a buyer, it's easy to find plenty of them in great condition you can buy cheap compared to their original cost. I purchased a 2023 Anniversary model new because I like to looks and thought because it's a special edition if I want to sell it down the line I might not get murdered on resale. Not so. It's a nice bike but the best thing about it is looks. It doesn't excel in any other area with the exception of build quality. The bike is perfectly machined.

The solution to the resale issue is simple. And it's a win win all the way around. I spent 25 years working for BMW, Porsche Audi, Acura, Honda, et. so I have some insight concerning the resale on things with motors.

The MAJOR drawback to the R18 in my opinion is performance. It rides well, stops well, has decent acceleration, and feels sturdy on the road. Cornering is ok, not fantastic for obvious reasons.

If Mottorrad would offer performance upgrades like Harley does, R18 owners would be much less inclined to let these bikes go.

This big ass motor could easily handle another 25lbs of torque. So if they offered stage 1-3 mods, you could turn this sled into F in rocket say with 35-50 lbs of torque. It might need a clutch mod, or brakes, or exhaust, and of course a remap, but whatever.

The dealers would be happy as hell to sell and install the upgrades, and the demand for the R18 would be very high I believe.

 

[Rufus]

You may be right Randy but just look at the pictures above (see Star-Lord) and those customized R18’s. They look terrific so it can be done if people have the will and means to take it on. It’s probably more to do with established culture and different Company business models. Americans love to modify, Japanese seem to love modifying, Germans err….nope, British err….nope. I’ve read it so many times, why do HD sell an inferior product that you have to throw serious $$ at to make it run well or sound better? Why not sell it straight out the door with a Stage 1 or whatever? . It’s because they make money, lots and lots of money doing that. The famous HD accessory catalogue. I’ve had one!

Euro 5+ regulations are very strict now and modifying is pretty much outlawed here so I don’t expect BMW Mothership would or could go much further than the cosmetic offerings already out there, of course there will be people who have the talent and confidence to have a go and modify regardless but that would be my 2c as the saying goes.

 

[Randy Kahn]

You may be right Randy but just look at the pictures above (see Star-Lord) and those customized R18’s. They look terrific so it can be done if people have the will and means to take it on. It’s probably more to do with culture. Americans love to modify, Japanese seem to love modifying, Germans err….nope, British err….nope. Generalizing here obviously and of course there will be lots of outlying examples out there to shoot me down but that would be my 2c as the saying goes.

R,

I was just speaking in general about the R18....the customized R18s are fantastic, but to raise the resale value overall I think factory performance mods are the key. If the R18s could be tricked out with a lot more reliable torque, they would be much more desirable and I think a lot fewer for resale.