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Though we know BMW as a car company, they made airplane engines during WW I but very few cars before 1960. However, they did make motorcycles - and made them very well. The R-50, introduced in 1955, was considered one of their finest, utilizing a horizontally opposed, 2-cylinder motor with shaft drive. Though not especially big (at 490 c.c.'s) it ran clean, smoothly and quietly, producing a reasonable 29 horsepower and 90-mph top speed.
FM's 1957 R-50 with Steib sidecar is a sharp-looking image. Working features aren't as abundant as the newer releases but not totally absent. The detailing is crisp, with a movable kick-starter, operating suspensions and full wiring/cabling. The paint finish is gleaming black with white pinstriping on both bike and sidecar. (The 1:1 item was made by Steib, and is a real work of art, reminiscent of a zeppelin's nose.) The 1:10 version also has its own working suspension. The luggage rack swings up and the storage compartment hatch opens too. The soft-upholstered seat is done in dark blue with white pinstripes.
[Let me comment on attaching the sidecar to the bike. There are two lower locating studs and two upper swing-clamps that snap onto the bike's frame tubes - not the sturdiest arrangement. I found I had to pull off the plastic nipple on the rear stud to bring the sidecar close enough to snap on the swing-clamp. It now resides in the sidecar's storage compartment.] In a country where gasoline is costly, the BMW R-50 with sidecar provided space for a passenger AND room for some cargo. Not a bad way to go. The issue price is $195.
(06/03/2001)
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