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BMW Motorcycle Anniversaries in 2002 - 01/29/2002
The year 2002 has numerous BMW motorcycle anniversaries lined up
MUNICH, GERMANY, January 29, 2002 (BMW of North America, Inc.) - Since the inception of BMW's motorcycle production in 1923 - the year that saw its first model, the R 32, unveiled - the company has remained unswervingly loyal to the two-wheeled sector, launching numerous new models onto the market year on year. Today's tally is just over 100 models, of which more than 1.5 million units have been built to date. It is hardly surprising, then, that there are plenty of anniversaries to be celebrated. They provide an opportunity to look back and focus on some of the innovations from the past, especially as BMW proved time and again to be one of the forward-looking pioneers in this field. Today we turn our attention to the BMW R 47.
75 years of the BMW R 47
Production of the R 47 began in Munich in January 1927. It entered the market as the successor to the R 37 sports bike. With the R 37, BMW had a highly successful sports model in its range which was earning the company numerous successes on the race track in particular. A raft of technical refinements, however, had driven the price so high that only a limited number found their way into the hands of well-heeled, motorsport-keen customers. By contrast, the R 47 with its sales of 1,720 units was, for the time, virtually a mass-produced model.
The running gear of the R 47 was the same as that of the R 42 Tourer launched in 1926, with a single leaf spring and an external shoe brake at the gearing which was directly contracted on to the cardan shaft. The engine was based on the overhead-valve 500 cc Boxer of the R 37, though in terms of materials and production methods was not as elaborately constructed and, thanks to a simplified production process, was cheaper to build. Instead of turned steel cylinders it featured grey cast iron cylinders, while the valve bonnets were now attached by a centre-mounted screw. Nevertheless, output was increased to 18 bhp, a figure which also secured BMW a place among the international front-runners.
An affordable price of 1,850 reichsmarks and the abolition of the former 15 per cent luxury tax on motor vehicles made the R 47 extremely popular and ensured that sports models were no longer mere image vehicles, but were also turning into a profitable line of business.
Motorcycle racing, moreover, was an advertisement for BMW. Beyond the popular deployment of the R 47 by private competitors, it was above all the factory models that created a stir in the 500 cc class. Victories like in the "Karlsruher Wildpark Rennen" by Ernst Henne, consolidated the reputation of BMW motorcycles as hallmarks of quality, performance and reliability.
Technical Data
BMW R 47 (production model)
Engine Four-stroke, flat-twin Boxer
Displacement 494 cc
Bore/stroke 68 x 68 mm
Output 18 bhp @ 4000 rpm
Transmission 3-speed
Weight 130 kg
Maximum speed 110 km/h
Production period 1927 - 1928
No. of units built 1,720
Price RM 1,850
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