Before BMW would gift the world its ridiculously competent S1KRR, the German moco made solid machines but had much more of a reputation for tourers but not so much racers. Enter: The BMW Boxer Cup. It ran as a support event to GP races and consisted of a field of all R1100S bikes that were slightly modified, but still surprisingly close to stock aside from a few farkled parts here and there. To cash in on the success of this unconventional series, BMW released 200 Boxer Cup Replicas, (better known as BCR’s).
Like any race in which every pilot is on the same machine, said pilots are forced to create an advantage themselves via techniques like late braking. The series was surprisingly fun to watch, and the fact names like Randy Mamola – who just happens to have signed every single BCR example – and Kevin Schwantz opted to take part in the Boxer Cup only helped bolster the popularity of the series. I came across a promo video for the series from over a decade ago that’s definitely worth a quick watch:
While I guess you could call this a track version of the R1100S, (albeit this track machine is shaft drive and comes with heated grips) and is the mostly unadulterated BCR version of the R1100S retains everything that makes it a fantastic sport tourer including an upright riding position that allows for the ample leverage needed to wrestle the heavy machine from side to side. Aside from the blatant different in livery, rear-solo cowl, and carbon fiber valve covers – complete with sliders – there aren’t many differences between the regular R1100S and BCR-spec models.
The BCR’s 1085cc twin makes 98hp at 7,500RPM and 71.5ft-lbs of torque at 5,750RPM. A top speed of 140mph is nothing too special, granted it does weigh in at just over 500lbs. A 31.5-inch seat height allows for surprisingly sporty riding (when you’re not scraping that ridiculously wide engine) and it’s 4.75 gallon fuel capacity is said to be good for a cool 150 miles. The BCR sold new in 2003 for just under $11k (or £8,500), meaning snatching up a lightly used one today can be done without breaking the bank.
This particular BCR example has under 14,000-original-miles. The seller says the machine has been well kept and maintained, always garaged, and recently underwent “a full major service by a BMW Master Tech.” (Including valve adjustment and T/B’s synced). This example also sports factory Lazer dual undertail exhausts which look just as clean as the rest of the example. While these machine’s certainly aren’t for everyone, they’re nonetheless well-built, fun machines that can tackle a variety of riding applications and are reported to perform pretty well on the track (according to the folks at Visor Down who tested the BCR).
You can find this 2003 BMW R1100S Boxer Cup Replica for sale here on Craigslist in Burbank, California with a reasonable price of $6,500. (For 1 of 200, $6.5k ain’t bad!).