BSA is probably best known for their Lightning, but they also had a touring complement known as the BSA Thunderbolt. Produced from 1964-1972, the bike had two major updates through its’ life. In our eyes, the designs got uglier over time – culminating in the bike we feature today.
34th Annual Hansen Dam All British Ride
Every year, the Southern California Norton Owner’s Club hosts a wonderful get together at Hansen Dam. The combined show and ride features decades of classic British iron – and you’re bound to see great bikes from other marques, new and old. We got an invite from a local BMW mechanic friend and couldn’t say no. As you’ve come to expect …
Featured First – 1982 Honda CBX 1000
12-13 Update: Someone on r/motorcycles noticed that this bike is back up for sale. Find it here on Craigslist, though the price has gone up to $6,000. Based on reader feedback, we’re starting a new series today – Featured First. The motorcycling industry thrives on innovation, and we’re going to show you some of the notable ‘firsts’ that manufacturers have …
1 of 30 – BMW R100S Exklusiv Sport
Post-Sale Update: After 11 bids, this BMW R100S Exlusiv Sport sold for $12,000. The BMW R100S Exklusiv Sport was one of the many examples of BMW throwing a special paint job on the last models in a given run to help with sales. In this case, though, BMW used vinyl stickers for the cosmetic facelift. In addition to the special …
1966 BSA Thunderbolt A65
Post Sale Update: After being relisted on eBay, this BSA Thunderbolt sold for $4,600. The BSA Thunderbolt, despite the aggressive, sporty name, was designed to be a touring bike from the Birmingham Small Arms company. That’s right – BSA (which at its peak, was the largest motorcycle producer in the world) was a originally a gun manufacturer. Guns and bikes …
1988 BMW K100RS SE
Post-Sale Update: This BMW K100RS SE did not meet reserve at $4,250. The BMW K100RS SE, or Special Edition, was a limited run of the K100RS that featured a lovely blue and white paint job, hand drawn pin stripes, and color-matched hard luggage. It’s also famous for being the motorcycle that introduced ABS to the market.
Euro-Market – 1991 Triumph Trophy 1200
Post Sale Update: This Triumph Trophy 1200 sold for just $1,600 on eBay. The Triumph Trophy 1200 was the debut model of Triumph’s new factory in Hinckley, as part of a multi-million dollar revitalization attempt. Setting their Japanese competition as the benchmark, Triumph tried to modernize themselves by increasing their quality and design standards.
1 of 200: 1978 BMW R100RS Motorsport
Post-Sale Update: This BMW R100RS Motorsport did not meet reserve with one bid at $12,000. A classic in its own right, the BMW R100RS needs no introduction. However, in 1978, BMW released a limited edition – the Motorsport. 200 were released to the United States. The fancy name of the BMW R100RS Motorsport might lead you to believe that there …
Hans Strikes Again – 1982 BMW R65LS
The BMW R65 was the baby touring bike in BMW’s lineup, built from 1978 to 1993. A limited run, called the BMW R65LS, was built from just 1983-1985. Less than 6,500 of the LS bikes were built, and it was a very polarizing design. Even to this day, riders either love it or hate it.
Belted Beemer – 2007 BMW F800S
Post Sale Update – this BMW F800S has sold at an unknown price. The BMW F800S was a very brief member of the BMW Motorrad lineup in the United States. Only sold from 2006-2007, it was notable for being the first BMWs to go with a belt drive. An upright parallel-twin developed by Rotax provided around 85 horsepower and earlier than …
1975 Honda Goldwing
This Honda Goldwing is from 1975, the first year of production. This bike is now a mainstay in the motorcycle world, with over one million in sales since its inception. The bike has become somewhat of a touring behemoth in recent years, with a flat six engine, cruise control, reverse gear and even an optional airbag. But when it was …
2005 BMW R1200ST
The BMW R1200ST was the short-lived successor to the R1100RS/R1150RS. One of the best sport-touring bikes ever made, this bike was a commercial failure, due to two factors. Firstly, there was a lot of overlap in the BMW portfolio with this bike, and most riders went with the R1200GS or R1200RT instead. And arguably more importantly…it was an incredibly ugly …
1993 Yamaha GTS1000
For only one year in the US, Yamaha sold a sport-touring bike that was far ahead of its time – the GTS1000. Full of technology that would not make its way to most bikes for years to come, the GTS featured fuel injection, ABS brakes, and most importantly, the RADD front suspension designed by James Parker. This suspension was able …