Last week, BMW unveiled its new R 12 S, a boxer-twin heritage model that overtly draws inspiration from the R90S that was manufactured from 1973-1976. With that bike very much on my mind, I went searching for one to highlight on Bike-urious. I found a few good examples (all with considerable asking prices), but the machine that stood out to me was this: a custom 2012 R 1200 R that’s inspired by the R90S that racing legend Reg Pridmore used to become the first-ever AMA Superbike National Champion back in 1976 (a title he would hold again in 1977 and 1978).
The bike is even signed by Pridmore himself. The seller has photos of him doing so.
The R 1200 R, meanwhile, was an excellent and too often underrated motorcycle. Driven by an oil/air-cooled 1170cc boxer twin that produced roughly 110 horsepower and 88 lb-ft of torque, it was manufactured from 2004 to 2012. The snake eats its own tail in this story, as the engine that powered the R 1200 R is effectively the same one that now powers the R 12 S.
Highly rated by owners, the R 1200 R never got a lot of love from moto-journalists. They felt it was a bit basic compared to Japanese competition, and weren’t fond of the aesthetic. That first issue is a classic case of “it’s not a bug, it’s a feature,” for owners who are happy to bedeck their R 1200 Rs in all manner of bling from sellers like Wunderlich.
The second issue ─ the bike’s looks ─ has also been fixed for this particular example. Well, mostly. I mean, you can put Lava Orange lipstick on a pig, but you’ve still got a bike with weird sticky-out bits.
The thing I love is that the person who customized this bike wanted to honor Reg Pridmore but couldn’t resist doing that BMW owner thing of adding additional lights. Do you even own a BMW if it can’t provide enough light for a high school football game?
With 12,000 miles on the clock, this one-of-a-kind R 1200 R is for sale for $7,500 in Fredericksburg, Virginia, here on Facebook Marketplace.