Highlights
- Genuine low-mileage bike – only 600 miles covered since 2013
- Resident in Cyprus’s sunny climate from 1993 to 2006
- Large collection of invoices showing regular maintenance
- MoTed with no advisories until June 2023
The Appeal
It’s no secret that some of the best and most enjoyable motorcycle riding takes place off-road, which accounts for the popularity of such events as scrambles and trials. It being mankind’s nature to always want to go further and faster, and to surmount ever greater challenges, it was only natural that such a gruelling competition as the Paris-Dakar Rally would eventually be conceived.
It was in 1979 that the Paris-Dakar was first held and in 1980 that BMW introduced the R80G/S (G/S stands for Gelände/Straße, meaning ‘off-road/road’), which many credit with being the first dual-sport motorcycle. An R80G/S was entered in the 1981 Paris-Dakar and it proceeded to win not just once, but a further three times between 1983 and 1985. Suitably pleased, BMW launched a special edition Paris-Dakar version of the G/S with a larger fuel tank. With a larger, 980cc flat-twin appearing in 1987, the R100GS was born and found favour with off-road motorcyclists around the globe, especially in its special-edition Paris-Dakar guise.
This example is a really remarkable survivor, sold new in America but exported to Cyprus in 1993, where it remained until it was imported into Britain in 2006. All that time in the dry Mediterranean climate obviously hasn’t done it any harm, but key to its outstanding original condition is the fact that it’s seen such light use, with fewer than 10,500 miles covered over its 32-year life. We doubt you’ll find another like it. You might devalue it if you were to actually ride it from Paris to Dakar, but it runs so nicely that we’re sure you could if you wanted to.
The History and Paperwork
- Sold new in North America
- In April 1993, the BMW was shipped by Air Malawi from Mr. A. O. Stride in Blantyre, Malawi, to Mr. Eric Stride of Paphos, Cyprus
- Imported from Cyprus into Britain and registered with the DVLA in July 2006, since when it has had five registered keepers
- From 2014 until earlier this year, the bike was owned by a Hertfordshire motorcycle collector
- Paperwork includes the current V5, some of the original BMW owner’s literature including the service book, several documents pertaining to the export of the bike to Cyprus, numerous invoices for parts from Cypriot and British suppliers, and some MoT certificates including the current one valid until June 2023
The Condition
- Totally original and unrestored
- Extremely well-preserved with little evidence of age
- Complete with detachable pannier boxes
Considering this was built to be run off-road, and that it spent most of its early years on the dusty roads of Cyprus, it really looks like this BMW has had quite a charmed life, but perhaps that’s not so surprising considering it has only done 10,000 miles.
In terms of paint, all you see is original and astonishingly well-preserved. If you really scour it, you’ll find a few small chips at the edge of the front mudguard and a couple of very minor blemishes on the tank, but it really is as good as it looks in the pictures. There are a number of plastic parts, which are often some of the first to succumb to a bit of wear and tear, but on this BMW they show little or no signs of aging.
There is some very light cosmetic wear on the plastic windscreen, which has a few light marks running across it, but they are only visible under certain light and scarcely detract from it at all.
The seat is really excellent. It has perhaps mellowed a little bit with use and age, but it has incurred no damage and could almost be passed off as new. We presume the bike has been garaged all its life as it shows no signs of fading or drying out from the Mediterranean sun.
All the other parts are just as good. The wheels, light lenses and so on are extremely difficult to find fault with. Better still is that the bike retains its original, removable pannier boxes, which are in excellent order save for a few very light marks on the surface.
While the bike is more or less entirely original, there is an invoice which suggests a new rear grab rail was fitted in 2001.
The Mechanics
- Invoices testify that the bike has been well-maintained
- Only used very lightly – 40 miles covered between 2007 and 2010, and only 600 since 2013
- Impressive MoT record with the current MoT valid until June 2023
- Starts and runs easily and sounds great
As far as we know, this BMW has never received any major mechanical work but, on the face of it, we can see no reason why it should have done. With only 10,500 miles covered since new, which the paperwork shows to be genuine, it is highly unlikely that anything should have worn out.
We have seen the bike fire up, and it certainly appears to be in the best of health, with a very strong, certain idle. Having been submitted for an MoT test on 17th June 2022 and passed with no advisories, we feel confident that it’s already to be taken onto the road and enjoyed.
The record of past mechanical work shows that, in 2005, the carburettors were balanced and a new coil was fitted. The front brake disc was replaced in 2007 and a new starter motor and Hagon shock absorber were fitted. Since then the GS has seen such light use that we think it’s probably in a better way than many bikes 25 years its junior.
The Summary
When new, BMW’s R100GS was really made for going off the beaten track and having an adventure, doing the sort of things one just can’t do with other bikes. Having survived in remarkably good condition, we’re sure it would be entirely capable of such enthusiastic use although, survivors in such good condition being so rare, we doubt you’d want to be too hard on it.
Instead, though, it would make a great addition to any collection. One doesn’t encounter an R100GS every day, let alone a special Paris-Dakar edition, and such well-preserved and original examples really are a rarity. While you may feel inclined to be a bit more gentle with it, there’s no reason why you shouldn’t enjoy running it on the tarmac. It looks to be as good mechanically as it is cosmetically, so get bidding while you have the opportunity.
