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The R1200GS Is Once Again BMW’s Top Bike in the USA

By Aakash Desai 01/21/2014 10 Comments

The “BMW rider” is almost its own class of rider in the United States. You know the type: usually white, male, greying or white hair, maybe a pair of glasses and a sweet $1,000 Schuberth flip-up helmet to top it off. Ah, and don’t forget the well-worn-in Roadcrafter in blue with fluorescent yellow accents. As for the bike, it has got to the venerable GS.

Of course we are speaking generalities here, but as it turns out, that stereotypical demographic is also BMW’s most lucrative. The latest sales statistics from BMW Motorrad USA show the BMW R1200GS to be the company’s best selling motorbike in the states with over 2,000 sold.

With BMW Motorrad USA selling 14,100 motorcycles in total for 2013), the R1200GS has thus unseated the S1000RR as the best selling BMW motorcycle in the USA.

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BMW Motorrad USA Says Sales Were Up 14% in 2012

By Jensen Beeler 01/03/2013 2 Comments

2012 was a good year for BMW Motorrad USA, as the German motorcycle brand saw its sales rise 14% over last year’s figures, despite the industry trend of marginal growth. Selling 12,057 units in 2012, BMW’s leading bikes in the USA were the BMW S1000RR and BMW K1600GT/GTL.

BMW Motorrad sold 1,934 S1000RR superbikes last year, a figure that is surprisingly 21% higher from the RR’s 2011 numbers. Zie Germans also had their first full-year of K1600 sales, where the six-cylinder touring bike had 1,601 delivers of the GTL model, and 697 deliveries of the GT variant (note: these are dealership deliveries, not customer sales), seemingly making it the best-selling motorcycle in the BMW fleet for the USA.

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Leadership Change at BMW Motorrad USA

By Jensen Beeler 02/24/2012 5 Comments

After serving 18 years in the ranks of the BMW Group, Pieter de Waal will be stepping down as head of BMW Motorrad USA in March and formally retiring from BMW. Replacing de Waal will be Hans Blesse, who will leave his position as VP of Sales and Marketing at BMW Motorrad Germany, and take on the role of Vice President of BMW Motorrad USA. With 25 years of experience working for the BMW Group worldwide, Blesse has served in the company’s Canadian, Spanish, and German offices with roles in sales, marketing, and after-sales.

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S1000RR Still BMW’s Top-Selling Bike in the USA

By Jensen Beeler 01/13/2012 7 Comments

BMW Motorrad crushed it last year by posting its best sales year ever, and finishing in sales 6.4% over 2010. With the United States being one of BMW’s largest motorcycle markets, it comes as no surprise then that the German brand posted strong sales here in the US. Up 7.4% over last year, BMW Motorrad USA continues to weather the rough economy for the Bavarians, which is perhaps unsurprising considering how zie Germans have faired the past few years.

What is surprising though is which model topped BMW’s sales sheets, and in case you are blind and didn’t see this story’s headline, it was not the venerable GS. Taking the superbike fight straight to the Japan’s backyard, the BMW S1000RR again dominated sport bike sales again in 2011, and was BMW’s top-selling model across its whole motorcycle line-up (I’d love to see the profits per model on this though). Proof that when German engineering is coupled with Japanese pricing a consumer hit is born, the S1000RR should continue to be a potent bike in 2012, as BMW Motorrad has given the liter bike a mild update for its third year of production.

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BMW Makes ABS Standard on All 2012 Models

By Jensen Beeler 04/19/2011 4 Comments

Another cog in the wheel has turned, bringing us closer to complete adoption of anti-lock brakes as standard equipment on motorcycles, as BMW Motorrad USA has announced that all 2012 BMW motorcycles will come standard with ABS. It was 23 years ago that BMW brought the technology to motorcycles, so it seems only fitting that the company would be the first to implement the technology across its full line-up.

To the chagrin of some motorcycle enthusiasts, ABS has slowly seen its way onto a variety of motorcycles over the years, including the sportbike segment. It seems only a matter of time before it becomes standard across all manufacturers, not just BMW Motorrad.

“Plain and simple, being able to stop a motorcycle faster and more predictably helps prevent a rider from becoming a statistic,” said Pieter de Waal, Vice President, BMW Motorrad USA. “It’s time for all of us in the motorcycle industry to embrace the benefits of ABS. Extensive testing by safety experts, law enforcement authorities and journalists around the world consistently demonstrates that ABS reduces overall crashes and saves lives.”

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BMW S1000RR Outsells the R1200GS in the US for 2010

By Jensen Beeler 01/19/2011 7 Comments

BMW Motorrad has just released its numbers for last year, and the Bavarian brand is showing some strong results in 2010, especially considering the double-digit slogging most other companies took. With sales up 12% globally, BMW sold 98,047 motorcycles in 2010 compared to the 87,306 units it sold in 2009 (that’s a 10,741 unit difference).

Of the motorcycles sold in last year, the R1200GS remained the globally best selling unit within the brand (accounting for 18,768 units worldwide), and was followed by the R1200GS Adventure (11,648 units), R1200RT (11,132 units), and the S1000RR (10,209 units).

Perhaps the most striking news though is the fact that the new S1000RR superbike dominated liter bike sales in the United States, and even outsold the R1200GS here domestically, making 2010 a very successful year for BMW not only on the balance sheet, but also as proof that the Germans can sell bikes that aren’t featured in Long Way Around.

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