The R69S was introduced in 1960, an upgrade of the 1955 BMW R69 which at the time was groundbreaking with its superior British-designed Earles front suspension*. The new model had a higher compression engine, larger carburettors and a harmonic balancer on the crankshaft. Now pushing out an honest 42hp at 7000rpm, despite the drag of the cardan drive the machine was capable in solo trim of 175 km/h. Bolted to a sidecar, it was an absolute weapon and to this day it remains one of the most satisfying outfits on the road, in this writers' opinion.

The factory produced over 11,000 of this model and they were exported all over the world in, for the first time, a variety of colours. White proved moderately popular, but the vast majority of buyers preferred traditional black with white pinstripes.

* 40 years on BMW again used a British design, on their R259 models.

Image courtesy New Zealand Classic Motorcycles
BMW R69S 600cc Sports