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Customs R18

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Gr8adv said:
Agree that seat is so good looking. I have not sat on either of these two seats. But I have bought enough real custom seats (ie not Corbin or Sargent etc) to know that looks and padding are not related to comfort.

Get this baby on order!!
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It’s on order now. I do not have a First Edition so I’m having Hans substitute gray for the white stitching.
I’m sure he’ll deliver quicker than BMW!
 
MilwDave said:
It’s on order now. I do not have a First Edition so I’m having Hans substitute gray for the white stitching.
I’m sure he’ll deliver quicker than BMW!
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Likely true. But he ships dhl, which is ok, but it transfers to usps on the east coast and takes roughly 1 month from there. I wish he did fed ex or dhl to destination.
 
Gr8adv said:
Likely true. But he ships dhl, which is ok, but it transfers to usps on the east coast and takes roughly 1 month from there. I wish he did fed ex or dhl to destination.
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The snow doesn't melt here until April so we should be good!
 
With sales of the R18 being quite underwhelming, it’s hard not to hear the hecklers saying “the bike will be gone within 5 years and a repeat of the failure of the R1200 C”. I get it and I know that sales volume will ultimately determine the long term fate of the R18, but darn, there are some awesome custom versions floating around. (and some not so awesome as well, but I never recall nearly this many custom R1200 Cs being built). The R18 is a thing of beauty, whether stock or as a base for a custom creation. Can this robust number of custom R18s reflect that there may be far greater interest in the bike than sales figures would lead one to believe?
 
Michigan Tim said:
With sales of the R18 being quite underwhelming, it’s hard not to hear the hecklers saying “the bike will be gone within 5 years and a repeat of the failure of the R1200 C”. I get it and I know that sales volume will ultimately determine the long term fate of the R18, but darn, there are some awesome custom versions floating around. (and some not so awesome as well, but I never recall nearly this many custom R1200 Cs being built). The R18 is a thing of beauty, whether stock or as a base for a custom creation. Can this robust number of custom R18s reflect that there may be far greater interest in the bike than sales figures would lead one to believe?
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I road a Yamaha Roadliner for 11 years. It’s still one of the most beautiful styled and the best bike I’ve ever owned. The sales were way under what Yamaha had projected and many of the initial 2006 production sat in crates for years. Eventually in 2008 Yamaha had an online auction for dealers and sold them for discounts similar to the 2021 R18s.
Quite frankly I could care less how long or how many R18s BMW decides to build. Because unless you hack it up you can ride the bike for a fairly minimal amount if you keep it awhile. After 11 years I sold my Roadliner for $7K less than I paid for it new.
 
MilwDave said:
I road a Yamaha Roadliner for 11 years. It’s still one of the most beautiful styled and the best bike I’ve ever owned. The sales were way under what Yamaha had projected and many of the initial 2006 production sat in crates for years. Eventually in 2008 Yamaha had an online auction for dealers and sold them for discounts similar to the 2021 R18s.
Quite frankly I could care less how long or how many R18s BMW decides to build. Because unless you hack it up you can ride the bike for a fairly minimal amount if you keep it awhile. After 11 years I sold my Roadliner for $7K less than I paid for it new.
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You are right on Brother.
Life is to short and nobody promised me tomorrow.I say ride the MOFO and enjoy that Bad Ma'ama Jamma.
 
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Michigan Tim said:
With sales of the R18 being quite underwhelming, it’s hard not to hear the hecklers saying “the bike will be gone within 5 years and a repeat of the failure of the R1200 C”. I get it and I know that sales volume will ultimately determine the long term fate of the R18, but darn, there are some awesome custom versions floating around. (and some not so awesome as well, but I never recall nearly this many custom R1200 Cs being built). The R18 is a thing of beauty, whether stock or as a base for a custom creation. Can this robust number of custom R18s reflect that there may be far greater interest in the bike than sales figures would lead one to believe?
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“The underwhelming sales”. is that a fact? Or just an expression or feeling?
 
Luis said:
“The underwhelming sales”. is that a fact? Or just an expression or feeling?
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The fact that dealers are stacked deep with new R18's and selling them with incentives and discounts in a market where Harley and Indian dealerships are empty and taking deposits on future inventory at $2k over msrp speaks to not meeting expected sales volume.

One thing the R18 has over the R1200C is that it's gorgeous. It will be appreciated in years to come whether they sell a lot or not.
 
I was thinking the same.

What are the sales numbers for the R18 vs BMWs expectation? Is this info out there in the public domain?
 
I can see the numbers for UK sales based on registrations with our vehicle licensing agency (DVLA)
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Compared against the best selling bike in europe - the BMW 1250 GS TE:
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Against the k1600 (all models combined) - sales of the R18 in the UK are pretty comparable.

The part of the puzzle I don't know, is what BMW expected to sell. I also don;t have a view of the worldwide market.

But at least these are facts, not opinions. This data is direct from the DVLA & accurate to 13th January 2022.


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From Facebook ever wonder what the R18 would look like with white walls? Wonder no,more….


Building a bobber (all BMW parts)
Swapped out the front wheel for the larger tire today, allowing for the white walls! Shout out to Gulfcoast Motorcycles of Ft. Myers, Florida!

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Michigan Tim said:
It’s a feeling I have, but Pistol Pete used the facts I would have used to support my feelings.
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Comparing bikes in stock isn’t the whole story. Harley’s 2021 sales were down about 9% first 9 months of 2021 vs 2019. 2020 was worse due to pandemic. Harley intentionally has restricted supply to keep prices higher and focused on more expensive models.

Indian’s sales in first 9 months were up 47% vs 2019. Likely driven by the new Chief which has many cheaper models.

Both Harley & Indian are predominantly cruiser models. Only Pan America and FTR aren’t. BMW is mostly everything but cruisers. The R18 was launched in the middle of the Pandemic and most of the units built were the higher trim First Edition.

I don’t know what BMW had hoped for sales, but I see about 10x as many GS still on the floor this December compared to R18 at my dealer. But likely the margins on the R18, especially First Edition trims are more than the GS which explains the difference in incentives.
 
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