Vintage German Motorcycles of 2012 Concours d’Elegance [1080HD]

Really it’s incredible to see this much history in one place. If you’ve never been to Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance, put this one on your bucket list. Mark every Concours event on every channel who broadcasts these events. Prepare for your brain to melt. Only the finest machines ever built by man will ever grace this fairway, and all entrants of this event are here by invitation because of their historic significance.

1885 Daimler Reitwagen 0:05
This is the world’s first gasoline-powered motorcycle. This is the second known gasoline burning vehicle ever built. The first was a tricycle. It needed the built-in training wheels because of the steering and suspension geometry. The ride is notoriously bad, but the success of the gasoline engine cements this bike in history as the first gasoline motorcycle. 264cc, 4-stroke air cooled internal combustion engine with a hot tube ignition. Built by Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach.

1968 Munch Mammoth 1:07
Friedel Münch made it his life’s mission to construct the world’s best performing superbikes between the years of 1966 and 2001. This is an example of a 1200cc NSU-powered Mammoth (Mammut) or otherwise known as a Munch 4. This bike was known for keeping pace with Indy cars of the same year. It could eat the back tire up in under 1000 miles when pushed to its limit. Munch is known for making some of the finest racing brakes used in competition and has a colorful history in a struggling German motorcycle industry. Definitely give Friedel Münch a google!

1951 Konsul II 501 OS-T 1:56
NSU restarted operations in 1946 at its Neckarsulm plant which was completely bombed-out in World War II. This 498cc 1-cylinder has twin cams in the crankcase. The overhead valves on top of a light alloy cylinder head were actuated using 2 enclosed pushrods. The 4-speed transmission was chain driven, and the rear wheel driven by a separate fully-enclosed roller chain. The rear suspension bias was adjustable in case you wished to show a passenger what 68mph felt like on 2 wheels.

1965 DKW Hummel 155 2:36
Das Kleine Wunder (the little wonder) started producing powered bicycles in 1919. Though most of their production were 98 cc 1-cylinder machines, this 1965 coined by the press as the “Tin Banana” packed a 4.2hp 50cc engine with a 3-speed gearbox. It was capable of cruising at 45mph which pretty much stomps most current 50cc scooters into the dirt. It was popular but not practical to sell them in Europe, and none of them ever sold to the US, limiting their numbers. It was a legendary shock to conventional motorcycle design in Germany.

1954 BMW Rennsport 3:16
This motorcycle works best at wide-open throttle, but riders complained it was unstable. It did become one of the most successful side-car racing bikes anyone could want. Sidecars fixed the stability issue. It was so successful that in 1957 BMW stopped racing 2-wheeled events entirely. It packs a monstrously powerful horizontally-opposed 493cc air-cooled twin cylinder and a 4 speed transmission, capable of 143mph.

1932 BMW R32 4:15
The 1923 BMW R32 motorcycle was the first motorcycle produced by BMW. Designed by Max Friz, it housed a 486cc side-valve air-cooled flat-twin engine producing 8.5hp and delivering it to the rear wheel using a shaft-driven 3-speed manual transmission. Top speed on this motorcycle was just under 60mph.

1934 BMW R7 5:24
This bike never saw production thanks to Hitler. This one won Best-In-Class! It was a prototype. 1 of a kind. I’m giving you a link. http://www.atimetoget.com/2009/03/1932-bmw-r7.html

1953 Adler M250 6:36
This butter-smooth 54mm bore x 54mm stroke twin engine made for one of the winning-est motorcycles in European racing. Adler became the strongest driving forces pushing racing competition on both circuit courses and endurance events and powering the careers of many of Germany’s finest road race riders.

1930 Opel Motoclub Model T 8:02
Yes, this bike is restored to its original appearance. I wish I could have had more of this curator’s time because there’s barely any information available about this extremely rare machine. Rest assured, he knows precisely what he’s talking about.

1950 Imme R100 10:50
It’s incredible that I even had the opportunity to be near this machine. Germany’s steel industry was devastated when it was constructed, which contributes to its minimalist design. Vidal is an incredibly good sport and willing to talk about his experience. It’s in better shape than any R100 I’ve ever seen. I’ve seen 2, but I’m including photos. I don’t have the shot of it running because the camera was recording when I pressed record (it stopped). I failed far worse than anyone on the green. It ran beautifully.

1894 Hildebrand & Wolfmüller 13:29
This is the world’s first production motorcycle. A 1.5L single-can machine with “no real brake”. Just listen to the engineer who restored it, this is priceless.

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