Updated R18 and R18 Classic and more torque for all versions

Few bikes turn heads like BMW’s massive R18 cruisers and five years on from the range’s initial appearance it’s getting its first set of serious changes – headed by an updated engine with slightly more torque than before.

The engine changes, prompted by the incoming Euro5+ emissions rules, see the peak power remain unchanged at 67kW but max torque rises from 158Nm to 163Nm. There was already plenty, and now there’s even more. That peak arrives at 3000rpm, but there’s more than 150Nm all the way from 2000rpm to 4000rpm, so no scrabbling to shift down when you need to tap into it.

Engine aside, the main changes to the R18 lineup are the base R18 and the R18 Classic, which both get changes to their wheels and styling.

 

The standard R18 swaps its rear wheel from 16 inches to 18 inches and goes from wire wheels to alloys with a new seven-spoke design. Both the front and rear fenders are changed, too, with a more heavily sculpted shape for each, adding a raised centre section to match the existing profile of the fuel tank.

The side panels are new as well, with a more prominent bulge than before, and the forks lose the shrouds that previously hid the sliders from view, as well as gaining a new, rough finish to the cast aluminium sections. A new, more conventional-looking exhaust replaces the ungainly design that’s appeared on the standard R18 until now, too.

Switching attention to the R18 Classic, that bike – with soft bags and a bar-mounted screen – also gets new wheel sizes, this time changing the front rim from a 16-inch to a 19-inch wire wheel. That revision required a new front fender, of course, and BMW has opted for a more enveloping, deeper design that covers much more of the tyre. The fork shrouds stay, but the Classic also gets the new side panels that debuted on the 2025 R18.