BMW Concept Lac Rose Honours Paris-Dakar Rally

BMW Motorrad has revealed a new concept R nine T inspired by the Paris-Dakar Rally at the Wheels Waves festival held near Biarritz, France. Called the Concept Lac Rose, the bike draws inspiration from a BMW that had won the Paris-Dakar event, and underlines recent reports of BMW introducing a heritage R nine T line-up later this year.

Based on the R nine T, the Concept Lac Rose takes its name from Lake Retba, for the pink water of the lake, caused by algae. The lake is situated 35km north-east of Dakar, the end point of the rally, and just a kilometre from the Atlantic coast. BMW factory machines, modified by the company HPN, rode to Paris-Dakar victory three times in a row in the mid-'80s.

(BMW Concept Lac Rose)

The Concept Lac Rose takes inspiration from BMW's Dakar-winning bikes, with the engine and frame from the R nine T, but the designers added a Dakar-style large fuel tank and racing single seat. The bike also gets taller suspension with knobby off-road tyres , as well as a round headlight with the classic '80s bikini race fairing. Despite its inspiration, the Concept Lac Rose isn't really an off-road machine though.

"Essentially, the bike is a cool laid-back roadster with a few typical off-road features which allow you to leave the street and follow a dirt track into the unknown. It is this combination of customizing, coolness and unconventionality which makes this bike special," said Edgard Heinrich, Head of Design, BMW Motorrad.

(BMW R nine T based Concept Lac Rose)

The Concept Lac Rose is powered by the same R nine T engine - an air-cooled boxer twin 1170cc engine, which makes 110bhp at 7550rpm and 119Nm of torque at 6000rpm. Along with the bike, BMW Motorrad has also designed a matching jacket and helmet which matches the bike's colour scheme.