BMW has had an interesting history, to say the least. And when you throw a couple of world wars in the mix it gets really interesting. This 1950 BMW R35 is listed on eBay in Watkinsville, Georgia. Nobody has jumped on the $2,999 opening bid yet.
I don’t know if I can think of a cooler or more-desirable style of motorcycle than this one. The R-series first came on the scene in 1923 with the production of the R32 and it was for all intents and purposes BMW’s first production motorcycle. The company got its start before WWI in a reorganization of aircraft manufacturer Rapp Motorenwerke and they were forbidden to produce aircraft due to post-WWI restrictions on Germany so they made other machinery and finally cars and motorcycles. It’s a much more complicated history than that of course.
You can see that this particular R35 will need a full-blown restoration. The seller is a motorcycle shop owner and they don’t have time to restore this one so it’s on the chopping block. This project is not for the faint of heart but what a beauty it’ll be when it’s restored.
Then came World War II, throwing yet another monkey wrench into BMW’s production. After the war as the Soviets had control of Germany, they put motorcycle production back onto the table and pre-war models were made which explains the somewhat antiquated look to this 1950 model. In East Germany where they were made, BMW successfully forced the Soviets to not use the BMW name and many bikes became EMWs, for Eisenacher Motoren Werke, named for the Eisenach plant which was producing BMW motorcycles in Soviet-controlled East Germany. Again, that’s an over-simplification of the history of the company.
The R35 is a classic air-head design, although being a single-cylinder it doesn’t have the classic look of the opposed cylinders sticking out of the frame on each side. This 340cc single had around 14 hp and like everything else on this bike it will need to be rebuilt. The seller has acquired a new carburetor and control levers to help the next owner. I think that this could be the jewel in the crown of any motorcycle collector’s hoard but it’s far too much work for me. Have any of you owned a BMW of this vintage? Have you ever restored a motorcycle in this condition?
A friend of mine had a 1957 BMW R/60, 600CC boxer twin. A fine motorcycle. Top speed of about 85MPH and handled very well. Unfortunately this little R35 is not like that. Even restored, they are not great motorcycles. For one in this condition, $1000.00 would be a generous offer.
This is almost a one-of-a-kind. I saw one featured in a bike magazine almost 50 years ago, that the guy had pulled the stock engine and set up a Wankel engine to run it. I wasn’t impressed. While I’d rather see a 500 with the boxer engine, this one would be a worthwhile project. It sure won’t be boring….
I own several of these.This is totally hacked up.The rigid rear frame was chopped off and replaced with a crude swingarm. The magneto grafted on the engine is totally wrong. This is a post WW2 East German bike with the later foot shift not the hand shift. This one was built long after the prewar BMW parts inventory was used up , behind the Iron Curtain with very low quality castings. Ask me how i know! I don’t see how you would ever recoup your investment in this.These EMW’s are not worth a whole lot and this one would be nearly impossible to restore. They are readily available in Europe for not much money.The only positive is that parts are actually available. I would say the seller is being less than forthright by not pointing out what they must know know to be serious flaws in this.If they are indeed a bike shop then they know what has been done to this bike. By the way the only war this has been through is the Cold War.
Good appraisal Paul…
I agree, this bike is worth nothing. Even as a parts donor, it is well overpriced. It is fun bike to restore and ride, but I dont see any future here, thats why motorcycle shop is trying to dump it.
I found this one in a garage about six months ago. Didn’t run and had an older amateur restoration, but it still brought $7000. It is the quirkiness of the style and having something you don’t see every day that helps supports the value.
This also shows what the rear of the frame on the black one is supposed to look like. It is a press metal frame so it would be tough to duplicate.
That was a fun bike for the short period I owned it.
This is not a real BMW R35. It is most likely an EML, which was an East German copy of the BMW bike, which is far less valuable, far less desireable and far less reliable.
It is also not a complete or accurate EML, as the original pressed steel frame has been cut in the rear and cobbled together using an assortment of non original parts.
This is a worthless Frankenstein bike, and would be quite difficult to restore to its former glory, and even if you could do it, it would still not be valuable as an EML has far less value than the true BMW prewar, pressed steel frame bikes like the R3 and R4 examples.
They actually were BMW’s in the beginning. The Eisenach factory where BMW had moved their production of R35’s during the war was left in the Russian zone after the war.They continued production there under the BMW badge as there was NO production after the war in the remaining BMW plants in the west. It was not until years later that the West German BMW was allowed to restart production under Allied oversight. At that point BMW sued what would become EMW in the world court demanding they stop using the BMW trademark. It was duly changed to EMW. For the initial postwar production they were built from WW2 spare parts that had been stockpiled and were sufficient to build large numbers of bikes.They were built by BMW workers in BMW factories that happened to be in the east. As these ran out the East Germans started making their own parts of much lower quality. This bike would be from that later era. But for a few years at least the only BMW’s built were produced solely in the East.
Now that is one ugly looking POS!!! Seriously.
Actualy, a true and proper BMW R3 or R4 is a really beautiful bike. Have alook here:
https://www.google.com/search?q=1935+bmw+r4&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjwycH86sfcAhXyYd8KHf4rCj0QsAR6BAgEEAE&biw=1351&bih=840&dpr=2
Rolling(?) art. Thumbs up.
I’m glad that someone pointed out the hacked up frame. I didn’t know what to make of that.
Hang it in a bar!
Ended: Jul 30, 2018 , 8:00PM
Winning bid:US $2,999.00
[ 1 bid ]
I think that I guy would have a really unusual bike, but I hate to figure out the cost of restoring it! Probably is going to be very expensive to restore! Price is a little optimistic I think!
some hada enclosed (covered) drive shaft, some ‘exposed’?
If you want to have a old machine this is okay but i would look for a “pre war” project as in a bike made before or during WW2. That way once you are done and want a bike with a little more power you can sell this to move up. There are lots of little parts for these bikes which are not cheap.
I like the hang it in a bar idea! The picture i posted is my 1941 Zundapp KS 600.
Took me 4 years and more $ than i care to admit. Shipping from Germany is a killer for the wallet. Plus you need to be able to sort through old manuals. Translate them and find someone to get the parts from. A 250 cc Russian copy is not worth bothering with even if it it was free. Junk is always junk, Russia is not known for quality machines. Just a lot of garbage