The BMW R 18 One Eight "C" is the spectacular makeover by Paul Yaffe of the R 18 Transcontinental

Paul Yaffe is a man equally admired and respected in the world of motorcycle customization. With his workshop Bagger Nation as his flagship, he has carved out a solid reputation in the United States, where motorcycle customization is something close to a religion, and around the rest of the world thanks to his many awards, as well as appearances in more than 300 magazine issues worldwide and on television programmes.

Paul Yaffe’s creations now reach around the globe thanks to the distribution carried out by his partners in six countries so far, where a lucky customer can now also enjoy the BMW R 18 One Eight “C”, which has joined his catalogue. As you know, the BMW Motorrad R 18 is a highly versatile and chameleon-like cruiser, with several versions available such as the R 18 Roctane, which joined the family last year, or the R 18 Transcontinental, which in its original form is a “Big Bóxer” perfect for long journeys.

For the R 18 One Eight “C” project, Paul Yaffe set out to keep as many of the original BMW components as possible. To do so, however, he first had to get to know the R 18 Transcontinental in its original essence, and for that he rode more than 10,000 kilometres on it. This way he could make sure of what he really wanted to change in order to create a tribute to American hot rods without losing the foundation that BMW has achieved with this long-distance cruiser.

He began by commissioning the manufacture of a 26-inch front wheel, fitted with a tyre created specifically for this motorcycle, which required modifications to the frame to accommodate it. At the front end, a new front mudguard was also created from scratch, and the original fairing was cut into several pieces, which were then reused to build a new structure that also repositions the headlight and follows the line of the front wheel. A new fairing covering the radiator was also added, following the line of the front design, while at the rear new covers for the saddlebags and infill panels were installed, which reorganise the position of the original R 18 Transcontinental’s rear lights.

The BMW R 18 One Eight “C” by Paul Yaffe thus presents itself as a tribute to the Mercury Lead Sled of the 1950s, but the work was not yet finished. Although the beautiful two-cylinder “Big Bóxer” of 1,802 cc delivering 91 CV and a spectacular 150 Nm of torque is retained, the exhaust line is entirely new and eye-catching, drawing attention thanks to a straight pipe with no catalysts and trumpet-shaped end caps. Furthermore, to complete this build, Paul Yaffe’s team installed an air suspension system, for which additional brackets were created on the frame to house the system’s components, hidden behind the side cases.

The BMW R 18 One Eight “C” by Paul Yaffe will be displayed at the Motor Bike Expo, currently taking place in the Italian city of Verona.