This is the BMW R18 IRON ANNIE, a unique motorcycle with the spirit of an airplane

Although we are used to seeing transformations on cars, the world of motorcycling also has its place in this world of tuning and customization. The motorcycle we are going to tell you about was imagined by a customer of VTR Motorrad AG and VTR Customs, the brand’s partner for this type of transformation. They were responsible for bringing that design to life and offering it as a unique model.

To create it, the customer was inspired by a legendary transport aircraft from the 1930s, the Junkers Ju 52. The Lufthansa colour scheme of the era, grey and black, has been used for its bodywork. However, the reference was not just any Junkers Ju 52, but a unit that operated in the United States from 1970 to 1984, owned by Martin Caidin and named Iron Annie.

A BMW R18 has been used, a motorcycle that the customer who requested it seems to like, as it is the second of this model that VTR Customs has been asked to transform. In this case, the aeronautical look was chosen for a unique model. To evoke the aircraft, the speedometer, located above the tank, has been reworked so that it recalls the instrumentation of an aircraft. The concept of access panels with quick-release fasteners, found on many aircraft, has also been recovered.

The aluminium panels of the Ju 52’s bodywork also served as inspiration for its shaping. The BMW R18 First Edition has undergone these changes, and it even received a treatment on the engine to paint it black, along with the fork sliders. Both elements have received a DLC Like Carbon coating.

In addition to substantial changes to give it a smaller and more aerodynamic look, the wheels have been changed to 18 and 21 inches, signed by Kineo. The brakes have been replaced so that it works with Magura brake and clutch master cylinders for greater efficiency, and the watchmaker Zeitzone Zurich has taken part in the design of the speedometer.

The exhaust is also new, from WalzWerk, and together with the exterior lighting, they give rise to a motorcycle that maintains the image of the BMW R18 First Edition, but flies to other places thanks to these modifications.