BMW Motorcycles in World War II R12 / R75

Author: Janusz Piekalkiewicz, ISBN: 9780887403064, 190 pages, Published in 1991

This documentation deals with an infrequently written about topic: motorcycles in combat.

The heavy "Kriegselefanten" (war elephants) BMW R 75 with its powered side car is now presented in full detail. In over 2O photo¬graphs, most unpublished, this book shows the history of the R 75 in action from the deserts of North Africa to the wintry steppes of Russia.

Almost every situation in which the R 75 was used in combat is shown in these exceptional photo¬graphs — much interesting and new information is presented. Also, the Wehrmacht service which used the middle and heavy BMW motorcycles such as the R 16 or R 12, which were the pre¬cursors of the R 75, are shown.

A former German sergeant of a motorcycle company gives his combat experiences with the R 75, while German army documents give a view into the technical details of motorcycle combat operations.

Exact technical drawings and photographs, along with detailed descriptions, introduce the reader to the technical aspects of the R 75. The technical section presents the complete data on the R 75 and gives a listing of all middle and heavy BMW 2 cylinder production motorcycles and their variants.

This book is a trove of inter¬esting historical and technical details, much of which has been unknown till now.