On April 3, the German company will unveil the big cruiser to the public.

By Andrew Cherney, Cruiser March 10, 2020

Drip, drip, drip… That’s the sound of BMW dispensing tiny bits of info to the waiting public in what’s possibly the most drawn-out motorcycle model launch in recent years. The German company has given us another slice of data regarding the new cruiser model—namely its public debut date. On Friday, April 3, 2020, the production version of the new BMW R 18 will be unveiled to the public. Long awaited and highly anticipated, the world premiere of the Big Boxer for the cruiser segment is like a light at the end of what’s been a very long tunnel.

“All of us at BMW Motorrad are very much looking forward to the absolute highlight of the year…the world premiere of the BMW R 18,” says Dr. Markus Schramm, head of BMW Motorrad. “With the R 18 and the associated entry into the cruiser segment, we are consistently pursuing our growth strategy with the clear goal of becoming the number one in the premium segment worldwide.”

Up to this point, BMW has revealed several one-off customs and two officially sanctioned concept bikes to the public and we’ve heard of patent filings circulating around the internet, but there hasn’t been anything else concrete until now. From the first R 18 concept we’ve seen the potential of the naked model, while the R 18 / 2 has shown a sleeker more club-style look with more bodywork. The patent drawings have revealed a bagger version as well, but we still can’t be entirely sure which of the three (or if all) will make the cut.

In keeping with the yearlong manufactured tension and drama surrounding the big cruiser, BMW has even started a website dedicated to the unveiling of “the secret.” Check out bmw-motorrad.com/r18countdown if you want even more details and follow the countdown to the world premiere of the BMW R 18. Immediately after the unveiling, BMW says even more info about the model (including photos, videos, and a configurator function) will be added to this website.

No word yet on price, color, or when the bike (or bikes) will appear in dealerships. We just hope BMW doesn’t drag out those dates too.