From Race To Retro: BMW Nurburg 80s Special By Nicola Giannattasio

When everyone who is anyone has a BMW S1000RR, and a new one is already out, how do you stand out if you have the old one? One way is to turn it into a custom retro racer! 

Nicola Giannattasio went to huge lengths to make his BMW S1000RR into something special. Dubbed the Nurburg, the bike recalls sportbikes from the 1980s. The base bike hails from 2011, and its overall design takes a big cue from the French custom house, Praëm. Giannattasio’s creation seems to lean towards sportbikes of the past that competed in endurance races, perhaps characterized by the ‘x’ on the round headlight. 

The first thing that got a makeover was the fairings. The original parts of the German sportbike got swapped out for a totally different set that was custom-shaped and fixed onto a subframe made by Giannattasio. The backside now rocks a square and pretty muscular tail, keeping up with the style of the time. 

Up front, we get a rounded fairing with a round headlight, sitting off to the side and illumination is brought on by a halogen bulb. The design takes inspiration from race bikes of old, particularly those that were used by Suzuki back in the day. There's a cool little cowl below with the mandatory position lights to make sure the bike gets homologated. 

On the sides, we got these half-fairings that let you catch a peek of the engine, all jazzed up with blue paint and red and white accents. Now, the tank was made from a BMW accessory, but it got customized and spruced up with some custom side panels to blend with the tail design. Then you have to check out the saddle, it's got a thin layer of foam, just like those badass racing bikes, and the finishing touches and a bunch of components come from those Italian brands Rizoma and Barracuda, while the license plate holder is from a Kawasaki Z1000.

Now, the engine didn't need any internal tweaks, but Giannattasio gave it a whole new look on the outside to match the rest of the bike's classic vibe. We used a set of casings made of aeronautical aluminum, specially designed and built by the customizer. Not only do they add style, but they also provide protection against impacts. To top it off, Giannattasio hooked it up with a complete titanium Akrapovic exhaust system. Oh, and let's not forget the carbon radiator grille that helps cut down on the bike's weight. Pretty slick, huh?