The BMW R 12 is a German motorcycle from the Second World War. The drive was provided by a single 2-cylinder boxer engine with a capacity of 18-20 HP, allowing the vehicle to accelerate to 100-120 km / h. The first copies of this motorcycle were presented in 1935, and serial production continued in 1935-1942. About 36,000 copies of this vehicle were produced in its course.
The BMW R 12 was initially designed as a touring motorcycle to replace the company's R11 lineup. Compared to its predecessor, it differed primarily in the rebuilt and improved gearbox, as well as the use of a telescopic front fork with oil damping in the suspension system, which was quite a novelty at that time. The quickly used method of joining steel elements with an electric arc significantly influenced the strength and solidity of the entire structure. These elements, as well as good performance, meant that the BMW R12 was already selected in 1935 as one of the basic reconnaissance and reconnaissance motorcycles of the German armed forces. A cart was added to it very quickly, thanks to which it could be armed with an MG34 or MG42 machine gun. The BMW R 12 motorcycle served on virtually all fronts of World War II, including North Africa, and was only replaced by the BMW R75.
Due to the limitations of the Versailles Treaty of 1919, the German army could not develop many means of reconnaissance or communication, and for this reason, among others, in the 1920s, they put emphasis on the development of heavy motorcycles with good or very good road and off-road performance. After the Nazis came to power in 1933, the process did not stop, but it actually accelerated. He led to the introduction in the 1930s and during World War II of such successful designs as the BMW R-12, BMW R75 or Zündapp KS 750. It is worth adding that motorcycles in the German army very often had a sidecar, intended for a soldier with a machine gun. Motorcycles in the German army proved themselves particularly well in the initial period of World War II, especially in the course of fighting in Poland (1939), France (1940), but also in North Africa (1941-1943). They were used primarily for reconnaissance operations, sometimes in the rear of the enemy army, and for liaison tasks.
