BMW Remembers Dakar Past With Enchanting Lac Rose Concept

BMW Motorrad has unveiled the Lac Rose concept bike at the Wheels and Waves custom bike festival in Biarritz, France.

The Lac Rose concept takes its name from the from the rose-coloured Retba salt lake that is located 35 km north east of Dakar and which was the setting for the end of the Paris-Dakar Rally.

The bike itself is a completely new interpretation of the BMW R nineT and BMW states that is inspired by past Paris-Dakar Rallye heroes and their victorious BMW G/S bikes.

The Lac Rose takes the R nineT and its flat-twin 1,170cc engine that sends its power to the rear wheel through a drive shaft.

BMW has also fitted the bike with spoked wheels, studded wheels and long travel suspension to give it the look of an off-road bike

With regards to design, the Lac Rose takes all its styling cues from the 1985 Paris-Dakar Rallye winning G/S.

The windshield and the headlamp along with the high mudguard, large tank and short seat all remind you of the rally bike. The white and orange paint combo (which BMW calls Alpine white and Signal red) is yet another tribute to the rally winning bike.

Speaking about the bike, Edgard Heinrich, Head of Design at BMW Motorrad said, "The BMW Motorrad Concept Lac Rose is our laid-back and very individual interpretation of the bike that won the Paris-Dakar Rallye in 1985 - fully in line with the spirit of Wheels & Waves and its visitors. It puts the BMW R nineT into an exciting new context and shows what passion for our brand heritage, imagination and a few modifications can achieve."