Seven questions with BMW Motorrad CEO Markus Flasch

Markus Flasch is the former head of BMW’s M Performance division who now has the reins of BMW Motorrad. He flew from Germany to take part in BMW’s DoubleRFest track day event, hosted by Kern Track Days at Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas. After a day of riding on track, I sat down and asked him about some pieces of his vision for BMW and the industry writ large.

Common Tread: You were in charge of the M division on the automotive side, and M leaned into electrification while trying to maintain that core performance identity. BMW Motorrad has a similar challenge ahead. How do you see that?

Markus Flasch: Well, first of all, we’re part of the BMW Group and we have access to the latest technology when it comes to battery electric drivetrain systems. But the story, the strategy, starts from the customer and the customer that buys a motorcycle is a different customer than the one who buys a car, and also regulations around the globe are different when it comes to motorcycles compared to cars. 

So, for the moment we don’t see the real demand for an electric motorcycle, but we do see a trend arising when it comes to urban mobility, which we think will ultimately be all-electric. And, we are currently the market leader when it comes to electric scooters above 11 kW. We are also happy with the CE 02 that we just recently launched. We are elaborating further options for the future. But, we’re going to start each strategy from the customer.

CT: Recently, Triumph and Ducati have branched into dirt bikes, serious off-road and motocross motorcycles. BMW has dabbled in that in the past, so do you see any value in following that lead for maybe some of the same reasons they did?

MF: If you look at the variety of products and segments that we are already in — from the CE 02 to the 1600 Bagger, or up to an R 18, with the GS and Double-R in between — the product range is so wide that I don’t necessarily have to go for an extension. 

When it comes to off-road we’re famous for the GS, but that’s a different fashion than what you’re talking about with motocross and hard enduro. We’ve looked into entering this segment, [and] made a conscious decision that we’re not going to pursue this way. Again, we are making this decision talking to our customers and talking to our dealer base and we ended up, for the moment, not going this route.

CT: What about a smaller sport bike? Again, many other brands are building down from flagship sport bikes, making bikes that are cheaper to manufacture, cheaper to buy, cheaper to insure, to own, et cetera. And the metrics, in the United States anyway, show that more people are buying these bikes because they’re less intimidating, either culturally or financially. So, if BMW were to build a mid-sized sport bike what do you think it would look like, and we’re obviously curious what you think the chances are of that happening.

MF: Well, I can’t spoil any of the upcoming bikes that we are [working on], but you can look forward to seeing something smaller than the 1,000 cc Double-R. But, it’s a bit too early to talk about it.

CT: From a design standpoint the R 18 seems like a success, based on the history BMW was reaching for and the goal of the project. But, what steps do you think should have been taken, or could still be taken, to improve sales and acceptance of the R 18? Do you think there’s room to improve?

MF: We should have given a bike to the Pope earlier, maybe? No, honestly we are happy with the success of the R 18, but I think we set the target too high in the beginning. So, it was kind of a disappointment within the team but this was not because of the absolute numbers we achieved with the R 18, which are quite significant, but I think we were overambitious in the targets we set. The R 18 is a fantastic bike, still has a strong customer base, and yea, there’s nothing wrong with it.

CT: If you could have an R 18 or R 1200 C in your garage, which one?

MF: I’d go for the R 18…

CT: Have you ridden an R 1200 C?

MF: I’ve ridden both of them, but for my size and for my type of riding I prefer the R 18.

CT: BMW obviously has a rich history of inline-four and inline-three engines, with the K-series bikes. Maybe not as rich as boxers, but still a long history there. There are a lot of companies now that are abandoning inline-fours, whether it’s in MotoGP or in flagship superbikes. Do you think there’s a time in BMW’s future where an engine that’s not an inline four would be in an S 1000 or M 1000 product?

MK: We’re not working on anything besides inline four for the 1,000 cc segment. We shouldn’t forget that, also very typical for BMW is not just the boxer engine and the inline four but it’s also the inline six, which will have a bright future if you ask me. Because this is also a true USP (unique selling point) that BMW offers, with a very stable and strong fan base that’s convinced us to put more focus on the inline six as well.

CT: What is the greatest challenge facing the motorcycling industry right now? And whatever it is, how do you think BMW will best face up to that challenge?

MF: Motorcycles, at least the type of motorcycles that we are talking about, are lifestyle products. Not primarily for mobility use. And what speaks against this, and what probably makes the global industry [keep] going down a bit this year, is uncertainty and economic barriers. These are the threats to the industry. 

You can’t really attack them, all you really can do is stay flexible and adjust to the needs, globally. But, if you ask me, tariffs, exchange rates, technical barriers between markets and regions, [are all] a real threat for a global manufacturer like we are. But, we have never had a product range as strong as today, we are financially sound, we are part of a large corporation that is extremely successful, so I think we have the best cards in our hands to come out of this year.

CT: If you could own any BMW motorcycle from history, which one would it be? Which bike is your favorite, or which one stands out as having an emotional connection, or you’ve just always liked it?

MF: Hmm, that’s a difficult one. I’d say if I had to narrow it down to one iconic bike it would be an R 80 G/S. First generation, this is probably the most iconic BMW I can think of. And, it’s not that old, it’s still fun to ride. I’ve ridden the bike, I’ve also ridden the [G/S] race bikes of that time, and by today’s measures they are still cool.

CT: But you don’t own one?

MF: I don’t.

CT: My dad has one, if you want to buy it. I can ask. 

MF: [laughs] He should keep it. Or give it to you.