Mike Krauser Motorcycles built the hottest BMWs of the 1980s, and this 1989 Krauser BMW MKM1000 is a gorgeous, original example of his amazing handiwork. Mike Krauser was a successful racer aboard BMW sidecar outfits in the 1950s and won the German National Sidecar Championship for four years between 1955-58, before turning to run his own team of Rennsport sidecar racers in the 1960s. By the 1970s he turned to selling his own line of Krauser-branded motorcycle accessories, notably injection-molded plastic luggage that was designed specifically to fit BMWs. He also designed luggage to fit other brands but is most closely associated with BMWs, and by the middle of the decade, he had a reported 70 employees at his manufacturing facility. His association with BMW was cemented by his decision in the late 1970s to modify complete BMW motorcycles to his own specification under the MKM brand. Krauser had been involved with developing endurance racing 1000cc BMWs in the mid-70s, creating a stiffer frame and clean bodywork for better handling and higher speeds, and brought these lessons to bear with his own brand of MKM machines. BMW was happy to supply him with stock BMW R100S engines, gearboxes, forks, switchgear, brakes and even mufflers, which helped with German TUV requirements, as MKM was recognized as an independent manufacturer, and BMW stamped the components supplied with a ‘K’ serial number, with even a factory warranty for the powertrain as long as they remained stock. What set the MKM apart was its chassis and bodywork. The frame was among the first computer-designed chassis in the motorcycle industry, developed by the German firm HPN (Alfred Halbfield, Klaus Pepperl and Michael Neher) specially for Krauser. The frame weighed only 25.3 pounds and was very stiff, comprised mostly of short, straight struts of lightweight thinwall tubing. The bodywork was fiberglass, with a distinctive combined tank/seat unit (with a steel gas tank underneath), and a full fairing covering even the motor, all painted in the very 1970s Krauser racing team colors. This machine even includes the distinctive Krauser luggage, which makes it a complete Krauser package, with its 980cc BMW engine producing 70 HP, an all-up weight of 496 pounds and a 140 MPH top speed. This amazing 1982 Krauser MKM1000 is one of perhaps 200 built and is in very fine original condition. The MKM was sold in the US through BMW North America and cost around $14,000, over twice the price of the BMW R100S it was based on. What did you get for the money? A totally different animal, with a far more responsive chassis and terrific café racer styling that the factory would later adopt for its K1 model. This is one rare German motorcycle with a sterling factory history, and you’re unlikely to find an MKM this good anytime soon. THE BRUCE ROBINSON COLLECTION S227 1982 BMW KRAUSER MKM 1000
