R 75: Lothar Schuettler
1942 BMW R 75 #764342

745cc M275/2 Boxer Twin 26 hp @ 4,000 rpm
880 lbs. w/ sidecar
Sahara Tan
Lothar Schuettler
Darnestown, Maryland
The R 75 was designed by Alex von Falkenhausen exclusively for military use, with a hardtail frame that used a bolt-on rear section for easy engine removal. The low-compression engine had reinforced rocker covers, and an air cleaner mounted above the fuel tank. The four-speed transmission drove the rear motorcycle and sidecar wheels, with high and low ratios. Many R 75s were abandoned during Germany’s retreat; the bike seen here was driving a plow in Czechoslovakia when it was found in 1989 by BMW’s Helmut Bauer. Bauer restored it for Lothar Schuettler in the tan paint of Erwin Rommel’s Afrika Korps.