1983 BMW R80ST Project Complete

I started this restoration in December 2021 and completed it in early July 2023. There were some periods when I was otherwise occupied and wasn’t able to work on this project. I estimate it took about 16-18 months of work to complete this restoration.

My goal is to auction the bike and donate all the proceeds to the Motorcycle Relief Project.

Here is a link to pictures of the completed rebuild of this 1983 R80ST.

This is a walk-around video I made prior to starting the rebuild,

VIDEO: 1983 BMW R80ST Pre-Build Inspection

This is a video of the walk-around of the completed rebuilt bike.

VIDEO: 1983 BMW R80ST Project Complete Walk-Around

 

 

1983 BMW R80ST Assemble & Install Gas Tank

This “project bike” came with it’s original gas tank. There was a small dent in the tank near the front and scraps and gashes in the paint. The inside red tank lining was in good condition. I had it repaired and repainted. I refurbished the gas cap, put on new BMW roundels, replaced the rear bracket that secures the tank to the spine tube and installed new fuel lines.

Here are some before and after pictures of the gas tank.

Original Gas Tank Condition

Original Gas Tank Condition

Original Gas Tank Condition

Original Gas Tank Condition

Original Gas Tank Condition

Original Gas Tank Condition

Dent In Front Of Original Gas Tank

Dent In Front Of Original Gas Tank

R80ST Painted Gas Tank

R80ST Painted Gas Tank

R80ST Painted Gas Tank

R80ST Painted Gas Tank

R80ST Inside Gas Tank

R80ST Inside Gas Tank

Here it is installed on the bike.

Gas Tank Installed

Gas Tank Installed

Gas Tank Installed

Gas Tank Installed

This is a link to the documentation of how I did this work and a summary video of the procedure.

VIDEO: 1983 BMW R80ST Assemble & Install Gas Tank

1983 BMW R80ST Install Fenders

The 1983 R80ST “project bike” came with a rear fender but no front fender. A friend of mine donated a front fender for this charity rebuild project. It took awhile to get the parts back from the painter. Unlike the fenders on many other airhead models, the R80ST fenders do not have pinstripes.  Here are pictures of what I started with and what the newly painted parts look like.

Donated Front Fender

Donated Front Fender

Donated Front Fender

Donated Front Fender

R80ST Painted Front Fender

R80ST Painted Front Fender

Original Rear Fender

Original Rear Fender

Original Rear Fender

Original Rear Fender

R80ST Painted Rear Fender

R80ST Painted Rear Fender

Here is a link to the documentation of how I did the work, and a summary video.

VIDEO: 1983 BMW R80ST Install Fenders

1983 BMW R80ST Install Exhaust System

This R80ST came with no right exhaust header or collector box. I decided to replace the entire exhaust system as the rear muffler and left header had a fair amount of rust.

Left Header Pipe Mounted Wrong And Rear Muffler

Left Header Pipe Mounted Wrong And Rear Muffler

Corrosion On Muffler

Corrosion On Muffler

Right Side Missing Exhaust Header

Right Side Missing Exhaust Header

Here is the new exhaust system installed. I’ll install the muffler heat shield when I get the side panels back from the painter.

All Done

All Done

All Done

All Done

All Done

All Done

This is a link to the documentation and a short YouTube video summary of how I do this work.

VIDEO: 1983 BMW R80ST Install Exhaust System