When Brad Pitt took possession of his newly rebuilt BMW R80 by Roughchild Moto he said: “It’s incredibly charming – my new favorite motorcycle.” High praise indeed from a man with an enviable motorcycle collection.
This BMW R80 is far more than a simple bolt-on custom job. It has a rebuilt 1,000cc R100RS engine, state-of-the-art front and rear suspension from Öhlins, and Brembo GP4 calipers and rotors up front. In short, it’s now faster, it handles better, and it stops faster than it ever would have in stock condition.
Fast Facts – Brad Pitt’s Roughchild Moto BMW R80
- This custom BMW R80 was built by Roughchild Moto for Brad Pitt, it now has a more powerful 1000cc R100RS engine, Öhlins suspension front and back, and Brembo brakes – blending classic design with much improved performance.
- The R80 series, introduced in 1976, became a revered model for its reliability and versatility, particularly with the R80 G/S, the first adventure bike, which gained fame for its multiple successes in the Paris Dakar Rally.
- Founded by Robert Sabel in 2014, Roughchild Moto has built a reputation for creating high-end custom BMWs, with an emphasis on improved performance and aesthetics, for clients like Ryan Reynolds and Brad Pitt.
- This R80 features upgrades including new SmartCarb carburetors, an upgraded exhaust system, and that new R100RS engine producing 73 bhp.
A History Speedrun: The BMW R80
The BMW R80 series of motorcycles would become one of the most important in the history of the German marque. The first BMW R80, the R80/7, made its debut in 1976. It was powered by an 800cc (actually 797.5cc) version of the BMW 247 engine, an air-cooled horizontally-opposed twin cylinder engine famed for its toughness, reliability, and its easy maintenance.
This BMW now benefits from the fitment of a much more powerful R100RS engine, as well as new front and rear Öhlins suspension, and dual Brembo brakes up front.
As with all R series BMWs of this era, the R80 was fitted with a separate 5-speed transmission that sent power back via a shaft drive to the rear wheel. The standard BMW R80 would be joined in 1980 by the most famous model to ever wear the R80 badge – the BMW R 80 G/S, the first adventure motorcycle and a bike that would win the Paris Dakar Rally twice in the early 1980s.
Today the R80 is much sought after by collectors and enthusiasts, along with similar models from the period like the R60, R75, R90, and R100. The engines are often compared to Swiss watches, being brilliantly engineered and able to last decades with timely maintenance.
Robert Sabel + Roughchild Moto
Roughchild Moto was founded by Robert Sabel, a Brit, in Los Angeles in 2014 and has since grown to become one of the most respected custom motorcycle garages in the world. Sabel has a history of restoring Porsche 911s, he also worked as an automotive writer for many years, before delving headlong into the world of custom motorcycles – custom BMWs in particular.
In the years since Roughchild Moto was founded, he’s built dozens of high-end customs including bikes for both Ryan Reynolds and Brad Pitt. Sabel’s bikes have become quite influential both in the United States and around the world.
Roughchild builds are almost always BMW-based including classic Airheads and some more modern models, they characterized by his attention to detail and his focus on improving their performance – not just building customs that look good when sitting still.
This is Brad Pitt and Robert Sabel, the founder of Roughchild Moto, with the first iteration of the bike from 2022. Earlier in 2024 it was updated with a slew of new parts and a newly finished gas tank.
Over the years Sabel’s builds have been featured at major events like The Quail and he’s been a speaker at the Pebble Beach Concours Classic Car Forum, during the world famous Monterey Car Week.
Brad Pitt’s BMW R80 By Roughchild Moto
The motorcycle you see here was built for Brad Pitt, an actor who needs no introduction, having starred in dozens of major Hollywood films including Thelma & Louise, True Romance, Legends of the Fall, Seven, Ocean’s 11, Moneyball, World War Z, The Big Short, Bullet Train, and countless others.
What many fans don’t know is that Pitt is also a keen motorcyclist, a trait he shares with fellow actors George Clooney, Keanu Reeves, and Ryan Reynolds.
The exact contents of Pitt’s motorcycle collection isn’t widely known, but we do know it includes a BMW R1150GS, an MV Augusta Brutale, custom motorcycles from Shinya Kimura and Indian Larry, as well as the BMW R80 shown here.
This build was completed in 2022, but then the bike returned to Roughchild Moto for a number of minor updates.
Brad Pitt has an impressive collection of motorcycles, and unlike many collectors he actually rides them frequently, with pictures of him snapped from moving cars by starstruck fans often appearing online.
The build began with a 1985 BMW R80 but the original engine was swapped out for a more powerful 1000cc BMW R100RS engine that was rebuilt with new bearings, refreshed cylinder heads, a new pair of 1000cc pistons and cylinders, and a pair of 38mm SmartCarb carburetors.
This newly upgraded engine is now producing 73 bhp and 75 lb ft of torque – considerably more than the 50 bhp produced by the stock R80.
The original telescopic forks were replaced with a more advanced set of Öhlins upside down forks offering full adjustability, and an Öhlins monoshock was fitted in the rear. The front disc brake was swapped out for a pair of Brembo GP4 calipers and rotors, and a set of Metzeler Semi Slick Race Tec Street tires were fitted.
The rear subframe area was tidied up significantly and a solo gel seat was added, upholstered with Denim Blue Alcantara. A set of Marchal Running lights were fitted to the factory engine guards, and Motogadget turn signals were installed.
The upgraded R100RS engine is fitted with a pair of 38mm SmartCarb carburetors. These American made carburetors are a modern 21st century design that claim to increase power by as much as 10%, and fuel efficiency by 25% or more due to much more effective fuel atomization.
The fuel tank on the bike was originally black, as you can see pictured above, but since the bike was brought back for upgrades in 2024 it was given a new patinated look (see it pictured below). The seat was also reupholstered at this time, and the SmartCarbs were added.
The bike is now safely back at home with its A-list owner, but if you live in Southern California keep an eye on on those winding canyon roads and you might just see it fly by. If you’d like to read more about this build you can visit the page on Roughchild Moto here.
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Images courtesy of Roughchild Moto / Robert Sabel
Articles that Ben has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
