One of the best things about Lego is the world of possibilities it opens. You can follow the instructions and build accurate cars and monuments, or you can let your imagination run wild and turn that average vehicle into something much more exciting. That's exactly what the team at BMW has done with its R1200 GS Adventure motorbike, creating the Hover Ride from tiny bricks before handing it over to the production team to give it life.
The R1200 GS has only been available as a Lego kit since the start of January this year, but the creative team at BMW has already completely taken it apart and turned it into a much wilder machine. Whereas the R1200 kit faithfully recreates the real-world bike, right down to its complex suspension and horizontally-opposed engine, the Lego Technic Hover Ride uses the same 603 pieces to envision a future where off-roaders don't need wheels.
Although it wears a BMW badge, the Hover Ride wasn't penned through the usual design team in Munich. Instead, it was developed by Junior Company Munich, a unit where members of the company's training program come together to work on smaller projects. Trainees from the second, third and fourth year of their courses used the pieces of a full-size, production R1200 GS Adventure to build a life-sized (but non-functional) model of the Lego Hover Bike.
Some of the parts from the bike have been repurposed for life in the air – the front wheel has been turned into a propellor, while the boxer engine remains in place. There's no word on what's actually powering the concept, nor any detail about what would make it float. Like the best Lego creations, we're going to assume there's a gleeful kid holding it in the air making vroom-vroom noises.
The full-size model of the Hover Ride Concept will be shown in Copenhagen from the 16th of February. From there it will make its way around Denmark, before touring the BMW Group Research and Innovation Center and other BMW sites in Munich. Those unable to see the model in person can also build it as part of the R1200 GS Adventure Lego kit.
Source: BMW Motorrad