BMW asked Laverda to build an initial prototype for the very 1st G/S. BMW was so happy with it, nothing much was changed technically. Here's the story, translated:
Laverda Prototype - BMW Motorrad GS
Late 70s Munich in Bavaria. A phone that is ringing. The plant is about to close. And in the office the secretaries have already left. Hans-Günther looks up to the sky, "just this evening I have to go to the cinema... ". Mr von der Marwitz’s life has changed for a while now. Ever since he became the technical manager of BMW’s Motorrad department he can’t plan anything anymore. And the success of the /5, the motorcycle that transformed the Bavarian boxer into a naked finally sexy, as if it wasn't enough it also made things worse. Before raising the receiver, which has not yet stopped playing, Hans puffs: "Guten Abend, good evening, Hans here... ". It doesn’t take long to finish introducing himself that the American from the other end of the world flows through him like a full river. Hans, however, doesn’t puff anymore now, but he nods thoughtfully. This yankee deserves respect, he is the importer of Bavarians to the States, and if BMW sells all those motorcycles, well, the credit is also his. The phone call goes a long way. It must be something serious. When Hans finishes he has already forgotten about the cinema, the late hour and that he hasn’t turned on the office light. And then, in Tentoni, he looks for the number of his Italian friend... "Damn secretaries, she says, never there when you need them... ".
MONACO OF BAVIERIA - BREGANS. AND I'M BACK. Meanwhile in Breganze it’s time for prosecco at the bar. Dinner in a bit. Massimo has just arrived home. And the phone starts ringing at that moment. Luckily, because if it rang just a minute before the noise of his Porsche 911 would not have made him hear it. Massimo is up, getting in, and responding to the flight. “Soon... ". Hans doesn't have to show up. The two, who should be ruthless competitors on paper, are actually great friends. The German has a great desire to tell Vicentino about the phone call from America. Massimo is listening and smiling. The next evening, still in Breganze, Giuseppe Andrighetto, historical tester of oranges, is speaking with the owner of the company. Massimo Laverda on point. At that moment a German arrives at the factory gates, riding a BMW R60. The Bavarian centaur departed from Monaco that very morning, with the precise order to hand over the motorcycle only to Mr. Laverda himself. And to bounce back somehow. The watchman looks at him bewildered. "We are Laverda, if you say, not a BMW dealer." But he does his job, and goes to ask for the boss. Minutes later the bar is raised. And the R destined to become the first G/S, enters Laverda.
D R A G / S. BUT ALWAYS A BOXER Technically boxer experiments have been done before. The engine with contrast cylinders, which had raged on Nazi motorcycles during the last war, had at least two skills that off-roaders like. Low center of gravity and easy maintenance. That’s why individuals, pilots and trainers had already tried to translate the R into G/S. But this time it’s Hans-Günther von der Marwitz himself, moving, with the whole BMW behind him. The infamous American phone call said, essentially, that the market was moving towards truffles, motorcycles that the Japanese were already beginning to produce in large quantities and that Italians had also tried to import, but with scarcity of s success. So, if BMW wanted to continue selling in the USA, they needed to jump into the mix. That’s why Hans thought goes straight to Massimo Laverda. In Breganze, in fact, they had already made off-road for others, even if with smaller cylinders. And then they worked well, in Veneto, and they had the one thing the Germans lacked: the ability to arrange themselves. Essential if working on a prototype starting from scratch. And so, that evening, von der Marwitz didn't have to go crazy with explanations and details, "I'll send you an R - he said - you just hold the engine, for the rest I trust you... ".
https://www.veloce.it/.../lintrigo-internazionale-40-anni...
https://laverdaforum.com/xf/threads/87285/
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