Catching up with BSA’s Incredible Motorcycle History.
Motorcycling can be defined by many glorious words. Words like freedom, brotherhood and expression have been used throughout the history of this nirvana on two-wheels. However, there is more to motorcycling than that, and that is the incredible ability of this culture to still be deeply rooted into its history. Every passing day, with new technological developments and the fast moving customer psyche, the motorcycle world is changing. Yet, it has this entire time kept its old vintage charm. And speaking of the vintage era of the motorcycle world, the effect of British marquees can never be ignored. One of these iconic vintage Motorcycle Brands that was the mothership for some of the most iconic names in British motorcyling has just been revived by a rising Indian motorcycle maker. The brand in concern is BSA and the Indian conglomerate that has just acquired it is, Mahindra. We take this opportunity to discuss about the glorious BSA Motorcycle History and how its 100-year old legacy got there.
However, before we go into the past of BSA and its significance in the motorcycling culture and history, let’s have a look at Mahindra. Mahindra Two Wheelers is a part of the Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. that has been a major player in India’s automobile landscape for almost 70-years now. The group makes cars, motorcycles, scooters, commercial vehicles and farming equipment including tractors. In fact Mahindra is the world’s biggest producer of Tractors. Its two-wheeler arm is among the newest of its automotive endeavours and is rapidly expanding its base globally. The company is the only Indian manufacturer to be involved into MotoGP racing championships with its Moto3 entry Mahindra GP30 racer, which has earned huge respect in the paddock in a short time. Among other big names the company owns are Peugeot Two-wheelers (majority stake) and Engines Engineering from Italy in the two-wheeler space. In cars, Mahindra owns SsangYong Motors, and in automotive design, they own the world’s most famed design house Pininfarina. Thats an impressive list of brands under the Indian colmogorate’s belt.
BSA Blue Star 1932 – 1936
We will soon be discussing the relevance and future (as we think of it) of Mahindra buying BSA fairly soon, But, before that, let’s have a quick look into the BSA Motorcycle history.
It is interesting to note that three of the most iconic British motorcycle brands (Royal Enfield, Triumph Motorcycles and BSA) originated from Arms and ammunition makers. Back in the early 1900’s, after almost 40 years of being in arms manufacturing, the Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited (BSA) started to make bicycles and then motorcycles. In 1903 the company made its first prototype motorcycle while the first production model arrived in 1910. However, it was only after WW1 that the company BSA Motorcycles Ltd truly got into the motorcycle business. BSA used the war time interval to improve its motorcycles. This helped the company’s products to become well-regarded and reliable transportation. This brought the company a huge success in England; where at its peak BSA had one in four motorcycles on the road. Over its existence as a motorcycle maker, BSA created some great motorcycles with even greater names.
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Motorcycles like the Blue Star, Empire Star, Golden Flash, Road Rocket, Spitfire, Thunderbolt and Lightning that mark the pinnacle of BSA motorcycle history, are still among the most well known vintage motorcycle names. However, for sure the most iconic of the BSA models was the Gold Star that arrived in 1938. The motorcycle took its name from the pins that were awarded to motorcycles which could lap the famous Brooklands track at speeds in excess of 100mph. The bike was an instant success among Britain’s young rockers who barred the bike and created café racers out of it. Its rapidly gaining fame saw BSA enter the world of motorcycle racing in 1950. The company fielded its teams at the Isle of Man TT in the Junior Clubman class. The bikes were so successful that by 1956 there were as many as 53 BSA motorcycles out of 55 entries at the TT.
In 1954, buoyed by its sales success, BSA entered into the American motorcycle racing scene with a team of racers in the Daytona 200, which, in those times, was held on the iconic beach course. BSA and is team of riders did not take long before they established their dominance. The single-cylinder Gold Star’s and the twin-cylinder Shooting Stars swapped away the top five places in the 1954 race. However, like its other European rivals, BSA failed to understand the rapid momentum that the small, reliable, oil-tight Japanese machines were gaining in the 1960s. Understanding it was losing steam; BSA had to merge with Triumph Motorcycles. The merger also had a small success with the Rocket 3, a three-cylinder bike that shared its engine and drivetrain with the Triumph Trident.
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However, it was all too small too late as by 1970’s performance Japanese motorcycles like the Honda CB750 had clearly displaced BSAs in the minds of many motorcyclists. In 1973, after a merger with Norton Villiers Triumph Group, BSA branded motorcycles production seized and the once big name was confined to history books. Too this day, BSA’s are considered as competitive vintage racers and the staples of modern café racer culture. We are excited about the possiblities that come from Mahindra reviving such an iconic motorcycle brand that has been an integral part of motorcycle history for a century. Mahindra has their own plans of how to use BSA motorcycle history to their advantange while also bring the iconic name back to life in the best suitable way for classic motorcycle afficianados. We are looking forward to this, but thats a story for later.
Photos Courtesy: Wikipedia and YouTube
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