What BSA Stands For: The History Behind The Motorcycle Company's Name

There are certain manufacturers that just love to make a noise. The unmistakable deep throaty growl of the classic Harley-Davidson sound springs to mind, as does the roar of an iconic V8 engine. BSA has been in the business of making noise since 1861, and — after a fifty-year hiatus — it appears the company has roared back into action. BSA might be famous as a historic name in motorcycles, but its history began not as a motorcycle manufacturer but as a supplier of firearms to the British Government. BSA stands for Birmingham Small Arms. It was originally founded when an alliance of arms manufacturers from Birmingham's "gun quarter" banded together to form a company that quickly became the largest arms manufacturer in Europe. 

It wasn't until 1903 that the company decided to add the sound of a motorcycle engine to its noise portfolio. This was the year that BSA set up its motorcycle division, and by 1910, the first motorcycle rolled from the production line.  However, BSA didn't just rise to dominate the world's motorcycle market by the 1950s; it did so without forgetting its heritage as a manufacturer of guns and munitions. Let's have a closer look at the story of how BSA went from gunpowder to gasoline — and why its roar is being heard once again. 

When the first BSA motorcycles appeared in 1910, the company couldn't have known that in just a few years, they would be a major player in the first "industrialized war." During WW1, BSA not only continued to produce motorcycles but also manufactured rifles (1.5 million of them), aero-components, shells, and machine guns, to name a few. However, despite this interlude, the motorcycle seed had been sown. After the war, BSA continued to produce both motorcycles and cars in Birmingham and in Daimler's Coventry factory (BSA had acquired Daimler in 1910). The interwar years saw BSA produce several models, including the Gold Star, the Empire Star, and the general-purpose M20. When WW2 erupted, BSA again helped the war effort by producing munitions, but it also built 126,334 motorcycles for the military — all of which were M20s. 

It was in the post-war years that BSA began to dominate motorcycle manufacturing. The company purchased Triumph Engineering (yes, that Triumph) in the early 1950s. In 1953, the motorcycling part of the business was spun off to become BSA Motorcycles Ltd. For the next couple of decades, it seemed that BSA could do no wrong, and by 1969, BSA motorcycles made up 80% of all British motorcycle exports. The future looked bright. Yet, a mere four years later, production suddenly ceased. Fierce competition from overseas and bad management decisions saw BSA absorbed into the Norton-Villiers group in 1972 and ultimately, the last BSA was produced in 1973. 

The BSA story could have ended in 1973. However, you can keep a good marque down, and despite the passage of time, the name had never been forgotten and refused to slip away into the footnotes of history. The first "rebirth" of the BSA name came in 1994, when a group of companies founded the BSA-Regal Group Ltd. and acquired the BSA Motorcycling brands. From 1997, the company built over 200 BSA Gold SRs, a Yamaha-engined bike designed to capture the spirit of the original BSA Gold Star – one of the most beautiful motorcycles sold at auction. 

Next to breathe new life into the Gold Star name was the India-based Mahindra Group. Launched in 2021, the Gold Star 650 could rekindle the passion of the BSA fanbase as well as attract a new generation of riders to the brand. Despite being built in India, the Mahindra Group is well aware of the company's heritage and hopes to bring assembly of motorcycles back to BSA's Birmingham roots.

Perhaps, the final word should go to the chairman of the Mahindra Group, Mr. Anand Mahindra. In August 2024, he said, "That indomitable spirit of BSA, a brand built in the fires of battle, is imbued in the new Gold Star." So, if you've ever wondered what happened to BSA Motorcycles, then keep wondering because the story is ongoing.