Cafe Racer

Norton Motorcycles unveils new Café Racer bike

from https://www.coventrytelegraph.net/ by Enda Mullen The V4CR, a derivative of the company’s V4SV superbike, will go on show at Motorcycle Live Legendary manufacturer Norton Motorcycles has revealed a prototype of a new motorcycle. The V4CR, is a Café Racer derivative of the company’s V4SV superbike. It is the first prototype to be designed, engineered and built at the company’s recently opened global headquarters in Solihull. It shares the same engineering DNA as the superbike, including its 185bhp 1200cc V4 engine as well as some engineering advancements. Norton said the new V4CR’s stripped-back appearance showcases the craftsmanship and quality behind one of the most powerful British café racers out there. Fitted with a carbon fibre fuel tank and body panels, polished billet aluminium swingarm and frame, the V4CR also features compact framework and a shorter rear frame for an aggressive and commanding stance. Norton Motorcycles’ CEO Dr Robert Hentschel said: “The prototype VC4R is the next step in Norton’s strategic growth plan on its journey to becoming the world-leader in luxury hand-crafted motorcycles.” The V4CR prototype is Norton’s latest project to use the marque’s refined V4 platform, revised over the last 16 months by a team of 30 engineers and subject to tens of thousands of road and track miles, as part of Norton’s development process. The V4CR reintroduces fans to Norton’s iconic café racer heritage. Norton’s V4CR prototype will make its public debut at Motorcycle Live, taking place at the NEC in Solihull from December 4-12. Norton formally opened its Solihull headquarters in November this year. The motorcycle maker has a long and illustrious history, though fell on hard times before being revived. It became one of the most iconic British motorcycle brands, manufacturing famous models such as the 650SS, Atlas, Commando, Dominator, Manx, Navigator and many more. It gained […]

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Custom Motorcycle turned into Production Model by Honda

by Sebastian Toma from https://www.autoevolution.com 2021 Honda CB1000R 5Four Turns Custom Bike Into Production Reality. Honda has opened the order books for the CB1000R 5Four, a performance-focused café racer bike inspired by the CB1000RS 5Four built by Guy Willison. The Japanese company teamed up with the builder for this limited-edition model, and it blends café racer styling with a factory-backed warranty. Honda’s flagship naked motorcycle received an update for the 2021 model year, and that was selected as the base for the CB1000R 5Four. Work started with the front, which received a cowl for the front headlight. The handlebar received a set of LSL dog-leg brake and clutch levers, as well as a set of mirrors. The gas tank has a hand-painted Honda logo, and the seat is hand-stitched in a diamond pattern, while the rear of the seat has the 5Four logo laser etched on it. The tail of this bike is also custom, as it has a slimmer LED rear light, while the license plate mount was moved up to allow a better view of the rear wheel. Customers will also get a titanium Growler-X exhaust from Racefit, which is supposed to only be used on the track. It comes with laser-etched 5Four and Racefit logos. It sounds nice, as you can observe in the video embedded below. Naturally, the bike had to get custom paintwork. In this case, we are writing about a candy red main color, along with blue and pearl white accents. The three colors are an inspiration from Honda’s racing efforts. Customers will also be able to order Guy Willison’s signature painted on the rear fender, right next to the seat. Each bike will get a signed certificate of authenticity. Honda will only sell this bike through its dealer network in the UK. However,

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Electric dream: Horwin CR6 reviewed

by Fraser Addecott from https://www.mirror.co.uk Sales of electric two-wheelers are booming and with manufacturers producing bikes like this one, it’s easy to see why. It seems difficult to keep up with the number of new electric two-wheelers coming on to the market these days. The trend was already under way and has only been accelerated by the pandemic, with commuters and others looking for alternatives to public transport. Figures from the Motorcycle Industry Association show sales of electrics for June up 155% compared to the same month last year. Sales for the year up until last month are also up 210% compared to the same period in 2020. That is impressive growth, with the majority of bikes sold falling in the 50cc and 125cc equivalent categories. Artisan Electric is a British company established in 2016 with a “mission to change the face of electric motorcycles and scooters with industry-leading innovation and product quality”. The company offers a range of seven electric bikes and scooters – and the one I am testing here is the CR6. This is a 125cc-equivalent machine, with a pretty cool retro-meets-futuristic look. The air-cooled electric motor is powered by a 3.96kWh Panasonic lithium-ion battery. Careful riding will produce a range of around 60 miles. Haring around flat out – top speed is about 55mph – will cut your range to around 30 miles. That may not sound much, but the CR6 is aimed at commuters and for jaunts into town, so it’s perfectly adequate. A full charge from zero takes around four hours, but bear in mind you’ll hardly ever be charging from completely flat, so shorter times are more realistic. Charging is via a standard three-pin socket and a socket in the side of the bike. The battery comes with a reassuring three-year warranty. On

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Review of Triumph Thruxton RS 2021: a factory cafe racer

by Kyle Hyatt from https://www.cnet.com Everyday café: Triumph’s factory cafe racer offers an engaging ride and killer looks, but is it worth the sky-high asking price? The Thruxton RS is arguably the crown jewel of Triumph’s Modern Classic lineup of motorcycles. It’s an interesting mashup of modern, high-end components and technology, with a decidedly old-school powertrain. It’s a bike that shouldn’t make sense, but after spending time with it, it’s a bike I can’t get out of my head. The 2021 Triumph Thruxton RS is powered by a 1,200-cc liquid-cooled 270-degree parallel-twin engine, which produces 103 horsepower at 7,500 rpm and 83 pound-feet of torque at just 4,250 rpm. It’s an engine that, thanks to its large displacement and firing order, makes a noise that will get your heart pumping, even if its performance pales in comparison to more conventional naked and sport bikes. The engine delivers its power smoothly, thanks to Triumph’s excellent fueling. The bike routes its power through a smooth six-speed sequential transmission and out a chain final drive. The gearbox offers light, crisp shifts and an easy-to-find neutral. The age of the engine’s design shows, but that’s a good thing, given Triumph’s continued development. The formerly-range-topping RS is now the only Thruxton model you can get, and so Triumph seems to have spared no expense in kitting it out with the best-possible chassis components. While the Thruxton’s frame is a conventional and old-timey tubular steel affair, the suspension is modern and well considered. The front fork comes from Showa and uses that company’s “Big Piston” design as found on high-end sport bikes. It’s fully adjustable and makes for a controlled and plush ride, even over bumpy pavement. The rear shocks (that’s right, two — this is a heritage bike, after all) come from Ohlins and are

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Here’s Mulato, Brawny Built’s Monstrous Harley-Davidson Sportster 1200

by Silvian Secara from https://www.autoevolution.com If Frankenstein’s monster was a one-off motorcycle, this would be it. When seeking to create a stunning one-off cafe racer, the Harley-Davidson Sportster appears to be among many a workshop’s favorite picks (weirdly enough). Take, for instance, a 1999 model in HD’s feral Sportster 1200 range. This bad boy is put in motion by a malicious Evolution V-twin powerplant that prides itself with a gargantuan displacement of 1,200cc. At around 5,500 revs, the air-cooled colossus is fully capable of producing up to 61 hp, while a brutal torque output of 65 pound-feet (88 Nm) will be supplied at 4,000 rpm. A five-speed transmission enables the engine’s monstrous power to reach the reach 16-inch wheel by means of a belt final drive, leading to a respectable top speed of 100 mph (160 kph). Now, let’s take a second to drool over a bespoke ‘99 Sportster 1200 that manages to look just about as rugged as it gets. This tasty piece of two-wheeled machinery was nicknamed Mulato, and it hails from California’s Brawny Built – a revered workshop located in Long Beach. The project was completed back in 2012, over the course of three painstaking months. The moto gurus kicked things off by treating the Sportster’s Evolution mill to a Screamin’ Eagle’s camshaft module, which improves the bike’s acceleration by adding a healthy dose of vicious twisting force at low rpm. Additionally, you will also find an Eagle’s top-grade air filter and an ominous two-into-two exhaust system that curls to form a pair of menacing loops. At the rear, we notice a fresh subframe unit supporting an aftermarket leather saddle from Azteka Customs and a one-off tail section, which doubles up as an oil tank. Furthermore, Brawny removed the standard dual shocks to make room for a

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1992 Honda CBR600 F2 Morphs Into a Funky Cafe Racer

by Silvian Secara from https://www.autoevolution.com In case you were wondering what the Honda CBR600 would look like as a naked bike, here’s your answer. During the early ‘90s, the CBR600 F and F2 were a truly groundbreaking pair! Not only were these Honda’s best-selling two-wheelers at the time, they were also the Japanese manufacturer’s most innovative motorcycles to that date. In fact, let’s dive into some technical details and see what made these machines so special. As of 1992, the legendary F2 was powered by a fierce inline-four DOHC mill. This feral four-stroke beast had a displacement of 598cc and was capable of delivering up to 100 hp at 12,000 rpm, along with 47 pound-feet (64 Nm) of torque output at 10,500 rpm. A six-speed transmission carries the engine’s power to CBR600 F2’s rear wheel through a chain final drive. Honda’s bad boy would accelerate 0-62 mph (0-100 kph) in a whopping 3.3 seconds and reach a top speed of 147 mph (236 kph). Up front, it was supported by a pair of 41 mm (1.61 inches) adjustable forks, accompanied by a Pro-Link damper at the rear. In terms of braking, the ruthless F2 was provided with dual 276 mm (10.87 inches) discs and two-piston calipers at the front, along with a single 218 mm disc and one-piston caliper at the back. However, since the heavily customized marvel we’re going to be looking at has very little in common with the original model, we can probably skip the other details. Wido Veldkamp founded WiMoto several years ago in Elst, a small town in The Netherlands. Besides bike customization, his workshop also specializes in manufacturing top-quality aftermarket components. As you browse their portfolio, you’ll run into a splendid project based on a 1992 Honda CBR600 F2. Out of the whole bunch,

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2016 Harley-Davidson Street 750 Indie Is a Custom Cafe Racer Played by Ear

by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com/ A lot of auto and moto shows have been canceled or postponed this year because of the health crisis, and that robbed us, at least momentarily, of the chance of seeing in the flesh some incredible machines. Like this custom 2016 Harley-Davidson Street 750 its builder calls Indie. The bike was supposed to be shown at one of those many postponed events, but is now a star of a Harley-Davidson initiative called The No Show that aims to bring some of the custom bikes we missed in the flesh this year into the spotlight, via Internet of course. The build we have in the gallery above and the video below started life as a 2016 750. That means it is part of the Street series, the one that when it was announced back in 2013 ended more than a decade of drought when it came to new models made in Milwaukee. The Indie is an evolution of the 750 in that it was supposed to be lighter and better in handling than it’s stock counterpart. The bike’s maker, Dan Torres, is the owner of a “small garage shop called Milwaukee Moto,” and even if there was no actual design plan for this customized motorcycle, he must have known what he was doing. The modifications made to the bike included the replacement of the front end with a Yamaha R1-based hardware, a new Honda CB200T fuel tank on top, and the placement of an external fuel pump right under the seat hump. The paint scheme is custom as well, and dresses the Indie – named so after Indianapolis, from where the original 750 was purchased – in a cool combination of black and yellow. The 2016 Harley-Davidson Street 750 Indie is part of a long list

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Harley-Davidson RoadXster Is a Wannabe Cafe Racer

by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Giant Harley-Davidson is not a bike maker that makes a living by selling cafe racers. However, there are several such Harley-based two-wheelers out there thanks to the many customs shops working on such projects. These conversions are done in independent garages, who put in a lot of work and money to come up with incredible such independent projects at times. But the one we have here can be considered Harley-sanctioned. Sort of. The bike in the gallery above is called RoadXster and has been built by the bike maker’s Autostar dealership from Sao Paolo, Brazil. It was the shop’s entrance in the King of Kings custom build competition dedicated to dealers that concluded last month. Based on a Harley-Davidson Roadster, the bike has been designed with the cafe racers of the 1960s as inspiration, and its name combines the words Roadster and XR. Following the rules of the competition, which called for just a number of modifications to be made, the dealership did its best to make the final product reflect the style of the bikes it honors. One of the most visible changes is the fitting of a Scrambler-style exhaust, which should allow the motorcycle to lean more in curves. A custom paint job on the tank is supposed to “give a rebellious look to the finish of this classic and aggressive machine.” The Brazilian shop did not win King of Kings with this build, but was allowed entry because it won, as did the other 15 participants, the previous Battle of the Kings (BOTK). Launched a few years ago, BOTK pits Harley-’s various international dealers against one another by asking them to modify existing models into never-before-seen machines, all of which must still be road legal. The winners of previous BOTK editions, including

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Cleanfuel is the official fuel of RidePH Café event

from https://business.inquirer.net Leading Independent fuel company Cleanfuel has partnered with motorcycle journalist Jay Taruc on his RidePH Cafe event, which brings together art and motorcycle culture all into one event. Now in its second year, the event showcases artistic culture of motorcycle scene with live musical performances, art exhibits, free-flowing artisanal coffee, and of course, a display of classic motorcycles, that features premiere builders of the ‘café racer’ bikes and the other elements surrounding its culture. An avid motorcycle enthusiast himself, Cleanfuel’s president Atty. Bong Suntay, will be supporting the RidePH Cafe by displaying a rare breed of Ducati sports classic—the limited edition 2002 Ducati MH900e and the Honda Monkey 50th Anniversary Edition. The fully restored MH900e is a retro sport motorcycle, which is called Evoluzione, was designed by Pierre Terblanche, and is powered by a 904cc V-Twin engine which is mated to a six-gear transmission. Meanwhile, the iconic Monkey 50th edition is equipped with fuel-injected, air-cooled, 49cc single-cylinder engine mated to a 4-speed gearbox. “Joining Jay’s event RidePH Cafe brings us back to the good old days of motorcycles and its culture. The camaraderie of every rider is so important to bringing them altogether in an event that is full of history and heritage,” said Atty. Bong Suntay. “We’re glad to be part and to be the official fuel partner of this event. Here, we will see modern and classic motorbikes, art display exhibits, vintage clothing, and gentlemen’s grooming taking in one place. We wanted to be part of their lifestyle—whether in their four-wheeled and two-wheeled journey,” shares Suntay. “As we take Moto Culture deeper and to the next level, we also understand the need of every riders to have a fuel that would sustain them in their long journey. Our fuel provides bigger savings and long mileage in

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