Germany

Anthracite Grey Harley-Davidson TB-2 Is the Unlikely Low Rider S Superbike

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com As part of autoevolution’s Custom Builds Month, we talked aplenty about a number of customized Harley-Davidson motorcycles handled all the way in Germany. The country is home to a very active shop called Thunderbike, who over the past 25 years has made a name for itself in the industry with literally hundreds of projects. On Monday, July 13, we talked about the TB-1 Superbike, a conversion of a Low Rider S the likes of which we don’t get to see that often. As it usually happens with Thunderbike ideas, the TB-1 has a sequel of sorts. It is called TB-2, naturally, and is, at least as far as the paint goes, a more conservative approach than it’s older sibling. Most of the changes designed for the TB-1 have been kept on this one. The bike’s stock wheels (19-inch front and 17-inch rear) have been replaced with bigger hardware, namely 21-inch front and 18-inch rear, to give the machine a “slimmer” look. Turning the Low Rider into a racer-style bike was achieved through the fitting of a lowering kit for the telescopic fork, Hyperpro shock absorbers with height adjustment, and of course a custom new front fairing. The listed of custom parts fitted on the motorcycle comprises around 20 elements, and even if we are not told how much the conversion cost, simple math (that is adding the prices of each of those parts) points to it being worth a little over 5,000 euros (roughly $5,600). That does not including the bike itself, the man hours spent on assembling it, and of course the base Low Rider. The thing that sets TB-2 apart the most from its earlier incarnation is of course the paint job. Whereas on the first iteration the shop went for a dark […]

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Racing Red Harley-Davidson Grand Prix Pushes the Outerlimit to the Extreme

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Over the past few months, as part of our various special coverages, we’ve talked at length about certain custom motorcycles coming from Germany. As you can see, we’re not quite done yet, because the number of extreme builds a certain shop there is responsible for is huge. The shop is called Thunderbike, and this weekend we’re showing you a machine it unveiled at the 2016 Custombike show in Bad Salzuflen, Germany. It’s called Grand Prix, and it’s an even more radical interpretation of another build that goes by the name Outerlimit. The Outerlimit was made for one of the shop’s customers specifically to mirror the design and colors of a Lamborghini Aventador. Built on a custom frame, it sports a Harley-Davidson twin cam 120R engine linked to a 6-speed manual transmission, which gives the bike a power output of 140 ps and 190 Nm of torque. Likewise, the Grand Prix too uses the same Screamin’ Eagle, packed in a frame that offers a 1,780 mm (70 inches) wheelbase, 132 mm (5 inches) caster, a steering head angle of 36 degrees. That makes the overall design of the bike pretty similar to the Outerlimit, only there are exceptions, too. The most visible one is the color. Instead of the white used on the Lambo-mimicking bike, this one comes in racing red, hence the name Grand Prix. The wheels on the build are a tad different, too. The custom shop went for a new design, more aggressive, for the rims (they are sized 23 inches at the front and 21 inches at the rear) to give the motorcycle a more racing-like look. We are not being told how much the Grand Prix cost to put together, but we do know that a lot of CNC-machining, CAD design

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Harley-Davidson Grand Prix 2 Makes Big Gold Wheels Great Again

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Whereas American custom motorcycle garages have a thing for choppers, with their extended front ends and lowered rear suspension, elsewhere in the world the focus is on something else: massive, intricately-designed wheels, fitted on custom frames that ride so low they almost touch the ground. One of the largest custom shops outside the U.S. is in Germany and goes by the name of Thunderbike. For the past 20 years, the crew there released a great number of customized Harleys, but also a long list of custom frames running Harley powertrains. The custom frame in the gallery above, complete with its Harley-Davidson Screamin’ Eagle 110ci engine, is one of those special builds. Completed in 2017, it is part of a set of bikes the group calls the Racing Series, which also includes motorcycles like the Laguna Seca, Silverstone and Mugello. As with most other Thunderbike creations, this too has been made to be a display of custom parts the garage is selling. The focus, as admitted by the builders themselves, was on the wheels, elements that are not only big (sized 23 and 21 inches), but also complicated in design. What’s more interesting about them is that somehow Thunderbike managed to make the gold on the milled hardware look right at home next to the red, white and blue of the bike’s body. “Used properly, they can become the most important style elements and make a great impression on a bike,” Thuderbike says about the build. “It’s the combination of these powerful wheels, the radial brakes, the clippers and an extremely low seating position that make this bike look like a brutal racing dragster.” The very lowered stance of the bike as seen in the gallery above is supposedly the one displayed while the build is

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Harley-Davidson Emperor Is a “Chopperized” 1995 Sportster

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com Harley-Davidson called the custom bike build competition for its international dealers King of Kings, but one shop from Germany wanted to top that, so they named their project Emperor. Chosen at the end of April, the King of Kings winner was crowned a Sportster-based Mexican creation by the name of Apex Predator. Over the past two weeks, we’ve talked at length about some of the other participants as well, because each had its own something unique to bring to the table. The Emperor we’re talking about today is of German origin, and has been designed by a Harley dealer called Thunderbike. It boasts, perhaps, the most radical changes compared to the base bike, which is a 1995 H-D Sportster. We’ve talked about Thunderbike before, and we know these guys are not messing around when it comes to customizing motorcycles or building their own frames. The same happened here. The Emperor probably boasts the most changes from all the 15 entries in the competition. It has been gutted and had some of the parts removed, some of them replaced, and the whole thing gifted with a very long list of custom parts, ranging from the wheels to the exhaust. The fork, handlebar, tank, oil tank, seat, fender, struts, exhaust and shifter, all have been added to the bike in custom form to give it this distinctive look, a more chopper-like appearance than Harley originally had in mind for the Sportster. Thunderbike went a little further than its competitors did, and even revised the stock engine of the motorcycle a bit, fitting it with an automatic clutch. In the end, the German Emperor, even in this extreme, chopperized form, did not manage to win the King Kings competition. Yet, given the budget limits imposed by Harley for

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Black Star 110 Is What Happens to a Harley-Davidson in Germany

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by Daniel Patrascu from https://www.autoevolution.com There’s no official data on the number of custom shops around the world in the business of remaking Harleys, but rest assured there’s plenty of them. Some spit out new models several years apart, but there are others, far fewer, that work around the clock on making the already incredible machines even better. Germany-based Thuderbike is part of the latter category. Having started life in the 1980s as a repair shop for mainly Japanese bikes, Thunderbike turned its sights on products of American behemoth Harley-Davidson, and spat out the first custom bike based on a Milwaukee-made machine in 2003. Since then, many others have hit the roads, most of them customized at the request of the owners. The latest project Thunderbike was involved in is the Black Star 110, a build that started life as a Harley-Davidson Softail Slim S, transitioned to a custom form the company calls Black Apple, and then settled into the shape you see in the gallery above. The bike was commissioned by a customer about nine months ago, and was ready for a photoshoot at the end of April. The result is according to Thunderbike “one of the most radical bikes in our 18-series Softail Collection.” It rides on differently-sized wheels (21-inch front, 23-inch rear) and, with the exception of the fuel tank and the fork, which received only minor upgrades, features extensive modifications. The front and rear fenders are new, as are the swingwarm and the turn signals. There are other handlebars than the ones you would see on the stock Harley, new footpegs, and new mirrors. The paint job on the motorcycle is unique as well and comes with Harley lettering on the fuel tank and the Black Star 110 name beneath the saddle. There is no word

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Side stand foot enlargement BMW F900R/XR & Lithium Battery

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Side stand foot enlargement for BMW F900R & F900XR Feel safer parking your bike on dirt or asphalt with a side stand foot enlargement. More than 100% bigger contact area. Made of high quality aluminium. Black anodized. Easy to install. Side stand foot enlargement for BMW F900R & F900XR 26,70 Euro up (incl. VAT) plus shipping (press release and printable pictures) http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=428 Lithium battery and battery charger for BMW motorcycles Due to its high output power due to the low internal resistance, this lithium battery starts motorcycles quickly. In addition, it is characterized by a low self-discharge. The height of the battery can be varied. The automatic charger is a microprocessor-controlled, intelligent battery charging and diagnostic tester for 12V lead-acid batteries (Gel, EXIDE, AGM, Hawker, Microflies and acid) which can also handle CAN-BUS systems. After switchover, it can also be used to charge modern lithium batteries. It works with characteristic controlled charging technology and allows for optimal charging and battery maintenance. All the connection accessories are included. Lithium battery for BMW motorcycles 94,90 Euro up (incl. VAT) plus shipping Automatic battery charger for BMW motorcycles 79,95 Euro up (incl. VAT) plus shipping (press release and printable pictures) http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=427 ALSO of interest Stainless steel crash bars for BMW R1250 models http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=426 New BMW motorcycle accessory catalogue 2020 by Hornig – ready for shipping! http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=425 ZTechnik Windscreen for BMW R1250R http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=423 Windshield R-Racer for BMW S1000RR (2019- ) http://www.mhornig.com/Company.html?newsid=422 Motorcycle Accessory Hornig GmbH Gewerbepark Chammünster Nord C 5 D93413 Cham Germany

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Yamaha Ténéré 700 Dethrones BMW GS In Germany

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by Dustin Wheelen from https://www.rideapart.com Since Yamaha released the T7 concept in late 2016, the motorcycling world has been pining for the Ténéré 700. From unveiling the prototype at EICMA 2017 to the announcement of the production model at last year’s EICMA show, Team Blue continued to generate hype for the model at each turn. All the groundwork Yamaha laid seems to be paying off as the newcomer is already supplanting the long-established king of adventure—the BMW GS 1250—in its homeland of Germany. Though the Ténéré 700 isn’t for sale in the States until summer 2020, the mid-displacement adventure bike has been available in the European market since mid-2019. With European pre-orders opening in March of this year and initial deliveries following close behind in July, Ténéré fans backed the model right out of the gate. By fall, the bike was outpunching the competition in Germany with 310 units sold in the month of October alone. Outselling BMW’s battleship (242 units) and Honda’s Africa Twin (181 units) is a great start for the smaller Ténéré. In a country dominated by ADV and naked bikes, securing a foothold will be important for the shelf life of the mid-sized motorcycle. Rounding out Germany’s top five in October, Kawasaki’s Z900 comes in fourth with 125 bikes sold while the ever-popular Yamaha MT-07 brings up the rear at 116 units. While this is a small victory for Yamaha, only time will tell if the mighty middleweight can go round for round with BMW’s heavyweight champ. From January to October 2019, BMW has sold 9,100 GS 1250s in Deutschland. That staggering number is only followed the second-best seller in the country: Yamaha’s MT-07 at 3,569 units. Touting the same universally-loved CP2 parallel twin from the MT-07, the Ténéré 700 is uniquely positioned between the two

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The German Autobahn is under threat

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By Cameron Kirby from https://www.whichcar.com.au The last bastion of high-speed driving freedom could soon be outlawed There is a new plan to kill the Autobahn as we know and love it. If a minority party in Germany’s federal parliament has its way, a new national 130km/h limit could replace the unrestricted sections of the Autobahn. Currently there are 5353km of Autobahn which have the ‘unrestricted’ advisory speed limit. The Alliance90/The Greens political party, often referred to simply as The Greens, is behind the move, and is pushing the lowering of limits as part of a package of new measures intended to reduce emissions. “A speed limit would be a commandment of reason for an enlightened society in the 21st century,” said Green politician Cem Özdemir. It’s claimed that enforcing a 130km/h limit would lower Germany’s carbon dioxide emissions by between one and three million tonnes per year. In 2018, Germany produced 725.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide. Lowering speed limits to 130km/h on the autobahn is supported by the German police union, with the head of the federal trade union Michael Mertens stating: “For us, a speed limit for transport policy reasons is urgently needed”. A vote on the proposition will be held in Germany’s national parliament, the Bundestag, on October 13. The federal parliament has 709 seats, with the joint Union alliance, made up of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU), Christian Social Union in Bavaria (CSU), and Social Democratic Party of Germany (SDP), holding a majority with 398 members. The Greens hold 67 of the 311 seats in opposition. The Union has previously defended the unrestricted speed limits on the Autobahn, including when they were attacked earlier this year. In January a leaked report from a government-appointed committee called the National Platform on the Future of Mobility

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E-scooter manufacturers are rushing into Germany

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European scooter companies such as Circ, Tier, Voi are vying with international players such as US-based Lime and Bird in the world’s fourth largest economy. by Avik Das from TNN BERLIN: A gamut of electric scooter companies has flooded the streets of Germany, specially Berlin, after the federal government opened up the segment in June in an attempt to reduce congestion and carbon footprint. European scooter companies such as Circ, Tier, Voi are vying with international players such as US-based Lime and Bird in the world’s fourth largest economy, where the car still remains the preferred mode of commute in spite of a strong public transport system. Dutch company Dott, which recently raised 30 million euros in its Series A round, is also looking to enter Germany. Berlin-based Tier, which started operations last year in Vienna, has got a fleet of 20,000 scooters, of which 1,000 are in the German capital. “We are starting in one city every week and have already completed 5 million rides with 1 million in Berlin in just 30 days,” said Tier cofounder Julian Blessin. Tier has till date raised about 33 million euros. Most major European countries, barring the United Kingdom, have already allowed these 10 kg vehicles to ply and companies and experts say Germany has the potential to be one of the largest markets after France because of the number of cities. Urban consumers, who are already familiar with cab hailing companies like Uber, are attracted to electric scooters as they are fun, provide a new experience and help them avoid traffic jams. The result: investors are opening up their purse strings. Swedish company Voi has raised 75 million euros and Berlin-based Circ 55 million euros. These companies need more money to compete with those like Lime, which has raised nearly $800

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Berlin to tighten rules for electric scooter users

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City transport officials said after a meeting with scooter providers that they’ll designate special on-street parking zones for the battery-powered vehicles BERLIN: Berlin plans to stop electric scooters from being left haphazardly on sidewalks and other anti-social behavior that’s drawn the ire of residents in the German capital since the vehicles were made legal two months ago. City transport officials said Wednesday after a meeting with scooter providers that they’ll designate special on-street parking zones for the battery-powered vehicles, which are popular among tourists and young people. Berlin police will also step up patrols to prevent illegal behavior such as doubling. Police say seven people have been seriously injured and 27 suffered minor injuries in scooter accidents since mid-June, saying most were due to riders behaving carelessly. In Paris, where about 20,000 scooters roam the streets , authorities recently proposed limiting speeds to 8 kilometers per hour (5 mph) in areas with heavy foot traffic.

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