Between the years of 1926 and 1961, one man from a small town in New Zealand dreamed of setting a land speed record on a 1920 Indian Scout. In 1962 at the Bonneville salt flats that man's dream finally came true.
To honor the past and power the future, Indian Motorcycle built the Spirit of Munro, an all-metal tribute bike which would house the new Thunder Stroke 111™ engine. On May 5, 2013 the bike was run on a dry lake bed in California. A tribute to the great Burt Munro, and a celebration of the Indian Motorcycle that is yet to come.
ABOUT THE SPIRIT OF MUNRO:
Fully custom-built, the Spirit of Munro is an all-metal tribute to the racers and mechanics throughout history who have collectively built the legacy of record-breaking racing performance and strength that is Indian Motorcycle.
The motorcycle is named in honor of Burt Munro's "Munro Special," the historic 1920 Indian Scout that broke the under-1000cc land-speed record in 1967 at the Bonneville Salt Flats as famously portrayed in the motion picture "The World's Fastest Indian."
The Spirit of Munro was constructed by Jeb Scolman of Jeb's Metal and Speed in Long Beach, CA. It was designed from the ground up to house the new Thunder Stroke 111™ engine and showcase its awe-inspiring power and performance.
mardi 9 juillet 2013
From Lipstick to Lava: the greatest reds in automotive history
The colour red is often associated with beauty and passion, so it’s little wonder that it suits sports cars so well. Here are our favourite shades of the colour that has clothed some of the best-looking cars of the last century…
Birkin Bentley Red
British racing cars have long been known for sporting British Racing Green, but the 'Birkin' Bentley sold last year by Bonhams for a record-breaking £5m was painted a refreshing red – and looked all the more striking for it.
Rosso Speciale
In the late 1960s, Woolworth heiress Barbera Hutton ordered the very last 365 GTC to leave Maranello, specifying Rosso Speciale paintwork – otherwise known as ‘Lipstick Coral’.
Rosso Rubino
As if the 250 TDF wasn’t beautiful enough already, the LWB Series III sold by RM in Monaco a few years ago was finished in a beautiful burgundy, most likely Rosso Rubino.
Guards Red
Porsche’s famous Guards Red is a particular favourite in the Classic Driver office. In the 1980s it was THE colour of choice of Gordon Gekkos worldwide. Just look at this Targa and we’re sure you’ll agree. It looks good on modern sporting 911s, such as the GT3, too.
Lava Red
A few years ago, the 4C concept hinted at a possible return to Alfa’s glorious sports car roots, and just as captivating was its 'anodised' Lava Red paintwork, which seemed to add further depth the coupé’s already stunning curves. A few years on and the launch of the production 4C is imminent. But, as yet, the volcanic colour is notably absent from the options list.
from Classic Driver
Benelli 750 ‘Sei Bel's Edition’: Red Six
The big, transverse-mounted six-cylinder engine dominates the frame of this Benelli bike. Resplendent in red and black, with gold accents, the bike has been developed into a café racer with period tuning equipment from Italian experts Bel's...
Italian tuning specialists Bel’s provided a modular system of tuning and improvement parts for bikes in the 60s and 70s. For example, the blocks of colour on the tank and seat were available from Bel's in red/white, black/gold and blue/light blue. This 1976 Benelli Sei has been given the full ‘Sei Bel's Edition’ treatment: Bel’s black/gold decals and wheels, and a variety of go-faster equipment that includes new Marzocchi dampers, Tarozzi replica racing footrests and Tommasselli bars. A tuned engine by Ravasio Moto at Casale Monferrato and special carbs, cans and exhausts endow the bike with potent performance.
The work was carried out in 2012-2013 and the bike has raced at the Imola 200-mile race this year. For further information, visit the Classic Driver Marketplace.
4h10′s Midnight Phoenix
4h10 is a website and blog which covers the ‘neo-retro’ custom bike scene, but like some of the BMSC crew, as well as writing articles on bikes and products, Nico & John also like to get their fingernails dirty and build bikes.
The people who follow us are mostly bikers; on-trend; care about style and looking good; the majority are aged between 25-34 years; and live in urban-areas, including a large number of Parisians. We don’t try to be persons we are not. We just like riding our bikes, drinking beers with friends and hitting the road. For us, bikes and motorcycles gear work together. If you have a awesome bike, you have to wear awesome clothes. It doesn’t mean wearing the most expensive ones but the one that fit the look of your bike.
This bike started life as a Moto Guzzi California but the engine was dead. The owner, a friend of Nico & John’s, eventually found a stock LeMans III engine with under 10,000kms on it and grafted it in, replacing a few other key parts along the way but his goal was to create a chopper. As you can imagine, that didn’t quite work out and the guys ended up taking the bike off his hands at a low price and started to think about what they wanted to do with the bike.
Through running their events, John met full time artists, Alex & Marine, so he co-opted them into the project, to create something original and away from the expected finish you see on most modern customs.
The Guzzi is defined by the frame and the bulging engine, so John wanted plenty of aluminium on the bike – to be on show to compliment this look, and to save weight.
The engine was bored out from 850cc to 1000cc. The frame was shortened and the wiring harness simplified while the forks were also shortened, lowering the front. New clocks and indies were fitted into a Mk 1 bikini fairing with a yellow headlamp lens and the ignition key was relocated. The starter button now has “Go baby, Go” written beside it. “…sometimes it’s what I’m thinking while pushing this button, praying for the engine to start.”
The tank is an original Rickman unit although the aluminium seat with red leather upholstery was made to measure, as are the Alu air filters.
John then handed the tank and seat unit over to Alex & Marine for them to express their creativity – with no direction from John at all – a brave man, but his bravery was clearly rewarded.
The bike’s nickname, Midnight Phoenix refers to the feathers of the Moto Guzzi hawk on the tank, and as the bike did have a small fire a few years ago, the Phoenix-from-the-flames metaphor seemed to fit. The ‘midnight’ part refers to the fact that John likes to ride at night, which considering the daytime traffic in Paris, is a very good plan.
Next up John & Nice are working on a GB500 – which we hope to share on these pages, as there aren’t many about, and we’ve never seen a custom one.
Photo credits go to Daniel Beres. See more from Alex & Marine on Facebook and their Website.
from the Bike Shed
HONDA CB900F BY CHAPPELL CUSTOMS
Brothers Rob and Chris Chappell have a slightly unusual approach to running their company Chappell Customs: Rob lives near Toronto in Canada, and Chris lives over 2,000 miles away in Los Angeles. It hasn’t stopped them building some sweet customs though, like the Yamaha XS650 we covered a couple of years ago.
The 1982 Honda CB900F we’re looking at now is Rob’s personal bike, so most of the work was done in Canada. Rob bought the Honda as a ‘pile of parts’ two years ago, and has gradually built it up in between paying gigs. “I wanted to create a bike that has modern suspension and geometry, like I’m used to on my race bikes,” he says. “But at the same time I wanted to showcase that 1980s CB engine and tank. The look I was after was pure muscle, executed like a bike Honda might produce today.”
Of the frame, only the original engine cradle remains. “All unnecessary tabs and the original rear sub-frame are now gone,” says Rob. “I designed the rearset supports to run CBR1000 adjustable units, and custom fabricated the new sub-frame and shock mount to support a mono shock arrangement.”
Working from front to back, this CB900F now has a Harley-Davidson V-Rod headlight with an ingenious custom mount that doubles as an adjustable steering stop. The front end is from a 2006 Suzuki GSX-R750, with wave-type brake rotors, a Honda Fireblade radial mount brake master and clutch perch, and braided lines. Rob also machined a new upper triple clamp, mounted a digital dash using an aluminum CNC-cut bracket, and installed Woodcraft clip-ons.
Rob designed the fiberglass tail unit using foam, and created a plug and mold for it. (He’s used the same design on some of his other CB builds.) He also flush-mounted an aircraft style quarter-turn gas cap into the tank.
The swingarm is a Honda CBR600F4i item that was machined to fit the CB900F’s frame. Rob then machined off the F4i shock mount and created a new aluminum mount from scratch, so he could fit a Yamaha YZF-R6 shock.
The rear wheel is also from a Honda CBR600F4i. “Due to the wider wheel and rear sprocket offset I had to custom make an offset front sprocket to get everything to line up just right,” Rob says. “Seems no one makes items like this for the DOHC bikes—strange.”
Finally, the engine received a complete rebuild and overbore to 985cc, and is now fitted with Keihin CR31 carbs. The exhaust is a modified 750 unit from Steve ‘Carpy’ Carpenterthat Rob cut and extended under the engine, altering the angles to suit the CB900F frame. “It’s extremely loud, even with the supplied baffle, so a titanium exhaust can is in my future plans. And yes, I used pipe wrap (sparingly) just to keep my foot cool around the rearsets!”
Rob also wired in a car-style ignition—“Just turn the key and vrooooom!”—and powdercoated the frame, wheels and engine covers. He designed and sprayed the paint himself, but shipped the seat pan to Chris in California. “His awesome upholstery guys sent back a beautiful white stitched ass pillow.”
Head over to the Chappell Customs website for more images of Rob and Chris’ builds, and follow their news on their Facebook page. Images courtesy of Mat Manser.
via BIKEEXIF
UNE VICTOIRE QUI TOMBE À PIC POUR LE SÉBASTIEN LOEB RACING.
Après Le Mans lors du meeting inaugural du Championnat de France GT FFSA, le team Sébastien Loeb Racing renoue avec la victoire. Anthony Beltoise et Laurent Pasquali remportent la deuxième course du Val de Vienne, prenant ainsi leur revanche après avoir été privés de podium suite à une crevaison la veille. La voiture sœur a également réalisé un solide week-end : Nicolas Marroc et Nicolas Tardif poursuivent leur montée en puissance, avec notamment un Top 10 le dimanche. De quoi aborder avec confiance une deuxième partie de saison qui s'annonce ambitieuse.
Les réactions...
Laurent Pasquali, 8e et 1er, McLaren MP4-12C n°8 : « Nous avons connu quelques coupures moteur dans mon premier relais samedi. En plus de ma bagarrer avec l'Audi n°36, j'ai passé une grande partie de mon temps à tenter de trouver une solution. J'ai en fait un peu joué à la console avec mon volant. Du coup, je n'ai pas vu le temps passer ! Nous étions bien partis pour un podium... J'avais réussi un bon départ, et tout se présentait de la meilleure des façons. C'était sans compter sur ce morceau de métal qui a provoqué la crevaison... Heureusement, aujourd'hui nous avons connu plus de réussite. Anthony a fait un super travail pendant tout son run et m'a donné une auto parfaite pour la fin de course. Il faut surtout remercier l'équipe qui a accompli un travail remarquable ce week- end, le plus difficile de la saison. Merci à elle. Les vacances n'en seront que meilleures. Je suis très content de gagner à nouveau. »
Nicolas Marroc, 11e et 9e, McLaren MP4-12C n°9 « Nous payons un manque de roulage vendredi... et des qualifications moyennes. Nicolas a passé un gros cap ce week-end, il a encore gagné en confiance et cela commence à porter ses fruits. Il hausse régulièrement son niveau de jeu et les points que nous marquons ce week-end le sont grâce à lui. Dimanche, j'ai pris un bon départ pour venir en 9e position mais la suite a été plus compliquée à cause d'un problème de pare-brise, du trafic... Je suis heureux de cette nouvelle victoire pour l'équipe qui fait énormément d'effort. Elle tombe à point nommé ! »
Course 1.
Après une première séance qualificative extrêmement disputée (onze pilotes en 1,5 sec), Laurent Pasquali prend d'assaut la 6e place de la grille et devance Nicolas Tardif (12e rang), auteur de sa meilleure qualification de l'année à 1.3 sec de la pole seulement. A l'extinction des feux, Laurent Pasquali se propulse dans les échappements de Fabien Barthez, soit deux places de gagner ! De son côté, Nicolas Tardif laisse passer l'agitation du départ. Devenu chasseur, il prend le meilleur sur la Ferrari n°28 puis butte sur la McLaren n°7 avant de trouver l'ouverture dans le 12e tour. Libéré de son vis à vis, Nicolas part à la poursuite de la BMW n°5, qu'il rejoint juste avant la valse des changements de pilotes.
Premier membre du Sébastien Loeb Racing à marquer son arrêt, Laurent Pasquali cède les commandes à Anthony Beltoise. Bien que compté deuxième à son entrée en piste, Anthony voit tous ses espoirs partir en fumée : dans l'entrée aux stands, un débris métallique est venu se ficher dans le pneu arrière gauche de la n°8. Résultat, six places perdues, que ni l'intervention du Safety Car ni le meilleur temps provisoire dans l'avant dernier tour ne parviennent à compenser. Il se classe finalement 8e, grappillant quelques points pour le championnat.
Autre performance de choix, celle de la voiture sœur. Ressorti 17e après sa prise de relais, Nicolas Marroc fond sur ses adversaires et tourne dans les temps du leader. Il termine 11e après une solide remontée.
Course 2.
Le départ de la course dominicale est donné comme la veille sous une météo estivale. Bien décidé à mettre un point d'arrêt à la série en cours, Anthony Beltoise (McLaren n°8), de sa quatrième position sur la grille, ne laisse personne venir s'intercaler entre le poleman et lui : il gagne rapidement deux positions ! Même état d'esprit chez Nicolas Marroc (McLaren n°99) qui remonte six places avant même la fin du premier tour pour venir débattre avec la Ferrari n°20 et la Porsche n°73.
La course est donc partie sur les chapeaux de roue avec, pour preuve, l'écart creusé par le leader Morgan MoullinTraffort, et son dauphin Anthony Beltoise. Plus rapide, le Parisien enfonce le clou et signe un temps qui restera la meilleure performance en course. Il profite ensuite d'un retardataire pour doubler son vis-à-vis et s'emparer des commandes de l'épreuve. Poursuivant son attaque, il se construit une avance suffisante pour aborder sereinement l'épreuve du changement de pilotes contrairement à Nicolas Marroc, 9e, qui fini son relais bien « occupé », pris en sandwich entre Jean-Philippe Dayraut et Olivier Panis. Maintenant installé dans le baquet de la McLaren MP4-12C n°8, Laurent Pasquali ressort en tête des stands avec une douzaine de secondes d'avance, ce qui lui permet de contenir ses poursuivants à distance jusqu'au drapeau à damier. Un peu plus loin derrière, Nicolas Tardif ne cessera de défendre becs et ongles sa 9e position qu'une fois la ligne d'arrivée franchie. Le team renoue donc avec la victoire et place ses deux voitures dans le Top 10.
Prochaine étape du Championnat de France GT FFSA à Magny-Cours les 7 et 8 septembre.
Source : Sébastien Loeb Racing
via Endurance-Info
MV Agusta Brutale Corsa
from TWOWHEELSBLOG
MV Agusta has released today the first image (just one, unfortunately) and the data sheet of the Brutale Corsa, a ultra-refined version of its advanced ‘naked’ bike that, with a price of 20,990 Euros in Italy, goes straight to the top of the four-cylinder naked range of the legendary manufacturer.
The Brutale Corsa mounts the already known 1078 cc 4-stroke 16-valve engine producing 158 hp and 100 Nm of torque, and can be recognized at first glance by its dedicated red and white livery and the excellent quality of its components. The MV Agusta engineers paid a lot of attention to details: specifically dedicated 17″ lightweight forged wheels and a cool, fully-adjustable Öhlins fork ensures a pretty impactful visual approach and an overall improvement of the bike’s driving dynamics. Even the billet steering head has been specifially made for this variant.
In terms of sheer aesthetics - in the comparison with the already known versions of the Brutale 1090 - the Brutale Corsa comes with a frame painted in glossy black and a fine hand-stitched saddle, while brake levers, footpegs and the plugs of the brake and clutch fluids are all billet. The protection pads for the tank were specifically created for this model too, while the sporty license plate holder, rear fender and front fender spoiler - all of which made of carbon fiber - are graced with the MV Agusta Corse logo. Now, we just need to wait for more official images.
Seeley Honda
Colin Seeley began his motorcycle career as an apprentice for Vincent Motorcycles. He then raced in the British and world championship sidecar competitions between 1961 and 1967 and, with his own-design motorcycles powered by AJS, Matchless and, later, Norton engines. When the Associated Motor Cycles (AMC - the British company founded by the Collier brothers as a parent company for Matchless and AJS manufacturers) closed its in-house race shop in 1963 due to financial problems, Seeley purchased the equipment and spares for his racing motorcycles. After retiring from competition, he concentrated his efforts on designing and constructing Seeley Motorcycles, initially powered by the above mentioned engines. In the mid seventies Seeleyproduced some special, lightweight road bikes with Honda 750cc SOHCengine and front forks, featuring his own tanks, seats and exhausts. Patrick Douki found one of these bikes in a cave, where it was left in the silence 30 years ago. Via Pat Barabas (Classic France Racer).
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via inazuma cafe
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