Café Racer, the clue is in the title. If you’ve made it this far then you’re unlikely to need a motorcycling history lesson as to the origins of the term but a name doesn’t maketh the machine. Guillaume Brochu from Montreal, Canada has been building bikes with an emphasis on the race. 100BHP CB750s have been his weapon of choice, thoroughly tested with engine case grinding track sessions where modern 600s were shown a clean pair of heels. Pushing the limits of is what gives Guillaume his kicks so a new source of thrills was needed.
He wanted to produce a limited run of café racers for modern times, after all, when the original Ton-Up Boys were giving it the beans on London’s North Circular their machinery could have been considered as cutting edge. A few years ago BMW reviewed their positioned within the motorcycle industry and seemingly deciding on a mantra we in the Bike Shed follow, Go Big or Go Home. Their S1000RR was epically quick out of the box and came bristling with innovative technology with which they threatened to, and in some cases did, wipe the floor with the Japanese manufacturers on race tracks around the globe.
Having decided upon building a visceral yet sophisticated machine Guillaume’s choice of a BMW based project seemed an obvious fit so he called upon Charles Gref, owner of BMW Motored Montreal, to arrange supply of brand new bikes. Seeing as stripping away the superfluous is the first job on any Purebreed build it made sense to start with a Beemer sporting one less R. The semi-naked S1000R has more or less the same motor as the fire snorting track weapon but with a more gentlemanly 160hp and a host of rider aids to ensure daily riding for the fortunate owners is exciting but not intimidating. Even the heated grips and cruise control remain fully functional.
But that’s where the sensible ends and the speed obsession beings. Afters good few hours on the dyno the bespoke ignition and fuelling remap turned out to be good for another 15hp, barking through a full titanium race exhaust.
Guillaume then embarked on a weight shaving exercise. Carbon fibre bodywork, wheels and subframe were an easy win, in terms of weight at least, but cost and time fought their corner hard. The diet was aggressive with over 20kgs lost. Now that the R&D has been done the tank and seat units can be replicated accurately using handmade moulds. Which is useful as there’ll be a limited run of 40 bikes being built over the coming months.
Exclusivity doesn’t stop there. The custom fork top clamp is uniquely engraved for each customer and the riding position is fully adjustable thanks to rearsets and upgraded clipons, slightly more upright for the city, tucked and racy for the weekends. Very racy as it happens. The headlamp, indicators, number plate and stop light are modular and easily removable in under ten minutes so you can ride to work all week, then to the track at the weekend, remove the illuminating bits and give the tyres a thorough workout (Metzelers are fitted here but the production models will be delivered with Michelin Pilots Power 2CTs)
Drawing inspiration from the Deus 4CYL, Guillaume has taken a huge step forward with Purebreed Motorcycles saying“When I saw Woolie’s S1000R in his shop back last spring, I was very impressed. It definitely sparked a challenge in my mind and here we are, less than a year later”. The order book is already filling up for the Brooklyn Project and production underway, hopefully someone from the U.K. will buy one so we can have a closer look.
via The Bike Shed
