MOTO GUZZI V65 BY EL SOLITARIO

For a pursuit that is all about freedom and individuality, the world of custom motorcycles can be a strangely serious business. Are those tires good enough? It’s a hardtail, it can’t possibly handle. What, only 50 bhp pulling 200 kilos? Like audiophiles who’ve become so obsessed with hi-fi equipment that they cannot enjoy music any more, our world has its share of prescriptions and purists.

El Solitario is the antithesis of that mindset. The Galician workshop marches to the beat of its own drum, building and riding motorcycles for the sheer fun of it. It’s an approach that has made this collective of mechanics and artists one of the most controversial custom builders in the world. It’s also attracted attention from the big hitters in the moto media—from Cycle World in the USA to the Japanese magazine Moto-Navi.

This Moto Guzzi V65, nicknamed Trimotoro, is the closest thing El Solitario has to a ‘shop bike.’ It’s been a long time in the making—around 800 hours, they calculate. But much of that time has involved riding, fettling, and just plain enjoying the bike.

The name Trimotoro comes from a vehicle in an obscure children’s book. Mechanically, this V65 is in excellent shape: El Solitario gave the Guzzi a complete mechanical overhaul and rewire, and blueprinted the 650cc air-cooled motor. New Dell’Orto PHBH 30mm carbs were fitted, and now breathe through velocity stacks. The exhaust is a modified vintage BMW system, and the electrics were given a solid jolt with an AntiGravity li-ion battery, Ducati Corse coils and a Silent Hektik regulator.

The V65’s forks have been lowered a little (in V50 Monza triples) and Marzocchi shocks are fitted at the back—which now boasts a Monza swing arm too. Dunlop K81 tires ride on aluminum Akront 3.5 x 18” rims.

It’s the appearance that immediately grabs the onlooker, though. The headlights are from Lumax, a commercial lighting fixture specialist. The bodywork is hand-made, beaten from raw metal. The seat—yes, it’s strapped on with leather belts—is made from Nappa leather. The clip-ons are solid aluminum items from Magura, with the levers and throttle coming from Kustom Tech. The grips are hand-made from shellac.

Trimotoro won’t out-drag a GSX-R. But I’ve followed it while riding a Ducati Monster, and it maintained a more-than-respectable pace. Best of all, it put a smile on the face of all those who saw it or rode it. And isn’t that what it’s all about?

Head over to the brand new El Solitario website for updates and a fine online shop, or follow their exploits via the ESMC Facebook page. Images courtesy of Kristina Fender.

from BIKEEXIF

Toyota Motorsport GmbH announces an upgraded EV P002 for Pikes Peak

Has 544 HP (400 kW) and 1,200 Nm (885 lb-ft) of torque

Toyota Motorsport GmbH has announced plans to return to the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb with an upgradedEV P002.

Set to be driven by Rod Millen, the EV P002 will defend its record-breaking time of 10 minutes and 15.380 seconds. Despite the challenge, TMG feels pretty confident as the car has been equipped with upgraded electric motors and optimized "powertrain parameters" that have been specially calibrated for Pikes Peak. The car also appears to feature an improved aerodynamics package with massive front and rear spoilers.

Motivation is provided by a 42 kWh lithium-ion battery that powers two electric motors which crank out 544 HP (400 kW) and 1,200 Nm (885 lb-ft) of torque. This should enable the car to hit a top speed of 230 km/h (143 mph).

Source: Toyota

via Worldcarfans

What the World Eats

What the World Eat est une série photographique passionnante sur les habitudes de consommation dans le monde. L’artiste Peter Menzel visite différents pays pour photographier des familles ainsi que ce qu’elles consomment durant une semaine. Des clichés réunies dans le livre « Hungry Planet ».

from http://www.fubiz.net

Yamaha XS2 650 1972 Cafè Racer by Tevan Morgan

Foto: megadeluxe.com
via Racing Café

Martini Racing unveils their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup

Will be driven by Sébastien Loeb

Porsche and Martini have revived their long-standing relationship after a five year absence.

In honor of their 150th anniversary, Martini will field a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup at Barcelona on May 12th. The car will compete in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup and be driven by nine-time world rally champion Sébastien Loeb. Loeb will compete in the first two races, while an unnamed second driver will take the wheel at a third race in September.

According to Jonas Krauss, Head of Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, “From the first day the beloved stripes of Martini Racing decorated a Porsche 906 in 1968, the illustrious pairing has gone on to claim some of motorsport’s most coveted titles, including numerous Le Mans 24 hours titles, during what is now considered to be a classic period of motorsport. We’re excited to be once again partnering with Martini in its 150 anniversary year.”

Source: Martini Racing

via Worldcarfans

As Featured in ‘The Birds’: Aston Martin DB2/4 Drophead Coupé

It’s quite extraordinary how cars pop up in movies on a sometimes random basis. Who would have thought an almost 10-year-old Aston would appear in a Hitchcock film? One did, in the 1963 thriller ‘The Birds’. 

According to marque historians, it’s possible that two cars were used, although Club records show LML/944 as being the one most closely associated with it. Hollywood connections apart, the fact is that a convertible DB2/4 (a later version of the car you see here), a ‘European import’, is just the sort of car to be driven by socialite Melanie Daniels (played by Tippi Hedren) in the quiet Californian seaside location depicted in the film.
The Drophead Coupé version of the DB2 was introduced in late 1950. Only a few months before, an attractive coupé was shown at that April’s New York Motor Show. With a modern chassis by Claude Hill, Frank Feeley’s timeless styling and Willie Watson’s (originally Lagonda) 2.6-litre straight six, the new Aston Martin - only the second-ever ‘DB car’ - was a winner.

It was also very expensive - £1,915 incl. taxes in 1950 for the ‘Saloon’ and £2,043 for the DHC in the UK. But with a series of successes on the track (the famous ‘VMF’ and ‘UMC’ team cars), and typical understated British bearing, the DB2 series of Astons which started with the DB2 itself and finished with the DB Mk III represented ‘the Feltham years’ of Aston Martin at its finest.


The DB2/4 was a later version of the DB2, with a revised rear chassis and smaller fuel tank. The two-door original, with its small ‘letter box’ boot, had been re-engineered to make it into one of the world’s first hatchbacks, offering greater rear headroom, two vestigial rear seats and the convenience of a mainly glass tailgate.


It was a popular and practical solution, helping create the ‘shooting brake’ image of the English gentleman in tweeds turning up at his peg, and then taking a brace of Purdeys from the rear luggage shelf of his Aston with ease.
The convertible, DHC version, on the other hand, simply said, “Sun, seaside and Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat.”

This car is a DB2 Convertible from 1950 in the final stages of restoration by marque specialist Post-Vintage Engineers, and can be finished to your exact specification.

Related Links The car seen here can currently be found in the Classic Driver Marketplace

Text: Steve Wakefield (Classic Driver)
Photos: Post Vintage Engineers Limited

Driven: Prototype Range Rover Sport – Featherweight World Champion

We were among the first in the world to drive a pre-production prototype of the new Range Rover Sport. And we were blown away...

When it was first announced that the all-new Range Rover Sport would be 420kg lighter (that’s equivalent to opening the door and kicking out five or six passengers), we dropped our coffee mugs in shock. Low weight is the new holy grail of the motor industry and this sort of weight saving is beyond belief.
Now, however, we’ve driven a pre-production prototype. And while the lower weight is still astounding, there is much more to the new Range Rover Sport than that.
If we had to pick one outstanding feature of the all-new, all-aluminium, ultimately sporting SUV, it would be the combination of handling and ride: the way this tall vehicle stays flat through corners, yet on rough surfaces the ride is compliant rather than spine-shattering as you might expect, given the lack of body roll.



Drive the Sport fast into a corner on Land Rover’s private test track at Gaydon (we were forbidden to take the prototypes out in public, beyond the heavily manned gate of the manufacturer’s own facilities) and keep accelerating – harder and harder through the bend – and while you feel the lateral g-force pressing you sideways, the Sport stays flatter on the road than you’d think possible. Not only that, the torque vectoring – increasing torque to the outside wheels – means you’re cornering at speeds where you’d normally expect your front or rear tyres to lose traction, yet the (still 2.1-tonne) Sport stays firmly, grippily, planted on the track.


This is no Range Rover with a Sport badge and a few cosmetic tweaks; around 75% of it is unique. As part of the design process, Land Rover asked existing customers what they’d like and apparently the consensus was, “Please make it more Range Rover and more sporty.” Er, right.


Well, it goes without saying that the latest Sport is packed with premium features, from rear seats that not only recline, but are also heated and cooled (yes, the rear seats), to 14-way adjustable front seats, a head-up display and – an industry first, this one – wade sensing, to give you confidence in deep water… but then you expect premium features in a Range Rover. You expect best-in-class off-roading ability and stonking performance, too. But while Land Rover can tell us in writing that the new Sport has “30% better handling than its predecessor”, it’s only when you’re pressing it hard through ever-tighter corners that you really believe it.

Text: Charis Whitcombe classic driver
Photos: Land Rover

Suzuki GT 185 1978 by Studio Motor

Foto: Studio Motor
via Racing Café