Some guys from Finland making the most of the snowy conditions!
mercredi 15 janvier 2014
HUSQVARNA NUDA CUSTOM
I was pretty excited when the Husqvarna Nuda 900R was released in 2012—and equally disappointed when it was discontinued, following Pierer Industrie AG’s acquisition of the Italian marque a year ago. The supermoto-esque naked featured a punched out, 898cc version of the Rotax twin-cylinder mill found in BMW’s F800 series, and a tubular steel frame.
This particular Nuda belongs to Marc Woodward, an ex-motorcycle racer based in Brighton who builds café racers as a hobby. As an ex-racer, Marc says his philosophy “is to try and create café racers that handle and go as good as they look.” He takes this philosophy fairly seriously—his radically restyled Nuda now kicks out a healthy 110bhp, thanks to a full Arrow race exhaust system and a remapped ECU.
It also features the front end from a Ducati 1198S, earning it the ‘Huscati’ nickname. The Ducati’s Öhlins forks have been re-sleeved to fit the Nuda’s stock yokes, which have been milled to remove the original handlebar mounts. Since the Nuda came from the factory with an adjustable Öhlins rear shock, there was no need to rework the rear end.
The biggest visual changes are the new tank and seat—which are both catalog items made specifically for the Husqvarna Nuda by the German parts specialist LSL, which also supplied the rearsets. The leather tank strap was hand made by Born & Bred in Brighton. Other finishing kit includes carbon fiber clip-ons, Rizoma brake reservoirs and red Venhill braided brake hoses.
D-Lucks Custom Paint Workshop—another local Brighton business, and long-time Spirit of the Seventies collaborator—was responsible for the beautifully executed paint work. “The tank is a chrome metal flake with gold leaf, black and red pinstripes, and matte finish tank cut outs with shadow effect race numbers”, explains Marc, ’77′ being his old race number.
Marc is, in his own words, “pretty obsessive about getting the details right” on his builds—and it shows. To my eye the ‘Huscati’ is a perfectly executed, performance-based modern retro.
Wouldn’t it be good to see more Nuda-based customs in the future?
Extra special thanks to Merry Michau for the images.via BIKEEXIF
5 things you didn't know about Maserati
As you might expect, surviving in the automotive industry for 100 years brings some unusual tales of triumph and tribulation. We've compiled some of the lesser-known facts from Maserati's past...
Making waves
Maserati engines had been used to power nautical racing machines since the 1930s, when World Champion powerboat racer Count Theo Rossi fitted them in his specially made boats – one of which used a pair of Maserati V16s. The 50s and 60s saw Maserati’s six- and eight-cylinder engines increasingly used by the powerboat gentry for their racing runabouts, a likely factor being that engineer Giulio Alfieri (previously a maritime engineer) was now on board.
Motorbikes... and gender-specific scooters
When, in the early 50s, the Maserati group of companies was divided between the Orsi siblings, an oversight by the notary meant the division which manufactured spark plugs was allowed to continue using both the Maserati name and the Trident logo. Along with a variety of motorcycles, Fabbrica Candele e Accumulatori Maserati also produced a 50cc scooter with gender-specific frame styles: the T2/U (U for Uomo, or man) and the T2/D (D for Donna, or woman), the latter having a step-through frame.
The gangster's choice
It seems that an unusually high proportion of on-screen gangsters have shown a penchant for Maseratis, perhaps tempted by the combination of power and understated luxury. Devious drivers include Johnny Sacrimoni and Christopher Moltisanti from The Sopranos (the same 4200 Coupé), while the villains in Licence To Kill's tanker chase opted for a 425 Biturbo. You can also see a Merak parked next to Tony's Porsche 928 outside the shady Babylon Club in Scarface, and both The Godfather III and an early episode of Miami Vice saw prominent underworld characters chauffeur-driven in Quattroporte IIIs.
Mussolini's Maserati
It's well-documented that Ferry Porsche designed a car at the behest of Adolf Hitler, but lesser-known is the tale of Maserati's comission to build a V16-engined town car for the personal use of Benito Mussolini, presumably using the engine from the V4/V5 racing cars. The project was abandoned before it came to fruition – perhaps the reason behind Mussolini's preferential switch to Alfa Romeo. He can be seen behind the wheel in the picture above, meeting Tazio Nuvolari (centre) and the rest of the Alfa Romeo racing team.
Beaten by gentility
Some readers will already be familiar with this tale, but as an act of gentlemanly behaviour, it's as good an example of changing times as the Ferrari-Maserati relationship itself. In one of the most thrilling races of its era, the 1956 Monza GP saw legends Moss (Maserati) and Fangio (Ferrari) contesting the season's showdown, with the drivers’ title still to be decided. Fangio’s car encountered mechanical trouble, so his English team-mate Peter Collins gave up his car for him (after his Italian counterpart Luigi Musso had refused), despite being in contention for the Championship himself. The Argentinean’s resulting second-placed finish allowed the pair to split the points, earning Juan Manuel Fangio the title. However, Fangio would bring the Championship trophy to Casa del Tridente the following year.
Photos: Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari; Maserati; Artcurial; IMCDB; Getty Images
Bienvenue en WRC 2014 !
A moins de deux jours de la première spéciale du Championnat du monde des Rallyes FIA 2014, édition n°42, le parc d’assistance du Rallye Monte-Carlo s’installe peu à peu au Parc des Sports de Gap.
Pour le retour du rallye à Gap, dans les Hautes-Alpes, les organisateurs ont dû trouver un emplacement assez vaste pour accueillir tous les motor-homes. Ils ont opté pour le complexe sportif à l’entrée sud de la ville. Nous sommes arrivés juste au moment où la dernière voiture d’usine était déchargée des semi-remorques, en provenance de Monaco où s’est déroulée la cérémonie de départ hier soir, sous une pluie battante.
Le parc d’assistance de Gap est assez particulier. Les teams sont éparpillés entre les différentes installations sportives, le stade, la piscine… L’immense motor-home Hyundai Motorsport a certainement dû rentrer au chausse-pied dans son emplacement.
En effet, la structure à un étage qui abrite l’atelier, l’hospitalité et les bureaux, ressemble à une véritable concession Hyundai que l’on peut trouver dans les zones commerciales. On a mesuré grosso-modo : 46 mètres de long sur 10 de large et 8 de haut ! Le sous-traitant espagnol en charge du montage aurait commencé jeudi dernier, nous a-t-on dit…
De leur côté, les pilotes ont bouclé les reconnaissances des 15 spéciales (9 différentes) et, comme d’habitude, la météo est au cœur des conversations. D’après le contrôleur du train Valence-Gap qui nous a emmenés à destination, les crêtes du Vercors que nous avons vu par la fenêtre du wagon culminaient à 1150 mètres et il y avait très peu de neige. A Gap, il faisait 10°C cet après-midi.
Les prévisions météo locales pour jeudi et vendredi parlent de pluies abondantes et de températures entre -1°C et +8°C. Idem pour Sospel, près du Col du Turini, pour samedi. « Je suppose qu’il y aura un peu de neige en altitude », nous a dit Bryan Bouffier, perplexe. « Jusque-là, les spéciales étaient claires. »
L’épreuve et les choix de pneus promettent d’être encore une fois très complexes pour les concurrents, d’autant que beaucoup vont débuter au volant de nouvelles machines et dans de nouvelles équipes cette année. Cela pourrait jouer en faveur d’Ogier, resté chez VW avec la n°1. Mais peut-être avons-nous trouvé un autre secret sur sa vitesse…
A traversant le parc pour déjeuner, on est tombé sur le chalet qui vendait des « Tourtons du Champsaur », une sorte de beignets de pommes de terre ou de fromage fondu, spécialité de la vallée alpine du Champsaur, où le Champion du monde 2013 est né. « Nos cuisines se trouvent tout près d’où Sébastien a vécu », nous a confirmé Fabrice. « C’est grâce à nos Tourtons qu’il va aussi vite en course, mais ne le dites surtout pas aux autres… »
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