This yard-built Yamaha is an off-the-shelf bullet

For most, building a café racer is a labour of eternal love. But journalist Steve Hunt’s Yamaha-based ‘Dangan’ was made with the intention of returning it to stock after a single year…

“The plan was simple. I thought it would be an interesting assignment to see what a relative novice like myself could do to Yamaha’s XV950 with some bolt-on, third-party parts and a little imagination,” says Steve Hunt, journalist at British motorcycle publication MCN. “That was the plan. But then things got a little out of hand…”

The backwardly bespoke bullet

As the bike would need to be returned to stock after its year-long loan, all parts had to be fully reversible. Hunt was given carte blanche to modify the bike in any way he chose, with Yamaha only giving a single stipulation: there was to be no cutting or welding. “I wanted to turn the laid-back XV950 into a straight-line horizon destroyer. Like a bullet train. A bullet bike if you will.” Hence the name ‘Dangan’, Japanese for ‘bullet’.

Hunt called on his contacts to help him with the build. On went a new rear subframe for the stubby tail look, soon followed by hand-pressed aluminium fairings. Then came the most expensive part of the build: the wheels. Unable to find any suitable donor items, Steve set about having some official accessory wheels re-made to the correct size. “Let’s be perfectly honest, spoked wheels just look too good not to do it,” says Hunt. That’s enough justification for us.

Once the main components of the build were in place, Hunt set about adding the details so crucial to a successful bespoke build. He had brass Yamaha medallions fabricated and built into the tail unit, along with freshly milled end-caps and a beautiful filler cap. Finally, the attractive brown leather seat was trimmed with metal wire piping.

The ‘tucked-in’, bullet-train stance might not be to everyone’s taste, but for those that it does find favour with, a complete list of build parts can be found on The Dangan minisite in order for you to build your own – this time for keeps.

Photos: Steve Hunt

You can find several classic Yamaha motorycles for sale in the Classic Driver Market.

Designer Paul Smith creates one-off Land Rover Defender

Longstanding Defender fan and owner, Sir Paul Smith, has teamed up with Land Rover to create a distinctive one-off model...

Inspired by the countryside

Built by Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations, the Paul Smith Defender was recently unveiled at the designer's shop at No. 9 Albermarle Street in Mayfair, London. The bespoke model features a total of 27 different exterior colours, all chosen by Smith, who took inspiration from the British countryside and Defenders used by the Armed Forces.

A touch of British humour

Inside, the seats are trimmed in black leather with contrasting blue stitching while, in the glovebox, hand-painted illustrations of keys and coins add a touch of tongue-in-cheek British humour. There is also a bee painted on the roof – another light-hearted reminder of the Defender's links with the countryside. Speaking at the unveiling, Smith said, “The Defender is a British icon, which is something I’m exceptionally proud of. I keep a Defender at my home in Italy, which is in the middle of the countryside, so it’s the perfect vehicle to cope with the rugged terrain.”

Built entirely to Smith's own specification, the celebrated British designer was keen to retain the standard wing mirrors, door handles and wheels, which are given a satin finish to create a more contemporary feel. Forming part of a year-long celebration of the famous Defender as it enters its final phase of production, Gerry McGovern, Design Director and Chief Creative Officer of Land Rover, said, “I felt it would be a fitting tribute to the iconic Defender that one of Britain's most distinguished designers worked with the Land Rover team to recognise his creative vision.”

View the range of Land Rovers available in the Classic Driver Market.

Selfie .......

Moto GP ; Aoyama remplace Pedrosa pour le Texas et l’Argentine / Aoyama to replace Pedrosa for Austin & Argentina

Hiroshi Aoyama rejoint le team Repsol Honda pour remplacer Dani Pedrosa, qui sera prochainement opéré de l’avant-bras droit.

Problème fréquent chez les pilotes, le syndrome des loges, causé par une augmentation de la pression dans une loge musculaire, de l’avant-bras provoque une douleur intense et rend le pilotage extrêmement difficile.

Pedrosa a fait de son mieux pour trouver une solution durant l’hiver après avoir en avoir souffert tout au long de la saison 2014 et avait été opéré l’an dernier après le GP de Jerez. L’intervention n’avait pas eu les effets escomptés et les médecins avaient alors déconseillé à l’Espagnol de subir une autre opération. Le problème semblait résolu cet hiver mais est finalement réapparu en situation de course.

Après avoir pris la sixième place de la première course de l’année le week-end dernier au Qatar, Pedrosa est rentré en Espagne lundi pour consulter des spécialistes de Barcelone et de Madrid. Les médecins lui ont recommandé de se faire opérer dès que possible et le Dr Angel Villamor se chargera de l’intervention chirurgicale à Madrid. Une attention particulière sera portée à la fermeture de la plaie afin de garantir une meilleure récupération et de minimiser les risques de rechute.

L’opération est prévue pour le vendredi 3 avril et la période de récupération est estimée entre quatre et six semaines, ce qui signifie que Pedrosa manquera de manière certaine les courses d’Austin et de Termas de Rio Hondo. Son retour ne sera pas confirmé tant que les médecins n’auront pas certifié la réussite de l’intervention.

Pedrosa sera remplacé par le pilote d’essais du HRC Hiroshi Aoyama.

Dani Pedrosa :
« Ce n’est évidemment pas la nouvelle que je souhaitais communiquer à tout le monde. Cependant, j’ai parlé avec des médecins spécialisés et des professionnels en qui j’ai confiance, et ils sont tous d’accord sur le fait qu’il s’agit de mon unique option. Je serai opéré vendredi et ils vont utiliser une technique spéciale pour refermer la plaie et faire en sorte que ce problème ne m’affectera plus. Espérons que ça marche. Je tiens à remercier mes fans pour leur soutien mais surtout Honda, Repsol, Red Bull et tous nos sponsors pour leur compréhension. »

Hiroshi Aoyama will replace the Factory Repsol Honda rider Dani Pedrosa with immediate effect, as he has surgery to fix his arm-pump issues.

Repsol Honda’s Dani Pedrosa will unfortunately need further surgery to fix his arm pump issues that continued to plague the Spanish rider during the first round of the 2015 MotoGP Championship.

This common problem among motorcycle racers is a build-up of pressure in the forearm causing great pain, and makes riding a bike exceptionally difficult when the muscle becomes too big for the ‘sack’ that it sits in.

Dani tried very hard over the winter in order to find a solution, after struggling to perform at his top level throughout the 2014 season, and even had surgery last year – after the Jerez GP – but it was unsuccessful. During this time doctors advised against any further surgery. Then throughout all of the winter testing it seemed that in theory the problem was solved, unfortunately the issue came back again under the stresses of the race situation.

After his sixth place finish in the opening race of 2015 in Qatar last weekend, Dani returned to Spain on Monday and met with specialists in Barcelona and Madrid. Their recommendation was for him to undergo surgery as soon as possible, which Dr. Angel Villamor will perform in Madrid. Special attention will be paid to the closing of the wound as this will guarantee better recovery and less risk of the problem arising again in the future.

Surgery is planned for the morning of Friday 3rd April with an expected recovery time of four to six weeks, this means Dani will certainly miss the Red Bull Austin and Argentina races. His return to racing won’t be confirmed until doctors can ascertain the success of the surgery.

His replacement will be HRC test rider Hiroshi Aoyama.

Dani Pedrosa:
"Obviously this isn’t the news I wanted to be sharing with everyone. However, after speaking with some key doctors and medical professionals that I trust, they are all in agreement that this is the only option for me. We will have the surgery on Friday and they will use a special technique to help close the wound to try and prevent this issue continuing to affect me. Let’s hope it’s a success. I want to thank all my fans for their support, but especially Honda, Repsol, Red Bull and all our sponsors for their understanding in this matter."