Meeting a 4x4 Legend: "The Ugly Jeep"

Fred Williams meets the Jeep that almost flunked him out of high school and sent him down the 4x4 road. Nicknamed "The Ugly Jeep," it's a beat up 1951 Jeep CJ3a built to be inconspicuous in an era when trucks were better known for chrome and wild graphics. 

Yamaha Yard Built XJR1300 ‘Iron heart’

Written by Martin Hodgson.

Old world craftsmanship, timeless quality and innovation in design are two things that go hand in hand with both the Yamaha Yard Built Specials and Shinichi Haraki’s Iron Heart Selvedge Denim range. With the all new 20^th Anniversary Yamaha XJR1300 part of the Yard Built program and Iron Heart a company dedicated to providing the very best in denim and jean wear to the motorcycling world it made sense the two would team up.

As Shun Miyazawa, Product Manager at Yamaha explains “Haraki-san and I have been friends for some years, primarily based on our mutual respect for the other’s belief in the importance of craftsmanship in the construction of our products. Iron Heart and Yamaha share a respect for traditional, timeless design where appropriate, blended with innovative, cutting edge technologies to create products that combine the best of both worlds. We wanted to work with Haraki-san for some time, and finally this year we have had the opportunity.”

In automotive terms great craftsmanship has for as long as man has modified machines largely begun with hand formed metal. At first glance many of the tins on the Yamaha/Iron Heart build could appear to be reworked factory items but they are in fact the workmanship of Ken’s Factory in Japan who took on the job of building this one off machine. The front fender is massaged out of aluminium until it was both as straight as a die and truly hugged the front rubber.

The fuel tank too is a handmade item, cut from aluminium and then fettled and shaped until perfection was achieved. This build is not about being in your face, it possesses a level of artistic merit that requires a keen eye to appreciate. So too the seat base, tail section and side covers, all done the old fashioned way without looking at all out of place on a brand new machine.

“What I wanted to achieve was a beautiful café racer that fits perfectly into the Iron Heart universe,” commented Shinichi Haraki. “The bike is designed to be for a mature rider, not a kid. My inspiration came from 70s and 80s Japanese and European bikes that look like real bikes. Nothing has been modified or added that makes it shout more than it should, there is no design influence without function, it’s a real bike for grown-ups.”

With the barebones of the canvas laid out it should come as no surprise that a motorcycling giant and a style icon would deliver in the looks department. Just like the rest of the build this bike is about refinement over raunch and the deep indigo blue paint job gives the Yamaha a wonderful nod to the styling of the sophisticated gentleman’s motorcycles of the late 70’s.

Contrasting against the almost black indigo paint is the signature Iron Heart orange that gives life to the Yamaha speed blocks and pin striping, with both the Yamaha and Iron Heart logos finished in gold leaf. Atop the Ken’s Factory pan is Iron Heart’s own 21oz Selvedge Denim seat, stitched to perfection in their classic orange and finished off with pure silver rivets.

If hand formed metal work and pin striped paint is a nod to a classic era of yesteryear, CNC turned parts created on multi axis machines are a way to add some 21st century styling without losing any of the elegance. Items like the clock case, front and rear indicators and headlight brackets have been turned into life from solid blocks providing form from pure functionality.

The grips and the foot pegs also created in this way are given a mix of paint and machined metal for a truly industrial look. With Yamaha having already fitted a set of world class Ohlins shocks, Magura bars lower the front stance for the rider and further enhance the XJR’s café credentials. If the aesthetics weren’t enough already a set of big dollar spoked Kineo lightweight wheels of the tubeless variety take care of the rolling stock and look as good as the price tag.

Powering the XJR 1300 is one of the great air cooled engines of the modern era, it’s the biggest capacity of its kind but it is more than just about muscle. Sure with 108nm of torque a 911 Turbo on a rolling run but a DOHC 4 valve head, brilliant fuelling and 20 years of refinement mean you can tickle the throttle in any gear without pause or hesitation.

Drilling out baffles might be what we do as teenagers but multinational corporations do things a little differently and nothing says quality and sophistication like the exquisite set of titanium headers exhaling for the 1251cc engine. With all parties involved wanting just the right sound Ken’s Factory went to great length to get the twin stainless mufflers just right and they work flawless with the rest of the system.

Hugely important to any of the Yard Built projects has been maintaining as much of the basis of the motorcycle itself, this means no cutting and welding of the frame. The idea being that not only does the project serve as an inspiration to Yamaha’s customers but it also means many of the parts on the Iron Heart XJR will be released as aftermarket parts so that those that wish to recreate this über cool machine can do so for themselves. And who wouldn’t want their own Yamaha special, with parts by Ken’s Factory and dressed to the nines in Iron Heart Denim, in an industry built on style these guys do the best in show.

via PIPEBURN

The Supercar-Slaying Crossover

                                

Nissan fits the bill perfectly here: a mainstream yet reserved manufacturer that every once in a while produces something wild and makes us smile and forget about all the curiously-styled electric cars and toaster-on-wheels minivans they offer. Granted, they’ve pretty much had us all with the Skyline, the Silvia and the Fairlady, but in recent years – aside from the range-topping GT-R – there hasn’t been much to really wow us.

I’ve often wondered why Nissan never takes the German approach to building cars. I mean, if you are going to develop a car like the GT-R, which is powered by one of the most epic force-induced V6 engines ever made, why not drop that engine into a few more cars in your line up? I’m not talking about making slightly massaged versions with a body kit and a louder exhaust over the stock car. No, I mean making more cars like this badass Juke-R.

This really hit home after I got the chance to drive this crazy little machine… albeit for only two minutes. It was a hot lap on a makeshift track, so I did get to put this interesting creation to the so-called test. Insane doesn’t even begin to describe what 485hp and all-wheel drive feels like in a compact package like the Juke. The whole idea seems so far fetched I’m surprised it actually materialised. There are rumours that Nissan’s execs didn’t even know that Nissan Europe commissioned the RML Group in the UK to build the Juke-R – nor was anyone expecting such great feedback from the project. But I guess when you step away from the norm and do something crazy, people take notice.

Walking around the Juke-R you can’t help but approach it all with a smile on your face. It seems almost cute that they chose this platform for the project, but believe me this is one very serious piece of hardware executed with the highest level of knowhow. The approach was pretty simple – spawn a car that would embody the mechanical equivalent of a GT-R having a wild night with a compact crossover. There are many details that point to the fact that this is as far from a stock Juke – like the R35 NACA ducts on the bonnet.

The track is identical to the R35 – the GT-R’s front and rear subframes and ancillaries being transferred right over to the Juke. Obviously a lot of cutting, welding and fabricating was needed to shoehorn everything in place, mated to slightly stiffer R35 suspension set a little lower than it is in the GT-R. That’s due to the fact that the Juke is a much taller vehicle, hence requiring a little rethink on the whole roll center and overall balance of the finished car.

Along with the oily bits the R35’s Brembo brakes and 20-inch wheels were also part of the swap, as were the sticky Bridgestone Potenza tyres that help generate that impressive amount of mechanical grip that the GT-R is renowned for.

The Juke-R’s stance is brutal; the composite wheel arch extensions just managing to envelop the wider track and wheel combination.

Along with the front bumper, RML also designed and produced a whole new rear bumper which has a functional diffuser integrated into its lower section to give the Juke-R a purposeful appearance. The best touch of all has to be the exhausts though – not only for the way they exit from the corners of the bumpers, but how they are presented within carbon fiber outlets to shield the surrounding plastic front the generated heat.

Hold your headless horses – it’s the new Ferrari 488 Spider

Ferrari has announced the 488 Spider, the hard-top convertible version of the 488 GTB coupé – and with 660bhp and 203mph capabilities, it’s the fastest and most powerful Ferrari convertible to date, eclipsing even the F50…

 

The new car uses a similar hard-top set-up to its predecessor, the 458 Spider, apparently saving 25kg in comparison to a fabric roof set-up. Thanks to the spaceframe chassis, it’s also said to have the same torsional rigidity as its 488 GTB sibling (and is supposedly 23% stiffer than its reclining-roof predecessor). What’s more, aerodynamic tweaks to the car – including a ‘bespoke’ rear engine cover flanked by two rear buttresses – mean the new car steals the F50’s long-held crown as not only the fastest and most powerful, but also the most slippery Ferrari convertible to date. Prices are to be revealed when the car is officially launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September.

Photos: Ferrari

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