Live the legend: Shelby FIA Cobra resurrected 50 years on

Bob Bondurant, Phil Hill, Dan Gurney and Ken Miles. They’re all racing superstars who helped pilot the legendary Shelby Cobra to immense success in the Sixties. And now you can drive in their tyre-tracks, with the exclusive, factory-built continuation of the 289 FIA Cobra…

It’s been 50 years since Carroll Shelby introduced the Ford-powered FIA Cobra and, to commemorate the occasion, Shelby American is releasing a limited edition continuation of the car, held to be among the most important in American racing history.

Authentic (and undeniably cool) features such as the period FIA livery, black original-style wheels with knock-off hubs, and widened front and rear wings have all been retained, while integral components have been upgraded to contemporary standards in the name of safety and performance – the brakes and chassis, for example.  

Offered with either a glassfibre or a slightly lighter aluminium body, each of the 50 ‘Viking Blue’ 289 FIAs – internally dubbed the CSX7000 – will be delivered as a rolling chassis. Choice of powertrain is up to you, though we’d stay true to the original and plump for a 289 Ford unit ourselves, with which the car weighs a mere 952kg or, in other words, the lightest Cobra ever built. Incidentally, each car is fitted with a complete side-exit exhaust system for the Ford V8. 

Dropping a powerful American engine into a small, lightweight chassis was a stroke of genius on Shelby’s part, allowing his small Southern Californian shop to take the fight directly to the likes of Ferrari, Jaguar and Chevrolet, across two different continents. The tried-and-tested formula has been imitated by manufacturers the world over ever since. 

Prices start at $94,995 for a glassfibre car, while the aluminium body will set you back $159,995. An iconic shape, a distinctive noise, incredible power-to-weight and exploitable, dynamic handling – the 289 Cobra is every bit as enticing today as it was back in 1964. And if that isn’t enough to tempt you, each car will also be documented in Shelby American’s ‘World Registry’, so there will be a notable absence of critics when it comes to authenticity. The Cobra legacy is safely intact; long may it continue. 

Photos: Shelby American

Classic Cobras can be found for sale in the Classic Driver Market.

1974 Honda CB550K 'Lucy' by Hot Sake Cycles

This pretty little thing is named 'Lucy' and she is the 15th café racer built by Hot Sake Cycles in Orlando, Florida. We were surprised we hadn't heard of them before, but that's probably because ‘they’ are actually a single guy named Shannon Hulcher who builds these professional-looking bikes in his spare time. By day he works as a biology teacher who dissects frogs to show kids how the body works. By night, he dissects motorcycles to show the rest of us how to build a café racer. "I don't have a professional shop" says Shannon. "Lucy is a culmination of skills I've been developing over the years". I wanted to build an ultra light weight bike that would be fun to ride. The whole goal was to make it as light as possible" he says. He started the build with no deadline, but then Cafemoto Orlando asked him if he could finish it for the AIM Expo. With the show only one month away, Shannon got to work.

The build started when Shannon found the perfect donor bike – a stock standard but running CB550K. He started by stripping the bike down, and like most café racers, removed everything that wasn't needed. The frame was modified, detabbed and a rear hoop was fabricated.

The stock 550cc SOHC inline four engine was reconditioned and then tuned. The stock carbs were replaced with performance Keihin 26mm units. The standard pipes have been swapped with 4-into-1 ceramic coated witha stainless shorty muffler that gives the bike a nicer look and a much better bark.

The original CB550 tank has been traded for a Legendary Motorcycles Lyta Sprint tank. To match the lines Shannon hand made a fiberglass seat that sits perfectly with the tank. He also made some special features that aren't as obvious as the tank and seat. "My favorite piece is the one no one ever sees" says Shannon. "The carbon fiber battery tray. I was charging the battery in my GSXR when I got the idea – plastic battery trays weigh less."

For a smoother ride, the old shocks have been ditched for 13.5” remote reservoir alloy shocks. As for the front and rear wheels, Shannon chose Lester mags – 19" X 2.15 on the front and 18" on the back. And the front and rear fenders have been custom made from carbon fibre to make them as light as possible. The headlight is a 7" light from our friends at Dime City Cycles and the tail light is an LED unit.

Shannon struggled to complete the build in a month, with a young family and only working on it part time he was lucky to finish it in time for the show. He was actually still working on the bike at 2am the morning before. "Building the bike was a blur" says Shannon. "I guess that's what happens when you build a bike in a month and you have a day job. But the response to the bike has been overwhelming."

[Photography by Eric Runyon]

via Pipeburn

Contest Cafe Racer of the Year

Trial : Second succès de rang pour Toni Bou

En décrochant à Marseille son vingt troisième succès de rang en trial Indoor, Toni Bou (Montesa Michelin) confirme sa main mise sur la discipline, et porte son avance sur ses rivaux à treize points après la seconde des six épreuves du championnat.

Vainqueur à Sheffield il y a trois semaines, Toni Bou a récidivé  à Marseille en dépit d’une rude opposition emmenée par Adam Raga (Gas Gas), qui talonne de deux petits points le champion en titre au terme de la soirée. Takahisa Fujinami (Montesa Michelin) éliminé en demi finale, Bou se retrouvait en finale face à Raga, Albert Cabestany (Sherco Michelin) et James Dabill (Beta).

La première des quatre zones allait être terrible puisque Dabill, Cabestany et Raga y subissaient un échec, alors que Bou prenait trois points de pénalité dont un pour dépassement de temps. L’essentiel était fait pour le leader, qui voyait toutefois Raga le menacer jusqu’au bout, une nouvelle pénalité pour dépassement de temps voyant Raga terminer à deux petits points de Bou, Cabestany et Dabill perdant toutes chances en subissant un second échec lors de la soirée.

Le championnat se poursuivra le 9 Février à Barcelone, les pilotes Espagnols monopolisant les quatre premières places du championnat avant cette 3^ème étape.

Classement de l’épreuve : 1.Bou (ESP, Montesa Michelin), 4 pts ; 2.Raga (ESP, Gas Gas), 6 ; 3.Cabestany (ESP, Sherco Michelin), 11 ; 4.Dabill (GBR, Beta), 12 ; 5.Fajardo (ESP, Beta Michelin), 15 ; 6.Fujinami (JAP, Montesa Michelin), 16 ; etc….

Positions au championnat : 1.Bou, 40pts ; 2.Cabestany, 27 ; 3.Raga, 21 ; 4.Fajardo, 18 ; 5.Dabill, 14 ; 6.Fujinami, 14 ; etc…

Snapshot: Hunt's queasy homecoming, Silverstone 1973

Silverstone, 1973. James Hunt mentally prepares for his first-ever British GP, appearing a little queasy as he tries to shrug off his nerves...

Hunt prepares to do battle in front of his home crowd at the British GP of 1973, held at Silverstone. With his stomach settled – probably by emptying it against the nearest pit wall, true to form – he now sets about doing the same with his nerves.

Despite setting the fastest lap of the race, Hunt will end his debut home GP in a respectable but not entirely satisfying fourth place. But there's a lot more to come from the dashing daredevil...

Several classic Formula 1 cars can be found in the Classic Driver Market.

police !!!

DUCATI 999S BY VENIER CUSTOMS

This is one of the fastest motorcycles we’ve ever featured—and I’d say it’s one of the best-looking too. It’s a Ducati 999S ‘Testastretta’ converted from race to road use byStefano Venier, a New York-based builder with an immaculate eye for understated aesthetics.

Venier is best known for his classic Moto Guzzi customs, but he was salivating at the prospect of wheeling a 999S into his workshop. “Working on a race bike was a dream project,” he says. “It was a new experience to work on a modern motorcycle too.”

The commission for ’999VX’ came from photographer Riccardo Vimercati, who wanted to convert his track machine to road use. The bike already had a sprinkling of race parts; it’s closely related to the machines ridden by Troy Bayliss and Reuben Xaus in competition. The top-shelf goodies included an STM clutch and Discacciati levers, plus a RapidBike ECU and quickshifter. Power output is well north of 150 hp.

Once the fairing was off, Venier rebuilt the rear end with a leather seat, a new support frame, and a removable hard seat cover. He then switched out the stock alloy wheels for a set of spoked rims from a Ducati GT1000—describing it as “a really hard job to do right on a bike with so much power.” Exhaust gases now exit via Termignoni Corse headers into a Zard muffler. (“You should hear her voice now!”)

Much of the work was in the detail, removing a multitude of brackets, tabs, wiring and electrical parts, with the odd relocation of components to keep the bike looking tidy in its naked state. The color is a dark gray rather than absolute black, and the front fender is custom-fabricated.

Some things, however, were best left alone. “We tried to redesign the tank, but it was impossible to improve on the Pierre Terblanche design,” Venier reports. “To my eyes, it’s one of the best tanks ever created.” So Venier confined the rest of his mods to small touches like the mesh side panels, designed to give a little visual lift.

The next bikes to leave the Venier stable will be brand new Moto Guzzis: a V7 Stone and a California 1400. We can’t wait to see what he does with those.

Photos by Donatello Trevisiol. Check the Venier Customs website for more of Stefano’s work, and follow his news via the Venier Facebook page.

from BIKEEXIF

for SALE : Norton Molnar Manx Replica (2013)

La moto présentée est une Molnar Manx Replica construite en 2013. Elle a très peu roulée et n’a jamais courue (deux sorties en démo en 2013 et 250 km), elle est donc neuve.

Spécifications techniques :

Alésage moteur 90 mm
Roulements moteur renforcés
Carburateur Gardner 40 mm
Boite Quaife 6 rapports à barillet
Amortisseurs Ar Maxton
Allumage magnéto électronique
Amortisseur de direction Öhlins
Roues 18 avec pneus Avon racing
Carénage intégral avec bac récupérateur intégré
Garde boue avant, arrière carbone
Frein avant Fontana 4 cames 230 mm
Compte tours électronique
Deux lignes d’échappement fournies : Une complète inox » Molnar » 109 décibels, et une complète avec silencieux carbone 100 décibels.

La documentation pour entretient ainsi que des pièces de maintenance (valeur des pièces neuves : 1000 €) sont fournies avec la moto.
Cette Manx Molnar est immédiatement disponible en France.

Un ingénieur passionné qui fait vivre la légende

En 1994 la société anglaise Molnar Precision Limited, fondé par l’ingénieur passionné Andy Molnar, acquiert les droits de fabriquer des Norton Manx. En 2005 la Molnar Manx n° 100 a été livrée au « National Motorcycle Museum ».
Molnar est également fournisseur de pièces pour des machines originales. Les pièces standard sont fabriquées d’après les plans originaux Norton.
Les ingénieurs ont développé le moteur Manx, basé sur les expériences et essais du passé effectué par Norton ainsi que Tickle, qui avait acheté Manx en 1969. Les résultats de ces recherches sont les moteurs 499 cc Molnar Manx 90 et 95 à course courte, qui ont obtenu des résultats exceptionnelles dans les années passées, parmi d’importants victoires internationales ces machines ont aussi gagné le
Classic Senior Manx Grand Prix.

 

SPECIFICATIONS

Marque : Norton
Origine : Angleterre
Type : Molnar Manx Replica 90
Cylindrée : 499 cm³
Année : 2013
État : Neuve
Référence : FF23

DISPONIBILITÉ

Immédiate en France

PRIX

37 500 €
Demande d'informations...

CORB MOTORCYCLES #2 ‘BIELSA’

Post up a few Trackers and the floodgates open, so we’re very pleased to help showcase this SR250 street tracker as an alternative to the Dominators and XRs etc, and in contrast to the SRs that are usually more scrambler/cafe in style. The bike has been put together by Santi Garcia of Corb Motorcycles from Terrassa in Barcelona, Spain.

Santi’s first Corb MC build was a 125cc Vespa, so he considers this SR as his fist proper Motorcycle. He worked in collaboration with Bike Shed favourites, La Corona, as they built him a KZ400 that you can see on The Bike Shed and in the BikeEXIF coffee-table book, The Ride. This bike, “Bielsa”, is a demonstration of what Santi could achieve with a low-cost build, although it do doesn’t look like a machine with too many compromises.

The brief was to build a Dirt Tracker with ‘elegance’  that was as far away from the original donor as possible in it’s look and feel, and to be completely rideable, as this was to be the owner’s first bike. The bike has been graced with new wheels, wearing chunky Dunlop K460s. The rear shocks are upgraded items from Hagon. The subframe hasn’t been looped at the rear but it easily accommodates the new handmade custom seat with diamond-stitched upholstery. There are new lights front and back, with mini speedo, mini indicators and a mini oil temp gauge.

The exhaust is by Dime City Cycles and the engine breathes-in through new filters. The electrics have also been simplified and the wires kept out of sight, running inside the new tracker handlebars. The battery is left exposed. Other mods include custom fenders, front and back, a handmade license plate holder and a host of other brackets, plates and parts. The front number board is a nice touch, wrapped around the Bates style headlight and showing-off the same silk black and white race-striped colours as the tank.

Santi tells us that the bike is a blast to ride, while not exactly powerful she’s a great city bike with plenty of bark from the pipes and just as happy in the city or the country – and most importantly, the new owner loves it.

It’s a nice variation on both the tracker style and on the humble Yamaha SR250, so thanks to Santi for sharing with us at The Bike Shed. He’s now working on a Yamaha XT600, and we look forward to seeing it on our pages soon. See more from Corb Motorcycles on their Facebook page.