Custom Motorcycles

The trouble with a production bike, even a limited-number production bike, is that you’re always in danger of seeing another one exactly the same. But how about if you take that production bike and do something completely different with it?

As electricity as a motive force becomes more mainstream, so designers are altering the way we think about two-wheeled transport. In particular, the way motorcycles look is being challenged and nowhere more obviously than with this incredible custom machine.

Craig Breedlove’s 1963 land speed record attempt in Spirit of America resulted in a new record of 407.45mph. However, FIA rules at the time stated that a vehicle had to have four wheels, with at least two being driven. As Sprit of America was a thrust-driven vehicle and ran on three wheels, it was classed as a motorcycle.

The style of ’60s and ’70s American flat track racers continues to influence custom builders and none more successfully than this beautiful build by Richard Pollock, aka Mule, of California.

What started out as an ordinary BMW R1250RS has been turned into something incredible by a team in Germany. Built for the Sultans of Sprint event in Europe, you’d be hard pressed to recognise anything other than the engine as BMW.

There are custom bikes and there are Custom bikes. This is one of the latter. Created by Renard Speed Shop in Estonia, it started life as a BMW R1250R roadster, not that you’d know it by looking at it. The attention to detail and craftsmanship is unbelievable, not to mention the artistic vision that caused it to be created in the first place.

Often called the most famous motorcycle in the world, no-one really knows where the original Captain America, from the Easy Rider movie, is. But that doesn’t matter when you can have one built for yourself and re-create the American Dream.

After three years of being teased, the new Harley Davidson Sportster S has been officially launched. Looking exactly like the concept, it is powered by a detuned 1250 Revolution Max engine, which now acts as a stressed member of the chassis. Strong Harley Davidson DNA in the looks but a huge advance in electronic sophistication over the old Sportster. Available from Fall 2021

The Honda designers targeted the outlaw chopper culture of the ’60s and ’70s, and managed to turn out a fairly faithful interpretation in the Fury, which is carried into 2020 though we lost its stablemate, the Stateline, from the lineup in 2017. The deep saddle and cut-down rear fender combined with the sweep of the fuel tank give it that stretched, custom look. For the American market, the 52-degree V-twin fits right in with a 1,312 cc engine that isn’t so big as to be intimidating.

Indian Motorcycle and Workhorse Speed Shop announced their comeback at the Baikal Mile Ice Speed Festival at Lake Baikal, Siberia, with the Appaloosa v2.0. This time, it will be modded to run on the icy surface with tire studs, carbon-fiber nose cap, smaller cooling intakes, closed wheel bays, a new paint scheme, and an upgraded NOS system amongst a host of others.

There is no apprehension about the fact that Indian Motorcycle doesn’t just make luxury yachts on two wheels. This American dream production house also makes racers, trackers and land-speed record breakers. Take the Spirit of Munro 50th anniversary, for example. A motorcycle that celebrated the Golden Jubilee of Burt Munro’s 1000cc class record of 183.59mph on his Indian Scout Streamliner at the Bonneville Salt Flats.

This time, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the first Indian Scout model that saw showroom floors in 1920, Brice Hennebert of Workhorse Speedshop, Belgium, etched the 2019 Indian x Workhorse Appaloosa v1.0. It was commissioned by Indian to compete in the Sultan of Sprint – a sprint-style drag racing event for everything customized on two-wheels.

When a global luxury fashion, beauty, and lifestyle honcho from Hong Kong asked the most blood rushed custom motorcycle boutique of Vietnam to give their machine a do-over, no one expected this off the bed.

This Bandit 9 EVE 2020 is what happens when profanity takes the high road with Lane Crawford. A ravishing blacked-out rendition of the EVE, it gets a new engine cover and front cowl that hits the futuristic tone, all with a dark intent showcasing a menacing character. Let me remind you, all of this is road legal somehow.

He’s 22, he drives for my favorite team, he’s from the home that runs my favorite circuit, he’s the youngest to win the Pole Trophy, he’s Charles Leclerc.

A precocious champion with breathtaking talent and ballistic pace, Charles has been fast-tracked into the money-can’t-buy race seat at Ferrari. Raking up the space left by Scuderia’s last world champion, Kimi Räikkönen, he promptly scored more race wins and points than his teammate, an established number one, Sebastian Vettel. That’s some profile!

Out of the car, Leclerc is modest and thoughtful and apparently loves seeing the world go past by like flashes of strobes, even on two wheels.

He recently commissioned a cool custom build of a Husqvarna Vitpilen 701 from one of the fanciest French builder, Bad Winners . It’s got ten more horses, is 60 lbs lighter and goes by the name - "The Apex 2.0"⁠.