The Hayabusa-derived Suzuki B-King was never meant to be practical and the pillions always complained about back pain during longer journeys, so it is good to know that someone thought at somehow solving these two problems and creating more others. A French company called D.J. Construction has created the DJ Sport B-King sidecar, which is nothing more than a detuned B-King (106-horsepower) with a modified front end (that yellow shock is actually an expensive Öhlins part) and a rather aerodynamic and yet comfortable rig.
The friends at MotoMag in France actually got the chance to ride this strange combination and their impressions are not bad at all, although they do mention the DJ Sport Suzuki B-King sidecar enjoys turning right more than it does turning left. Now why would that be…?
Belarus isn’t precisely the destination of Hollywood stars passionate about riding, but it may very well be that soon as in a small shop, Yuri Shif Custom has created the DUster Streetfighter, a multiple award winning custom motorcycle.
Starting from a Ducati Monster engine and transmission, the Belarusian builder then fabricated the frame, bodywork and swingarm rear suspension and added a modified Showa fork only to obtain the bike’s unique stance. But as they say, it’s all in the details, so the all white finish with gold and Italian themes is, as strange as it might seem, this bike’s piece de resistance. To us, the clean profile of those big white wheels with custom perimeter brakes is just crazy.
The DUster holds the Best Streetfighter trophy from the latest Custombike show in Germany as well as the Best International Builder award, which it received at the Verona expo in Italy a couple of months back.
Conceptualized obviously by an Indian designer – Arun Thomas –, the Yog trike is somehow related to the physical and mental discipline that Hollywood stars like so much to brag about practicing, Yoga. The shape of this futuristic trike is supposedly derived from Yoga, so is it rightful asking if the riding position induces a certain state? Because nobody certainly doesn’t want to start meditating at 100mph as I understand the thing is meant to go fast too.
This brings us to the other strange thing about the Yog vehicle: power. This comes from artificial thunderstorms created in a closed system that converts lightning into electricity, which feeds the propeller of an aircraft engine. Ok, I certainly don’t want my a** on one of these things very soon and the fact that it even has a skid steer mechanism and elastic hubless wheels won’t make me change my mind. How about you? Would you ride this thing and eventually practice Yoga on it?
What you see here is the unique idea of Polish firm Marotti about a trike. They’ve created and tested this prototype model powered by a 750cc Honda motorcycle engine and recently announced they will start production of what’s very possible to become the world’s fastest production three-wheeler. That is all due to the 397bhp/ tone power to weight ratio as the trike’s production powerplant is expected to be an 187bhp 1.4-litre engine and the whole thing will weigh only 440kg (970 lbs).
To us, this is as close to a Batmobile as we’ll ever get (hopefully), meaning that the jet-fighter inspired styling does its job properly.
Vyrus has just released the official pictures of their 987 C3 4V and we’re still having troubles looking at it as to a real production motorcycle, not just because it looks totally off the patterns, but because we have to be aware of the fact that this is an 184hp sportsbike with hub-center steering and a carbon bodywork. These pictures are even better after seeing the Vyrus being assembled in less than three minutes.
I believe we can finally say the first air conditioner for motorcycles (one that will actually end up being produced) was invented. The company behind the inventive idea is EntroSys, which’s motorcycle air conditioner offers almost the same thermic comfort as when traveling in a car, meaning that it can cool/heat the rider’s body depending on the climate.
The company plans to take this into full production and has released a video showing how easily their system can be used, we reckon on most kinds of motorcycles. Watch it and, if you have experienced heat and/or cold while riding motorcycles, you’ll be hooked.
Not long ago, the only “American” way to get more power from an engine was to make it bigger and while things haven’t completely changed, we do witness technological progress being applied on engines such as this V4 powering the latest Motus. It features Gasoline Direct Injection (GDI) instead of upstream injection and what the first system does is inject gasoline straight into the combustion chamber right after the intake process is complete, significantly improving the engine’s blows, which translates into more performance.
And speaking of performance, this engine is no stranger to it as it is designed by Michigan-based Katech, which also happens to supply the engines for the Pratt and Miller Corvettes. That is why you won’t have troubles spotting plenty of similarities between those and the Motus engine if curiosity strikes you.
A recent Cycle World article by Kevin Cameron speaks about the benefits of GDI, while Brian Case told The Kneeslider this is “the first V4 made in America for a production vehicle, the first gDI production motorcycle engine, and even the first gDI V4 for that matter.”
Configured as a 1650cc, V4 with 2 valves per cylinder, the Made in America powerplant makes 140hp, but we still can’t help but notice how the performance upgrade is still related to gas, meaning that this mill is after all faithful to its origins.
Electric motorcycles are becoming more and more popular and builders are continuously trying to expand their coverage area on the market. One very good such example is the Quantya electric snow bike prototype, which is based on a Quantya MX bike but features a snowmobile-like track and a front ski so that it would turn into a fairly easy and fun bike to ride on the show. The only problem is that the batteries tend to run out too fast because of the cold, so different battery and motor power combinations are being considered and tested at the Quantya HQ in Switzerland. Once they figure this last detail out, don’t be surprised if the company starts producing the thing for snow enthusiasts.
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We recently came across the Monobike vehicle that Neil Morris, a student of industrial design at the Savannah College of Art and Design, has conceptualized and while we have to admit that the concept is rather plausible, we can’t really say we haven’t seen anything like it in a while. The creator describes the in-wheel motorcycle as being a “Rhinoceros model. Based on a long running tradition of odd one-wheeled vehicles as far back as the early 1900’s.”
Trying to find the practical side here, we reckon this can turn into a fun mean of urban transportation right after learning how to ride it. The sad part is that you can’t take a friend along for the ride, but at least you’ll be the only one that looks cool.
There’s a unique story behind every chopper project in general, but we tend to like the one behind the Antarctic Snow Chopper in particularly because it evokes energy, innovation and a lot of work. Built by Bob Sawicki and Toby Weisser, who work in Antarctica maintaining snowmobiles for the U.S. logistics hub and are very passionate about mechanical and fabricating work, this chopper is actually put together from the junk and discards found at the station. For instance, the engine and track are from a totaled 1981 Ski Doo, it has two fire extinguishers as fuel and compressed air tanks and it also features bent pipe and a crowbar as must-have chassis parts.
Because the two builders had everything there to work with, they only needed to invest as little as $10 in parts and 120 work hours to complete the amazing chopper and take it for a test ride. Having done that, they list a top speed of 30 to 35 mph (on the snow).
The Antarctic Snow Chopper is so eye-catching and interesting that it made it in the February 2010 issue of Popular Science and it truly deserves it.
