Custom Bikes Of The Week: 30 June, 2019

We’ve got an electrifying selection this week, with the debut of the £90,000 Arc Vector and a look at BMW’s surprise Vision DC electric concept. Plus a 144 hp Honda scrambler and a racy Royal Enfield from chassis legends Harris Performance.

Honda X11 by Lions Den We don’t see many custom versions of the CB1100SF. Honda’s turn-of-the-century naked is big, weighs 254 kg wet (560 lbs) and is hard to find on most secondhand markets.

But the short-lived ‘naked Blackbird’ has a lot going for it in the engine department, with 136 hp in the European version and a top speed of over 150 mph. It’s also tough and reliable and a good used buy if you can find one.

This light custom job comes from Lions Den Motorcycles of Hertfordshire in England, who focused on losing weight and getting rid of the huge stock tail section. A new subframe now bolts to the aluminum frame, topped with a racy single seat.

Other mods include a very clever new instrument/ignition housing at the front, a powerful LED headlight from Motodemic, and stainless steel mufflers from Spark. New finishes in dark graphic and gold—even on the wheels—add a lovely touch of luxury. [More]

Arc Vector electric motorcycle The British company Arc positions its Vector electric motorcycle as “the world’s most advanced” bike. And for £90,000, one should expect nothing less.

Next weekend, the Vector will be ridden in anger in public for the first time at the legendary Goodwood Festival of Speed. Arc’s CEO Mark Truman will pilot the ‘neo café racer’ up the famous 1.1 mile hillclimb course, showing off the reported power-to-weight ratio of 650 hp per tonne.

Goodwood visitors will also be able to get a closer look at the bike when it’s on static display. The battery module forms part of the carbon monocoque, the front end sports a hub center steering setup, and the 399V electric motor should be able to shred tires at will.

If you’re impressed by what you see and you have the cash to spare, you’ll be pleased to know that the first Vector model will be limited to 399 units. Customer deliveries will begin in the summer of 2020. [Arc]

Honda CB1000R scrambler by Brivemo We see some oddball mashups here, but this is one of the weirdest. The Swiss Honda dealer Brivemo has taken a CB1000R—yes, the 144 hp naked sportbike—and turned it into an Africa Twin-style scrambler.

Cleverly nicknamed the ‘Africa Four,’ this balls-out scrambler is sporting the front end from a CRF450R motocross bike, a new headlight and offroad bars, a new seat unit, and a custom 4-into-1 exhaust system with a lightweight carbon fiber muffler.

The current Africa Twin has just 92 hp, which most folks would consider plenty enough for a proper offroader, so the ‘Africa Four’ will probably be a handful in the rough stuff.

But Brivemoto are considering putting this bike into the next edition of their annual ‘Africa Twin Raid,’ a blast through the deserts and backroads of Tunisia. If the rider can manage to physically hang onto the bike and the TKC80 tires don’t give up the ghost, we reckon this CB1000R will leave every other bike in the dust. [More]

Royal Enfield x Harris Performance 650 café racer After working in the background for many years with Royal Enfield, Harris has become a part of the Indian company’s financial empire. And now the esteemed British chassis specialist has stepped out of the shadows, with a factory-sanctioned custom 650 twin.

Enfield’s design boss Adrian Sellers describes the ‘Nought Tea GT650’ as a “retro style race bike, using all Harris Performance parts.” There’s a full set of Öhlins suspension, modified to suit the Continental GT 650 and installed with the help of custom-made yokes.

The airbox has been swapped out for a pair of intake pipes, and gases exit via a full custom exhaust system. There’s a custom fairing up front, a big bore kit on the engine, a new subframe and seat unit out back, and a terrific paint job that took hours of masking to create.

This cafe racer version of Nought Tea is designed for display at shows, and there’s a more hardcore v2 on the way that will be pressed into service on the racing scene. [More]

BMW Vision DC Roadster BMW sprung a surprise on the moto world this week with the Vision DC, which provides a clue to the German company’s future. To our eyes, it’s one of the most successful electric motorcycle designs of late, even accounting for the inevitable flights of fancy you get with concept bikes.

BMW hasn’t provided any specs or launch details, but the direction is clear: the company is sticking with design cues from the iconic boxer motor, even if that motor is replaced by a battery pack.

It’s a smart move, and one that avoids the usual focus on the upper visual architecture of electric bikes. Apparently the design will help with cooling, and BMW has also retained the cardan shaft drive and Duolever fork it’s known for. The rest of the styling is slick and modern, although the grills would be a nightmare to clean.

BMW has obviously put a huge amount of thought into this roadster concept, and we suspect that a watered-down production bike featuring many of the design elements will be hitting showrooms in a couple of years. Intriguing stuff.

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Automoblog Book Garage: Robot, Take The Wheel

• As autonomous technology continues to advance, will the art and enjoyment of driving be lost?
• A new book from Jalopnik’s Jason Torchinsky examines the long-term impacts of self-driving cars.
• Our Book Garage series showcases what every gearhead and enthusiast should have in their library.  

You know Jason Torchinsky, right? Semi-professional goofball; automotive writer that came to prominence working at Jalopnik (the kid brother of the automotive press) that has a penchant for doing things like racing ice cream trucks and Goggomobiles, and stuffing big engines where they don’t belong. Yeah, him. That Jason Torchinsky. Well, Torch (as he’s affectionately known) wrote a new book called Robot, Take The Wheel and this is some very heavy stuff.

The Lost Art of Driving

Robot, Take The Wheel is an entertaining yet serious examination of what automation is and how it applies to our favorite pastime: driving. Subtitled “The road to autonomous cars and the lost art of driving,” Torchinsky’s book takes a surprisingly thorough look at, for lack of a better way to put it, how we got here. The book is part history lesson and part extrapolation of what we, the gearheads, now face, or will face in the days ahead.

In a way, it’s all caught up in the last half of the subtitle: “the lost art of driving.” We – you, me, all of us grease-stained, busted-knuckle gearheads out there – actually like driving. We enjoy it. We actually look forward to getting out on a good stretch of road, or even a mediocre stretch, and driving a car. What Torchinsky realizes, and what I realize, and what a growing number of you realize is how there are a fair number of people that don’t like driving. As a matter of fact, they positively dislike it.

Down With The Ship

I remember, not that long ago, seeing a press conference with some Google execs about their then-new autonomous car program. One of them, Brin or someone, I don’t recall who, said, “Seriously: Who actually enjoys driving a car?” He said this from a spot within 20 minutes of some of the best driving roads in the world. I knew if I could get this idiot into a real car and have him drive up the PCH or Sand Hill Road to La Honda or wherever, he would get the point. I hoped.

But I secretly knew he wouldn’t. He was serious. I knew, right then and there, we gearheads were sunk.

There are more people today that see cars as mere appliances, as devices that get us from Point A to Point B. And if that can be done with less user involvement, then that sounds okay to them. I never had to worry about those people, but now I do, because there’s a bunch of them with more money than Croesus; not to mention, how tech bros today have this unquenchable desire to fix something that isn’t broken.

This is the problem Torchinsky faces head-on and rather unblinkingly. He traces the early beginnings into what can loosely be called autonomous driving in parallel with the development of the automobile itself. Torch’s book is not a weighty tome, clocking in at 244 pages (including notes) and it moves right along. It’s nicely-equipped with illustrations and the occasional graph and such for visual aids.

Jalopnik Senior Editor and author of Robot, Take The Wheel, Jason Torchinsky. The book examines the landscape of autonomous driving and how self-driving cars will impact society. In addition to his work in automotive journalism, “Torch” is also producer of Jay Leno’s Garage.

Throw Us A Line

By the time he gets to the tenth and final chapter (accurately titled “Save The Gearheads“), Torch has laid out a lot. We know where we are, we know how we got here, and we have a pretty good idea what’s in store. Chapter 10 is an impassioned plea for our automate future to hopefully, please – we’re begging you – have an “off” switch. This is where Torch and I are in complete agreement. I have no real problem with driving aids, safety features, safety nannies, and even full-on autonomous driving, just so long as there’s a way to turn it off.

I don’t, and near as I can tell Torch is with me on this, have any problem with autonomous cars. Just don’t force us to buy them and use them. Imagine something like a Lotus Elise from 2035 that won’t let you turn off all the driving aids, safety features, and such. What’s the point of owning a Lotus? Torchinsky does, thankfully, suggest a way to have our cake and eat it too. He even throws in a few fun drawings to show car companies how it’s possible.

Related: One study finds Americans still love driving, despite onset of autonomous tech.

A Slight Digression

It might not seem obvious to people like the Google guys, but there are, indeed, those of us that enjoy – and I mean really enjoy – driving. The more basic and raw and exposed the better. Look, I’m not a total Luddite. As a matter of fact, I think I am more forward-leaning than Torchinsky is. He recently wrote about someone who took the semi-automatic gearbox out of their Ferrari F430 Scuderia and put in a manual. I can’t agree with him on that. I don’t feel manuals “make me more involved” with the car, especially a F430 Scuderia.

I’ve driven those, with the semi-automatic gear box, and ‘bang-bang-bang,’ they shift quicker than you can literally blink. I can tell you brother, I was plenty involved. However, my Miata has a manual five-speed (the best gear change you can get outside of a manual Ferrari, ironically) and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

This is what Torchinsky realizes, and more or less gets across in Robot, Take The Wheel. He realizes that for us gearheads, driving is a personal choice and an activity we enjoy. That simply getting to where we are going is, for us, very much beside the point 90 percent of the time. And sadly, that’s all tech bros and automation engineers see: The end result. “People want to just get to Point B, how can we get them there faster and more efficiently?” What if that’s not exactly what we want?

Last year, Hagerty began hosting a series of town hall discussions on the importance of driving. Autonomous vehicles and their impact on society was one of Hagerty’s first such discussions, with Wayne Carini of Chasing Classic Cars and former General Motors Vice Chairman Bob Lutz as panelists.

There Are No Wrong Notes

Robot, Take The Wheel reminds me of when I was at a tech conference dinner party in Seattle years ago. The party was a way for those well-connected enough to be shown some extra-special products, games, software, and such. I was walking by a laptop displayed next to some sort of kluged-together piano keyboard.

“Hey man, do you like music?” asked this smarmy-looking marketing guy.

“Yeah, I do, as a-”

“Then check this out,” he said, cutting me off and cranking up the keyboard. “Our new software can tell what you want to play, and play it for you, even if you hit the wrong key. No wrong notes!” he said triumphantly, hitting their marketing tagline.

“No wrong notes?” I asked.

“Yup!”

“Can you turn it off?”

“Oh sure, that switch th-”

Dissonance & Resolve

I hit the switch and mashed the flat of my hand onto the keys. The blare of dissonance brought the conversation to a halt. I changed the block of keys into a C Major triad, to an F major, to a G major, and then started running up the keyboard, stopping just sort of a resolution and playing “between the keys” as my old jazz band teacher would say.

I did that two more times: dissonance, resolve, dissonance, resolve. Looking right at the guy, I said again, “There are no wrong notes.” He looked confused and the other people on his team realized I pointed out a huge flaw in their machine.

I bet we would see that same look on an autonomous driving engineer’s face if Torch and I were to take him to The Indy 500 and say, “That’s driving, pal.”

Related: Please refrain from harassing the autonomous test vehicle. It has feelings too.

Better Strap In

Torchinsky gets it, because we get it. I hope somebody with money and pull and a voice in the decision-making process reads Robot, Take The Wheel. Reads it and takes it to heart. Or the future is going to be efficiently boring.

Tony Borroz has spent his entire life racing antique and sports cars. He is the author of Bricks & Bones: The Endearing Legacy and Nitty-Gritty Phenomenon of The Indy 500, available in paperback or Kindle format. Follow his work on Twitter: @TonyBorroz. 

Robot, Take The Wheel by Jason Torchinsky

• Hardcover: 248 pages
• Publisher: Apollo Publishers (May 7, 2019)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1948062267
• ISBN-13: 978-1948062268
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 0.8 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15 ounces

Price at the time of this writing: $10.99 (Kindle) or $16.50 (Hardcover) on Amazon.

About The Author

Jason Torchinsky is the Senior Editor of Jalopnik, a cutting-edge news and opinion website about cars and technology. He has written for a wealth of other publications and is a producer of Jay Leno’s Garage, which he’s guest starred on. “Torch” is also the star of his own show, Jason Drives, which features him driving obscure cars for his millions of fans on social media. Torchinsky is also a stand-up comedian and an artist whose work has been exhibited around the world. He lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina.

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2020 Chevy Silverado HD: Tough Workhorse Gets Tougher Still

• The 2020 Chevy Silverado HD receives a host of upgrades to increase performance.
• Heading into retirement is the 6.0-liter gas engine. A more powerful gas V8 takes its place. 
• The Duramax power figures are unchanged but new cooling methods boost towing numbers.
• From the engines and chassis, to all the towing tech: an in-depth look at the new Silverado HD.

Chevrolet has been teasing us with the new Silverado HD since last year. We knew it would look like a hulked-up Silverado 1500; we were expecting it to be, per Chevy’s promises, the strongest and most capable Silverado HD ever made. After debuting earlier this year, we felt an in-depth look on the inner makings of the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD was in order.

Turns out, our lucky stars were smiling upon us. We had the chance to chat with Bob Walczyk, Chevrolet Product Marketing Manager for light and heavy duty pickups.

If there’s one person who knows every nut and bolt in the new Silverado HD, it would be Bob Walczyk. “I’ve actually been working on this new generation truck since its inception,” he said. “I’ve been quite intimate to the vehicle all along the process here. It’s very exciting now to see this thing on the road.”

2020 Chevy Silverado HD: What’s New?

Let’s proceed to the most obvious part: the way it looks. No doubt, the new Silverado HD is bigger, longer, and taller than before.

In fact, the wheelbase is 5.2 inches longer than the outgoing model, with overall length increasing by a massive 10.4 inches. In order to establish the truck’s presence, the width is now 81.9 inches, which is 1.4 inches wider than before. The new Silverado HD is also 1.6 inches taller overall. “One thing we got from our research was how the truck needed to be bigger,” Walczyk said. “Customers wanted it to be bigger than the light duty; it needed to be heavy duty. If I’m buying a heavy duty truck it needs to look the part.”

Despite looking like the steroid-infused big brother of the Silverado 1500, the new HD shares precisely zero body panels with the 1500 – except for the roof. The tailgate and larger hood are aluminum to manage weight, but all the other body panels are steel. Chevrolet was even kind enough to make the outer door skins smooth for easier signage applications. This is handy for business owners who put their company name, logo, and phone number on the side of the truck.

The 2020 Chevy Silverado HD comes in five trim levels: Work Truck, Custom, LT, LTZ, and High Country. There are 22 cab, bed, and chassis configurations. Photo: Chevrolet.

Beefed-Up Underpinnings

Accompanying the increase in physical size are stronger and more durable underpinnings. The driveline in the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD is larger and more muscular than before. The bigger front and rear axles connect to a robust aluminum propeller shaft. “We use 6061 P6 aluminum for the prop shaft, which is fairly common in the industry,” Walczyk said. This new prop shaft is 30 percent larger in diameter for greater strength, something Walczyk says is important. “The new HD’s prop shaft is 3.5 millimeters thick, which is the thickest gauge we’ve ever used,” he continued.

The Silverado 2500 also receives a standard 11.5-inch ring gear while the 3500 gets an enormous 12-inch ring gear.

Since the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD is bigger than its predecessor, it’s sitting on a larger chassis as well. The frame better withstands the rudiments of heavy towing by utilizing what might seem like small modifications. “Actually, one of the big things we did in the frame area was integrating our fifth-wheel prep to the frame itself,” Walczyk explained. “In the past, it was done after the truck was assembled, so we literally pulled the box, then added the plate. Now it is integrated into the frame and we’ve got a much tighter connection there. That was a huge enabler for our customers who tow,” he added.

Chevrolet also made a change in the frame regarding corrosion protection. “We believe this will outlast most vehicle ownership cycles,” Walczyk said.

When properly equipped, the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD supports a GCWR of up to 43,500 lbs. Photo: Chevrolet.

Power To Move The World: 6.6-Liter V8

Perhaps the biggest and most important change to the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD is in the engine department. The standard motor is a larger, 6.6-liter V8 gasoline mill with direct-injection technology (GDI). The new tech allows it to churn out 401 horsepower (5200 rpm) and 464 lb-ft. of torque (4000 rpm). That’s 11 percent more horsepower and 22 percent more torque than the previous 6.0-liter unit. Chevrolet built the new motor with a cast-iron block and aluminum heads. You’ll also find a forged steel crankshaft and forged powder-metal connecting rods.

“The 6.0-liter is very reliable, but it’s also been out there for quite a while, so we have been itching to bring the gas engine up a little more in terms of modern technology,” Walczyk said. “One of the biggest things we did was going to a direct injection system. We are going to be the first to do that in the gas engines in the heavy-duty segment.”

The GDI system allows the motor to operate at a higher 10.8:1 compression ratio. It also features a longer 3.85 stroke (versus 3.62 in the 6.0). The hike in power and torque also means greater towing capabilities – 18 percent more versus the 6.0 gas. The new gasoline motor pairs with a GM 6L90 six-speed automatic with a Tow/Haul mode.

2020 Chevy Silverado HD. Photo: Chevrolet.

Power To Move The World: 6.6-liter Duramax Turbo-Diesel

However, if towing really heavy loads is a daily occurrence, you need the 6.6-liter Duramax Turbo-Diesel V8. The new Duramax produces 445 horsepower (2800 rpm) and a substantial 910 lb-ft. of torque (1600). The diesel mill connects to an Allison 10-speed automatic (10L1000) with new calibrations and a 3.42:1 axle ratio. When all is said and done, a properly-equipped Silverado HD tows up to 35,500 lbs., a 52 percent max towing increase versus the outgoing Silverado HD.

While the horsepower and torque numbers remain the same from 2017, Walczyk explains how the towing increase came about. “We haven’t really used all that power because the truck was chassis constrained and cooling constrained,” he said. “With the new architecture we opened things up; we increased airflow and oil cooling capacity.” Among the more significant changes is the 19-plate cooler versus a 15-plate cooler in the prior generation.

“And we increased the fan from 25.5 inches to 28 inches,” Walczyk added. “This fan just humongous when you see it.”

Since 2017, the hood’s upper air inlet includes an air and water separator just underneath. “We expanded that and improved on it for this new generation,” Walczyk said. “The engineering team really focused on ways to get the proper cooling so we could get the tow ratings we were looking for.” Photo: Chevrolet.

It’s All About Towing: More Tech Please

There’s a reason why buyers want a bigger, meaner, and more powerful Silverado HD. It has something to do with that thing called towing.

In addition to landing the highest possible numbers, designers spent equal time on the actual towing experience. “We did a lot of research,” Walczyk revealed. “Around 93 percent of our truck owners tow and about half tow over 8,000 lbs. regularly.” During those market research sessions, Walczyk said it was “loud and clear” that customers wanted easier towing by way of modern technology. “They were very interested in lights, cameras, and sensors,” he continued. “They wanted to see better and take advantage of those things all around the truck.”

The solution is the Advanced Trailering System, a first for the Chevy Silverado HD. The system offers up to 15 high-definition camera views, including surround vision, a bed camera, and a trick transparent trailer view camera. The latter allows you to see out the back as if the trailer wasn’t there in the first place! It uses two cameras: one tailgate-mounted camera and an available accessory camera for the rear of the trailer.

It’s All About Towing: Vantage Points

When pulling a trailer down the road, the camera system matches the turn signals; meaning when the left signal is on, the camera view is bias to the left, and vice versa for the right.

“Your view is going to be 80/20, 70/30 or 60/40 depending on how far you’re turning the steering wheel and in what direction,” Walczyk said. “It really zeros in on where that trailer is going. If you are pulling a 40-foot trailer, you’re going to see if you are getting near that curb or not.”

The corner steps in the rear bumper increase in size for 2020. Photo: Chevrolet.

Related: From 1918 to 2019: a walk through over 100 years of Chevy truck history.

Diesel After-Run Feature

Think of it as a “turbo timer,” the same thing found in tuned examples of the Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution and Subaru Impreza. The idea is to keep the engine running or idling after a demanding towing situation. The diesel after-run feature prevents the engine from shutting down for up to 15 minutes, giving the motor a chance to cool using the larger fan.

But what happens if you throw it in park and turn the engine off? The truck will simply restart after departing the cabin, turning itself off after reaching the appropriate temperature. So what you basically have is an immensely powerful diesel truck with a sports car feature.

Neat stuff, I say.

The 2020 Chevy Silverado HD is built at Flint Assembly in Flint, Michigan. Photo: Chevrolet.

Family Matters

For many, buying a truck is more than just purchasing a vehicle. It’s more than having the freedom to move about, or the ability to haul everything in a single load. Like most trucks, the 2020 Chevy Silverado HD will end up a member of the family. It’s the pal at work, or the friend who is with you no matter what. A survey last year from Chevy and Harris Poll found that 45 percent of truck owners plan on passing their pickup down to a child or loved one. Another 60 percent say they “cannot live” without their truck.

“People spend a lot of money on these trucks, so they want the vehicle to do everything for them. It’s something they use for their livelihood and to pull their toys on the weekend,” Walczyk said. “I’m driving one right now and it’s phenomenal; it’s been a joy to drive.”

Alvin Reyes is the Associate Editor of Automoblog. He studied civil aviation, aeronautics, and accountancy in his younger years and is still very much smitten to his former Lancer GSR and Galant SS. He also likes fried chicken, music, and herbal medicine. 

Photos & Source: Chevrolet.

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2020 Chrysler Voyager & Pacifica: A Little Nostalgia & A Lot Modern

• The 2020 Chrysler Voyager is a budget-focused minivan but the name rings of nostalgia.
• For 2020, the Voyager joins the refreshed Pacifica and Pacifica Hybrid in FCA’s minivan lineup.
• Pacifica and Pacifica Hybrid benefit from a lighter architecture and a “vault-like” interior design.    

The 2020 Chrysler Voyager was once known by another name. “I predict the Voyager and the Caravan will be to the 80s what the Mustang was to the 60s,” said Lee A. Iacocca in 1984, then chairman of Chrysler Corporation. The struggling Auburn Hills automaker would enter a period of resurgence under these two platforms; the Dodge Caravan and Plymouth Voyager. Iacocca believed these two would force other manufacturers to come up with copycat versions.

And indeed, that has been the case.

Ford and General Motors had their versions, from the Windstar to the Venture; Toyota, Honda, and Kia today each offer a minivan, but the the segment’s champion is arguably the one who invented it. Chrysler has sold more than 14.6 million minivans globally since 1983, twice as many as any other manufacturer over the past 35 years.

What Is The Chrysler Voyager?

The 2020 Chrysler Voyager is the budget-friendly option in contrast to the higher trim levels of the Pacifica and Pacifica Hybrid. The Voyager replaces the Pacifica L and LX but offers fleet buyers an exclusive trim level. Standard features include seven-passenger seating, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, and various other smartphone capabilities. Voyager has additional ease-of-entry options from BraunAbility for buyers who use a wheelchair.

Rear park assist (with stop), blind-spot monitoring, and rear cross path detection are among the optional safety features. Trim levels include L, LX, and LXi – the latter being the fleet-only option. There are six available colors: the Jazz Blue and Velvet Red pearl coats sound the snazziest.

2020 Chrysler Voyager. Photo: FCA US LLC.

2020 Chrysler Voyager: Under The Hood & In The Cabin

The Voyager scoots around town with FCA’s evergreen Pentastar V6. The engine, married to a TorqueFlite nine-speed automatic, creates 287 horsepower and 262 lb-ft. of torque. The powertrain is a trustworthy one, as the Pentastar has landed on the annual list of Wards 10 Best Engines six different times since its 2010 debut. The 2020 Chrysler Pacifica will employ the same engine. Fuel economy ratings for the current 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 in the Pacifica come in at 19/28 city/highway and 22 combined.

An optional, single overhead DVD player is available on the Voyager LX for those longer road trips. In-floor storage bins make it easy to stash goodies and gear; and the Stow ‘n Place roof rack is useful for all kinds of recreational items. Up front, the Uconnect 4 system enables a host of entertainment and navigation features via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

2020 Chrysler Pacifica. Photo: FCA US LLC.

2020 Chrysler Pacifica

The Chrysler Pacifica namesake was completely re-engineered, debuting at the 2016 North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) in Detroit. The Pacifica in its current form has a lighter, stiffer architecture to reduce body roll and fuel consumption, while cutting road noise and absorbing crash energy in the event of a collision. The architecture serves as the basis for the Pacifica’s “vault-style” interior, something FCA says makes the vehicle more comfortable to drive.

“We continuously researched and tried to get customer feedback on how to improve everything,” Patrick Keitz, Chrysler Brand Product Manager, told us in 2016 at NAIAS. “We looked at what affects ride, handling, and cargo capacity and it all comes back to the new architecture.”

Highlights for 2020 include the Red S Appearance Package, seating for eight, and more than 100 standard and available safety and security features. The 2020 Chrysler Pacifica has four trim levels: Touring, Touring L, Touring L Plus, and Limited. A 35th Anniversary Edition with commemorative badging and Cranberry Wine interior stitching is available through the end of year.

Chrysler Pacifica 35th Anniversary Edition. Photo: FCA US LLC.

Red S Appearance Package

The S Appearance Package gives the Pacifica the ever-popular “blacked-out” look. The Red S Appearance adds a few extra streaks on the canvas with Rodèo Red Nappa leather seats, Light Diesel Grey stitching and piping, and Silver Metal Brush accents for the instrument panel and door trim. The tunes come courtesy of a 20-speaker Harman Kardon premium stereo, one of the package’s finer touches.

Outside, there is a special liftgate badge and blacked-out Chrysler wing badges; non-hybrid Pacificas receive 20-inch wheels with a Black Noise finish. The Red S Appearance treatments come in six of the vehicle’s 10 color choices, any of which should look stellar. While on offer for both the gas and hybrid models, the Red S look is only (unfortunately) available for the Limited trim.

Related: Before the Plymouth Voyager: the history of minivans before minivans.

Boatload of Tech

The 2020 Chrysler Pacifica resembles the bridge of the Starship Enterprise in terms of technology. Absent only the photon torpedoes but with plenty of shields, the Pacifica boasts more than 100 standard and available safety features. Some of the banner ones include a 360-degree Surround View Camera; ParkSense Parallel/Perpendicular Park Assist; Adaptive Cruise Control with Stop and Go, and Forward Collision Warning-Plus.

Like the Voyager, the Uconnect 4 system enables a plethora of entertainment and navigation features via Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. And, for good measure, the Uconnect Theater features two 10-inch seatback touchscreens – are you not entertained!?

2020 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid technology graphic courtesy of FCA US LLC.

2020 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid

The Pacifica Hybrid is the fourth best-selling plug-in hybrid vehicle from the 30 available in the market. It hauls in more than 80 miles per gallon equivalent (MPGe) in electric-only mode, with an all-electric range exceeding 30 miles. Total range, with a fully-charged battery, is over 500 miles.

Oh and dig that new honeycomb grille pattern for 2020.

Hybrid Tools

Like the gas Pacifica, the Hybrid tacks on the same safety technology and convenience features, although with a modified 3.6-liter Pentastar V6. The jewel of the hybrid system is the FCA US-designed, dual-motor eFlite, electrically-variable transmission. (Say that ten times fast!). The device runs two electric motors – both of which can drive the vehicle’s wheels.

The Pacifica Hybrid’s 16-kWh battery pack is under the second-row floor. It can be recharged in about two hours using a 240-volt plug-in system. The 2020 Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid comes in three flavors: Touring, Touring L, and Limited.

Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid with an S Appearance Package. A new “Red S” Appearance Package is available for 2020. Photo: FCA US LLC.

Pricing & Availability

As of this writing, we don’t know either for the 2020 Chrysler Voyager and Pacifica. Right now, the 2019 Chrysler Pacifica starts at $26,985 with the hybrid variant beginning at $40,245. The Chrysler Pacifica and Pacifica Hybrid are built at the Windsor Assembly Plant in Windsor, Ontario, Canada.

Carl Anthony studies mechanical engineering at Wayne State University, serves on the Board of Directors for the Ally Jolie Baldwin Foundation, and is a loyal Detroit Lions fan. Before going back to school, he simultaneously held product development and experiential marketing roles in the automotive industry.

2020 Chrysler Voyager Gallery

Photos & Source: FCA US LLC.

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Continental Racer: Sinroja’s Royal Enfield Drag Bike

A couple of years ago, Sinroja Motorcycles were one of the first workshops to join Royal Enfield’s new custom program. They built a couple of bikes, and the relationship went well. So when Sinroja were looking for a brand partner for their latest project, they knew just who to call.

The Leicester-based custom shop wanted to enter the European Sultans of Sprint race series in the ‘Factory’ class. All they needed a factory to collaborate with.

Royal Enfield and their Industrial Design boss Adrian Sellers came to the party with a brand new Continental GT 650, but there was an unexpected twist. By the time everything was singed off, Sinroja had just four weeks to prep the bike.

“Usually we can do aesthetics or performance in that time,” brothers Rahul and Birju Sinroja tell us, “but this project needed both. It had to look good and go fast.”

It certainly needed to be fast. Sinroja’s Continental would be competing with a nitrous-powered BMW 1250, a nitrous-powered Indian Scout ridden by the legendary Randy Mamola, and a supercharged 200-plus hp Harley.

The brothers already had a concept in mind: they would loosely take inspiration from a drag racer Royal Enfield themselves had previously built, ‘The Lock Stock.’

With help from Tamas Jakus at Jakusa Design, they quickly mocked up the design and graphics for ‘Two Smoking Barrels.’

But sharp looks alone weren’t going to cut it. With just 47 hp from its 648 cc parallel twin motor, the Continental GT 650 was seriously outgunned. “The project direction was clear from beginning,” the guys tell us. “We knew we had to go as lightweight and as powerful as we could.”

“When the already naked Continental GT (which weighs 205 kg) was delivered, we were worried. There weren’t any big body panels to strip to lose weight quickly.”

Luckily for Sinroja, performance experts S&S Cycle were in on the project from the word go. They’d previously worked with Royal Enfield and Harris Performance on ‘The Lock Stock,’ and filled the brothers in on exactly what sort of numbers were achievable. That info also helped Sinroja set a competitive target weight for the Continental GT—150 kilos.

S&S Cycle sent over custom pistons and sleeves to bore the twin out to 750 cc. They also supplied new injectors, cams, and an ECU, and built a straight-through twin exhaust system.

That gave Sinroja a great naturally-aspirated base to work from, but they still needed an extra boost. So they called on Trevor Langfield at Wizard of NOS to help them set up a unique dry nitrous system. The system’s neatly packaged underneath the seat, where the GT’s air box and wiring used to be.

With performance sorted, Sinroja started plotting the Continental GT’s diet. Everything was stripped off the bike and weighed, so that they’d know what to keep and what to ditch.

They needed a tight front end, so they dug a modern sportbike front end out of their parts bin, shaving off one of the brakes to keep things light. Danny at Fastec machined up a set of billet aluminum yokes to work with the stock headset. The lighter forks and yokes accounted for almost 10 kg of weight saving.

The rear end received a more radical treatment. Sinroja ditched the rear suspension entirely, then fabricated a new hardtail from Reynolds tubing to save weight and extend the wheelbase. They wanted to swap out the wheels as well, but couldn’t get a set of 17-inchers made up in time. So they kept the stock 18-inchers, wrapping them in Continental rubber.

Weight saving became an obsession. Rahul even recalled a lesson from university, where his professor explained how Toyota shaved 10 kg off a sports car just by reducing the weight of all the fasteners. So Sinroja swapped every last nut and bolt for lighter versions, and trimmed another 2 kilos off.

With the rolling chassis done, it was time to piece everything together. Chris Walton helped the brothers out by shaping an aluminum dummy tank, the tail end of which actually forms the seat pan.

Three fasteners hold down the entire arrangement. Underneath it, you’ll find a two-liter fuel reservoir, a Lithium-ion battery from Antigravity, and most of the electronics. (Towza from Towzatronics built a custom wiring loom at the last minute, trimming a further three kilos from the bike.)

The last few mods included a super-minimal cockpit, and a carbon fiber front fender made from the same mold as the one found on ‘The Lock Stock.’ Glenn at GD Design handled the paint, showing off the English flag on one side, and the Indian flag on the other.

Then Ian Tam, Constantinos Panayides and Tommy Butterworth helped Sinroja setup and tune the bike, along with Royal Enfield’s tech center staff.

On its first outing, ‘Two Smoking Barrels’ took gold at the Punks Peak hill climb at Wheels and Waves. And it came fourth at the last Sultans of Sprint race, narrowly missing the podium.

Not too shabby for a last minute rush-job.

Sinroja Motorcycles | Facebook | Instagram | Royal Enfield product page | Images by, and with thanks to, Marc Holstein

Sinroja would like to thank Royal Enfield, along with sponsors S&S Cycles, Bell Powersports, and Contimoto UK.

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