Ion Heart: Colt Wrangler’s electrifying Zero XU tracker

It’s not easy to build a good-looking custom bike. The classifieds are littered with abandoned projects—and even the top pro builders sometimes struggle to get it right.

If the donor bike is electric, you can multiply the difficulty level by ten. Without a traditional engine to anchor the visuals, it’s fiendishly hard to create an attractive machine. Which makes this Zero XU street tracker from Colt Wrangler even more remarkable: it’s one of the freshest-looking bikes we’ve seen so far this year.

Former rodeo rider Colt Lyons hails from Mason, Texas, and over the past three years, he’s built 16 customs. He modestly describes himself as “the self-taught, new kid on the block”—but obviously has talents way beyond the norm.

“I’ve always been the type to make things my own and unique,” he says. “I enjoy working with my hands and being creative. When I realized that I could make money doing just that with motorcycles, I dived in headfirst.”

We don’t see many electric customs, and even fewer that look as good as this Zero. So how did this build come about?

“A customer came to me with the idea for a custom electric motorcycle,” Colt reveals. “My original thought was to build a cafe racer, possibly with full fairings. But after riding the bike in its original form, I really enjoyed the stance it already had. So I decided to go for a street tracker look.”

Colt’s customer tracked down a 2013-year Zero XU at local dealership, but it spent nearly a year gathering dust in Colt’s workshop before the go button was pressed.

“My plans for it changed over time, because of the extra skills and tools I acquired over that year. At first, I planned on gutting a vintage gas tank to set over the top tube,” says Colt. “But once I had the proper shaping tools and a welder—and some instruction from friends—I decided to hand-form everything from aluminum sheet.”

The Zero is actually quite a simple design in factory form. “It comes with some really great, minimal components,” says Colt. “So all I added was a rear wheel, new LED lighting, tires, and the aluminum body work.”

Colt’s kept the original wiring harness, but did move a lot of electrical components around. “The digital gauge is under the false tank, which lifts up with the push of a button.”

With the tank lifted, a button on the tail section is revealed, which allows it to be removed completely. “The Zero has the option of a second battery pack up front,” says Colt. “Since this one didn’t come with the second battery, I used the space for two hard cases—which hold the charging cables and adapters, and extra room to empty your pockets.”

The Zero ships with a 16” rear wheel. To get the tracker stance, Colt sent the hub and a 19” rim to Buchanan’s Spoke & Rim, and they assembled a new wheel.

Hand shaping the aluminum body and TIG welding was a huge learning curve for Colt. “I had never shaped or welded before, and I decided to dive straight in with thin aluminum.”

“It was terrible at first—it took me hours of practice before I could even tack two pieces together. I’ve gotten a lot better since, but I still have so much to learn.” Thankfully Colt has good friends to advise him: Junior at Retro Moto, and Andrew at Free Ride Fab.

“I wanted to keep this bike as simple as possible,” says Colt. “Most of the Zero was already black—apart from the plastic bodywork—so I felt the brushed aluminum finish was the perfect contrast.”

If we had to pick out a signature feature, it’d be the sculptural headlight surround. “Headlight and number plate combos have been done so much over the past few years, I was hesitant to build another one. But I think it turned out to be unique.” That assembly alone took Colt almost three days to finish, and is made up of four pieces. The headlight itself is a flush-mounted truck bumper light.

The tail section, says Colt, was inspired by both superbikes and flat trackers. “It’s a combination I’ve been dreaming up for a while.”

Trackers are all about light, flickable handling, and this Zero delivers. Unlike many custom bikes, there are no dynamic compromises. “It’s as light as a scooter but handles fantastic,” says Colt. “It’s a blast to ride and is the easiest machine I’ve ever operated.”

“When I started, I wasn’t sure if the whole aluminum thing was going to work. But being able to form the lines from scratch was an awesome experience.”

So is the customer happy too? “The customer is happy, but has also made styling suggestions that I just can’t bring myself to do,” Colt admits. “Building a bike for someone is definitely a compromise—but it’s also my duty to guide my customers. I think that this bike is very well balanced visually, and has a look that will stand the test of time, even as trends come and go.”

We agree. And we’re looking forward to seeing Colt’s next build, which he’s only just started: a Harley XG500 street tracker with Buell XB wheels and suspension. “It’s actually a giveaway, so to tune into my social media pages for more details.”

Colt Wrangler Motorcycles | Facebook | Instagram

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Volvo S90 Ambience Concept: Magic Carpet Ride

“In England and Europe, we have this huge music called ambient – ambient techno, ambient house, ambient hip-hop, ambient this, ambient that,” said Brian Eno, who knows more than a thing or two about ambience. And now, it would seem, we have ambient cars, or at least it will be that way if Volvo has any say about it.

The car in question would be the Volvo S90 Ambience Concept. It is, literally, an industry-first sensory experience that synchronizes visuals, sound and – I’m not making this up – scent to “redefine in­-car luxury.”

Okay, that sounds fine, in a way. Not sure what that could offer me as a driver personally, since my preferred automotive ambience is blurring scenery, red-lining engines, and the fine bouquet of unburned fuel and tire smoke.

Aladdin’s Lamp

Volvo’s S90 Ambience Concept made its public debut at the 2018 Beijing Auto Show (ah-ha!, I sense a trend). The S90 Ambience Concept is based on Volvo’s top­-of­-the-­line S90 Excellence, which is a kinda-odd, three-seater executive sedan thing that focuses on the chauffeured passengers in the rear seat. Which, given the ambience deal, makes much more sense. The Gothenburg Guys tell us passengers can personalize the atmosphere by using a smartphone app to choose one of seven visual themes that synchronize with audio and scent. I know some guys that were trying to work on that same sort of system in their VW Bus that was equipped with a Radio Shack color organ, a Steppenwolf 8-track, and a hookah. Anyway . . .

Photo: Volvo Car Group.

Mind Trip

The visual part of the Volvo S90 Ambience Concept happens on the headliner, where the car’s ceiling is transformed to the selected theme: Northern Lights, Scandinavian Forest (of course), Swan Lake, Archipelago, and Rain. There is also a Nocturnal theme for chilling and the Freedom theme aims to give you a boost of fresh and uplifting energy. Synchronized audio plays through a Bowers and Wilkins sound system that includes small tweeters in the headrest for an immersive experience.

And to top it all off, each theme is complemented with one of four bespoke scents, created by Byredo (I don’t know either), which deploys simultaneously from a portal in the center console.

Photo: Volvo Car Group.

Continued Growth & Expansion

Volvo says the S90 Ambience is launching as a concept but are considering making it available in S90 Excellence production cars in China. And indeed, China is the whole point here. In 2017 alone, Volvo sold more than 100,000 cars in China. That’s the company’s fourth consecutive year of record sales and growth in The Forbidden Kingdom. China is Volvo Cars’ single largest market and the company’s biggest for the S90 sedan.

“The Ambience Concept was created primarily for the China market and provides a contrast to China’s sometimes hectic city environments,” said Martin Andersson, Senior Commercial Product Manager at Volvo Cars’ Special Vehicles Department. “The S90 Ambience Concept will reinforce our premium brand values in this important region.”

Or, to quote Per Olaf Gunderssen, Volvo Senior V.P. of Ambience and Good Vibes, “I like to dream, yes, yes. Right between the sound machine. On a cloud of sound I drift in the night. Any place it goes is right. Goes far, flies near. To the stars away from here.” Then he broke into a 4:39 drum solo. Okay, I made that up.

But what is true is that Volvo is Paying Attention to the Chinese market in a big way and seem to have no problem specializing their output to meet that market’s needs.

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. His forthcoming new book The Future In Front of Me, The Past Behind Me will be available soon. Follow his work on Twitter: @TonyBorroz. 

Volvo S90 Ambience Concept Gallery

Photos & Source: Volvo Car Group.

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Custom Bikes Of The Week: 29 April, 2018

A two-wheel drive KTM, a super-caffeinated Harley Sportster, a Radical Ducati tribute from Taiwan, and an African dirtbike with an incredible 250 kilo payload capacity.

Harley-Davidson Sportster by Mainhatten Choppers If someone told you they built a cafe racer out of a Harley Sportster, would you picture this? Frankfurt-based Mainhatten Choppers were obviously looking to buck a trend when they tapped their mate Ian Alderton to help sketch out the beginnings of ‘Bar!sta’ here. The futuristic vibe of this twin hits like a quad-shot of espresso and, frankly, we’d like to order another.

The good news is that we can. Bar!sta was developed to be a limited edition kit bike, with parts fabricated so other H-D owners can make a statement. Working from collaborative sketches, three years of clay modeling, prototyping and refinements took place to nail down the swooping lines.

My favorite touch is by far the work around the headlight; Almost an anti-fairing, the way those strakes wrap around the cockpit and join the scalloped tank is a damned fresh approach.

The tail is equally impressive and combined with the routing of the custom exhaust, the six o’clock view is perfectly angry. Thanks to all of the development work that went into Bar!sta, prospective buyers will have some options when it comes to overall aesthetics—bars, exhaust, wheels and so on—but this one here gets my vote. [More]

2WD KTM 990 Adventure A couple of years back, I had the chance to feast eyes upon the two-wheel-drive KTM built for REV’IT! by Gregor Halenda, with the help of a Christini sourced front-drive mechanism. Needless to say, Gregor’s bike left me and my V-Strom in the Oregon dust with every twist of the throttle. But as radical as that bike was, this fresh take on an AWD KTM from mechanical engineer Guido Koch is next level crazy.

Starting with a highly capable KTM 990 Adventure, Guido took ten years to develop a home built kit that he calls the DT-A. My guess is DT-A stands for “Down To Adventure” since everything about the donor bike has been tweaked for optimal off-road prowess.

The frame is entirely bespoke, as is the front end—which now relies upon a hub-centered steering device and a one-off swingarm to allow maneuverability without derailing the front drive mechanism. There are three fuel tanks capable of holding 27 liters, and Guido even developed his own CV joints. Automotive units would be too heavy and clunky.

With over 11 inches of ground clearance and an all-wheel-drive system that begins power transfer after a mere 5% rear slippage, there is little that would stop this impressive beast. Oh, and it only weighs 375 pounds (170 kg). They often say there’s no need to reinvent the wheel, but when its reinvention is this cool, we say: have at it! [More]

Ducati MH900E by Igor Ou Pepo Rosell’s work in his previous life at Radical Ducati was nothing short of jaw-dropping. Not that what he’s doing now isn’t remarkable, but those early days cemented his following. So much so that Taiwanese builder Igor Ou decided to create this Ducati MH900E in tribute to Radical Ducati.

The build began life as a pleasant but pedestrian Ducati SS900ie, but it has received a bundle of upgrades in both the show and go categories. Since Igor is the manager at EU Racing Taiwan, a distributor of go-fast bits, sourcing parts wasn’t exactly an issue.

In fact, the ingredients list reads like a how-to in high-end modification: Marchesini forged wheels keep unsprung weight to a minimum, the IMS triple clamp looks both pretty and strong, the Daytona gauges provide some classic retro pop to the dash, and the fully-adjustable Öhlins suspension is, well, just proper.

Of course, having the best ingredients doesn’t mean you’ll bake a tasty cake. But we’d say Igor bolted up one delectable Ducati. The shaping of the carbon fiber bodywork delivers just enough Hailwood with a heavy sprinkling of modern, more radical Ducati. I’m sure even Pepo would blush at this one. [More]

Yamaha XS850 by Brick House Builds Just over a year ago, a Honda ATC250R-inspired CX500 headlined this very column. It was all kinds of playful, retro and radical. This time, builder BJ English of Brick House Builds has taken a more traditional route—but his Yamaha XS850 based cafe racer is no less impressive.

For ‘Triple Trouble,’ BJ was aiming for a textbook cafe silhouette, clean and understated. That mission was accomplished by taking the stock frame and treating it to a complete de-tabbing routine. The subframe was also binned, in favor of the new hoop that tapers neatly at the tank and curls slightly at the end to match the new seat. The front end from a FZR was fitted into the stock XS stem and with some help from the CNC machine, the hubs from that same FZR were mated to the XS’ original wheels.

On the performance end of the spectrum, the Yami triple is good for 80hp, so there wasn’t much need for further coaxing. Regardless, BJ still went to the trouble of creating a one-off set of headers that meet on the right hand side before exiting through a Cone Engineering muffler. With four builds on the go at any one time, it’s worth mentioning that Brick House Builds is a one-man show. And the shop is literally a brick house—BJ’s own. [More]

Kibo K150 dual sport On these pixelated pages, we typically celebrate the motorcycle for what it can become: how skilled hands can coax beauty and brawn out of steel and sweat. But every now and then a factory creation comes along that reminds us why bikes tugged our attentions in the first place: for what they can do.

The Kibo K150 is a purpose built dual-sport that was created to quite literally move Africa. Developed in Holland and assembled in Nairobi, the Kibo was designed to conquer Kenya’s harshest terrains while delivering an incredible payload of 250 kg (550 pounds)—to get crucial supplies where they’re needed, in the quickest overland manner possible.

The air-cooled 150cc SOHC thumper was chosen for its simplicity and reliability. It’s also been tuned to deliver most of its torque in the low end, to help crawl through all types of conditions. The front wheel is a 21-inch unit and there are almost eight inches of ground clearance, so obstacles shouldn’t pose much of a problem. And the tank holds 6.8 liters (1.8 gallons) of fuel.

The seat height is a relatively low 31 inches to accommodate all sizes of people, and Kibo is even offering rider training with purchase to help get riders going. [More]

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Automoblog Book Garage: The John Deere Century

Growing up in rural Iowa I was subjected to many a debates over Ford, Chevy, and Dodge trucks. There were guys in my high school who fondly preferred one over the other and would adamantly defend their position during our lunch time discussions. While the jury remained inconclusive on trucks, there was a general consensus that John Deere made the best tractor.

It wasn’t even a debate. In fact, you didn’t go there.

Mean Green

So prominent were those green machines that to suggest red, or yellow, or blue (especially not blue) would be outright madness. Even the “town kids” wore John Deere shirts. Patrons at the local barbershop, upon leaving the chair and paying, would often proceed over to the coat rack to grab their John Deere hat. Tossing on a hat following a haircut is a contradictory concept in most parts of the world, but in my rural Iowa home it was just another day.

Our Book Garage series is (normally) filled with muscle and sports cars and other classic performance vehicles, but this time around, we are featuring something a little different. And The John Deere Century by Randy Leffingwell qualifies. The cars we normally feature should be green with envy by now (see what I did there).

The 1929 Model C appears on page 40. At the time, farmers pulled implements behind them similar to how horses would have. Photo: Deere & Company Archives.

Nothing Runs Like . . .

The John Deere Century opens with the famous manufacturer struggling to grain traction as agriculture was becoming more modernized at the turn of the 20th century. John Deere branch managers were petitioning the company’s board for an offering that could stand up to the growing “power farming” movement. Indeed the board responded, but the first efforts were not well received.

Leffingwell walks us through this and other John Deere hallmarks, from the Model D in 1926 with its innovative flywheel, to the 530 and 630 in the late 1950s now regarded as styling wonders. Later on we learn about the extensive technology in today’s tractors and John Deere’s expansion across the globe. Leffingwell even draws the conclusion that John Deere accomplished what former General Motors Chairman Alfred P. Sloan wanted: that is to create something for every purse and purpose.

The John Deere Century is unlike any book out there on the topic. It’s easily one of the most unique in our Book Garage series and definitely a favorite.

Author

Leffingwell wrote his first book, American Muscle, in 1989 while still on staff at the Los Angeles Times. Since then, he has authored another 47 titles for Motorbooks and is one of the top Porsche historians today. Leffingwell’s book Porsche 70 Years: There Is No Substitute was featured in this series last year.

The John Deere Century is available through Motorbooks and Amazon.

The John Deere Century Gallery

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