The custom scene in Brazil doesn’t get much recognition on a global scale, which is surprising. Last year, a whopping 900,000 bikes were sold in South America’s largest country, mostly by Honda—which has over 75% of the market.
So when this Monster S4RS popped up we thought, ‘Finalmente!’ It comes from a Ducati specialist called SR Corse, based in Vila Madalena—the arts center of São Paulo. And it looks like one helluva ride.
“Since 2016 we’ve been building custom bikes, mostly Ducati,” says SR’s Rafael Pacheco. “We enjoy building vintage or ‘minimalist’ looking motorcycles that are also fun to ride.”
The ‘SR’ in the company name comes from supermoto racer (and accomplished race mechanic) Sebastian Rochon. The expat Uruguayan started SR Corse 12 years ago, and the business is now a leading independent Ducati specialist.
The Monster commission came from a client called Cayto, a long-time customer who got to know SR from their involvement in racing. “Cayto is not racing any more, but he keeps an interest in riding fast machines,” says Rafael.
And the S4RS is indeed fast: the 998cc ‘Testastretta’ L-twin pumps out a stonking 130 hp, and dry weight is just 177 kilos (390 lbs).
About two years ago, Cayto asked SR to build him a cafe racer. He had in mind a classic-looking cafe based on a Ducati Monster—capable of going fast, like a racer.
SR picked out a 2007 Monster S4RS for the project. “In our opinion, it’s one of the coolest Monsters ever made,” says Rafael. “There’s the trellis frame, superbike engine, Öhlins suspension, Marchesini wheels, and so on … a perfect fit for Cayto.”
SR’s goal was to build a good-looking bike with vintage lines, but modern features and paint. The biggest visual change is the custom bodywork, with in-house fabricator and painter Milton Moretão helping Sebastian and Rafael get the right effect.
The fiberglass tank is based on the SportClassic design, but the tail unit is beaten out of aluminum. It sits on a custom subframe that hides the new lithium battery, and is topped off with a seat upholstered in leather and Alcantara.
The S4RS had some of the best Öhlins kit offered on a production motorcycle, so SR Corse have left the suspension alone and just added a custom machined aluminum upper clamp, a Hyperpro steering damper and clip-ons. The starter button is now in the steering head nut.
They’ve paid attention to the engine though, giving it a full rebuild, and upgraded the drivetrain with a race-spec flywheel and a slipper clutch.
There’s a full custom 2-into-1 exhaust system too, terminated with a stainless steel megaphone muffler from Spark, which weighs just one kilo. Fueling is now optimized by a MicroTech ECU for an added power boost.
The kill switch has been repositioned to underneath the tank, on a 3D-printed mount, and wired into a brand new electrical loom. This sends power to a new dash, switchgear and mo.unit control box from Motogadget.
After installing new LED lighting, and swapping out as many plastic parts as possible for aluminum, SR Corse painted up the new bodywork in a cool metallic grey. It’s a subdued color that allows the trellis frame to steal the limelight—now refinished in a lustrous Candy Red.
Despite being a very 21st century build, this S4RS stays close to the original ethos of the café racer. We bet it’s as invigorating as an ice-cold caipirinha to ride.
SR Corse | Facebook | Instagram | Images by André Santos Fotografia Automotiva
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