This week’s bikes are all about looking fast and going fast. Pier City Cycles gives the BMW R nineT Racer a massive dose of retro racing style, Tossa R upgrades the Honda CB900, and Greaser Garage turns the Kawasaki Z750 into a classic endurance racer. We bring it home with news of the sale of one of the most popular bikes ever to grace the pages of Bike EXIF—the PiperMoto J Series scooter.
BMW R nineT Racer by Pier City Cycles Recovering a stolen motorcycle isn’t always a joyous affair. Just ask the owner of this 2018 BMW R nineT Racer, Zi. When his bike was recovered after an attempted theft, he got it back in a shoddier condition than he remembered it.
Rather than just fix the R nineT Racer up, Zi figured that it was the perfect opportunity for some light custom work. So he hit up the gentlemen at England’s Pier City Cycles, who are well-versed in the art of tweaking the nineT, and who stock an impressive array of bolt-on bits for BMW’s air- and oil-cooled boxer. The idea was to amplify the R nineT Racer’s 1970s race bike style, without going overboard.
The mods are subtle but highly effective. PCC swapped the headlight out for an LED unit from Denali, and then added a headlight cover to smooth out the front fairing in the daytime. Other PCC parts include a new front fender, an airbox removal kit with K&N filters, and a new intake cover that replaces the chromed scoop that the R nineT comes with.
Next, PCC ditched the bulky catalytic convertor by installing a set of Unit Garage exhaust headers. They’re matched to an Arrow silencer and a PCC ‘Servo Buddy’; an electronic doohickey that lies to the BMW’s onboard computer and tells it that the stock exhaust is still in play.
Other accouterments include a new LED taillight, Rizoma turn signals, Motogadget bar-end mirrors, and Dunlop SportSmart Mk3 tires. And then there’s the bike’s retro-fantastic livery, courtesy of Valkyrie Paintworks. The vibrant colors and vintage yellow frame are inspired choices that ensure this café racer will turn heads. [More]
Honda CB900 by Tossa R Asen Zahariev has always been an ‘out with the old, in with the new’ kind of bike builder. While he prefers older engines, he likes to take full advantage of the last 30 years of suspension and braking technology. That philosophy is evident in the latest build to roll out of Asen’s workshop, Tossa R; this tasty Honda CB900 Bol d’Or café racer.
Starting with a bare frame and a rebuilt engine, Asen began by grafting a set of Kawasaki ZX6-R forks onto the front end. The 17” wheels came along for the ride, as did the braking setup and modern rubber. Combined with a new Brembo radial master cylinder, the front end has been transformed in both looks and performance—which is exactly what Asen wanted.
A thoroughly modern LED headlight was bolted to the forks, bringing back a hint of that old-school Honda CB vibe. Low-slung clip-on bars, Motogadget bar end turn signals, and a Koso dashboard round out the rider controls. The bright red missile switch on the top fork clamp is a nice touch.
Fans of later model Honda CB750s will notice the fuel tank is missing its characteristic droop at the back. It’s a minor detail but it completely transforms the bike’s stance and in our opinion, was well worth the time investment from Asen. It’s especially nice finished in Audi Nardo Grey with gold details.
Moving rearwards, the entire twin-shock subframe was lopped off and replaced with a custom unit. The swingarm and mono-shock are from a Honda CBR600 and the new subframe is typical of most Tossa R builds—waspish, lithe, and perfectly designed. The seat unit cantilevers over the rear wheel and was fabricated to match the tank—another stunning design element.
The rear-set footpegs and heel guards are custom and promote a much sportier riding position over the factory bike. The carbs were rebuilt with new pod filters, and the engine breathes easily through a pair of two-into-one headers, terminating in a pair of chrome reverse-cone mufflers. On song and barrelling down a byway, we bet it sounds like a bucket of barbaric bees.
The Tossa R team specializes in slick, well-proportioned, and thoroughly modernized café racers, and we think this is one of their best. [Source]
Kawasaki Z750 by Greaser Garage American Indycar racer Bobby Unser once said that success is where preparation and opportunity meet. That’s a fitting quote for this astonishing Kawasaki Z750 endurance racer from Greaser Garage, because that’s exactly how this project started.
Along with having one of the coolest names in the business, Giorgio Pellegrino, head of Genoa’s Greaser Garage, likes to keep a drawer full of motorcycle renders that he can pitch to potential clients. The stars aligned when a customer who shares Giorgio’s love for early Kawasaki Bimotas and endurance race bikes walked through his door, and commissioned this green machine.
Once the beautiful renderings [above] by Giorgio’s friend Matteo were finalized, the Greaser Garage team got to work on a 2004-model Kawasaki Z750. The overall geometry of the bike remains very similar to the stock bike, but the subframe was trimmed back and the forks were swapped out for modern units from a ZX-6RR.
This change saw the bike gain upside-down forks, radial-mounted calipers, and a pair of oversized brake discs. The front fender is factory but it was painted in a two-tone paint scheme to disguise the visual bulk.
The front fairing, tank, and tail unit were all made in-house at Greaser Garage, and the endurance racing inspiration behind the fiberglass front fairing is on full display. Complete with an offset LED headlight and race numbers, it looks so good that it’s a wonder Kawasaki didn’t make it themselves. The large screen hides a full suite of Koso instrumentation on a carbon fiber dashboard.
The tank is similarly stunning. Crafted from aluminum, it sits perfectly on the modern frame and looks great from all angles, while the tail section is made of fiberglass to match the fairing. The subtle ducktail is pure motorcycle pornography, and we can’t think of a better livery than the 90s-inspired green, white, and blue.
In the looks department, a factory Z750 doesn’t exactly get the heart racing with desire, blending into city traffic like a white Toyota Corolla. But a hefty dose of Greaser Garage’s Italian style is all it takes to send it into the stratosphere. [Source]
For sale: The entire PiperMoto J Series project To say that John Piper’s resume is impressive would be the understatement of the year. His long and illustrious engineering career includes stints at the Williams and Benetton Formula One teams, Prodrive and Jaguar.
He’s worked in all types of motor racing, including WSBK where his team designed and built the Foggy World Super Bike for Petronas. His cars have been on the podium at Le Mans and have set land speed records. And he’s responsible for blowing our servers up with one of the most popular machines we’ve ever featured.
When the PiperMoto J Series ‘super scooter’ exploded onto the scene in June of last year, it went on to top the charts in our annual Bike EXIF Top 10. Yes, you read that correctly—our most popular bike of 2023 was a scooter.
It’s not just any ol’ scoot though. The custom-framed, carbon composite-clad two-seater is powered by a four-stroke KTM 690 engine. Hosting a raft of internal, exhaust, and intake modifications, the LC4 engine propels the J Series to 60 mph in four seconds and can continue to a 120 mph top speed.
Since its debut, John has received hundreds of inquiries from all over the world—and rightly so, as the whole package is dripping in style and engineering finesse. Sadly, it’s time for John to progress to the next chapter in his PiperMoto story.
“I’m now at a crucial point in my custom build work and I want to fund my next bike build,” explains John. “Despite receiving hundreds of very flattering inquiries, I’ve not managed to take my project any further. As I do not have the resources to take it into production myself, I have decided to sell the whole project to anyone who would like to take it.”
Along with the original, running, and road-legal (in the UK) Prototype J Series, the sale will include the full rights to the design and all the design and engineering data—from the Solidworks CAD engineering files and hard copy drawing records to the detailed Bill of Materials. Along with the documentation, John will also include the prototype frame jig and the original prototype bodywork molds. What that means, is that whoever purchases the J Series will have the building blocks to do what John’s always wanted to do; put the J-Series into production.
It’s a shame to see John let go of such a unique piece of his motorcycle-building history, but we’re sure that whoever takes up the J Series mantle will continue his impressive work. If you’re interested, reach out to John directly. [PiperMoto]
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