evil. exquisite. exclusive. ECOSSE.

evil. exquisite. exclusive. Those are the first words that will greet you when you when you visit the ECOSSE official website. And if you happen to visit their factory showroom, you will see the signboard of ECOSSE MOTO WORKS with an evil tattoo like logo. So what are you expecting?

"The ECOSSE factory is not open to the public; however, the company does schedule personal appointments for customer viewings, color/option consultations and fittings. Please book your appointments with at least two week’s notice of your desired arrival date."

This is a quote from the website 'Contact' link. And now, whats your impression?

Scared! Intimidated! Apprehension! .... I mean if this is how they greet people, how will their products be? Actually, it prepares you! Because what you are about to see will definitely intimidate you.

Denver, Colarado is the house of ECOSSE. ECOSSE Moto Works, Inc. is the premier luxury marque of distinctive, limited-production motorcycles established in 2001.The HERETIC X3 is their flagship model which will cost you close to $80,000. Its varities also come in Titanium named HERETIC X3 Ti, a close to 2000 cc, Kevlar and carbon-fiber exotic roadster. The style is no doubt avant-garde.

Basically what is their theme? Imagine the pleasure of a Cruiser with the performance of a Supersports! Mr. Alan Cathart puts it in a simple way. It is for bike enthusiasts who want a R1 crackler with the stability of a Yamaha Warrior, that is best of both the worlds, the best performance motorcycle meets one of the best V-Twin cruisers. Its a strret racer with the typical American Big V-Twins hooliganism.

ECOSSE intends to build several different models with the same underlying theme: "a synergistic combination of innovation, craftsmanship and technology with a nod to the company’s racing influence." ... in their words.

All the models share the same chassis styling and materials, but at the same time is different. All models are ofcourse handcrafted according to the wishes of the owner.
Mr. Donald Atchison, a former racer himself on a Bimota DB4, started building his dream in 2001 where his idea was to get inspired by his icons (Nortons, Velocettes) and fuse them to a prototype which will be equivalent to an Aston Martin.
“I call the HERETIC the anti-chopper,” he says. and continues “the heart of a hot rod in a Grand Prix-level chassis with the style of a ’60s Italian muscle car.”

After 4 years and 3 prototypes (from X1 to X3), the HERETIC was finally built in 2005.
Mr Atchison is helped by his partners, Patrick Racing and Engenuity, from whom he sourced the powerplants, while Baker helped him with the proprietary designed 6-speed transmission. The handbuilt, 1753cc, 45-degree twin was blueprinted by engine icon Nigel Patrick exclusively for Ecosse Moto Works, the plant is machined from solid billet aluminum. The 107 cubic inches churn out 120 horsepower and 125 ft lbs of torque.

Its worthwhile to mention Öhlins contribution, the suspension masters, who developed fully adjustable front forks with Ecosse-specific internals and the rear shock with a unique triple-adjustable setting as per a cruiser, sportbike and dragster ranging from 27.5 inches to 30.5 inches. Mr. Acke Rising, President and founder of ISR, personally crafted the six-piston radial caliper braking system.

Other embellishments which are unique include a spiral machined into the ignition cover, the etched turn signal indicators, the carbon fiber woven leather gel seat and the bezel-like notches in the headlamp frame.
An analog tachometer/LCD speedometer combination has an internal stopwatch. Answer Pro Taper aluminum handlebars are standard, and the bike comes with two sets of grips: a gel pair with a choice of leather and a pair of carbon fiber Momo grips.

For more information and lots of photos, visit their website by clicking on the logo
For test ride reviews, you can visit the below pages.
Motorcycling Mag (Article 1) (Article 2) / Motorcycle USA
Specifications -
ENGINE - 1330 - 1966 cc, air-cooled 42 - 45 degree V-twin, Ecosse billet aluminium, polished finish, 45mm Mikuni carburetor
DRIVE SYSTEM - 6 speed transmission Regina chain final drive
MAX POWER / TORQUE - 120 - 135 bhp / 14.2 - 26.2 kgm
FRONT/ REAR BRAKES - 6 piston calipers 320mm rotors / 2-piston 260mm
FRONT / REAR SUSPENSION - Öhlins; fully adjustable/ Öhlins shock for Ecosse; fully adjustable, including three different riding modes
WEIGHT (DRY) - 445 lbs (202 kg)

Undoubtedly, this bike is built to the highest standards, with performance-packed style. The attention to detail is unmatched. With a 61-inch wheelbase and weighing 200kgs only, this American hot rod is an impressive blend of carbon-fiber artistry and edgy attitude, which is very well etched as you must have gone through the intro.
To custom tailor the bike of your dreams, Ecosse Moto Works offers personalized service to guide their client through the unlimited choices of paint, finish and other options. Upgrades can include the Patrick Racing motor in either matte, machine finish or even the full-show polished version.
And Yes!, Only 100 sins will be constructed.

Honda CB 1100 - Then & Now

The Prototype CB 1100 F

Happy days for Retro Lover bikers seems to be back again with Honda also joining the Now-going-retro bandwagon. And the best part is they have focussed on the legendary CB series for this concept. Although its not the CB750, but what not better could it be when you can expect even some more 'CC's added to the legendary 750?

The Prototype CB 1100 F

Honda announced the lineup of prototype, pre release and other exhibition models scheduled for display at the 40th Tokyo Motor Show to be held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan from Saturday, October 27 to Sunday, November 11, 2007.
Though unaccompanied by technical information, the photos reveal a retro-style sportbike (CB1100F), a retro-style racer (CB1100R), an over-the-top naked bike concept (EVO6), and a maxi-scooter (Forza Z)

The Prototype CB 1100 R

The prototypes shown here are the CB1100F and CB1100R which look like they could be put into production without a whole lot of changes. Though concept bikes at shows like this are often little more than far out styling exercises, sometimes they are very close to what eventually appears and feedback from the show is taken before the final design is settled. No tech details yet. The CBs have a very nice retro standard design.
Also on display were the new versions of CB400 SuperFour HyperVtec and its bigger brother, the CB1300 SuperFour.

The CB400 SuperFour HyperVtec & the CB1300 SuperFour

The History of the CB F & R litre bikes.

In 1980, just two years after 1978, when Honda presented their flagship model CBX 1000, Honda made ita clear that the CB 1100 R is the "direct successor of the successful long-distance racing machines." And not without reason, because the CBX with her line six-cylinder was an impressive drive, but despite that the fragile suspension of the potential Sixpacks were not adequate. Moreover, the competition was not sleeping: Suzuki was roaring with the GSX-1100 while Kawasaki set ablaze with the GPZ 1100.
So Honda fused the six cylinders into four, well somewhat. The basis for the CB 1100 R is the CB 900 Bol d'Or, which also had similar suspension weaknesses. But the CB 1100 R had one basic chassis modification: The stand pipe diameter of the fork grew from 35 to 37 millimeters, frame and swingarm reinforcing measures were taken and acted in the front wheel brake system with larger discs. A sporty half-shell decorates the top model. The CB 1100 R Honda won the prestigious 'Motorcycle of The Year' twice at a row in 1980 and 1981.

80's Model of CB1000F & CB1000R

Shortly after its debut, the 1983 CB1100F earned a reputation as one of motorcycling's true superpowers — easily the most potent air-cooled inline-four Honda's ever built. This was Honda's first 1100cc superbike. Its arrival remains a benchmark for Honda in the evolution of the high-performance motorcycle. Building on lessons learned from more than two decades of racing, Honda engineers created the 108-hp heart of the CB1100F. And as good as the rest of the motorcycle was, that engine made it a masterpiece.
In Motorcyclist magazine's December 1982 road test, the 1100 turned an 11.38-second, 118.5-mph quarter mile. On the street, the magazine's testers discovered the bike's stunning low-end power. Throttle response was exemplary, thanks to the four constant-velocity carburetors equipped with an accelerator pump that kept throttle response very crisp. In the chassis department, a new box-section swingarm pivoted on needle bearings. Working in concert with the steel-tube frame and a 39mm, air-adjustable fork, it helped deliver amazing stability and cornering. Motorcyclist wrote "The CB1100F is the best superbike Motorcyclist has tested."

Getting to know Mike The Bike better...

Okay, MIKE HAILWOOD won 14 Isle of Man TT Victories, 9 World Championships, was voted as Motorcyclist of the Millenium, so, how well do you know Mike The Bike?

I recieved a mail from one, Ms. Elizabeth McCarthy with the following text -

"Dear Sir or Madam - I was fascinated by your posting about the Munch bikes. Well done ! I am attaching an article that I wrote about Mike Hailwood which was published in Top Speed magazine a few years ago. I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed your article.
All the very best,
Elizabeth McCarthy"

Elizabeth McCarthy is the author of a wonderful piece of (how do I put it? lets say) experince with the one and only Mike Haliwood, titled "My memories of Mike Hailwood" which was originally published in 2001 and again revised and added on for 8W in January 23, 2004.

The following article covered the time period starting from 1967, the time when the King was ruling (Check out his victories during that season in Mike Hailwood's Official Website ) to 1975. Although they never married, she was his love for probably the best years of his career, the days when Mike The Bike ruled the Isle of Man.

The whole article is available in the given link here
Its also featured in the official Isle of Man TT website here

Quoting from the article
"As to the predictions:
1 - It was "one of those damn lorries."

Read the article to find out what it meant, but I must tell you, the end of the article is gloomy & moving. None the less, by the ned of the article, you will know the "REAL" Mike Hailwood, legend, king and all.

Photos Courtesy 8W,
You can leave a message at diesel@aol.in

Münch Mammut 2000 - World's Most Powerful & Most Expensive Bike

How big, fast or strong does a bike have to be to have that title?

What about a Turbo charged, 2000cc, 354 kg beast churning out a mammoth 295 Nm of torque with a bone crunching 260 HP whose top speed is restricted at 250kmph to keep the driver alive?

Take a look at some of the features -
*The beast is aided by an Electronic Fuel Injected Turbo Charged DOHC 16 valve engine.
*Of course, you might miss the main stand if you are the Governator or else all you could probably do is strech the side stand and appreciate the monster's beauty etched only in Aluminium alloy (engine), Magnesium alloy (oil sump), & Carbon fibre (Fairings and Tank).
*It has a Digital Control System with adjustable Footrests & Hand lever
*All engine data can be checked and adjusted over the Internet via diagnostic plug and a special adapter
*It also features a electronic immobilizer for those who might not have enough space in the garage to park it.

Specifications
Manufacturing Year : 2001
Engine type & Displacement : Liquid Cooled, DOHC, In-line four, 4 Stroke, 1998.00 ccm
Power & Torque : 260.00 HP @ 5650 rpm / 295.00 Nm @ 3500 rpm
Bore x stroke & Compression ratio : 86.0 x 86.0 mm (3.4 x 3.4 inches) / 9,0 : 1
Fuel system & Carburation : Turbo charged with Electronic Fuel Injection
Valves per cylinder : 4 valves per cylinder
Gearbox & Transmission typefinal drive: 6-speed / Chain
Dry weight : 354.0 kg
Wheelbase : 1,540 mm (60.6 inches)
Front & Rear suspension travel : 120 mm (4.7 inches) / 65 mm (2.6 inches)
Front & Rear tyre dimensions : 120/70-ZR17 // 200/50-ZR17
Front brakes : Dual disc, 320 mm (12.6 inches) / Single disc, 280 mm (11.0 inches)
Top speed : 250.0 km/h (155.3 mph) (Electronically Controlled)
Check the official MAMMUT 2000 website

A Brief History -

The great Friedl Munch started creating the Munch Mammoth monsterbike in the late 60s with different versions ranging from a 996cc streetbike to a 104bhp, 1278cc roadster fitted with an inline four-cylinder NSU engine which would reach speeds of around 200kmph/ 125mph.

Friedl Munch passion was to build racing motorcycles which could outrun almost anything on wheels. Post WW II, Munch worked in the Horex race shop, building 250 and 350 singles and dohc GP twins. In the 1960s, Munch developed his own, supremely effective, racing drum brake, which was fitted to many top privateer bikes like the legendary Manx Norton or G80 Matchless. In 1964 Munch created his first full motorcycle - a tidy, dohc 498cc four. In 1965 he was commissioned to build a machine for record-breaker Jean Murit, one which would be bigger, faster and more powerful than any production roadster, and so the first Mammut was born. Some 500 similar Mammoths would be produced over the following 20 years, all of them hand-built.

After some hiccups, again in 1968, British-made Rickman frames were used by the new Münch-URS team, whose first race was at the (non-Championship) Austrian Grand Prix on April 1970. It was a dream debut- Munch rider Kaczor won the race and set the fastest lap, with another Munch coming second, although it must be said that the opposition was not a strong as it would have been at World Championship level. Nevertheless, Hoppe's Münch-URS managed an impressive fourth place at the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim a week later.
Sadly, after this promising start the project fell apart. Disagreement among the top brass again led to the stoppage of the family run. There were a few more outings for the Münch-URS solo, but what should have been a credible challenge to the dominance of MV remains one of Grand Prix racing's more fascinating 'neverwozzas'.

Meanwhile, Munch's monster machines had been attempting to take the world one-hour speed record from Mike Hailwood and his MV Agusta. Munch built the Daytona Bomb, a 125bhp, 1370cc beast which was capable of travelling at over 175mph. To win the record, however, it needed to maintain those speeds for 60 minutes and instead the Bomb shredded its tyres in three laps of the Speed Bowl. Like the Grand Prix racers, it was another Munch motorcycle which didn't quite hit the spot.
Even today, auction rates by Bonhams at Stafford are estimated to sell for anything from $260,000 / £130,000 and above.

Above text credited to Real Classic
You can leave a message at diesel@aol.in

The LAVERDA JOTA - 'World's First Superbike'

Roger Slater had initially built the LAVERDA Jota concieving it as a UK-only model based around the Laverda 3C. LAVERDA were known to build big and fast bikes and the Jota was considered by many to be the 'World's First Superbike'.
The Laverda Jota was, for a brief but golden spell in the late 70s, the most powerful and fastest production motorcycle that money could buy. It was rare, expensive, exotic and drop-dead gorgeous. Beside being fast, it also handled well thanks to Marzocchi suspension and Brembo brakes.

The bike had higher compression pistons, beefier cams and less restrictive (read ‘loud’) exhausts, It exceeded speed of over 140 mph.
The first motor has bore for race 75x74 milimeter and the compression ratio was 9:1, the gears were increased to straight teeth and frontal grafts 5 speed, ignition was electronic Bosch with increased pick-up. The plan of the new three cylinders met initially with some difficulty. The motor had to resume the bicylindrical one aesthetically, with the cooling fins a lot drawn near, but they gave rise of the initial problems. The positioning of the cranks with those lateral ones were pushed to 360° and that one in center to 180°. In this way the vibrations are reduced and that made the drainage of Laverda 1000 as a first exemplary with the exhausts draining of 3 in 1. But the whims of the ignition cost Laverda a series of callbacks from the initial customers.

The bike remained more or less unchanged until 1979 when, in anticipation of new European noise legislation, the factory changed both main bearing and cylinder head specifications, leading to a rash of mechanical failures which blighted the 1979 season bikes. Sorted for 1980, and gaining better electrics and a hydraulic clutch, the bike was beginning to show its age against the new generation of DOHC Japanese superbikes in both power and feel, the raw delivery of the big triple feeling rough against the smoother oriental fours. For the 1982 season Laverda redesigned the crankshaft for a 120-degree firing angle, changed from the original 180-degree set-up. The 120 Jotas were much smoother and more civilised, but many owners feel the original 180 motor with its raw, brutal power delivery was closer to the spirit of the real thing. Laverda also came out with a bigger specification later with the 1200 cc (pic below) with improved ergonomics.

Laverda Jota 1000
Year of Manufacturing - 1976
Engine - 981cc, Air cooled, four stroke, transverse three cylinder, DOHC, 2 valve per cylinder.
Capacity / Bore x Stroke - - 75 x 74 mm / 10.0:1
Induction - 3x 32mm Dell'Orto carbs
Ignition / Starting - Borsch electronic
Max Power & Torque - 97 hp (70.7 kW) @ 7800 rpm /90 Nm @ 7000 rpm
Transmission / Drive - 5 Speed / chain
Front / Rear Suspension - Coils springs /Dual shock absorbers, 5-way adjustable coil springs
Front / Rear Brakes - 2x 280mm discs 2 piston calipers / Single 280mm disc 1 piston caliper
Front / Rear Tyre - 100/90-18 / 120/90-18
Dry Weight - 238 kg
Fuel Capacity - 20. Litres
Consumption average - 38.5 mp/g (12.3 km/l)
Braking - 100 - 0 - 39.9 m
Standing ¼ Mile - 12.8 sec / 106.9 mp/h (172.0 km/h)
Top Speed - 140.4 mph (222.6 km/h)

The NORTON Cafe Customs

Although the legendary NORTON bikes are customized all over the world and almost everyone doing a wonderful job, thanks to the smashing original looks, there are some Custom houses which definitely stand out and for me, COLARODO NORTON WORKS is 'The' Custom builders for Nortons.

CNW (in short) focuses only on NORTON Commando. They completely disassemble each Commando bike and re-build it from the ground up to create a visually stunning piece of art as evidenced by the photos. They also outsource Norton spares and will rebuild your Norton to new.

In fact, such is the demand for CNW, that there is a waiting period of atleast 3 months to your Norton.

To quote Matt Rambow, the force behing CNW, "The Café started out as a thought as most customs do. The idea was to build something that would have the look of a classic Cafe' but with modern touches so the bike wouldn't feel dated. Building a custom just for the looks as so many are, is so much easier than making it work as well. # 038 (A Cafe Racer project) even though compromised a bit with regards to comfort was never intended as a show bike but rather a machine that would run, handle and stop as well as possible given the limitations of the design."

Its evident that whether its a Cafe Racer or a Road Bike, CWN wont compromise the legendary performance of the NORTON Commando.

They will give you a modern day machine with all the Classic nostalgia, for instance the front 4 leading shoe brake instead of disc brakes, and the frame geometry was left untouched and as such, the CNW NORTON handles exceptionally well. Performance modifications include works on the Head combined with an aggressive Cam and big bore Exhaust, the use of dual Keihn 'pumper' flat slide carbs with velocity stacks.

Of course, it come with a price too, but thats expected looking at the high level of finishing and detailed perfection. A complete standard custom rebuild for a CNW Commando is $21,500 at the base version which will shoot north with your specified demands. The #038 will cost you more, but for the price, look at the rebuild standard engine, what you get is...
New stock fenders as required or "Modified" CNW models get new steel front fender requiring no stays and stock rear fender

• For Roadster tank models, Corbin "Gunfighter" saddle is standard
• A new, exhaust system in the classic "pea shooter" style
• Different handle bars to choose from
• All instruments are rebuilt as standard with high quality polished instrument holders
• A CNW developed chain guard, robust, stylish and chromed
• A CNW developed oil filter adapter is installed to allow use of common brands of oil filters
• In various areas, CNW applies chrome where it needs to shine, stainless steel where it needs to live a tough life, and fresh zinc plated fasteners (grade 8) where it strength is a factor
• Every part of the engine is rebuilt and for a detailed text, click on the link given.

For info, and images , click on the logo to visit the CNW website

Links - Also visit the official NORTON website for the Stunning 'mindbogglingly' Beautiful Roadstar *NEW* NORTON COMMANDO 2007 model

To revisit the nostalgia, see how the Norton Owners feel about their prized possession in International Norton Owners Association