The custom motorcycle world is packed full of modified BMW airheads, but many of these end up following the same trends. You’ll find no shortage of scramblers and cafe racers based on Motorrad’s R-series, some of which are, in all fairness, undeniably cool. What we don’t see that often is a street tracker project, though, so the one shown below would have no problem standing out in a sea of custom boxers.
It is the work of Ziga Petek, the man behind Gas&Retro (G&R) over in Slovenia. Soon to turn 33, he’d only been building such machines professionally since 2018, which may surprise you given how well they’re all put together. The bike he refers to as Different is no exception, and its nickname should immediately suggest that it’s far from your run-of-the-mill custom airhead.
Ziga wanted to build something along the lines of a BMW tracker right from the get-go, so he pitched the idea to a friend in the hopes of captivating his imagination. Sure enough, his friend Ales Peljhan was stoked by the proposal, which kicked off the search for a suitable donor. It had to be a classic boxer, and the perfect candidate showed up in the form of an R 80 RT from the model-year 1989.
With the old-school Bavarian tourer on his workbench, the project’s author stripped it down and had a large chunk of its OEM equipment deleted altogether. This included the R 80 RT’s subframe and all its factory bodywork, as well as the front and rear suspension hardware. He then sourced a fuel tank replacement to suit his vision, transplanting it from a Honda FT500 Ascot and tweaking it to fit on the RT.
Many builders would have chosen to retain the Beemer’s original gas tank, yet G&R made sure that Different lives up to its name. Behind the repurposed FT500 tank lies a bespoke subframe, which supports an all-new tail unit manufactured in-house. Its design was inspired by that of Husqvarna’s Vitpilen and Svartpilen, incorporating a pair of angular side covers to finish off the rear-end silhouette.
Photo: Rok Plesnar
The Husky cosmetic influence is evident here, and Ziga built everything around the LED taillight of a Vitpilen 401. He outsourced the saddle upholstery to a regular collaborator named Mitja Bizjak, subsequently turning his attention to the bike’s running gear. In the suspension sector, all the stock components were ditched to make room for Ohlins replacements.
Originating from two distinct Ducati models, the parts include a Multistrada’s piggyback shock absorber and the inverted forks of a 900SS. The said SuperSport was kind enough to donate its front Brembo brakes, as well, and there are tailor-made triple clamps holding the forks in place. Sir Petek kept the factory wheels, but he cloaked them in dual-purpose Pirelli rubber at both ends.
To round out the motorcycle’s attire, the Slovene craftsman had its front end 3D-scanned with the help of a friend. Then, he handed the digital rendering over to Blaz Sustarsic at ER Motorcycles, who was tasked with creating a precise CAD model of a nose fairing. The final part was ultimately 3D-printed, and it features a quartet of stylish aero wings for visual effect.
Photo: Rok Plesnar
You’ll spot integrated Kellermann turn signals recessed into the lower winglets, while a state-of-the-art LED headlight from Koso takes pride of place center-stage. Up in the cockpit area, Gas&Retro installed a TRW handlebar complete with Brembo control levers, Motogadget switches, and a Domino throttle. Motogadget also supplied a digital Motoscope Mini speedometer, along with their tried-and-true mo.unit control module.
A fresh wiring harness links the electronics to the new controller, and the battery is now stored inside a handmade box behind the transmission. We notice Tarozzi foot pegs attached nearby, but there’s also a swingarm-mounted license plate holder a bit further back. Ziga fitted a custom luggage rack atop the tail section, so as to add a bit of practicality to the whole equation. In addition, he installed two pairs of LED blinkers at the rear.
One is placed down low on the license plate bracket and the other flanks the Vitpilen taillight higher up. For the R 80 RT’s boxer-twin powerhouse, G&R fashioned a two-into-one exhaust system from scratch using stainless-steel tubing. The pipework terminates in a Spark muffler on the left-hand side of the rear wheel, and it’s appropriately complemented by aftermarket upgrades at the air intake. These consist of DNA pod filters that replace the standard airbox.
An invigorating refurbishment was performed on the engine and carbs, so Ales won’t have to worry about this aspect for a long time to come. Finally, there’s the simple, yet striking paintwork worn by Different – a black-and-white affair on the bodywork, joined by contrasting pinstripes done in BMW’s unmistakable M colors. On the other hand, the engine, frame, and wheels were all painted black.
A bit of an artist himself, Silvian sees two- and four-wheeled machines as a form of art, especially restomods and custom rides. Oh, and if you come across a cafe racer article on our website, it’s most likely his doing. Full profile
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