Photo: JvB-moto
Face swaps, engine swaps, interior swaps… These are things we’re used to seeing in the world of custom cars, where shops are competing for the attention of the world with incredibly insane and – at times – outrageous projects. The custom motorcycle scene, on the other hand, is much more straightforward.
Tell that to JvB-moto, a company set up in Germany, back in 2001, with the goal of bringing new ideas to the world of custom rides. Unlike other crews out there, these guys have not flooded the roads with machines assembled rapidly for the sake of making money, but only made about 16 bikes since.
This rather limited family (it translates into one bike made every year or so) was born back in 2001 with something called the Single Hot Rod, a rather bizarre choice of name for a motorcycle. But once you learn what the thing is all about, the name kind of starts making sense.
The Single Hot Rod is not a bike, but a combination between two of them. More to the point, the frame belongs to a 1988 Kawasaki GPX 600, while the 650cc engine was donated by a Suzuki XF 650.
Then the other bits and pieces were slapped on: the custom fuel tank, the wheels, headlight, exhaust, and everything else that makes a motorcycle capable of functioning properly.
When all was said and done, the ride ended up tipping the scale at just 150 kg (331 pounds), while at the same time cranking out 50 horsepower. It is, in the words of its maker, “a light and quick street single with low riding position, full TÜV and some Rock’n’Roll bike appeal.”
At the time when it made the Single Hot Rod, JvB-moto did not say how much it cost to put it together. We do not know that to this day, either, nor do we have any idea of what happened to it in the 20 years that have passed since it was made.
It does remain though a solid proof that with enough talent, patience and ideas, one could make pretty much everything fit together.
This rather limited family (it translates into one bike made every year or so) was born back in 2001 with something called the Single Hot Rod, a rather bizarre choice of name for a motorcycle. But once you learn what the thing is all about, the name kind of starts making sense.
The Single Hot Rod is not a bike, but a combination between two of them. More to the point, the frame belongs to a 1988 Kawasaki GPX 600, while the 650cc engine was donated by a Suzuki XF 650.
Then the other bits and pieces were slapped on: the custom fuel tank, the wheels, headlight, exhaust, and everything else that makes a motorcycle capable of functioning properly.
When all was said and done, the ride ended up tipping the scale at just 150 kg (331 pounds), while at the same time cranking out 50 horsepower. It is, in the words of its maker, “a light and quick street single with low riding position, full TÜV and some Rock’n’Roll bike appeal.”
At the time when it made the Single Hot Rod, JvB-moto did not say how much it cost to put it together. We do not know that to this day, either, nor do we have any idea of what happened to it in the 20 years that have passed since it was made.
It does remain though a solid proof that with enough talent, patience and ideas, one could make pretty much everything fit together.
Google News