Tag Archives: motorcycle

This barebones motorcycle is a crazy mashup of bicycle, sprint racer and dirt bike

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Most concept bikes are picture-perfect, streamlined and flawless but then there are exceptions. You’ll either love this concept mashup bike or absolutely hate it for the confused interpretation.

The design is inspired by vintage board racing and drag racing aesthetics, fused with the passionate idea of motor racing in the good old days. This is the brain-child of a Milan-based motorbike photographer and director who doesn’t have any expertise in mechanics or aerodynamics, just a deep-rooted love for watching vintage motorbike racing from the early 1900s.

Designer: Valen Zhou

The form of this bike dubbed “Sprinter” is purely based on Valen’s imagination who wanted to create a board racer crossed with a drag bike. Things look raw upfront with the handcrafted steel frame, bicycle saddle and custom dropped bars confirming the raw character. At the heart, Sprinter is powered by a Kawasaki KZ250 engine (generating just 20 Nm of torque) and those crazy-looking suspensions are purely sketched by imagination, not necessarily backed by engineering feasibility. The petite seat too seems very uncomfortable, virtually curling up the rider in a fetal position.

Valen feeds the engine off a swappable 17 oz aluminum bottle mounted at the bottom to propel the Sprinter forward. Frame of the bike is encapsulated in exhaust pipe tape, and connected to a custom suspension setup on the front and the aft. On closer inspection, the bike handlebars have custom-built throttle mounted with gears and a reverse clutch level. Of course, braking is important, so the hardcore bike gets a single brake disc salvaged from a motocross bike. This all suggests, the serendipity track racer is made for lopping dirt tracks where braking is not that important. The Sprinter has a hub-steering set up to keep the raw racing element alive.

Ultimately the idea is to keep total weight to the bare minimum and not sacrifice agility as far as possible. Would I want to take this dirt racer for a spin on tracks? I’d be reluctant to do that since Valen himself is not sure if this one will adapt to the roads as intended.

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This custom Street Bob crafted from forged carbon fiber rolled straight out of a Metaverse world

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Cooler Master is better known for its jaw-dropping PC cases and peripherals but a motorbike link seemed unlikely until now.

A customized Street Bob from the Harley Davidson camp comes as no surprise, but one that’s modernized for a sci-fi look is rare. Fusing the cool lighting of a Cooler Master case and the freedom of a 2020 Harley-Davidson Street Bob getting dapper customization is the highlight of this edgy cruiser bike.

Designer: Rough Crafts

Taiwan-based Rough Crafts is the team behind this build specially crafted to celebrate Cooler Master’s 30th anniversary. The red cherry on the top is a matching computer case. To mark the occasion, the custom shop chose forged carbon fiber for the meticulous texture of the bike. The aluminum fins on the fuel tank and the rear section add contrast to the hyper-realistic creation. According to Winston Yeh of Rough Crafts, the idea was “to combine the signature elements of both worlds.”

Attention to detail is undeniable as Winston leveraged 3D printing to digitally design the fairing tank and tail from a high-end polymer material. Wrapping the carbon fiber parts with eye-popping marble texture on the bike parts is something to behold here. Rough Crafts leveraged the expertise of his trusted collaborators like MS Pro and CT-Garage to handle the fabrication and final assembly respectively.

Meaning, the Cooler Master’s identifiable purple lighting setup (nod to the PC heat sink) and the sharp looks of their geeky computer cases, fused with the fin details of the custom shop’s builds and use of lots of forged carbon fiber. The LED projector headlights, taillights, and turn signal lights all come courtesy Koso.

Chassis upgrades include the Öhlins forks connected to the custom yokes and Öhlins shock mated to The Speed Merchant swingarm. The in-house handlebars and finned air filter along with the switches from Rebuffini directly integrate with the Street Bob’s CAN bus system for plug-and-play functionality. To put it precisely, a balanced mix of cool and cliched aesthetics with riding superiority to boast.

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Ultra-futuristic hydrogen fuel motorcycle concept with a holographic display lets you see around corners

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If you thought e-bikes were the future, the XCELL should really make you feel like a bunch of dinosaurs! An advanced concept right out of Shanghai-based X-idea Industrial Design Co., Ltd., the XCELL presents a few radically new ideas that hope to redefine how technology and transportation can change in the future. Originally unveiled at the 19th China International Motorcycle Exhibition in Chongqing last year, the XCELL pioneers hydrogen fuel-cell technology, relying on four cylindrical cells that sit in the front of the motorbike’s fairing. Except for the fact that it has two wheels, a seat, and is controlled by a user who operates it using handlebars, the XCELL is quite unlike any other two-wheeler before it. It features an adjustable design that allows the handlebars to pivot forward or backward, laser headlights that work remarkably well in the dark, and a drone that automatically lifts off the motorcycle to help evaluate the condition of the roads ahead, presenting holographic obstacles for the rider to clearly see as they drive down roads.

Designer: Shanghai X-idea Industrial Design Co., Ltd.

A winner of the Red Dot Design Concept award this year, the XCELL enhances the riding experience in ways never done before. For starters, it runs on hydrogen fuel cells, burning clean energy to provide zero carbon emissions “with a top speed more than 200km/h and a range of 200km”.

Another large component of the XCELL is driver safety and comfort. The motorbike’s unique design seats one and comes with an adjustable riding triangle (seat, bar, footpeg). The handlebars move forward and backward, allowing you to change your riding stance, opting for either a traditional stance or leaning forward for a more racing-like aerodynamic seating position.

Which brings us to driver safety, an area where the XCELL has some undoubtedly bold ideas. “XCELL is equipped with an intelligent active safety system that provides riders with timely obstacle feedback based on road conditions, allowing blind bend prediction for cars, people and obstacles”, say the makers. The motorcycle comes with its own drone that sits right above the taillight (shown below), which takes off and flies ahead of the rider, capturing the road ahead as well as obstacles around corners. This data is fed to the XCELL’s holographic display that allows the rider to make informed decisions by knowing what they otherwise wouldn’t know. Pair this with powerful laser headlights and night vision assistance and you’ve got yourself a motorcycle that makes riding dramatically safer by providing crucial information to help riders make more informed decisions while on the road.

The XCELL is a winner of the Red Dot Design Concept for the year 2022.

A close-up look at the hydrogen fuel cells on the XCELL motorcycle.

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SOLID CRS-01 is a brutalist alternative to the future of motorcycles

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It’s only natural for humans to dream of a better and brighter future, no matter what current realities would seem to imply. That’s why concept designs naturally portray ideal scenarios in design languages that appeal to current design trends, as if those would remain the same in the future. For future vehicles, that often translates to designs with smooth and pleasing curves, clean and clear surfaces, and often light or bright hues. Design trends and styles come and go, of course, and what may be en vogue today might not be fashionable in a decade or so. Clean, minimalist vehicles might not be the future we’ll be facing, and this limited edition motorcycle offers an alternative version, one that may seem rough and perhaps a little bit dystopian.

Designer: Voyager

While vehicles are logically designed with movement in mind, but there are also other factors that need to be taken into account for a machine that can be used by humans. Safety is at the very top of that list, of course, but a vehicle must also be comfortable. The design of today’s cars and motorbikes has undergone decades of refinement and improvement exactly for those reasons, but this commissioned SOLID EV motorcycle seems to throw comfort out the window, at least visually speaking.

The SOLID CRS-01 looks rough, sharp, and almost menacing, properties that are often attributed to the brutalist design style. It’s almost as if sheets of metal were simply folded at sharp angles and assembled together with wheels, engines, and other parts that make a motorcycle move. And, in a way, that’s exactly how this motorcycle was designed. It was conceptualized with a modular approach using cost-effective materials, and the fairing is exactly made from sheet metal.

This gives the motorbike a distinct look where it seems like the world had run out of materials to use or factories to cast metal into a more pleasing shape. Not that the CRS-01 is unattractive, but it does have a more dominating presence compared to motorcycles, both present and future. It definitely doesn’t look comfortable to ride on since its body doesn’t seem designed to take into account the softer and curvier form of the human body. It certainly has character, one that makes it clear it means serious business.

At the same time, it doesn’t look like it will easily come apart or get dinged at the slightest accident, like what some futuristic concept designs portray. It seems more like it was designed for rough terrains and environments, which some would automatically associate with dystopian settings or even the cyberpunk genre. Who knows? That might be what’s waiting for us, though we’d hopefully wise up before that bleak future becomes our present.

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This eye candy superbike has a café racer persona fused with moto GP character

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Striking the right balance of design awesomeness and functional practicality is hard for most automotive concept designs. Either they weigh in heavily for next-gen looks or inculcate features that can very remotely justify the design. Both ways, it’s not a win-win situation for readers seeking out future automobiles that’ll make the cut in real-life scenarios.

Fortunately, this concept bike design by JiaYan Li ignites my vision of a future two-wheeler that the world could see for real on the freeways. A ride with the right mix of looks, an eco-conscious electric drivetrain, and presumably enough power under the hood for that adrenaline rush down the freeway.

Designer: JiaYan Li

The iNSTINCT electric motorcycle has an elongated wheelbase for a semblance of café racer aesthetics but only to a degree wherein, it doesn’t lose its sports bike appeal. At first glance, the superbike’s front seems like the rear section, it is so far ahead of the headlights – something akin to the modded cruise bikes versions. The color combination here is also determinant in bringing out that X-factor to appeal to a broader set of audience. Gen-Z riders who don’t mind the flamboyance in things they own.

This concept motorcycle draws me with its magnetic charm that grows, the more I stare at it. That inclusion of cool orange with white matched perfectly with the dark grey metal and silver finish. The wishbone suspension supports the whole rear and front frame which has an asymmetrical geometric shape. Those headlights have a very Cyberpunk vibe, and it follows down to the swingarm cover. Overall the iNSTINCT electric bike is a winning blueprint that could make it into the real world someday.

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This boxy café racer bike would make a perfect fit in the upcoming John Wick: Chapter 4

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Boxy café racer concepts have always intrigued me for their larger-than-life charm while still maintaining a practically feasible aesthetic. Likewise, John Wick could very well do with a boxy motorbike rather than hopping on that Yamaha MT-09 featured in Chapter 3, don’t you think? Now that Chapter 4 has been confirmed for March 2023 release, and Chapter 5 is confirmed for some years later, we are eyeing director Chad Stahelski’s attention for an upbeat café racer to be a part of the sequel.

Yes, picture Keanu out for revenge on this cool machine, dodging the ruthless hitmen after his blood. Slouchy comfort is by no stretch of the imagination going to be a problem for him. So, the flat saddle of this café racer will feel home for the – down but not out – compassionate hero.

Designer: Ravichandra Madhavarapu

The Indian-origin designer has imagined this motorbike concept dubbed Hermes-X30 for the handsome Canadian actor, and it bears the same badass attitude as Keanu we’ve seen in the Cyberpunk 2077 video game. Although the actor admits he’s never played the game himself, so I weighed in towards the John Wick link more than the virtual world association. Also, this makes logical sense too as Cyberpunk 2077 didn’t turn out to be the same cake it was mustered up to be.

This rimless bike goes perfectly with the actor’s persona and has a kind of front-dominated body presence. The geometrically shaped bike has a square gas tank that makes up for the headlight section as well. The beamers have a subdued filter on them to portray that grim look, and I don’t mind that at all. The rear is more trimmed down but still geometric nonetheless. Visually the bike seems glued to the tarmac and exudes a jacked-up look. Other than that, this ride has that typical grunge factor that’ll make it perfect for a John Wick Chapter 4 appearance.

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This performance-centric electric motorbike is a café racer, cruiser bike and dragster all-in-one

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We’ve seen a number of concept bikes featuring outlandish designs – some are genuinely cool while others are penned just for the sake of it. The WAYRA EV-03 electric cruiser motorcycle is a 100 percent no gimmick concept that’ll please every kind of rider – be it a cruiser enthusiast, performance lover or off-roading fanatic.

Keeping in mind the transition towards a cleaner future for vehicles, the rugged yet elegant-looking motorcycle is inspired by the perfect blend of nostalgic memories, definitive styles and the cult favorite tendencies ignited by great brands. Things like the overall frame construction, shape of the powerful engines or the length of the exhaust pipe.

Designer: Pablo Baranoff Dorn

WAYRA EV-03 is a bike high on personality, created keeping in mind the heritage of fat-bikes and cruiser-length bikes, while also having those minimal eye-catchy modern touches to create visual appeal. The presence of café racer aesthetics can also not be denied owing to the low-slung rider positioning. The element of drag racing is evident courtesy of the stretched rear, but the high ride height gives off that dirt bike racer vibe too. The designer drapes the ride in red and silver over the black matte, with an intent to avoid decals for gimmicky looks. The curved body embraces the tank, and the lines that follow the shape are colored – thereby everything centers on the logo and what lays below the tank.

Keeping in with the fusion of retro and modern, the bike gets an onboard display that has a retro digital typeface and interactive screen with the GPS map. The app on your phone mirrors onto the bike display so that everything stays in sync when you have a busy lifestyle. Since we are talking of a cleaner future, the cocktail bike has an optimized battery pack that keeps all your gadgets charged without compromising the bike’s performance or economy.

The fog lights are placed low and get a ring of LEDs with a diffuse area so as to prevent blindness for oncoming drivers. The focused light from the headlights is dispersed so that oncoming traffic sees it as a bigger lit shape coming towards you rather than an irksome light source.

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This electric mountain patrol bike makes a ranger’s task easier in tough terrain

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Patrol motorcycles like BMW R 1200 RT-P, Yamaha FJR1300, or the Harley Davidson Street 750 are readily used by law enforcement agencies around the world. All of these machines are the first choice for keeping the bad guys in check, thanks to their power-to-weight ratio, agile handling, and storage space to keep all the tools handy.

Rethinking how a mountain patrol motorbike ought to be, the EQUULEUS electric mountain patrol bike beckons to the future of crime-fighting. This two-wheeler concept is built keeping in mind the riding safety and ample space to keep all the essential tools and equipment. In turn, the forest rangers can patrol inhospitable regions with utmost confidence and freedom to take all the essentials along. Even better, the storage modules loaded in the different sections of the bike are completely detachable, so, the rider can tag along tools in the most organized manner possible.

Designer: Ethan Hsu

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In total there are five waterproof storage modules – two embedded on each of the sidepods and one on the rear. Three have 30 liters capacity while the other are 40 liters each. That’s plenty of space to store all the needed stuff without inducing imbalance. The contoured dashboard displays vital telemetry including the battery charge levels, navigation maps, altitude, compass and pre-designated waypoints.

A normal day in the life of a mountain patrol ranger gets much easier with the QEUULEUS electric bike. Load the needed tools in the respective toolboxes, set the destination on the GPS, and once the destination is reached – take out the toolbox to finish the required tasks. The robust electric bike keeps the center of gravity right where the rider leans the weight, therefore, making it ultra-stable on any kind of treacherous trail. Apart from all this, I can go on talking endlessly about the sharp looks and the intimidating front stance. However, I’ll let the design renders and scaled model do all the talking!

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A beefy low-slung motorbike crafted for purists craving ‘Need for Speed’

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James Qiu surprised us and the gearheads across the globe with his Akira Bike Concept, and yet another of his concept creations is all set to send the ripples to a great distance. Meet the R9T UE5 concept deserving of a real-life avatar, a chunk of screen time in a sci-fi movie, or a cameo in a gripping action series.

This beefy motorbike is an amalgam of a Cyberpunk world’s shining café racer, thumping cruiser, circuit racing beast and a mean machine destined to overshadow all that’s bad on the planet. A ride that’ll be the right kind of adversary to the god-level laurels of a crime-fighting protagonist. Those big fat wheels complementing the all-metal body of the bike – isn’t that totally badass?

Designer: James Qiu

Still, it is nimble enough to make sharp turns or accelerate at hair-raising speeds when being chased by a rampant gang of baddies. The low-slung wheelbase gives the bike a clawing dominating grip on the asphalt for supreme traction and peak acceleration from a standing position. The riding position is going to be more leaned forward courtesy of its racing characteristics, and for once a concept bike has a super comfortable saddle seat.

There’s an equally beefy engine protruding from the sides which is a clear indicator of its gasoline fuel-powered origins. The hydraulic forks connected to the humungous front wheel rim are something you’ll keep staring at without ever getting enough of it. Equally impressive and robust are the rear swingarm and the meticulously crafted exhausts. Headlights and the taillights have an ultra-boxy look which adds to the defiant persona of the concept bike.

Overall, the stellar build quality, balanced proportions, and the skin on the bike combine to make it a winning design that could one day make it to reality. I’m sure automotive designers and big brand will lay their eyes on the R9T UE5 and be impressed.

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This futuristic electric bike generates sounds courtesy of resonating tubes on one side

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An electric motorcycle with the visual appeal of a powerful fuel-powered bike, capable of producing an equally intimidating sound pattern to add unique USP to the otherwise quiet electric motor.

The thud and deep sound of the motorcycle engine are like music to the ears of purists. That deep resonating sound when you cruise on a long stretch of the road, and as you push the accelerator the sound becomes more low-pitched. With the gradual shift to electric motorcycles, the definitive sound of the motorcycle engines has been lost since the electric motors produce very little or no perceivable sound at all. This can be a major put-off for motorheads who are fueled by the sweet sound of fuel-powered engines. Automotive designer Lin Yu Cheng however wants to fix this with this jaw-dropping electric motorcycle design.

Designer: LYC Design

He took inspiration from the Singing Ringing Tree sculpture in Burnley, England which is made out of layers of steel tubes with holes cut in them – something similar to a flute. As the wind blows, melodic sound is produced, and that’s what motivated him to design a bike with a resonating structure on one side. Looking more like the humongous exhausts of a hyperbike, these metal tubes add a handsome character to the ride. According to Lin, the sculpture-inspired design lends the electric motorbike a soulful resonance to the otherwise emotionless motor.

Here the speed can be converted into a low-frequency resonant sound that binds the emotions and elicits a fresher man-machine relationship. On the Euterpe 9 resonant metal tubes of varying lengths are installed on one side of the machine, so as to create different frequencies of harmonic resonance with the speed of the bike. These metal installations are integrated into the body of the bike in a way that they flow with the inherent shape of the two-wheeler. The side wind blows at an almost vertical angle across the metal tube opening, and sound frequency increases or decreases with speed. Another variation is added when the biker leans around the bend, thereby producing a slightly different sound.

In this concept design, the visual extension and linearity have eliminated space above the battery, thereby permitting for a curved fold above the body giving the EV a lightweight and futuristic feel. At low speeds below 80 kmph the high-pitched waves are produced since the valve is closed. Riding at speeds above 80 kmph will open up the valves of resonance tubes turning the tube into an Opened-pipe Standing Waves tube.

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