The iconic Kenny Roberts speed block livery gets a new twist this week, in the form of a Yamaha XJR1300 street tracker from France. Further afield, Thailand’s K-Speed revisits one of their most popular Honda Grom designs, while an extremely rare 1980s Ducati goes up for sale in the US. We conclude this week’s offering with a handful of factory-built custom Buell Super Cruisers.
Yamaha XJR1300 by Tumulte The burly Yamaha XJR1300 has long been a favorite of custom builders. The air-cooled 1,251cc inline-four pumps out a healthy 106 hp and is contained in a steel frame that is easy to maintain and modify—as long as you’re handy with a spanner.
Fred Lagarde of Tumulte in France is one such guy. This Kenny Roberts flat track-inspired XJR1300 is his work, and it’s a showstopper.
The bike’s new upside-down front end comes from a KTM Super Duke—so the forks are WP units and the brakes are from Brembo. The fork covers were 3D-printed and the headlight was adapted from a Husqvarna 701 Supermoto.
The headlight nacelle and striking front fender were made by hand from aluminum, while a Motogadget speedo sits in front of the wide handlebars. The bar-end indicators are also from Motogadget, while the levers are from Magura.
Fred poured 60 hours of labor into the aluminum seat unit and leather saddle alone—time well spent, given how incredible they look. They transform the bike into something sporty, while Fred’s other inspiration, the 2016 Honda CB1100TR concept, is evident in the new bodywork.
Key details include a Honda taillight, Öhlins rear shocks, and a pair of Leo Vince mufflers. A laser-cut oil cooler guard cleverly bears the Tumult logo.
Drawing on his inspiration from the 1970s Yamaha, the bike was painted yellow, white, and black. Fred didn’t just use the traditional Yamaha speed block design though—instead, he gave the XJR his own ‘cartoon’ version that looks fast standing still. King Kenny’s number one, placed above the headlight and on the side covers, adds a final detail. [Source | Via]
Honda Grom by K-Speed When the new Honda Grom was introduced eleven years ago, Honda Thailand approached the enigmatic Mr. Eak, head honcho at K-Speed, to customize it. Dubbed ‘Mod Racer,’ that build spawned several follow-ups and countless bolt-on parts.
Some twelve years later, Mr. Eak decided to breathe new life into the Mod Racer design. The bike you see here is the ‘Mod Racer 2.0,’ again based on a stock Honda Grom.
The factory cast wheels were swapped out for a set of custom 14” spoked wheels. The front wheel fit the forks easily, but the rear wheel necessitated a completely new swingarm design. So the K-Speed team built one from scratch.
The striking front cowl and fork shrouds are the same as those from the first Mod Racer, but the lighting setup has been simplified to just a single LED projector and a pair of tiny LED turn signals, mounted to the sides of the tank.
The frontal bodywork hides clip-on bars and a slimmed-down cockpit area. The tank cover is easily recognized as a K-Speed custom part, completely changing the entire look of the bike. The subframe and large belly pan are custom, while the seat comes from K-Speed’s catalog of Grom-specific parts.
The remote-reservoir rear shock is from Öhlins and the brake components are from Brembo. Rear-set footpegs give a sporty ride, as do the engine mods. A custom intake system is matched to an open clutch and a twin shotgun exhaust.
The first Mod Racer was painted matte silver, so the team opted for a beautiful matte green for version 2.0. Mod Racer 2.0 looks ready for another decade of service—but will Mr. Eak change the design in another twelve years? Only time will tell. [Source]
For sale: 1988 Ducati Paso Limited Ah, the Ducati Paso. Five years ago, we would’ve glanced at the plastic encapsulation, grimaced, and gone on with our day. But the styling has grown on us like a fungus.
Have we been beguiled through witchcraft? Possibly. But it’s more likely that Massimo Tamburini knew what he was doing.
Named in honor of Italian motorcycle racer Renzo Pasolini, the Ducati Paso was first released in 1986. Ducati wasn’t exactly in the best financial shape and needed revenue—so a deal was struck with the Castiglioni family, who tucked Ducati under the wing of their company, Cagiva.
With the Cagiva elephant (one of the cutest mascots in all of motorcycling) stamped onto the Ducati parts, they set Tamburini loose to take on the sporting Japanese motorcycles of the day. They used the new Fabio Taglioni-designed, 748 cc belt-drive L-twin engine from the Pantah and slapped it into a modified trellis frame.
Not that you can tell any of this from the outside, as the whole motorcycle is covered in fairings. This was the era of the Suzuki GSX-R, Honda VFR, and Kawasaki GPZ—the age of the fully-faired sport bike was upon us, and Ducati had to follow suit to stay afloat. Unfortunately, the Paso didn’t exactly pull Ducati out of the mud, but you could say that it started paving the way toward financial freedom.
In red, the Paso is a bit much. It looks fantastic in black, but it looks even better in pearl white—just like this 1988 Ducati Paso Limited that’s being offered for sale by Iconic Motorbikes.
Some sources say that just 50 Paso Limiteds were built, making this an extremely rare bike. Besides the pearl white paint, red Oscam wheels, and gorgeous red vinyl seat, the Paso Limited may have also received a few mechanical upgrades. It’s rumored that it had larger valves, revised header pipes, and ported cylinder heads, but this would need to be verified against a standard Paso 750.
Regardless, a pearl white Ducati Paso Limited would make a cracking addition to any motorcycle collection, wouldn’t you say? [Source]
Buell Super Cruiser Buell is rocking up to the 2025 Daytona Bike Week with a trailer full of exciting news. They’re unveiling the final prototype of the new Buell Super Cruiser [above]—their take on the classic American V-Twin.
Buell has been hard at work finalizing details and setting up supply chains for the new Super Cruiser and has most recently partnered with Fox. Joining the likes of EBC and Brembo, Fox will be developing the forks and shock absorbers for the new bikes, adding yet another top-shelf name to the company’s list of suppliers.
To keep things spicy, Buell has also built four Super Cruiser-based customs to highlight the versatility of the platform. They’re not admitting that they’re going to expand the Super Cruiser lineup (yet). Instead, they just want to show how easily the Super Cruiser can be customized by potential owners.
First up is a pair of Super Cruiser baggers [above]. American V-Twins and touring go hand-in-hand, so it makes complete sense to dress the Super Cruiser up in bagger guise. The Advanblack fairing and hard Viking Bags panniers make the stripped-down Super Cruiser look like a production-ready model.
Next is the ‘Drifter Cross Stunt Super Cruiser’ [above right]. A Road Warrior front fairing is matched to a Dean Adams exhaust and a chopped rear fender. The bright red front brake caliper is just one detail that gives away the bike’s hooligan nature.
Then there’s the ‘Hillclimb Super Cruiser’ [below]. Inspired by Logan Cipala’s success on the Buell 1190 hill climb racer, the dirt bike suspension and extended swingarm are just bonkers.
The flat track-style Super Cruiser [below] is the most heavily modified of the lot. A pair of 19” wheels with Dunlop flat track tires set the tone, with the radiator relocated to the right-hand side of the bike to protect it. The tracker seat looks great behind the Super Cruiser tank (even if it does seem to be missing some padding), and the Vance & Hines exhaust must sound the business.
With the recent (and rudely quiet) demise of the Indian FTR, there’s a gap in the market for an American-made flat track street bike. Granted, the FTR was dropped due to low sales numbers—but just imagine if Buell could step in and take up the mantle. [Buell]
