With so much going on at
EICMA 2012 and with major manufacturers hogging most of the headlines, some really cool machines often get overlooked in the shuffle. So we dug back through the EICMA archives and dug up a few we thought worthy of mention, from a supermoto scooter to an Italian flat tracker. Here’s four offerings that might not have made headlines but are offbeat and unique nonetheless.
Yamaha TMax Hypermodified by Roland Sands
Now this is a scooter I wouldn’t be ashamed to be seen on. Everything
Roland Sands touches magically transforms into something you want to take straight to the nearest dirt track or drag strip. Now he’s worked his magic on a Yamaha
Roland Sands Design put their spin on this TMax for Yamaha, the supermoto scooter a hit with the 2012 EICMA crowd.
TMax, giving it the RSD Hypermodified treatment.
The trick TMax is the result of a Yamaha project whereby the company challenges three resourceful custom builders to see what they can do within a certain platform. The three builders whose talents Yamaha has tapped into are Sands, Ludovic Lazareth and Marcus Walz. Last year the trio had a friendly competition to see who could build the baddest VMax. This year Yamaha proposed a completely different challenge, to see what the trio could do with their TMax sport scooter.
French custom builder Lazareth supercharged one, Walz concentrated on trimming weight and beefing up performance while Sands made this wild supermoto scooter. Impressed by the basic mechanical structure of its frame, he stripped it down to the aluminum frame and worked on changing the flow of the bike. He stretched out the back with an extended swingarm, equipped it with mid controls, and left the front of the bike open except for the primary components. We dig how he left the internals of the primary exposed then concealed the electrical and battery behind grills. RSD also fobbed up a new tank in the small tail section and gave it a set of gnarly-sounding pipes (just listen to them in the video below!). In his blog, he said they contemplated leaving the TMax project in a raw metal finish until he saw the seat by Bitchin Rich which made him decide to ship it off to Olympic Powdercoating.
“There was nothing easy about this project. No guidelines, no magazines, nor pages of internet content to help guide crucial design decisions. There was no one to call on the I phone or be inspired by. There really was nothing but our own thoughts and inspirations. From Surf scooter to boy racer and back again the pendulum swung. In the end the racer fought its way to the front of our consciousness to overcome the awkward and strange flow of the naked machine. The finished product appeals to the rider in us,” wrote Sands on the RSD blog.
Who knew you could be the envy of your friends riding a scooter? On Rolands Sands Yamaha TMax Hypermodified, you would be.
Zaeta DT 530
Another cool offering from EICMA 2012 that almost fell through the cracks is this flyweight Italian flat tracker, the Zaeta DT 530. Like Roland Sands scooter, this little ripper has been stripped down to essentials, tipping the scales at a
The Zaeta DT 530 is a lightweight Italian dirt tracker that is now street legal.
claimed curb weight of 115 kg (254 lbs). Its aluminum frame, swingarm and triple clamps have been machined by hand from billet. A 530cc DOHC TM Single with a claimed 50 hp will get the rear wheel spooling up quickly. The rest of the package includes a Showa fork, Ohlins shock, and galfer wave brakes with Brembo calipers. The guys at Zaeta are stoked this year because the DT 530 is now street legal and meets Euro 3 homologation.
The Zaeta was born after a trip by Paolo Chiaia to Daytona back in 2007 where he took in the short track races. He “fell in love with the discipline and aesthetics of those bikes, basic, small, with nothing to them.” The idea to build his own dirt tracker was further fueled by a meeting in December 2008 with Graziano Rossi, father of Valentino Rossi. The two discussed a lightweight bike that could be used to train MotoGP riders, the discussions expanding into a dirt track-style motorcycle that could be ridden on the street and dirt. Once flat track champ Marco Belli entered into the equation, Zaeta’s direction was solidified and the DT 530 was born.
Brutus by OVER
Look, it’s the rebirth of the moto-tractor. OK, maybe it’s not a Rokon, but its brawny design and beefy wheels could be mistaken for its American-made counterpart at a glance.
What happens when you cross a quad with a motorcycle? You get the Brutus!
The Brutus, on the other hand, has been designed by Alessandro Tartarini, son of Italjet founder Leopold. Though you’d think this was a prototype, it’s actually said to be heading into production under the brand name OVER. Called a cross between “a quad and a motorcycle,” the Brutus was displayed at the Pelpi International booth during the 2012 EICMA show.
Monster Maxxis Bighorn tires are the tread of choice on this hybrid design whose wheels are its main attraction. Their size is deliberate, aimed to give the machine the capacity to be ridden in almost all conditions, from sand to snow to the street. It has a 750cc engine with electronic fuel injection mated to a two-speed CVT gearbox. Oversized tubing for the backbone, a muffler that looks more sport than ATV, chain final drive, a skid plate, Tartarini has done his best to ensure that Brutus defies categorization. Seeing as how it’s intended to be a production model, a line of accessories are ready or in the works, including a kit for snow consisting of skis and steering, sidecar, tow bar, winch kit, generator and more. Monster trucks meets motorcycles. Gravedigger vs Brutus. Who’s got some cars to smash?
Onyx Supertrike
Another alternative to the norm was offered up by Peugot, the Onyx Supertrike a three-wheeled, tilting scooter designed with the same two front/one rear tire configuration as Piaggio’s MP3. The design concept is claimed to be a 2-in-1 supertrike, offering two different riding positions, a hunched over the front sportbike-style position or a more relaxed,
The Onyx Supertrike is a design concept by Peugot with tilting wheels and a hybrid engine that combines electric and combustion engine power.
upright, traditional step-thru scooter position. This is achieved by removing what appears to be a tank but is instead a faux tank panel.
Even more interesting than its dual riding positions is its hybrid engine, a combination of a standard gas-burning 400cc engine and a 45 kW electric motor. It will have a regenerative braking system which charges up the lithium-ion battery upon deceleration. Top speed is listed at 150 km/h (93 mph) with torque numbers a claimed 42.8 lb-ft. They say the Onyx Supertrike has a range of 30 -50 km going fully electric and combined has a range of 500 km (310 miles).
Shrouded in sporty body work, the Onyx Supertrike is claimed to borrow styling cues from Peugot’s automotive offerings. It’s very front end-biased due to its double front wheel arrangement, but the rear does feature a stout swingarm supporting an extra-wide 200/50 R17 rear tire. The prototype Peugot three-wheeler looks sharp in its matte black and copper color combo. Whether it does indeed make it into production is uncertain but we anticipate we’ll be seeing more of the hybrid engine in the future.
