Articles

  • Project Bike SOTU 2017: Honda CL125S

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    IT LIVES! Having just come back from a cruise through my neighborhood, I can report with some excitement that my ’74 Honda CL125S is officially back on the road. Regular readers will recall from past Project Car SOTU articles that I bought this bike in April of 2014 in an attempt to recapture the sensations…

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  • Project Bike SOTU: Bultakenstein

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    “Bultakenstein”, for the uninitiated, is my ongoing attempt to learn all the skills required to build a custom motorcycle by actually doing all the steps myself, from scratch. And I do mean from scratch. When I started, I had a frame, wheels, a swingarm and a fuel tank, all salvage parts not just from different…

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  • Two-Wheel Tuesday – 19,000 RPM: All Day, Every Day

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    Thanks to their tiny pistons and rods, production 250cc four-cylinder street bikes could safely access engine speeds that would turn larger engines into jackhammers—and before too long, molten metal. At one time, all the Big Four Japanese motorcycle manufacturers built 250cc fours. But the cost of a high performance four doesn’t change too much based…

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  • I Finally Drove A Porsche

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    Have you ever seen a movie that your friends had over-hyped to such degree that there was no way it could possibly match your expectations? Well, that’s a bit how I feel. At 54 years old, I finally got to drive a Porsche for the first time* last night. The car in question was a…

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  • Race, Daily, Restore: 4-Door Rotaries

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    When we think of Wankel rotary engines, usually what comes to mind are sporty coupes, compact econoboxes, (or perhaps mini-pickups, if you’re particular twisted). But there was a time that the Torqueless Wonder was considered a viable means of propelling a crew of four or more, with vier Türen or shi doa. Today, your trilemma…

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  • Found on Ebay: Fiat 131 – A pretty little liar?

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    Fiats are known for breaking, rusting, and generally not being very durable. So this very nicely preserved 1978 model is a remarkable find for someone who likes Italian tin. I personally have a thing for ’70s Fiats thanks to my 8th grade math teacher, who drove a dark red (rust red?) 128 four-door. But this…

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  • False Neutral #55: Gettin' Horizontal

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    Garrett’s still AWOL this week, so Eric and Pete keep this episode a bit briefer than usual. Our topic is a bit obscure: horizontal-cylinder engines. We start with Guzzi’s Falcone and Nuovo Falcone. Then, we fawn all over the Ducati Supermono, explain how reciprocating counterweights work, and school Ducati on what the Scrambler Sixty2 should have…

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  • Race, Daily, Restore: I Say Aluminum, You Say Aluminium

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    The aluminum 215 c.i. V8 that GM developed in the late ’50’s debuted to much fanfare for the 1961 model year, but the design and tooling was solely owned by Rover in the U.K. by early 1965. Rover, which had lobbied hard to purchase the lightweight wonder, undoubtedly ended up getting the better end of…

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  • Race, Daily, Restore: 4-Door Pillarless Hardtops

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    Rollover safety requirements, CAFE standards, and the quest for quieter cabins have killed the pillarless hardtop, especially the four-door variety. But having been allowed to drive my family’s 1973 Pontiac Bonneville 4-door hardtop throughout my teen years, I can assure you that the automotive world is the worse for it. There is a uniquely blissful…

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  • False Neutral #50: Police Bikes & Taxi Bikes

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    This week Garrett gives us a ride report on the Aprilia Tuono V4 and Pete describes the EF1 tornado that skirted his yard this past week. After that, we discuss deals Eric found on Craigslist, including a BMW cop bike with 74,000 miles on it. We wrap up discussing a few bits from the motorcycling…

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