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BMW is a popular motorcycle brand among bike lovers who love to customize and build café racers. Most bike lovers love to customize their motorcycles’ appearance to make them look better. Some riders prefer comfortable ergonomics over top-class performance, whereas others prefer high speed and exceptional performance over decent comfort. However, no rider wants to operate a motorcycle that looks ugly.
Building café racers originated in London during the early 1960s. Café racers were built to travel at high speed for shorter trips. It is only capable of doing this if the heavy fairings and other heavy parts are removed and the handlebars and seat are modified to give the motorcycle aggressive riding ergonomics.
Today, popular motorcycle companies have been producing several café racer series. It has become a trend to customize a café racer of your own. Aftermarket parts and kits are available to help you build a cafe racer. This article discusses the top three BMW K100 Café Racer builds.
1. About the Original BMW K100
The BMW K100, or the Flying Brick, was introduced in 1983. This model is a sport-touring motorcycle that runs on a 987 cc four-cylinder engine and has a five-speed transmission with a counter-rotating clutch. The BMW K100’s engine can produce a torque of 85.8 Nm, a horsepower of 88.5 hp, and can achieve a top speed of 137 mph. The BMW K100 has a seat height of 31.5 inches and a wet weight of 243 kg.
2. BMW K100 at First Glance
Photo Credit: @wikipedia
3. Top Three BMW K100 Café Racer Builds
3.1 The BMW K100 Café Racer Build by Retrorides
The BMW K is the motorcycle often chosen as a base model by custom café racer builders. It is possible for motorcycle enthusiasts who build café racers themselves rather than purchasing a factory-made one. There are even workshops that provide a workspace and tools necessary to make custom café racers.
According to the Lourenço family of Retrorides, riders building café racers should know all the relevant information about the base motorcycle and what kind of café racer they want to build.
Retrorides was founded by the brothers, Rodrigo and Gustavo Lourenço, along with their father, José Lourenço. They are experts on various BMW K café racer builds. One of their masterpieces is the dark and stylish BMW K100 Café Racer build.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The BMW K100 Café Racer build by Retrorides was inspired by the naked 1980s BMW K models. The most prominent aspect of this café racer build is the fuel tank. Retrorides built a carbon fiber grilled frame to attach to the fuel tank to give it a unique café racer look. This café racer’s fuel tank is one of the cleanest designs out of all the BMW K100 Café Racer builds.
Photo Credit: @bikebrewers
The BMW K100 Café Racer’s round headlight is covered with an aluminum nacelle-like structure, while the tail light has a new design to complement the fuel tank’s contour.
The BMW K100 Café Racer’s wheels were replaced with 17-inch wheels and Heidenau K73 tires. These tires provide good traction and are designed for dirt bikes.
To ensure reliable braking, new rotors were installed that are compatible with CNC (computer numerical control) machines. The forks used in the BMW K100 Café Racer build are similar to those used by the Honda 599 Hornet. The front brake were fitted with four-piston calipers, the low-mounted handlebars became slightly tilted towards the rider to give the vehicle an aggressive riding position, and side mirrors were fitted on both ends of the handlebars. Most of the changes are evident in the engine and rear as a new aluminum subframe and flat leather seat were installed.
Photo Credit: @bikebrewers
The BMW K100 Café’s rear suspension is positioned horizontally. The engine did not need any major modifications. A new exhaust system was installed coupled with four velocity stacks that allowed for better air intake. The extra air intake provides more fuel for the engine to burn, which in turn ensures a higher power output.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The chassis is mostly blacked-out with a subtle grey panint job on the forks. The velocity stacks and wheels are painted bronze, giving this BMW K100 Café Racer build an antique look.
The BMW K100 Cafe Racer Build by Retrorides (Video Link)
3.2 The BMW K100 Cafe Racer Build by Jeff Veraldi
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
Jeff Veraldi is a motorcycle enthusiast who injured his backbone in an off-track race. However, building a BMW K100 Café Racer became a good form of mental and physical therapy. Veraldi took a 1984 BMW K100 RS model and built a simple yet stylish café racer. Veraldi selected the BMW K100 RS model to build a cafe racer because it had Bosch electronics, Brembo brakes, and Fichtel and Sachs forks.
The water, oil, and fuel pumps were replaced and a small exhaust cylinder was attached behind the engine. To provide smooth throttle response and efficient fuel decomposition, new four-hole type fuel injectors are installed.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The rear of the motorcycle frame is modified so that there is a place for the battery in the tail cowl. New front forks with improved springs and a new custom-made RAM coil-over in the rear suspension are also installed.
The seat height is reduced by 1.5 inches and the overall weight is reduced by 36.287 kg, ensuring great handling and reliable braking. The front fork and front suspension are kept the same, though a custom handlebar is attached to the bottom of the yoke.
The rear suspension is at a 45° angle to ensure a comfortable riding experience. The motorcycle stand is positioned more towards the right to avoid oil dripping into the cylinders.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The BMW K100 Cafe Racer Build by Jeff Veraldi (Video Link)
3.3 The BMW K100 Cafe Racer by Motocrew
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The BMW K100 Café Racer by Motocrew has a modern yet minimalist design. Typically, café racers are speedy vehicles designed for quick trips over short distances. To improve a café rider’s capabilities, you can remove parts to reduce weight and introduce aggressive riding ergonomics. The BMW K100 Café Racer built by Motocrew received almost every kind of modification to make it a good café racer build.
The Motocrew is a motorcycle shop owned by Chris Scholtka. He is a professional firefighter who has lots of experience working in the garage.
Scholtka used a 1984 BMW K100 RS model as the base motorcycle. According to Scholtka, the BMW K100 is a powerful machine, but the motorcycle’s layout could be improved. The frame was replaced with a bolt-on rear frame designed to improve this café racer’s shape.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
The fuel tank’s design is kept the same, fitted on a long frame where the seat is installed towards the back. The tail cowl is not installed on this café racer to reduce weight. Scholtka added wing-shaped plates to the fuel tank to improve its look. The front forks are replaced with Suzuki GSX-R750 forks, while the rear forks are replaced with an adjustable YSS shock.
This Motorcrew BMW K100 Café Racer is fitted with a pair of 17-inch wheels and sporty Shinko tires. The front brake is the same used for the Suzuki GSX-R750 motorcycle and fitted with larger disks.
This vehicle’s air intake was modified using a DNA filter and a new SC Project CR-T exhaust cylinder attached towards the back.
Photo Credit: @bikeexif
A small display meter is attached above the round headlamp indicating the vehicle’s speed. The clip-on handlebar is fitted with grips and switches. The turn signals and side mirrors are fitted at the ends of the handlebars. The footrests are installed near the exhaust and the side-mounted license plate bracket can be seen beside the footrests. Scholtka painted the chassis in satin and matte black while the fuel tank was painted white with a BMW logo.
4. Takeaway
Building café racers from a motorcycle base is an art. It is important that you have a garage and the necessary tools, parts, and experience to build a unique café racer. The goal of building a café racer is to improve the performance and design aspects while keeping the budget as low as possible. The café racers by Scholtka, Veraldi, and Retrorides make it into the list of the top three BMW K100 cafe racers because of their clean-looking style and high-class performance.
Café racers can be used for light-touring with the addition of different LUGGAGE options available at Viking Bags. The luggage options include SADDLEBAGS , TANK BAGS, and TAIL BAGS.
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