One year after Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Confederate Motorcycle Company, Confederate has re-emerged with a new website to display their newly reborn company and their lineup of unique machines, the Hellcat F131, the Wraith B120 and the brand new Renovatio Project.
If there was any doubt Confederate was alive and moving forward with innovative design, the Renovatio should put those doubts to rest. Based around a 90 degree 101 cubic inch water cooled V-Twin, either 150hp normally aspirated or 190hp with optional supercharger, the Renovatio Project is constructed of carbon fiber and aluminum and points the way to a future design as striking as the Wraith was just a few short years ago.
My personal favorite, the Hellcat, though still in production will not remain so indefinitely, in fact, only 48 more will be produced for sale before the run ends forever in October 2007, after which Confederate will be fully transitioned to their new platforms. But the Wraith, too, will not be produced forever, Confederate is not a mass maker of motorcycles but a company producing machines of the highest quality and innovative engineering. Beautiful bikes, V-Twin power, welcome back!
deacon says
…holy cow, batman!…
Duke says
That does not look like J.T. Nesbitt.
Tom says
I’m afraid they’re losing me. I LOVED the Hellcat, but the Wraith left me thinking WTF, and now this continues the trend. I guess as long as they’re still building the Hellcat, that’s good, but I’d like to see them develop that theme and stay off the drugs.
Tom says
OOOps! Just read the article closer and saw the Hellcat’s being discontinued. Damn!
TriumphGuy says
101 CI 90 deg V-Twin, 150bhp, and an appearance which defies the cookie cutter-air-cooled-pushrod-machines of the last century. Outstanding, but they do need to do something about the whole Erector-set appearance.
Doug says
This quote is from their website, “At its heart beats 90 degree water cooler GM based engine architecture.”
As in, a 1/4th of the ‘Vette or Northstar engine?
Ricky says
now THAT’s American, screw that other korean-engine company.
aaron says
supervee engine anyone?
looks like a vtr engine to me….and why would the headlights be mounted as unsprung weight? the saddle makes it look like you’re sitting on a mutant’s face, and I’m with triumphguy on the erectorset look. no one making a performance twin mounts it like that because the weight sits too far back and the wheelbase must be stretched due to the front cylinder interfering with the suspension travel. and if you want a wide angle engine with american roots, buy up the feuling design and make me a w3!
they’ve lost me on this one, good thing the wraith is so sweet.
C. J. Luke, III says
where are the front brakes???
The site doesn’t mention anything about breaks.
I am all for “new” design and would love to see one or more U.S.A. manufacturers get into the fray with a sport bike (tripple or twin), but I don’t think this one has much prospect.
Gordy says
It’s just a concept.
It’s different.
It’s (generally) feasible.
But they need a staple model, and the Hellcat is just that. So why kill it?
Also: have you read their words at http://www.confederate.com/company.php ?
What a load of bollox !
coho says
Oh, no! It’s different from my expectations and preconceptions about what a motorcycle looks like…
I must meet it with fear, anger, confusion and denial!
Get over it.
hoyt says
Aaron, I agree with your comments about the 90 degree v mounted this way to some ‘degree’.
An excellent & clever example already in production:
Moto Morini’s 1200 Corsaro has a 87 degree engine – It is the Ducati Monster killer. Amazing bike.
with the girder front-end, the engine might be able to sit closer without fouling the front wheel.
It’s cool to see John Britten concepts making it to the street (engine as essentially the frame and girder front-end)
Josh says
Hello, after reading this article I’d like to extend Mr. Nesbitt a business offer, does anyone know where I might contact him? my personal email adress is dierwolf2000 (a) hotmail dot com
Thank you.
Tom says
Coho, I’m not afraid, I’m not angry, I’m not confused and I’m not in denial.
I also wasn’t afraid of the Pontiac Aztek, but I’m probably less likely to buy one of these than an Aztek.
Case says
Thank you all for your possitive support.
The Britten front end is a derivative of the Hossack suspension done 20 years ago, and a beautiful feat of engineering at that. BMW has finally given Hossack credit for that. The Wraith girder is simply a derivative of…girder front ends, not Hossack. There’s nothing really complex about a girder.
The Wraith girder is an evolution of the early girders, though, in that it provides near linear wheel trajectory through its travel thus giving the rider a familiar feel. The geometry was calculated using kinematics CAD animations.
We feel the end result is simple, minimal, and completely engages the rider in the movements of the machine beneath him.
Info about our engine partner, Katech, Inc., will be up on the site in a few days. Katech is responsible for the Cadillac Sixteen and American Lemans-winning Corvette 7.0L motors. They are a Tier-One supplier to GM.
The heart and soul of the Renovatio will indeed be a chip off the ol’ American Small-Block, and I’m sure will stir up a few colorful opinions.
Thank you all for your positive support!
Sid says
Case –
will the transmission be unit construction with the engine?
The exhausts will be tricky, eh?
guitargeek says
I really loved the Hellcat and Wraith, but this…
So Confederate Motors minus JT Nesbitt equals… this thing?
I can’t wait to see what JT will come up with next.
Case says
The new motor has horizontal split crank case and unit transmission. Engineering on the new motor began earlier this summer, however, the rest of the Renovatio bike is purely conceptual at this stage.
aaron says
Case – what part does the supervee engine play in this? inspiration? benchmark? are confederate hiring an engineer from that project as a consultant? the history of gm based v-twins looks a little grim, best of luck in changing it.
I must admit, my problems with the bike lie in the far reaches of the performance realm. in hindsight, as the bike will not be raced (or likely even brought to many trackdays) the engine layout and resulting wheelbase stretch will not phase many riders in the market for a bike like this. the saddle type seat is a design signature for the confederate brand, so I suppose I’m not too suprised to see it again. (but is it a good idea to combine this seat with a gap to the very pointy fuel tank? after a few hard stops owners may refer to this bike as “the crippler”!)
Case says
While I am more involved with the Wraith project at the moment, more detailed info regarding the Renovatio concept will be on our site in due time. But I can tell you, that the motor is a 90deg water-cooled push-rod V-Twin, 2 valves/cyl, dry sump. I can’t see any relation to the supervee(air-cooled) or VTR configuration.
Also, LED headlights do not add much to unsprung weight, which is why we put them in the girder blades. We have prototypes, and they are badass. That’s about all I’ll say on that.
Gladys says
yeah, the text on their website is a bit much, but clearly this is a concept model.
Have all of these critics never seen a concept model before?
C. J. Luke, III says
Well…I thought the whole idea behind releasing a ‘vision’/’design info’ on a concept bike was to get ‘feedback’ 🙂
Both good and bad.
Gordy says
1.
” Have all of these critics never seen a concept model before? ”
Yes thanks. Even contributed to several automotive concepts.
2.
To Case… Surely lighting on a moveable structure runs contrary to homologation requirements? It’s also extremely bad design practice.
3.
(Subjectively of course…) I find the concept aesthetically appealing.
4.
If they want to be taken seriously then they really need to change that text!
Gladys says
CJ,
you are correct…all feedback, but some comments above seem to be criticizing the model as though it was a prototype about to go to production.
coho says
Tom,
The Pontiac Aztek scares the crap out of me, too. And, for the record, I wasn’t directing my comment at you (or any specific poster, though JoeKing is unlikely to weigh in favorably on this machine).
I like this machine, and I hope to see a prototype that’s as radical a departure from the norm as the concept.
Maybe a sport tourer? (Case, put in a word for me?)
Sid says
A radical sport tourer? Now ‘that’ is a fresh concept.
Gaijin Biker says
Damn… I always thought I’d have time to buy a Hellcat, “someday”. Looks like when that day comes, I’ll have to buy one at auction for ten times the price.
I agree the new model shown on this post lacks the charm of the Hellcat or Wraith. It’s too cold-looking and angular, like a robot.
Chacoura says
Well, it is one picture, but one who looks a lot more like my nephew’s toy from hell than a bike worth a couple of ten of thousand of dollars. But it’s just me. Too bad, the Hellcat is so perfect, and the Wraith so wicked.
tnutt says
I personally think the new look for Confederate is great. It’s different, innovative, and is still too far from an actual motorcycle to make rash judgements. For all those content on bashing this design, I’d like to see you design something better… I personally think it could be improved apon, but I’m excitied about American motorcycles that are mosre than just Harley trash rip offs.
James Ramone says
Ok, this bike blew me away when I saw the latest published article this month. I’m off the buzz now and there are a few issues I am wondering about.
Headlight beams that jump with suspension travel? The lawyers are going to have a field day with that idea. (Not really a worry for Confederate as it has run in the red since day one, no assets to lose!)
Extra long wheelbase, poor overall weight placement, so you can say it’s a take off of a big block Chevy 90 degree engine? I know AutoZone might have replacement engine parts, but hell how about tightening up the angles and making something that vibrates a little more and handles instead?
Don’t know about you but my ass slides off my seat when I grab a hand full of throttle. The tractor seat is good for plowing fields but is a poor choice for rider confort and safety.
But the most troubling of all problems this company has faced is it’s name! Confederate. Sure it has that good ol’ boy feel to it, but there are plenty of buyers out there who don’t like the historical southern attitude it represents. How about a Japanese company producing their Pearl Harbor line…A German company with their Stormtrooper series…all with the goal to sell product? Come on, get a clue! Until it wakes up, Confederate will just be putting off oblivion and will end up like the Confederacy did 140 years ago. Losers.
Jack says
What is also odd about the name (regardless if it “embodies some sort of rebellious attitude towards ‘conventional’ 2 wheeled design”) is that it clashes awkwardly with the psuedo intellectual descriptions on the website.
Exhausts through the swingarm? And the flexible piece to make it possible? They are talking about the structural piece that keeps the real wheel planted, (with gobs of torque and hp) right? No thank you. Plus, they are not the first to run exhaust through the swingarm. I believe there’s an old bike in the “Art of the Motorcyle” book that illustrates that concept.
Hand-made or not, there are numerous options that offer more performance, more longevity, and just as much character for a whole lost less money
To each his own