The Kneeslider

Doers Builders and Positive People

Vento 400 Cafe GT – 348 Pound 400cc 3 Cylinder Urban Commuter from PTS Motors

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Vento 400 Cafe GT triple from PTS Motors
Vento 400 Cafe GT triple from PTS Motors

There’s a strong contingent of riders always asking the same questions, “Why build every new motorcycle with a big engine? Why not build something smaller, affordable and light that still looks cool? We want a real motorcycle, not a scooter.” OK, check out the Vento 400 Cafe GT from PTS Motors. If you think a light (348 pounds), nimble commuter with a 34 horsepower 400cc 3 cylinder engine and 5 speed transmission might be just the ticket, look no further, here it is.

You may recognize that engine. It was designed by Ian Drysdale of Australia back in 2004 for PTS Motors to be used in an upcoming Vento Reptile ATV which entered production in 2007, but to some, the engine really looked like it should be on 2 wheels.

Vento 400 Cafe GT
Vento 400 Cafe GT

Back then, Nic Butti was working at PTS Motors as a Project Manager for the company’s motorcycle projects. He began thinking about putting the 400cc ATV engine in a bike and PTS management gave the go ahead to come up with ideas. Nic worked with Mario Cisneros of Vento to generate concepts and Richard James of The Model Citizen for technical details. They worked together via email and skype from three locations around the world.

Unfortunately, PTS and Vento decided to concentrate on the production of the 400cc engine and ATV so the bike project was canceled. About then, Nic left PTS and traveled to Australia for a holiday. Nic and Richard discussed the bike project and decided that it was too good to let die and continued the development of the bike using their own funds and time.

Vento 400 Cafe GT engine closeup
Vento 400 Cafe GT engine closeup

Meanwhile, Ian Drysdale was looking for a frame to put a triple engine into to show the potential of the design. After a quick discussion he agreed to lend an engine from a preproduction ATV to Nic and Richard to help them with their design and they began production of a prototype at the Drysdale Motor Co workshop.

The first prototype was shown to Vento in early 2008. Vento agreed to go ahead with the project and a preproduction prototype was commissioned. Nic and Richard joined forces with DMCo to refine and detail the original and completed the second prototype mid 2009.

Vento’s Mario Cisneros traveled to Australia to evaluate the design and after days of riding around the Dandenong Ranges, East of Melbourne, and Philip Island, he approved it. As a result, PTS Motors will now manufacture the motorcycle with, as yet, unnamed parters.

Vento wanted as many “off the shelf” Chinese components to be used wherever possible to keep production costs low. With Nic situated in China, it was possible to select and coordinate with suppliers for many parts, including the tank, foot peg brackets, foot pegs and controls, forks, rims, brakes and of course, the engine, which was already in production.

Note: Prior to Nic and Richard beginning their own work, a mock up of the engine was sent to JT Nesbitt of Bienville Studios for a motorcycle concept evaluation as noted on the Bienville website and previously mentioned on The Kneeslider. The Vento / Bienville project was eventually canceled.

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From the press release:
400 Cafe GT: easy fun (have a good day, officer).
Handling, balance and reactivity are all you need to commute in an urban scenario where hundreds of horses (hp) have nowhere to run. And if you let them go, your driving license will follow at the same speed. We designed a compact frame, a strong and sexy tubular structure, with quick (but not radical) steering geometries and a riding position that makes young riders and female riders feel equally comfortable and relaxed when sneaking through traffic, with a gentle touch on its wide clip-ons.

400 Cafe GT: simple (and clear).
Less than 40 bhp and it… moves! It even lets you grin behind the visor every time you turn your wrist. How’s it possible? How come all “the others” offer at least twice as many bhp?
Three inline cylinders are there to pull you out of troubles with a smooth power delivery and a crisp throttle response. No magic. Only old-fashioned low end grunt provided by the 2 valves per cylinder 392cc engine.

400 Cafe GT: style ain’t water (cooled).
Air + oil cooled engine, with wide cooling fins and a fat, tough profile, wouldn’t have matched a race replica styling with straight lines and sharp edges, nor a full fairing dress promising astonishing top speed performance. It was quite a natural choice: we styled a body that fits what the engine can give,with an extra touch to make our bike stand out from the plastic crowd of every parking lot.

It looks like a Café Racer, and its name reminds of those days, but we designed something different: not a stripped down racer, nor a copy of some model from the seventies. This is how we redefine today’s concept of Café Racer: a friend’s waiting for you downtown for a coffee?
Riding your 400 Cafe GT to your appointment and parking it there will let you feel (and look) better. Lock the helmet on the side of the removable passenger’s seat cover (production feature) and forget about scooters.

400 Cafe GT: THE Voice.
Hitting the starter button evokes a sound that is reminiscent of an early Porsche 911 Turbo. Apologies to our Bavarian friends, this result was unintentional!

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In the production model, the rear subframe will have adjustable height. Also interesting is that the final design was approved by Tony Foale. The 400 Cafe GT is proposed as the first of a range of motorcycles based on this engine, each model will be styled for a different market segment. There’s no mention of price or actual production dates and availability, but I’m guessing this will be pretty affordable. Your thoughts?

All inquiries about this motorcycle should be directed to PTS Motors.
Link: PTS Motors
Link: Caffe Triplo
Link: The Model Citizen
Photo credit: Greg Parish

Comments

  1. Nice product, and great philosophy, at least not trying to flatter your ego and sell a motoGP replica … how much does it cost now ?

    (I hope not what the recaptcha mentions, $815,700,000 😉

  2. Looks better then most Chinese offerings, but I would prefer a more traditional Tank design,and 2 up capabilitys. More of a Yamaha RD 350 look and function. Maybe different “bodys” will be offered for different tastes, Plastic is very cheap to design and produce, How about a Street Tracker? This is a nice size and a fine looking simple Engine.

  5. If you ask me, there appears to be quite a bit of potential there for an Adventure Tour Dual-Sport!

  6. i feel like maybe they got “cafe racer” confused with “streetfighter.” I like it a lot, and it totally seems like the sorta thing I’d be into. That being said though, I don’t think I’d ever buy a chinese bike, regardless of how appealing it seems on the surface.

  7. this is a bike that i’ve been waiting for. optimally it would be liquid cooled for a little more power, but i’m still interested. can’t wait to see prices.

  8. Nice! Light, 10# per HP should give decent performance, good looking though the motor is a bit bulky looking.

  10. I like it. I have the same thoughts as taxman. I suppose there are enough “old” Suzuki DR-Z 400cc engines out there that a simular bike could be built. I think this will sell in a lot of places.

  12. This bike is not even on the market yet, and already the cry for more power and complexity rings out!! This bike is right on target, Bigger more powerfull water cooled bikes are everywhere, buy one if thats what you want, leave this poor thing alone.

  13. I think it looks awesome,and would love to have one,simple bikes with light weight reasonable displacement and cost are the way to go and they are becoming so hard to find.

  14. That is brilliant, I bet they’ll sell loads of them as long as they have proper distributors and dealers. Wonder where or if they’ll be sold in Canada? I might almost be tempted by one. Actually make that entirely tempted.

  15. After looking at the larger photos, it appears that its capable of adding a second disk brake setup on the front end.
    Inverted forks, disk brakes front and rear, modern cafe styling, 17″ wheels and the ability to ride 2 people (WHY??) I like it— A LOT! I will be watching for this around town, and checking the website for further details! FINALLY something other than a 250cc in the under 500cc class, i think i’ll be in the buyers market when this comes out.

  16. Pretty much perfect! Only two questions I can think of:

    1.How does it handle long highway rides? (is 34hp enough, rev limit/gearing)
    2.Price?

  19. I like the idea, but question the execution. Mainly, I would be concerned about service and parts. Many people jumped onto the cheap Chinese motor scooter bandwagon (I’ve even seen local hardware stores selling them, as well as individual homeowners setting up business on their lawns!) and lots of people bought very cheap Chinese scooters that it later turned out they could not get parts for. Local scooter shops had many of these things sitting around in their shops, not running, and were unable to repair them for lack of parts. I would refrain from buying anything made in China until I saw a reputable company with a history and a reputable dealer network.

  20. 34 hp is enough. Not too brag, but too ride and have fun. And with fourstroke grunt and low weight, its perfekt. I use too have a DTR 125, cheap and fun, and all it had too brag about is 25 hp from a two-stroke single, and i love it.

    If you read enough bike-magasines, you start too believe that you have to have a late model jap superbike to have fun on the racetrack, a supermoto 600 to challenge twisty roads or an big heavy tourbike with loads of suitcases, just to take an weekend trip.

    When it comes to riding, I say: keep it small and light, keep it simple and keep it cheap! Its beautiful!

  22. A trio of meggas framing the rear tire would complete the view seen by the packs of Royal Enfields, Urals, and Buell Blasts as the Vento strolls away down the road. Seriously, though, I like this machine, and hope it presages some return to simplicity in motorctcle design.

  23. I took one look at this bike, an saw my 1992 Suzuki 400 Bandit. I can’t imagine that they did not see a photo of a Bandit, they look so close. Speaking of my Bandit, of the 5 bikes I own, it is easily my favorite.
    Brian

  25. @Brian and @carboncanyon, I’ll do ya one older: forst thing I thought was my all-time fave ‘littlebike’: Yamaha Seca 400. The tank is totally similar, the simplicity of the running gear ditto. The Seca had the DOHC twin, but the GT above has a sniff of the H1 going on in the motor department so no worries there….

    I’m a pragmatist: what is going to do the best for the least resources? If this is (really) affordable and can be supported (a’la Vento, Hyosung) then I say bring it. 34hp can’t be a lot less than my 1991 DR650 puts out and I can ride it all gorramn day.

  26. The new suzkuki TU250 is a much better design for basically the same function. Now if only Suzuki/honda/yamaha would build a 400-600cc standard like the TU.

  28. Perfect. This is exactly what I asked a Vento VP to build 5 years ago. I told him they could corner the market for a fun, lightweight, sporty bike in the 350cc range. Here it is. I am truly shocked that a manufacturer actually listened to a customer.

    I have a GB500 and XR650L that don’t make any more power than this bike and the GB will top 100 mph. It only takes 15 hp to ride at 75 mph.

    This is much like the Bandit 400 but I’ve looked long and hard for one of those in good condition – that or a FZR400, or a CB1.

    I seriously would buy this bike if it was priced below $6000. Vento has excellent products.

    -todd

  29. almost forgot; it would need to be street legal in California in order for me to buy one. No small challenge but I hope it’s one they take on.

    -todd

  31. Bikes like this are very important, people need not be afraid of motorcycles. We need simple, light, affordable and fun bikes that everyone can ride.

  32. I just got a Suzuki SV650 and I too saw almost the same bike – in silhouette & concept, if not engine configuration. And I definitely see the early-90’s Bandit 400 in there. Looking at the specs on paper mine weighs about the same (+32lbs) yet 2x the HP. Gently used for $3500 US. New Gladius’s barely over $6000. Very nimble around town and not lacking on the highway. Does the displacement put it in a “whole other category?” Cost & power/weight ratio doesn’t seem so.

    Triple – bet it sounds great! This could make a great little affordable spec racer for club cirquit.

  33. If they bring that thing to the USA, I’m going to have to put my money where my mouth has been and buy one, because that’s *exactly* what I’ve been saying we need.

  34. I worked for a little while for a Vento shop in Puerto Vallarta, and they offer a 250 cruiser that is based on the Honda Rebel 250. Now after looking closely at the shape of the sidecovers on this 400 motor, I would guess this motor is a lop an extra cylinder on a rebel kind of effort. Which is right up the Ian Drysdale alley, him being famous for making small V8s out of FZR yamahas. Apart from that it sure is a super nice looking machine.
    For another comment, Vento is one of the better china brands in my opinion, based I think in Texas they actually have real parts availability with somewhat easy to use internet microfiche for parts.

  36. I had a chance to demo the ATV with this engine last year and really I was pretty impressed. I kinda got the impression that Vento was pulling a mid-60’s GM trick and understating the power output by a bit. As well, the build quality was really on par with anything the Japanese put out. The plastic on the quad seemed a little primitive, but everything that counted eg; frame, suspension, fitments etc….all solid and well conceived.

    I do think that support could prove to be an issue at first. They’ll have to overcome some of the (earned?) prejudice against Chinese products as shown here in various comments, but even that is not insurmountable.
    That SV650 that’s so loved? Where to you think the majority of the parts came from?
    How about your small displacement dual sports from any Japanese manufacturer?
    You got it Sparky! China.

    Regardless of personal bias, we live in a global economy now. Get used to it. Turning a blind eye to a potentially awesome product because of it’s country of origin is silly, if not downright foolish.

    Looks like a neat bike. I’d love one for buzzing around on!

  39. Guys that’s great.
    That’s the size, tha’t the power and that’s the look, all put together in one.
    I’ve been surfing the net for some more infos and here’s what I got into: http://www.caffetriplo400.com
    I hope market will let them create some more!
    See ya

  40. I LOVE IT! With one exception. Why can’t it have a level cafe style seat, as opposed to what looks like a ducks butt, stuck up in the air? No need for a two-up seat, rider only is perfect.

  42. If nothing else, it’s a good start. The future of motorcycling, if there is one, is in lightweight, nimble, well designed, roadworthy (good handling), reliable AND realistically priced. (350cc +) pulling 350lbs dry is about right, unless one “needs” an 800lbs bike with 145hp at the rear wheel just to go uphill.
    The feedback above is nothing but gems. Hope they (Vento) read it.
    Is it anything like DR-Z, Buell-Blast (from the past?), or TU250 ? ?
    Not to my eyes.

  43. Ok, it does look like a Bandit with a 3 cylinder Rebel engine – not a bad look, but there is something different about it and the yuan just dropped – wire wheels. I can’t off hand think of any other machine of this general style that doesn’t use cast wheels. The wire spokes look good without trying to look retro – though it looks a bit like something Benelli or MV might have brought to the track way back when. Dual shocks in back would make it look more so. If this is a good basic package, I can see all manner of customs based on it.

  44. As a guy who started riding bikes some where around 1967 I sort of miss the old simple light weights.
    I was very partial to the old Yamaha twinjet 100 and recall that at the time those Yamaha 350’s were considered big and even marketed as big …. recall the Big Bear designation. I had the chance to own and ride bikes like the Honda 160 twin a Yamaha 250 twin, a Ducati 250 single and some of my friends Kawasakis and Suzukis 250s and 350s.
    One of the appealing aspects of these bikes was the light weight and the tossability of the little things.

    There was a great deal of criticism directed at the Jap manufacturers and their products by the owners of brands like Triumph, BSA, Norton and certainly they were beneath contempt for HD riders.

    But there was a very loyal and growing group of riders like myself that loved the little buzzers and as time progressed I like many others kept demanding more HP and better long range capability. When the Kaw 500 triple showed up we were blown away and when the hond fours came along there was no turning back.

    The little bikes were just too uncomfortable for all day rides and so touring in any real sense was out. Also the acceleration of the larger bikes was just too much fun.
    The reality is that bikes became more powerful and larger because that is what people were looking for.

    However I see the trend declining and I do believe there is a market for small and low tech bikes I also think this market will grow.

    Regardless of where this comes from … it is something that will sell.

    Just as an aside … the first thing I thought about when I saw that picture was the old Honda 400 four.
    Then I thought about what could be done to get more performance out of that little motor……

  45. much as I like lightweights (seca 400, honda 400 four, honda cbr250 are some past rides) I have to jump on the bandwagon with the critics performance wise. 375lbs and 38 horsepower was where the honda 400 four was at almost 35 years ago – and the weight came down quickly with an aftermarket exhaust… my random guess would have it at 365lbs and 43ish hp. I love the idea of a small aircooled triple (a mini street triple with retro styling would be perfect!) but this bike would need to be 40lbs lighter or 10 hp up for me to consider it – otherwise I’ll just pick up one of the honda vfr400’s I’ve been looking at. (anyone care to bet which would be more reliable? my money’s on the 15 year old 60 hp honda) I’d even be willing to bet that parts and service would be easier to come by, even though the nc30 was never sold in north america. also, with an average asking price of $4000cdn for a mint low milage bike, it’ll probably end up less expensive too!

    (of course, for similar money to the vento I could also buy myself another cb400f, and not have to worry about depreciation – my beat up speed triple will have to satisfy my 3cyl needs)

  46. Cool. In one of my Millyard-esque fantasies, I thought it would be ideal to whittle a triple out of a 600 Bandit (450cc). BOOM, it’s been done. Wishlist: make a streettracker version. Make a SportsClassic-ish retro-modern cafe racer – Egli style frame hiding under a long tank (to leave the motor hanging out in the breeze), 3 into 3 pipes.

  47. I’m working for a renowned and respected old american cie that produces some of the most technologically advanced large equipments in the world, an institution that makes the pride of the industry in the industry and makes it shine all around the world … and we source a lot of our components in low cost countries, including but not limited to China. And we still are the leader on our markets and none of our customer is complaining about the quality of our products … so I understand the concerns about the chinese components, but there are ways to build and source quality components in China.

    Now, all the guys who complain that it doesn’t pull 150hp at the rear wheel, or ask if it’s the best bike to ride across Texas in one single day, please give us a break …

    Nicolas

  49. This bike is great, pretty much what I’ve been waiting for. A triple with nice standard styling bordering on the cafe side. I’ve always wanted to buy a newer bike around 400-500 cc, and the fact that it is a 3 cylinder is even better. Hopefully it will be low priced and have good build quality, and if it is I’ll definitely buy one. The fact that a lot of the parts are chinese worries me, here’s hoping they pull it off.

  50. You know, looking at the general lines of this machine, I see hints of Honda’s Hawk GT. There’s another bike that was seriously under appreciated. Honda should have cleaned up with that bike, yet it only really gained cult status.

    I’m jealous of todd if he’s got a GB500. I’d love to have one of those!

    Other than those two points, my Duc’s got nearly twice the HP as this, with only a 50 lb higher weight. That Ducati’s not a crazy bike by any means, so this thing better be bringing some really great handling and braking to the table or it’s not going to raise an eyebrow in the US market. I love the appeal of a real tossable machine, with low cost and high reliability, but with an unproven name, at least to the US rider (non-scooter), and lackluster numbers, I fear this thing will be a flop.

  52. At last! Back to nice simple and clean looking air cooled engine’s,no radiators,water pumps or piping hanging off. Easy to maintain and sevice and not as vunerable to internal corrosion or external damage. Good job !

  53. Hi there. I have a Buell Blast. I have upped the displacement and compression, added Andrews cams and upgraded the head. But, I did most of that to increase the low and midrange torque. Point is, it is a real light torquey , fun bike to ride. I’m willing to bet, this Vento would be very similar to my Buell Blast. I own 7 motorcycles. If I’m just going out for a fun ride on a twisty road, I take the Blast. I have done 500 miles in a day on it, with no problems. This 3 cylinder, should be smoother. And 3 cylinders are know for good low and midrange. It should have no problems cruising on the freeway. But, it would be a real fun ride on a twisty road. Blaine

  54. I’m a fan of simple naked standards with a sport inclination, streetfighters.

    This looks pretty cool. To my eye it’s merger of a honda hawk gt650 (own one) and a triumph speed triple (want one).

    It would need to be able to wear standard sport bike sized tires to please me. My honda hawk GT has odd tire sizes limiting options.

    Pardon my squidness…but, I wouldn’t mind about 50-60HP at that weight before i would ever dream of replacing my (IMO near perfect) honda 599 (85-90HP at 400lbs).

    I can’t say I would ever buy it, but I’m sure I would have a huge smile riding one.

  55. It’s a neat looking bike. I thought for a long time that most bike manufacturers are becoming too fixated on power, performance and complexity. There has been a shortage of decent motorcycles in the mid-sized category for a time and 34hp means it’d be learner legal for those in Europe who have to ride a restricted horsepower bike after passing their test. I’ve never owned a heavy bike and never seen the need.

  57. Pretty neat bike! I like the wire wheels, and overall cleanness of the design. Hope it makes it to production and the US in the same form.

  58. Looks good, but Vento isn’t exactly known for quality. Chinese bikes leave a lot to be desired in that department.

  59. Screw it! Where do I order? I’ll take two……
    One I’ll build a new seat and tank with a more retro cafe style (yay fiberglass!), while I’m at it I’ll lay up a nice 900ss style bullet fairing for it. 3 emgo short megaphones under the engine and some polish/plate and paint work and one’s down.

    The other one I think I’ll throw a turbo on!

  60. nice work. there is no doubt that the marketplace in the US is missing a light, simple well-designed high-quality street motorcycle both for fun and transportation purposes. The closest thing we have here are dual-sports / supermotards, and although they are a blast to ride it always seems like something is missing when they’re ridden on the street. a product like this could gain a stronghold here in the US but only if it’s available from one of the “name brands” or cheap enough to overcome the stigma of low chinese quality. you can get an almost similar product in the US which is just a rebadge of an existing bike sold all over the world here: http://www.johnnypag.com/motorcycles/sport/index.php

  61. All the old guys that were around when Honda and Yamaha showed up might recognize this as the second coming of the Honda dream or the Yamaha big bear. At the time there was a similar situation as today. Motorcycles, scary fast brash Brit bikes that had their quirks kick starting and of course riding at night. They were awash with their own mystique and secretive devotees. The other choice was Harley and all that went with them, hard to start hard to maintain and you knew Ward Cleaver wasn’t riding one. All pretty intimidating if you hadn’t grown up around motorcycles. I think its safe to say new riders were probably at a premium. Along comes the Japanese with motorcycles that weren’t intimidating and advertising that promised you would meet the nicest people, and the bikes were turn key, have fun, repeat. Today it’s scary fast bikes that should scare 99.999% of all that put a leg over and big heavy cruiser intimidating for all kinds of reasons of their own. New riders, population to population are probably just as scarce now as then. This bike doesn’t look like a toy or a scooter and would be huge grins for a new rider just like a big bear or dream. Turn key, Have fun, Repeat.

  62. It looks great! However, I’d prefer if it had 10 more hp and non-spoke wheels. If it’s competitively priced somewhere near the Kawasaki 250 Ninja, 500 Ninja, and Suzuki GS500, I think it could be a serious player.

  63. I love the engine; a triple-400 is sweet. I say keep this motorcycle as simple as possible. Personally, I would buy it and toss the cosmetic parts and give it my own custom look and feel. It would be a fun project. I love projects. Unfortunately, I won’t buy this motorcycle because it has a chinese engine. Even if it’s a great engine I wouldn’t buy it because chinese products are associated with garbage. It’s one thing to to have miscellaneous household items made in china but your motorcycle is an expression of your personality. Seriously, if you don’t want to build the engine and frame in the usa/canada what about brazil, peru, or guatemala? I mean, paying a guy 100 guatemalan quetzales per day is too much?

  65. If only it had a kickstart and was made in the USA , then it would be AWESOME.

    I also take issue with it due to it’s country of manufacture. I am not saying China CAN’T make a good product , but I have yet to see something manufactured there of this type that I would consider high quality.

    As has been said, simple air cooled engine, wire wheels , enough displacement for highway use , and reasonably good looks , it seems it’s got the basics covered and then some. If you want something bigger/better/faster then buy one, they’re available , just don’t trash talk this lil guy. It is what it is supposed to be.

  66. I like the look of this bike. As my Go to Walmart for coffee scooter, right now is duded up CBR 125 I would most probably like the feel of engine that produces some torque ( totally absent in the little CBR Sweet as it is) Also we get a huge break on under 400cc registrationand insurance. My only concern will be overall quality and reliability. So I will wait to see how they do in the market place and read some owners opines after some time in the saddle.. They ( the chinese) are on the right track with this one.. However based on offerings to date I am assuming , and perhaps wrongly, that it will initially be unrefined to a fault

  67. i own a ’04 ninja 250. I have constantly wished for the same bike with one more cylinder and 400cc. can this guy just graft another cylinder on to my ninjette? triples are great. I owned a 77xs 750 yamaha. the sound-hard to beat! & a 3 cyl engine is still narrow. but air cooling and a 5 speed are steps backwards for me? wire wheels ok. And i know- it’s built to be inexpensive,or a beginner bike. but how about an “upscale version” with water cooling,maybe a 3 or 4valve cylinder head ,a six speed tranny, and mag (cast wheels)? Yes, efi too… i am willing to pay the price. still, if the price is right, i would still strongly consider this.(chineese or not) my 3 cylinder-ness is that deeply ingrained… europe drives behind them in cars. may my ’94 justy live forever!

  68. and two other personal style choices…altho many may not agree? black engine. looks better and more modern to me,plus helps to cool an aircooled motor.(i could always just do that myself) and a (black)chrome header pipe. black exhaust paint allways rusts eventually,especially the center pipe on a triple.(again, i could do that myself) a second front disk and cast rims,maybe a small headlight fairing ala triumph speed triple? does it have a tachometer?(small motors need to rev) I know, picky- picky! what paint colors are available? and it all hinges on-How Much does it cost?…

  69. Uh-Oh! I just discovered the motor is available without the bike. any bets on whether i could ‘shoehorn’ one into my ‘o4 250 ninja? i am further wondering, is this an OHC motor or does it use push rods? some of the other chicom motors are… i notice a 400cc V-twin motor is available as well. i am a sick man-“KawiVento” any one?…j

  70. i have been very interested in this bike and last night i decided to email one of the 2 guys listed in the contact page for the caffe triplo. i got a reply today from nicola butti, which goes a little exactly like this:
    “Ciao Matt,
    thanks a lot for your support.
    Regarding the future of CaffeTriplo…
    I can only suggest to contact VENTO (good luck with it!)
    and check with them.
    At this stage I’m also not aware of what are the plans.

    Meanwhile enjoy your SV!

    Best,
    Nic”

    sounds not so great for the caffe triplo. oh, i had mentioned i’d drop my sv650 in a second to get the triplo.

  71. Same here Matt. I’ve had a guy named Shankar respond to my inquiries. He’s assured me it will be available in the US this year and that he’d update me on its progress. I’ll check with Vento now. Thanks for the tip.

    -todd

  72. Anybody heard anything about this sweet little triple lately? Why aren’t there any small 4 stroke triples out there? Honda made a 4 stroke 4 cylinder, so why not?

    It would be so torquey, sound AWESOME, and still rev up and get cookin.