Need some more excitment in your life but the latest supernakeds don’t cut it? Veloce’s extraordinary 280bhp X8 might be for you…
A new two-stroke road bike is a rarity in the modern era, with only a handful of specialist makers still flying the flag for the format. Now Oxfordshire-based Veloce Motorcycles has stepped into that niche with one of the most ambitious examples yet, unveiling a 1000cc, eight-cylinder two-stroke naked bike called the Aperion at last month’s Bike Shed Moto Show in London.
Veloce Automotive Ltd is a private company established to deliver innovation and performance to the UK motorcycle market. Based in Oxfordshire, England, the company says its engineers focus on creating products that stand apart in their class, with Veloce powertrains and motorcycles developed at its own engine cell and test circuit in Carmarthenshire, Wales.
The Aperion is built around eight Rotax/Aprilia RS125 cylinders fitted with forged pistons. They are configured in two separate V4 crankcase assemblies around a central transmission case. Each cylinder bank is billet-machined in four sections and houses two crankshafts, which are geared to a common jackshaft that drives a bespoke clutch and gearbox.
Induction comes via four pairs of 24mm Dellorto carburettors, operated by an intricate eight-cable spiral throttle twistgrip arrangement, and the engine runs on premixed petrol and two-stroke oil. Veloce says the motor produces 280bhp, a figure that aligns with roughly 35bhp from each 125cc cylinder, with performance parts supplied by Mitaka.
Perhaps the most dramatic element of the package is the exhaust system. Two-stroke performance depends heavily on expansion chambers with exact lengths, volumes and cone shapes, and fitting eight of them into a motorcycle chassis is a huge engineering challenge. Veloce’s answer is to use modern 3D-printing technology, with the pipes laser-sintered from metal powder directly from CAD data. That process allows the chambers to be packaged tightly around the engine and frame while keeping them thin and light, without relying on the traditional method of cutting and welding fine-gauge metal.
The chassis has also been designed with the engine as a structural element. The motor serves as the main frame, with welded steel tube birdcage-style trellis subframes at the front and rear. A single-sided aluminium swingarm mounts to the cases, while a tie-rod actuates a single rear shock positioned beneath the front of the engine. Upside down forks, along with conventional brakes and wheels, complete the setup.
Speaking to MCN about the concept, Veloce’s Jack Levy said, “Balance was the main driver. The diagonally opposed pistons fire at the same time, so everything’s perfectly balanced. And that X formation keeps the bike really thin: if you think about how a V8 or V6 would look, it would be quite wide.”
Levy also explained why the company chose a two-stroke layout for such an unusual engine. “Two-strokes unlock the X-design: the cylinders can fire downwards because oiling is not a problem. It’s a technology that’s been a little bit forgotten about and it’s still really valuable today in the right applications.
The Aperion shown at the Bike Shed was not a running motorcycle, but Levy says Veloce already has a working test bike at its R&D facility. The company says a limited production run of 24 examples is planned, with availability expected as early as 2027. Pricing is set at £78,000 ($160,000), with the bikes to be sold on a motorcycle single vehicle approval (MSVA) basis in the UK.
Veloce is also developing a second machine, the Ethereal, for riders wanting something less extreme than the Aperion. That model is set to use a 500cc V4 two-stroke producing 145bhp, along with an unusual transmission design that places the input shaft behind the output shaft. The company says this reversed gearbox arrangement allows more optimised swingarm and drivetrain geometry.
Another notable feature of the Ethereal is its cooling layout, which uses a Benelli Tornado-style underseat radiator, with ducting directing air through the core and out through the tail.
Whether either bike could ever get road-registered in Australia is another matter, but we can dream.
