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Tokyo Motorcycle Show | EVENTS

Each year the Tokyo Motorcycle Show provides a platform for Japan’s best tuners to show their wares and 2017 was no exception

Each year the Tokyo Motorcycle Show provides a platform for Japan’s best tuners to show their wares and 2017 was no exception

(No, it’s not the biennial Tokyo Motor Show, where Japan’s manufacturers display their concept visions for the future. The Tokyo Motorcycle Show is focused on aftermarket mods.)

Kawasaki ZRX1200

by Active

There’s still a huge following for 70s and 80s-style musclebikes in Japan, and the ZRX1200 DAEG remains on sale there years after it was discontinued elsewhere. This Active version gets a Galespeed master-cylinder, Brembo calipers, Hyperpro suspension and a very expensive (A$3500) hydro-formed aluminium swingarm in a package of parts costing well over A$12,000. And that’s before you add the custom paint and Akrapovič system…

Yamaha R1

Brutal rather than beautiful would be the best way to describe the current Yamaha R1, and the mods made to the bike by Active accentuate that attribute even further. The fairing is a Nexray carbon-fibre part, as are the tail and front fender – a package costing over A$4000 – while the Galespeed wheels add as much again to the overall price. Then there are the rearsets, Gilles bars, Akrapovič pipe…

Kawasaki Ninja N2 tourer

by K’s Style

A Ninja H2 converted into a tourer? That’s one way of attracting attention. The changes to the bike are actually pretty minor – a set of Givi panniers, a luggage rack, a custom seat and a taller screen are the sum total of the mods here – but it still begs the question: why?

Honda CB1100RS retro style

by Honda

This is no back-street special – Honda itself created the retro-style CB1100 for the show. The seat and exhaust are from Wyvern, the wheels are Galespeed and there’s Öhlins shocks at the back. But the real change is the retro-inspired paint scheme, reminiscent of Honda’s old CB models.

Suzuki GSX1100S Hagane

by Technical Garage Run

It’s not just new bikes that get worked over for the Tokyo show, as this Katana demonstrates. Technical Garage Run specialises in the old oil-cooled Suzuki engines and has given this one FCR39 carbs, a K-Factory Diablo exhaust, Öhlins forks and shocks and Galespeed wheels. Hagane means steel in Japanese, and on this bike refers to paintwork that gives a convincing bare-metal look to the bodywork.

Zero Engineering K2C

Rather than being a modified version of someone else’s bike, the Zero Engineering K2C is a concept from a boutique builder better known for its range of big V-twin-powered customs. Zero Engineering usually makes expensive, S&S-engined customs so this single-cylinder bike is a departure. It shares the retro style of its siblings, with springer forks and pre-war design cues, but aims at a much more affordable part of the market. At the moment, it’s not clear if it will go further than this concept stage.

Over OV-36A

The Over OV-36A reflects the Japanese passion for the Honda Monkey. Yep, despite its high-end appearance, it’s powered by a humble Monkey motor. Well, not that humble as it has a Takegawa twin-cam head. The single-sided swingarm, front suspension and frame are all CNC-machined from blocks of aluminium.

Honda CBR250RR

by Yoshimura

While the rest of the world waits to get its hands on the CBR250RR, Japanese tuners are already improving them. This is Yoshimura’s take. The exhaust system – a rainbow-hued Yoshi R77S Cyclone – is of course the key update, along with Sunstar brake rotors.

Moto Corse NVC Nuda Veloce

by Moto Corse

The Nuda Veloce has been Moto Corse’s naked take on the Ducati Panigale since 2014, but still turns heads. The Tokyo show bike added carbon brakes to a machine that’s already well into the ‘if you need to ask, you can’t afford it’ category. Of course, these bikes are built to order so costs vary with spec, but you’re unlikely to get any change from A$200,000.

Honda VTR250

by Deus ex Machina

The VTR250 is another Japanese favourite, and Deus ex Machina has turned it into a flat track-style machine. The front part of the chassis is stock, as is the engine, while the bodywork is a one-off, single-piece unit made of carbon fibre. The new subframe doubles as a fuel tank. Flat-track ’bars and repositioned ’pegs give a more upright riding position, and the exhaust is a one-off part.