Rat Bikes like their 4 wheeled cousins, Rat Rods are what some people would consider to be a “piece of...
Kawasaki Cafe Racer
Kawasaki motorcycles have been in production since 1962. During the late sixties, the Japanese manufacturer established a foothold in the US market with their legendary H1 Mach III, a motorcycle that was both revered and feared for its straight-line speed and unpredictable handling. Today Kawasaki is one of the world’s most recognized motorcycle brands. From the iconic Z1000 of the seventies through to today’s supercharged, 330kmh+ H2 they continue to produce motorcycles that push the boundaries of performance. In recent years Kawasaki themselves have adopted the cafe racer style with their Z900RS series of motorcycles.
I’m always excited to feature a build from a country we haven’t previously visited here on the Return of the...
After being less than impressed by the official promotional video for the 2011 Kawasaki W800 I took it upon myself to...
This exquisite custom bike, crafted by Deus Customs, is a unique creation based on a 2004 Kawasaki W650 (EJ650). With...
Suzuki Katana. Honda Dominator. Kawasaki Ninja. These are all bike names that inspire visions of power and awesomeness. In some...
Over the past few years, I’ve been lucky enough to test ride almost every new modern classic, retro sports and...
What have I done! One job I have had to perform a few times during my W650 Cafe Racer project...
My first visit to Jakarta in 2014 was arranged for the sole purpose of visiting custom motorcycle workshops. We’d been...
Based on a 1978 Kawasaki KZ1000 this bike is a rolling eulogy to 1970s composite creativity. During the ’60s and...
If Benelli’s TNT 1130 and Kawasaki’s 650 Ninja had a romantic interlude this could well be the result. Based on...
Green is most certainly the colour of envy. Gia Mi Racing are back again with another modern take on Cafe...
Cafe Racer TV and Santiago Chopper’s will be auctioning off the KZ1000 Cafe Racer seen built during the TV series...
According to Sven Decoux of Barn Built Motorcycles, the decision to customise a Kawasaki ZR7 was more ‘right place, right...
Although the Kawasaki Z650 might be considered by many to be the low powered cousin of the Z1, it actually...
Valtoron in Valdetorres de Jarama, Spain, is the workshop of two brothers, Pablo and Carlos Delgado. Since 1995 the brothers...
Such is the iconic status of the 1970s Kawasaki Z900 that these days they are more commonly restored than customised....
Anyone that’s been following this site since its launch knows it all started with the purchase of a Kawasaki W650....
In the early eighties, a clever member of the Kawasaki marketing team thought it’d be a good idea to produce...
Deus ex Machina came on the scene around about the same time I set up Return of the Cafe Racers...
The Kawasaki ZX-6, otherwise known as the ZZR600 in Europe, was the brand’s flagship middleweight sports bike of the nineties....
One of the jobs I didn’t forsee when I was fitting the clip on bars to the w650 was adjusting...
Honda CB750 “Cold bitch” More home built Cafe Racers sent in by our talented readers. Thanks for sharing your motorcycles...
All you need to do is remove the right side cover by unscrewing the 2 screws on the side and...
The seat is also of top quality. The inner shell is made from thick, hard plastic which looks very durable....
A while back we were approached by Just Bikes in Australia and invited to enter their Just Auto Legends campaign....
To Maurizio Carrero, founder of Imbarcadero 14 Venice in Italy, the Z1000 was more than an icon of motorcycle manufacturing.As...
At the 2017 Tokyo Motor Show last weekend the Japanese manufacturer wowed the motorcycling world once again with the all-new, retro-styled...
While Rickman Motorcycles started out producing frames and body kits for British made motorcycles in the seventies they turned their...
“They don’t make them like they used to!” When you hear those words uttered it is generally with disdain. A...
It’s been 4 years since the Kawasaki Z900RS went on sale. In the lead-up to its release, Kawasaki adopted a...
Just like the Boom Town Rats “I don’t like Mondays”. I do however like motorcycles…a lot! Here’s this weeks Monday...
The “MK46” is the work of Samik Chatterjee, owner operator of MotoKraft Customs in New Delhi. After graduating from Art...
After owning a Kawasaki W650 for 5 years I can quite confidently say they are one of the best performing...
The success of the Studio Motor workshop has made Donny somewhat of a celebrity in the Indonesian custom scene. He’s...
The Mistress was commissioned by Mistress Gentlemens Motorcycle Club a motorcycle club based in Lisbon. The club allows members to...
Winter has not been kind to my bike. I made the move to Melbourne in Jan and moved in to...
My favourite ongoing series of custom motorcycle builds has just added 2 new “Retrograde Engineered” beasts to their line up....
My parents once gifted me an old Toyota. Mum was worried about me riding and thought that giving me a...
2012 marked the 40th anniversary of Kawasaki’s legendary Z series of motorcycles. To celebrate the Zeds 4 decades of manufacture...
In 1986 girls swooned and guys headed to the nearest motorcycle dealership at the sight of Tom Cruise astride his Top...
I’m a sucker for a W, so when the boys from Ton Up Garage in Portugal sent through their latest...
The boys in Denmark have been very busy since they last graced the pages of this site. Their new workshop...
This Kawasaki KZ550 is the work of Jaka Martinuč who works in the financial sector, about as far removed from...
Flexible back and knees are essential for successful Cafe Racer cornering techniques....
Although Nazar (aka Gazzz) has been repairing, riding and restoring motorcycles for 15 years he’s fairly new to the custom...
While most aspects of motorcycle design have come a long way since the 70s, there and several that haven’t. Take...
Le Gicleur Noire Black, black and more black. The Le Gicleur Noire which translates to “Always bet on black” is...
Someone had sacrilegiously painted the bike’s frame in a past life, hiding the trademark Rickman nickel plating, so it had...
Well it’s been 7 months since I purchased my W650 and started the Cafe Racer conversion. It’s been a great...
I don’t know know why green is a popular colour for these little Cafe Racers but I have to say...
All hail the late 70’s; when men were men and motorcycles were deadly – really deadly. During the ’70s engine...
Today we have added a new feature to the site allowing you to submit your own Cafe Racer project. Return...
In 1980 Vetter designed and built a very limited run of 10 Mystery Ship motorcycles based on Kawasaki’s KZ1000 MKII....
So you wanna buy a spanking new motorcycle to ride around town and make it without having to touch your...
“I first met this bike and its owner at one of our cancer fundraisers in Dallas. The bike sounded like...
Let’s take a closer look at them… Kawasaki Z900RS Café Kawasaki had already unveiled their stunning new Z900RS at the Tokyo...
Towards the end of 2017 when the Tokyo Motor and EICMA shows took place I got more than a little...
It’s hard to imagine that any good could come from breaking your neck. Things could have gone very differently when...
I dropped in at Deus Ex Machina in Sydney and picked up a new speedo for the W650. As the...
“No Time. No Territory. Just an atitude inspired in the past and dressed to impress.” – Maria Motorcycles ...
I could now list off the modifications and parts used in the construction of the Fiddler but seeing as Deus...
Deus Ex Machina are continuing to expand their footprint by opening flagship stores around the globe. Since their first store...
The 1974 Kawasaki KZ400 Cafe Racer underwent an extensive 500-hour build, featuring a powerful 400cc parallel twin engine with a...
It may come as a surprise, but cafe racers aren’t the only style of custom motorcycle I admire. Back when...
Back in March I was lucky enough to pay a visit to the workshop of Studio Motor in Jakarta, Indonesia....
When opportunity beckons what do you do? … let it pass you by or seize it? Whilst the decision for...
After literally killing his Kawasaki KLR650 Fort Nine’s “tell it like it is” vlogger Ryan Kluftinger has resurrected the bike in...
The Japanese custom motorcycle scene is overflowing with all manner of unexpected and tantalizing two-wheeled wonders. Located in Ibaraki Prefecture,...
There are several amazing custom motorcycle shows happening in the United States right now that have made it onto my...
I’m back on the W650 again! Got loads of time in the saddle this weekend, but it’s never enough!...
I finally had a chance to shoot some photos of my bike today, it’s a 2000 Kawasaki W650 Cafe Racer...
“My background has nothing to do with either mechanics nor handcrafting vehicles,” confesses Jordi. “When I decided to make my...
Replacing the rear tail light on the W650 is probably one of the simplest modifications I have done so Far...
The motorcycle above it’s a custom Kawasaki Ninja 250r from Donny in Jakarta, Indonesia. The time it takes to build...
In the scheme of things, 10 years isn’t all that long. But for a small business launched by a pair...
As someone who has a history of heart disease in their family, I know all too well how devastating it...
With 30 years of custom motorcycle building under his belt, Wolfgang Batz isn’t about to be influenced by other people’s...
The art of coachbuilding and metal shaping is a dying art form. Finding skilled individuals who can take a flat...
I’ve just finished fitting a polished top bridge/triple clamp to the W650 Cafe Racer. After fitting the clip on bars...
After months of hard work and seemingly endless nights of writing, issue 2 of Tank Moto is now available! Just...
Here are a couple of shots of the W650 Cafe Racer. At 90% complete I’m really happy with how the...
As gaudy as the eighties were they certainly produced some cool motorcycles. Sharp angular styling, bold colour schemes and groundbreaking...
From time to time, you see something that makes it hard to believe your eyes. They call it cognitive dissonance;...
“Simple but sweet” is one way to sum up La Corona’s portfolio of custom motorcycles. To think that recreating this...
Motorcyclists like to moan about everything.
And the quickest way to start some premium groaning is to sell us a naked...
This post apocalyptic road warrior is Icon’s Kawasaki ZX-7 ‘Thunder Chunky’. It’s the latest addition to Icon’s series of custom...
I have to confess I tend to get a bit excited when a motorcycle manufacturer announces they are releasing a...
2022 is the 50th anniversary of Kawasaki’s Z series of motorcycles. To help mark the occasion we’re looking at the...
The Vulcan S ABS Café is Kawasaki’s “learner approved” cruiser. Its styling is typical of all cruisers that follow in...
Swapping the handlebars on any bike sounds like an easy job but your choice of handlebar can dramatically affect the...
Looking over the photos it’s the smaller details that really make his bike special. The W650 features a spattering of...
It’s been 2 years since Bimota released sketches of their Kawasaki powered retro sports bike concept. At this year’s EICMA...
There’s nothing like a bit of competitive spirit to egg a build on and when it’s between 2 brothers you...
2022 marks the 50th anniversary of Kawasaki’s Z series of motorcycles. The motorcycle that started it all, the 1972 Kawasaki...
As 2014 comes to an end I thought I’d take a (close up) look at some of the incredible work...
Some will call it sacrilege but I have a soft spot for resto-mods. The thinking behind a resto-mod is simple....
I was left disappointed after Kawasaki released the W800 back in 2011. The switch to EFI (damn emission laws!) and...
Today the idea of building such a bike for the street sounds rather ridiculous, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t...
Through a special collaboration with custom builder, ‘Mr Martini’ Kawasaki motorcycles Italy have released a limited edition Vulcan S. Only...
There are several reasons why you might want to install an aftermarket exhaust on your motorcycle. It could be that...