The most difficult task was to transform this piece into something to be admired, in the café racer style.”Īfter hours of design and several discarded models, Retrorides hit on the solution: a flush-fitting panel with a grill that complements the other lines of the tank.Īfter modeling the part in 3D, Retrorides manufactured it on their 3D printer using carbon fiber, with the grille machined out of billet aluminum. “The ‘naked’ K100 had a small ‘radiator protector’ next to the gas tank,” says Gustavo, “so we started the project from this part. It looks reasonable when all the OEM bodywork is in place, but as soon as you remove anything, it resembles an isolated jigsaw piece. The original tank had a distorted bottom line, designed to accommodate the radiator. They’ve taken inspiration from the more basic 1980s models of the K series, which were ‘naked’ roadsters, but made a critical change to the trickiest part of the styling-the fuel tank.
Retrorides have always focused on improving the lines of a bike, and that’s exactly what happened with this project. Sadly, José passed away in December-but he would be very pleased to see the work his sons have done on this build. I’ve done countless projects with them, but this time I wanted to do something different.” “The engines of these bikes fascinate me. “I’ve always been obsessed with the K series,” Gustavo confesses. It’s obvious where the passion lies, though. Their company is known throughout Brazil for its slick work on cars and trucks, as well as BMW motorcycles. The Lourenços are based in a town a couple of hours away from the huge city of São Paulo.
#Bmw cafe racer series#
Founded by brothers Gustavo and Rodrigo Lourenço and their father José, they’ve carved out a niche building very sharp BMW K series café racers-like this dark and handsome K100 RS.
That’s the philosophy of the Brazilian shop Retrorides by Lourenço. And where to get the biggest bang for the buck. They get to know what to modify, and what to leave alone. When a workshop focuses very tightly on one model of bike, it’s usually a good thing.
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