Only a few individuals would decide a mid-90s BMW F650 Funduro as a donor for a flat monitor-style {custom} construct, however Georg Godde reckons the concept has benefit. He runs the BMW specialist workshop Cafemoto in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, together with his partner-in-crime, Holger Maninger. And though the Cafemoto portfolio largely options BMW boxers and Okay-series bikes, Georg has a tender spot for older BMW singles.
Cafemoto’s final single-cylinder construct was a BMW G650 Xcountry road tracker, and Georg was eager to construct one other Rotax-powered Beemer. So when his son turned 18 this 12 months and will lastly step up from 125 cc bikes to larger machines, he talked himself into the undertaking.
So why select the common-or-garden Funduro this time round? “There are a variety of actually lovely Honda Dominator conversions, and the BMW F650 has an analogous body design behind its fats and boring fairings,” Georg solutions. “It additionally has a greater, liquid-cooled engine, with extra torque and horsepower than the Honda.”
“There aren’t many {custom} F650s—and people which have been personalized usually have actually dangerous proportions. And the worth of the Funduro is admittedly low—even in comparison with the BMW G650 sequence.”
Turning the bulbous BMW F650 Funduro into the zesty road tracker you see right here wasn’t precisely a stroll within the park although. Cafemoto’s first problem was the truth that the bike’s subframe is welded on to its major body, which limits how a lot modification is allowed beneath Germany’s uber-strict TÜV customary. The blokes trimmed off as a lot as they may, then devised a plan to cover the remainder away.
“We determined to take a modified fiberglass flat monitor tail part with giant aspect panels to cover the ugly rear body away,” explains Georg. “To create a slim profile, we then personalized a good looking Yamaha DT400 fuel tank to make it match the BMW body. It was not simple.”
Resisting the urge to easily zip-tie a generic quantity board to the entrance forks, Cafemoto formed a {custom} unit out of aluminum as an alternative. They then constructed a boxy mounting bracket that not solely pitches it ahead but in addition helps to tidy up the bike’s cabling and hosts the gauges. An LED projector pokes out the underside, with slim LED flip alerts sitting larger up.
Cafemoto swapped out the handlebars and grips however stored the OEM controls and switches. Out again, mixture taillight and switch sign LEDs flank a {custom} license plate bracket.
Subsequent, Georg and Holger shifted their focus to the Funduro’s stance. A tried-and-tested suspension decreasing package from Touratech helped them carry the experience top right down to the place they wished it, with progressive springs enhancing the experience high quality.
The BMW F650 Funduro wears 19F/17R wheels in inventory kind, however this construct referred to as for a extra balanced look. So Cafemoto re-laced the wheels with aluminum Akront rims, bumping the rear wheel as much as 18 inches, and spooned on Avon Trekrider tires. “We didn’t use a 19” rear wheel, as a result of there are just a few tires in that dimension in the marketplace,” says Georg, “and people tires that you would be able to get are usually not aggressive for road use.”
A custom-made titanium exhaust from G.P.R. Exhaust Programs in Italy provides a thumper-worthy bark to the construct. Eager eyes will discover that the muffler now sits on the best of the bike as an alternative of the left—a deliberate transfer so as to add much more flat monitor taste to the bike. The blokes trimmed the bodywork to accommodate it, doing such a tidy job that it seems manufacturing facility.
Stealthier particulars embrace a {custom} chain guard, a tidy entrance fender, and a beefy bash plate to fend off the bathe of stones that an 18-year-old is prone to topic it to. Cafemoto additionally swapped out the chain and sprockets, going up a few enamel on the rear.
For the reason that gasoline tank got here from a Yamaha, Cafemoto determined to stay to Yamaha styling for the livery. The Funduro seems resplendent in period-correct Yamaha ‘Competitors Yellow,’ with refined tweaks to work the store’s title into the tank graphics. Matte gold powder-coating provides additional classic type to the wheels.
“Because of the colour and the truth that it’s actually onerous to acknowledge it as a remodeled F650 Funduro, our undertaking is known as ‘Bumblebee,’ after the Transformer,” Georg quips. “Though it’s a extremely gentle road bike, it has the soul of a flat tracker.”
Not solely has Cafemoto confirmed that you would be able to flip the BMW F650 Funduro right into a road tracker, however they’ve given Georg’s child a significantly better runabout than something we owned at 18.
Cafemoto | Fb | Photos by Michael Larssen
