It's a grey afternoon in 60s London. Austerity from the war is finally coming to an end and the young families who could only afford a motorcycle and sidecar, are moving onto their first proper cars. Meanwhile, you're 19 and poor. There's a flush of used bikes coming onto the market and although they are a bit old-school, you need a ride. You grab the cheapest second-hand bike you can find and proceed to do everything you can to make it go faster. Range isn't an issue when café hopping and whatever is cheapest, is best.
All the fairing comes off, the chain-guard chucked, the footrests pushed back for a lower, more streamlined riding position, and you swap out the dated high-rise handlebars for a set of 'ace' bars that could be a piece of pipe you sourced or a clip-on, handed down by a mate. It looks raw, it looks cool, you've just built yourself a Café Racer.
Since the 60s the Café Racer culture has grown into a movement. The style of bikes are now popular worldwide with the USA market taking note and buying-in during the 70s. Soon after, manufacturers started producing factory spec Café Racer models to cater for the growing demand and the style matured into a thing of history and a genre in it's own right.
Skip forward to 2021, affordable electric motorbikes are just starting to reach western regions with buyers becoming more accepting of two wheeled EV's and eastern manufacturers maturing their production from cheap low-powered scooters to faster, sports styled motorbikes. With Eastern supply chains, it's easy to find cheap, sometimes questionable parts to upgrade your basic e-moto.
And now in 2024. There is an increasing range of new electric motorbikes on the market, they are high-end and for some, very unaffordable. But, the used market is also growing. With a substantial price-gap between the two; right here, right now, a new Café Racer movement is being born.
We ride what we can afford, and some out there, like us at Buck City Biker, are filling the void by providing easy access to foreign manufacturers at an affordable price point - (shameless self promotion over).
Scrolling the various e-moto groups, it’s clear to see the innovation and interest in customising our own ride is still strong with the people, but this time around, it could be even better. First of all, we've been given a helping hand by the simplicity of the electric drivetrain. Which In it's most basic form can consist of a motor, controller and battery. Leaving plenty of opportunity to add and improve speed and range. Water cooled motors are really starting to become a main-stay and more advanced controllers allowing higher peak power without overheating are a fettlers dream. Battery technology is also moving fast, you can even build them yourself, although this is not for the amateur modder, but certainly accessible for someone who really wants to get their hands dirty. Along side this, eastern manufacturers have really upped their game and are leading many areas of the RD in this sector. Plus of course, we all have the internet, which means affordable, accessible, high-quality parts.
The USA and Europe, compared to the UK, have far less obstacles in the way of getting onto two wheels and have already embarked on their electric, diy revolution. But here in the UK we have some way to go. I hope, as acceptance for EV's increases, and with access to a larger production market, we can follow in their footsteps and reclaim the provenance of the majestic, Café Racer.
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