As a result of their remarkable achievements, giant corporations are now knocking on Katros’ door, eager to form partnerships.
Recently, a bold motorcycle project has emerged, centered around the Yamaha XSR155, the smallest model in the Sport Heritage family.
As the grand prize winner of the Daring Riders online promotion, Andi was entrusted with absolute creative freedom for the project. To spark widespread enthusiasm and attract additional participants, he cleverly procured a 2019 Yamaha XSR155, a highly popular model, as the base bike for his custom creation. With its modern-retro aesthetic dictating the tone, the choice of design approach became a straightforward decision.
With the distinctive bike outline prominently featured alongside the XSR’s tank and extending to the rear, Andi chose a café racer design. With just a single month remaining before the project’s original deadline, the task required an impressively precise execution.
“We set out to create a modern cafe racer by incorporating a bikini fairing into our design, without compromising the originality of the production chassis.” Despite a thorough examination, Andi reveals that there aren’t many elements to eliminate and streamline the bicycle’s design. So, to give the XSR155 an unparalleled appearance, our team worked diligently to revamp its external components, striving for a distinctive visual identity that sets it apart from others in its class. As a result, if the champion competitor were to desire reverting their bike to its original XSR appearance, the modification would be readily achievable.
The distinctive feature of Andi’s design was the café racer-inspired bikini fairing on her bike.
Manufactured from lightweight aluminum, the innovative fairing cleverly reuses the headlight assembly from the XSR155, integrating a pair of LED flip indicators within its design. The sleek design wraps seamlessly around the handlebars, flowing smoothly beneath to merge harmoniously with the entrance of the fuel tank, creating a visually cohesive appearance. The Katros’s design team incorporated a tasteful tinted display that harmoniously complements the Daring Riders’ distinctive black and crimson aesthetic.
While clip-on handlebars are often the first choice for cafe racer transformations, another uncomplicated option is indeed the Clubman style. With a meticulous attention to detail, Andi has installed Clubman-style handlebar clamps on their bicycle’s inventory grip, complemented by custom-fitted bar-end mirrors and distinctive Katro Storage ribbed retro rubber grips, adding a touch of nostalgia and functionality to the overall design.
A sleek, retro-style ribbed seat with a durable artificial leather coating arrived subsequently. Acknowledging their heritage as solo machines, yet desiring the option for a pillion, the designers at Katros incorporated a distinctive wasp-tail cowling at the rear of their creation. Manufactured by Customized Package, a prominent Indonesian supplier of aftermarket automotive parts, the tail section is designed to be easily removable as needed.
To accelerate the transformation process, Katros also invested in various XSR aftermarket components from a local supplier, Customized Package. This styling package boasts a body dress-up plate showcasing intricate laser-cut honeycomb details, an engine bash guard, a surround for the factory gauge cluster, and a sleekly trimmed-down front fascia. The Katros design team chose to maintain the distinctive spherical shape of the XSR’s LED taillight, while replacing the bulky inventory indicators with sleek, modern LED elements.
With its focus on efficiency, the Daring Riders Yamaha XSR155 boasts a subtle advantage over standard motorcycles in terms of performance. The enhanced performance is attributed to the installation of a high-performance, free-flowing Customized Package muffler and a set of aggressive, high-grip Bridgestone Battlax BT46 sport touring tires, designed specifically for dynamic cornering and confident acceleration. To complete the transformation, Katros has finished building the bike with a sleek Daring Riders black and crimson design.
It’s unlikely to come as a surprise that the Daring Riders contest attracted a multitude of enthusiastic applicants.
The Katros Storage XSR155 venture appears to be an unconventional and bold endeavour.
