Café racers were the big thing the past few years. Now, that seems to be changing. Just take a look at the machines that have been making waves recently. They aren’t the tyre smoking, wheelie popping, boy racers’ toys. The motorcycles that have been getting a lot of attention of late are the kinds that are most happy the farther away from blacktop they are – scramblers. And just to drive our point home, we’ve put together a list of some of our favourite ones from EICMA and before.
1. Triumph Scrambler
The oldest of the lot, the Triumph can boast of being a scrambler ‘before it was cool’. Much like your uncle who was wearing bowties long before these hipsters made it trendy. The Scrambler uses the same chassis and motor as the regular Bonneville. That means the suspension is the same road-biased unit and the engine hasn’t been retuned at all. What it does get, though, are footpegs that have been mounted higher, on/off-road tyres, traditional spoke wheels, higher handlebars and a high, side-mounted exhaust. If you want to further enhance the looks and functionality, there is also a headlamp grille, sump guard and crash protection available as accessories. Sadly, it isn’t available in India.
2. Ducati Scrambler
The second motorcycle to take the scrambler name is also a more modern interpretation of the genre. The Ducati Scrambler is what scramblers become when they evolve with the times. It is one of the best looking motorcycles in the market today and is a Ducati hiding in dirt bike clothing. We’ve ridden this one extensively and can vouch for its capabilities off-road. It gets long-ish travel suspension (150mm front and rear) and high ground clearance too. We love the manic nature of the engine and those excellent tyres it comes shod with that work as well on the tarmac as they do off-road. We’re not all that crazy about those almost ape-hanger handlebars, though. But the good thing is there are so many customisation options to it that you’ll never be unhappy. Handlebars, sump guards, headlamp grilles – you name it. But the best part is, if you want one, you can walk into your nearest Ducati showroom right now and book one. But, you might want to wait. The smaller, 400cc Scrambler is on its way.
3. Moto Guzzi V7 II Stornello 1
Moto Guzzi are one motorcycle manufacturing outfit that have always had a motorcycle that goes up with any Triumph in any segment that they are in. They have the V7 Café to the Thruxton, V7 Stone to the Bonneville and now the V7 II Stornello to the Scrambler. Showcased with other updated V7s, the Stornello also gets all the new bits that the other did. It uses the same transverse V-twin as the others that makes close to 48 PS. It also gets various scrambler bits like a high mounted exhaust, taller forks, rubber knee pads on the tank, off-road footpegs, semi-off-road tyres and a long flat seat. If you want one, you better hurry up. The Stornello is a limited edition model and only 1,000 units will be made, all individually numbered.
4. Benelli Leoncino
If Benelli’s Chinese connection has been causing it to lose some fans, this is where it will stop. Among a whole bunch of interesting motorcycles that they showed at EICMA 2015 was this – the Leoncino. What is it? It is Benelli’s way of taking the fight right to Ducati’s backyard. On paper it will go up directly against the Ducati Scrambler Sixty2. It uses a 500cc parallel twin motor that makes 48PS and 45Nm. It looks quite insane in the red and black paint that it was shod with for EICMA. Dual discs up front, upside down forks, proper off-road tyres, and Lion of Pesaro sitting on the tiny front fender are all details that we love already. It looks nothing like the original Leoncino, but we’re not complaining. Now all we have to do is sit back and wish the little scrambler makes its way to India.
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