Driving report: Confederate P 120 Combat Fighter (2010)

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Driving report Confederate P 120 Combat Fighter 2010

Motorcycle with almost 100 percent metal

Confederate doesn’t build motorcycles like everyone else. After the Hellcat and the Wraith, the Combat Fighter is now appearing, a motorcycle with almost 100 percent metal. David Folch photographed and drove them for MOTORRAD.

At first, it’s a visual shock. An object that seems to have sprung from the industrial nightmares of a motorcycle-crazy punk. The aluminum parts, milled from the solid and finely chiseled, screwed or welded, give rise to the idea of ​​a factory rather than a motorcycle, they form a device that exudes the relentlessness of an alien. Inspired by WWII fighter pilots and old Dodge or Pontiac GTOs, the one goes VS.onfederate P120 Combat Fighter a different way than the Wraith, which is made of carbon and curves. Designer Edward Jacobs lets solid aluminum as well as angular and angular shapes appear.

Driving report

Confederate P 120 Combat Fighter

Folch

Curves and carbon characterize the Wraith, the predecessor of the Fighter.

Then I finally get to know the monster itself. The aluminum backbone, which also serves as an oil reservoir, takes up the principle of the Bimota SB6 frame of connecting the frame and steering head in a straight line. Here, however, with only one carrier. The front wheel is guided by a parallelogram fork made of aluminum tubes and parts; a precursor to the Combat Fighter, called the Renaissance, still had the fork of the Wraith. However, their flat carbon side panels looked out of place in this environment. Eleven prospective buyers had ordered a renaissance, and they turned to the fighter without further ado.

Tea ignition is switched on on the left front frame member, before starting it is necessary to press the two valve lifters for decompression. Immediately the thunder of the mighty V-Twin fills the hall. Through the sight glass at the top of the frame, I am fascinated to watch how the engine oil starts to boil.

Folch

Small saddle, low seating position and footpegs that have been moved far forward require you to hold on tightly.

The saddle, not much larger than a postcard, maltreats and mocks my tailbone, the aforementioned phallic aluminum support rises up between my legs. You have to lean forward to grab the wide handlebars and pull the levers. They are designed in an original way, but not in a way that the hands would find them intuitively. Then the next surprise: The footrests are mounted as far forward as on a cruiser. Okay, even the deep fall in the saddle gave you an idea of ​​the commitment you have to bring in to ride the fighters. You’re practically sitting on the 240 rear tire and dreading the moment when it will come down to taming this hulking mechanic monster.

The vibrations of the 160 hp 1966 are violent; he pounds up and down so close to my knees that I can feel his heat. Caution, risk of burns. And the soundscape? Apocalyptic. In Europe, none of these rarities could travel even a kilometer without the driver being arrested and the motorcycle confiscated.

The Fighter weighs a slim 210 kilograms with a full tank, but it still requires a strong hand, is less handy and sporty than its sisters – compared to it, the Wraith rides like a bicycle. Because of the huge turning circle, steering maneuvers are quite tricky, the countless U-turns during the photo drives were hard work.

Folch

Edward Jacobs the designer of the Combat Fighter.

But from the very first start of the traffic light, you play with the huge torque of 182 Nm. When the hard clutch springs establish the frictional connection, the fighter seems to banish everything that otherwise moves around you in its place. Pulling the throttle provokes an immediate burst of strength and a violent thunderstorm, the driver fights hard to stay on the saddle and footrests.

Outside Birmingham, on the highways of Alabama, the stubbornness of the fighters is confirmed. It takes vigorous arm work to turn them into corners. And since the Fighter offers practically no contact surfaces with the legs, the driver cannot use them to help. Matt assures me that the later production motorcycles will behave much more pleasantly thanks to a modified shock absorber linkage and the resulting optimized chassis geometry. A livelier turning behavior and more feeling for the front wheel would not be an unnecessary luxury if you wanted to use the elemental force of the JIMS engine.

There is another good reason why you shouldn’t attack too vigorously with the Fighter and rather allow yourself a large safety margin: the brakes. At the front, a Brembo four-piston caliper bites shyly into an undersized carbon-ceramic disc. There is a brake at the rear, but it shines with almost no delay. Between the extremes of a poisonous brake, as Matt rejects, and the ensemble of fighters, another compromise could have been found.

All in all, the fighter driver can count himself lucky that the range on one tank of fuel is not too great. In any case, nobody will think of traveling farther than the next bar with such a precious, limited to 50 copies, which is about 75,000 euros expensive. Sure, a version for around 60,000 euros will be available soon, and an aluminum version of the Wraith is also available which should cost between 55,000 and 70,000 euros, depending on the engine power. Always elitist sums for objects with questionable driving dynamics that could easily be put in a collection of modern art.

A new Hellcat is the next step, then all three Confederate models will be offered with three engines each. Matt Chambers plans to set up a distribution network in around 40 countries and can even imagine developing an electric motorcycle and, literally, a three-cylinder five-stroke engine. You can see that the genius and exhibitionistic madness of Confederate are still not quiet.

Technical specifications

Folch

She has a graceful figure and a lot of power too.

Engine:
Air-cooled two-cylinder four-stroke 45-degree V-engine, crankshaft lying transversely, two underlying, chain-driven camshafts, two valves per cylinder, hydraulic valve lifters, bumpers, rocker arms, dry sump lubrication, constant pressure carburetor, mechanically operated multi-plate dry clutch, five-speed gearbox, chain.
Bore x stroke 104.75 x 114.3 mm
Cubic capacity 1966 cm³
rated capacity 117.6 kW (160 hp) at 5500 rpm
Max. Torque 186 Nm at 2000 rpm

Landing gear:
Tubular backbone frame made of aluminum, parallelogram fork, two-sided swing arm made of aluminum, directly articulated suspension strut, front disc brake, ø 300 mm, four-piston fixed caliper, rear disc brake, ø 250 mm, single-piston floating caliper.
Rims 3.00 x 19; 8.00 x 18
Tires 120/90 ZR 19; 240/90 ZR 18

Mass and weight:
Wheelbase 1625 mm, steering head angle 60 degrees, caster 101.6 mm, spring travel f / r 101/133 mm, seat height 685 mm, weight 210 kg with a full tank, tank capacity 15.1 liters.
guarantee a year
color Alu
price incl. Nk. 75,000 euros

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