EICMA 2015: Victory Motorcycles Ignition concept

Italian manufacturers may call EICMA their home turf, but why should that stop an all-American two-wheeler brand from trying to steal some of their thunder. And that’s exactly what sofa-on-wheels maker Victory Motorcycles did with the breathtaking Ignition concept this year. Looking more like it rolled out of the skunkworks of a master custom builder than through doors zealously guarded by bean-counters, the Ignition is utterly gorgeous in our eyes. And that is because it has been created by legendary European custom bike builder Urs Erbacher for Victory. 

But more than the design itself, it is what powers the Ignition that is more significant here. This is the production version of the same engine that powered the Project 156 motorcycle up Pikes Peak last summer. Designed to deliver the “strongest power and performance in its class” the 1200cc unit itself will be revealed in its full glory at next month’s Progressive International Motorcycle Show in New York City. Until then, power and, more importantly, torque figures are strictly hush-hush.

Coming back to the Ignition concept, it is built around a cast aluminum chassis, with performance suspension and brakes, and a Project 156-inspired paint scheme. Erbacher, its Swiss creator, says, “I’m proud not only of this build, but what it represents for the future of the Victory Motorcycles brand. Getting full reigns to wrap the new engine in an interesting bike is a real highlight in my career, and from what I can see any production bike utilizing this powertrain will be a fantastic ride.”

“Project 156 is a purpose built racer that took our engine design to one of the most challenging races on the planet – it was a proving ground like no other that set the bar very high for our team,” says Victory Motorcycles General Manager Rod Krois. “This engine platform, which uses designs from other Polaris products having sold over 200,000 engines, will deliver on the promise of modern American muscle that is in the DNA of every current and future product we sell. Victory will continue to aggressively plot a new course for itself and where an American motorcycle brand can go.”

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If Victory Motorcycles, now owned by Polaris, does uses this engine in an upcoming motorcycle that looks half as good as this Ignition concept, we’re queuing up for one, even if we’ve to move to the USA for that.