2012 Bonneville 1200 Cafe Racer Project

Converting an air and oil-cooled Bonneville to a 1200cc carbureted cafe racer!
ENGINE & TRANSMISSION
  • Type – 2008 Triumph Air/Oil-cooled, 8-valve, DOHC, 360° crank angle parallel-twin
  • Displacement – 1200 cc
  • Bore – 101
  • Stroke – 74
  • Compression – 11:1
  • Max Power – 110 HP @ 9200 rpm Dyna Jet wheel dynamometer
  • Max Torque – 92 LB-FT @ 4,850 rpm Dyna Jet wheel dynamometer
  • Intake System – Twin 45mm Smoothbore Mikuni HSR Carburetors
  • Ignition – Triumph Twin Power 39.5-degree advance BTDC 9200 rpm rev limiter
  • Exhaust – D&D/BP/Custom polished 2-into-2 exhaust system with twin reverse cone silencers
  • Final Drive – RK 525 black and gold O-ring chain
  • Clutch – Barnett wet, multi-plate assist clutch
  • Gearbox – 5-speed
Chassis
  • Frame – Mono-shock tubular steel suspension style mono-shock 26-degree steering head
  • Swingarm – Twin-sided, aluminum – show polished with black striping
  • Front Wheel – Canyon Cycles 12 spoke billet
  • Rear Wheel – Canyon Cycles 12 spoke billet
  • Front Tire – 120/55 Dunlop Q4
  • Rear Tire – 180/55 Dunlop Q4
  • Front Suspension – Öhlins 43 mm USD big piston forks, fully adjustable 4.7 in (120 mm) travel
  • Rear Suspension – Fully adjustable Öhlins TTX mono-shock with integrated reservoir 4.7 in (120 mm)
    rear wheel travel
  • Front Brakes – Twin 310 mm Beringer floating discs, twin Beringer 4-piston radial-mount calipers
  • Rear brakes – Beringer Single 220 mm floating disc, Beringer 2-piston caliper
  • Instrument Display & Functions – Moto gadget multi-functional instrument pack with digital speedometer, analog tachometer, clock, trip computer, rpm top speed per trip, scroll, and mode buttons on handlebars
Bodywork & Paint
  • Omega Racer hand-formed aluminum café style gas tank, seat section, and fairing
  • Paint by Chad Chambers, Daytona Beach
Dimensions & Weights
  • Width – Handlebars – 29 inches
  • Height – Without Mirror – 41 inches at the handlebar – 47.5 inches top of the fairing
  • Seat Height – 32 inches
  • Wheelbase – 57 – 59.5 inches
  • Rake – 26 degrees
  • Trail – 3.87 inches
  • Dry Weight – 440 pounds
  • Tank Capacity – 3.5 gallons

VIDEOS

Interview with Bill Gatley – Bonneville Performance – Builder

Video Narration by Beringer Brakes

DECEMBER 2019

Progress photos of the air-cooled 1200cc polished engine build for our monoshock cafe racer project.

Engine cases and covers in their final polished state.

AUGUST 2019

These photos show our project progress in August 2019. The frame is ready to be coated and the cantilevered seat design completed.

July 2019 – Frame & Suspension

Bonneville Performance began this project in July 2019. It consists of converting a 2012 Bonneville into a carbureted 1200cc, air, and oil-cooled cafe racer. This first series of shop photos show our custom-designed alloy swing arm being located and set up for a mono-shock rear suspension.

More progress is made on the rear suspension and brake linkage and front engine mounts.