Cafe9 Ducati

CAFE9 DUCATI

It's not often (okay, never) that one hears "feng shui" associated with motorcycle design. But Caté9 mastermind Robert Steffano is not like most motorcycle builders.

"It's got lines that are very unusual," he says. "You know feng shui that's done in houses? I'm kind of trying to do that with bikes. I want to draw people in and make them comfortable." The northern California resident has for years been turning out one-off, café-racer-inspired modern sportbikes under the ACME Rocket Bike banner (see "Art in Alloy," January, 2004, for the ACM E/Ducati "969"). But Steftano decided to go limited production with the Café9 project. Claimed weight for the 999based machine is 375 pounds, with output said to be 150 horsepower. Bodywork is molded from aerospace-grade carbon-fiber while the seat cover is made from stingray hide. A signature piece is the exhaust/tailsection resonator with side outlets. Price as shown is $74,850 and, yes, upgrades are available. -Mark Hoyer -