The modern Brough Superior motorcycles are superior by name and superior by build and nature.

They are now being imported to Australia by industry stalwart Fred who has opened a showroom for the expensive bespoke machines in his business equipment offices at 6/281 Station Rd, Yeerongpilly, Brisbane. Click here for more details.

The model line-up is:

• SS100, $105,000 (Euro 3);
• SS100, $110,000 (Euro 4);
• Pendine Sand Racer, $105,000;
• Anniversary, $168,000;
• AMB 001, $185,000.

Feel the Superior quality

They may be expensive, but you can literally see and feel the quality.

For example, their traditionally shaped tanks are made of solid cast aluminium and are so thick they can be machined with all sorts of designs.

In fact, there is a lot of machined billet aluminium in the build from the fenders to the swingarm and forks.

The chassis is also machined titanium, plus there are exotic components such as Beringer brakes with quad discs — yes, that’s right four front discs!

Yet the bikes weigh about 186kg all up even though there are no lightweight plastic panels.

Unfortunately, my insurance wouldn’t let me take one for a test ride, but Fred did allow me a short ride around the warehouse carpark and suburban street.

Carpark test!

It was enough to convince me that this is a very special machine.

Fire it up and it snarls as only an 88-degree V-twin can.

Then you pull the clutch in and it feels so light you would swear it is not connected. It’s the lightest I have ever felt.

Click it into gear and the transmission feels more like some precision surgical equipment than a mechanical gearbox. 

A short trundle around the carpark and I’m sweating buckets worrying about dropping the machine.

But I’m also now considering crawling to the bank for a mortgage on the house!

Every detail of these bikes is immaculate, beautifully crafted and oozing with style.

There are virtually no panels to disguise messy wiring or components.

Everything is on show and everything is exquisite.

The craftsmen and women who build them are so proud, they have the name of each bike’s builder etched into a plate on the forks.

Even the bolts are all made of stainless steel.

We can understand that many collectors would be keen to buy them, but so far Fred says all their prospective customers have been motorcycle enthusiasts and riders.

SUPER SPORT 100 (SS100)

The SS100 is a cross between a café racer and a traditional sports motorcycle.

Only 300 units are planned.

PENDINE SAND RACER

In 1928, George Brough won a famous beach race at Pendine in Wales and in following years many Brough Superior victories were recorded there by other famous racers.

This new Pendine Sand Racer model pays homage to those victories with a very unique and contemporary take on a modern scrambler-styled motorcycle.

ANNIVERSARY

The Anniversary was created to celebrate the centenary of Brough Superior.

It is limited to just 100 numbered examples.

AMB 001

AMB 001

This creation is a collaboration with arguably the most famous British sports car brand, Aston Martin, who are now celebrating their 107th year of production.

Also limited to just 100 units worldwide, the track-only AMB 001 uses a turbo-charged version of the Brough Superior V twin engine and a unique chassis incorporating composite materials.

SuperSport 100 (SS100) tech specs

SS100

• Price: $110,000 (Euro 4) + on-road costs.
• Warranty: 2 two-year, unlimited-km (parts and labour); 2-year roadside assistance program.
• Engine: 997cc, 4-stroke, water-cooled, 88-degree V-twin; DOHC 4-valves per cylinder.
• Power: 75kW @ 9600rpm. 
• Torque: 87Nm @ 7300rpm.
• Gearbox: 6-speed, chain drive. 
• Weight: 186kg.
• Suspension front/rear: Fior-type cast aluminium wishbone fork with twin articulated titanium triangular links, and monoshock adjustable for preload and rebound damping, 120mm travel; cast aluminium swingarm pivoting in engine crankcases, with monoshock adjustable for preload and rebound damping and progressive rate link, 130mm travel.
• Brakes front/rear: 4x230mm Beringer stainless steel discs, 2×4-piston Beringer radial calipers; 1 x 230mm Beringer 4D stainless steel disc with 1 x two-piston Beringer caliper; ABS.
• Tyres: 120/70 – 18; 160/60 – 18.
• Length: 2180mm
• Height: 1108mm
• Wheelbase: 1540mm
• Fuel: 17.5-litre (4.5L reserve), 95 RON.

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com

When he started his motorcycle wrecking parts business under his house in 1971, Fred Drake probably never dreamed he would one day be selling $100k+ Brough Superiors to well-heeled riders.

Fred, 70, is now the first Australian distributor for the venerable British-now-French marque in more than 80 years.

He has opened a showroom for the expensive bespoke machines in his business equipment offices in the gradually gentrifying warehouse district behind Brisbane’s “Magic Mile of Motors” in Moorooka.

The model line-up is:

• SS100, $105,000 (Euro 3);
• SS100, $110,000 (Euro 4);
• Pendine Sand Racer, $105,000;
• Anniversary, $168,000;
• AMB 001 (track only), $185,000.

Click here for a short test ride and more info on these models.

Long Brough history

100th year anniversary model

Brough Superiors weren’t no longer being built when Fred was a lad.

George Brough stunned the world with his handmade machines of which he built only 3048 from 1919 to 1940 in Nottingham, England.

They were called the Rolls Royce of motorcycles and each SS100 model came with a certificate to prove it could go 100mph (160km/h).

Owners included such luminaries as Orson Welles, George Bernard Shaw and T.E. Lawrence (Lawrence of Arabia) who tragically crashed one at high speed and died.

Today, old Brough Superior bikes sell for around half a million dollars at auction.

1939 Brough Superior SS80

The brand lay dormant until 2008 when Austrian-based English businessman and motorcycle enthusiast Mark Upham bought the rights to the name.

In 2013 he enlisted French designer Thierry Henriette to build a modern-era SS100 prototype and the first Brough Superior motorcycles in seven decades rolled off the assembly line in France in 2016.

They are all handmade to order at a rate of one a day in Toulouse, France.

Broughs are powered by a 997cc, DOHC 88-degree V-twin built by French company Akira, who built the Kawasaki ZX-10R which won the World Superbike championship.

It comes as a 75kW unit but can be tuned up to 102kW at the customer’s request.

Importer of passion

Fred takes a spin on his SS100

Fred became the importer almost by accident.

“I saw them at the Paris Retromobile Classic Car show in 2019 and liked them,” Fred says. (https://www.retromobile.com/)

“I was interested in buying one. I like a naked bike where you can see the engine and the shape.

“To me the Brough captures the essence of the original 1930s bike, but in a modern machine.”

So he bought an SS100 and the company asked if he would also be interested in importing them.

After considering the business case with industry veteran Dale Schmidtchen, he went ahead with what he calls his “passion project”.

“I thought it would be a bit of fun,” he says.

“You park this bike anywhere and you instantly get people stop and say ‘wow’.

“I had it parked out front and two teenagers stopped to look at it, then a mum and her daughter admired it and then some older people.”

His “showroom” is just an office in a modern warehouse on Station Rd, Yeerongpilly, behind a trendy cafe shop.

You can drop in and have a look at 6/281 Station Rd, Yeerongpilly, but they don’t encourage “tyre kickers”.

In fact, you really need to make an appointment first.

Since all bikes are made to order, Dale says it could take about two months for customer delivery.

He and Fred expect they will sell anywhere from 10 to 25 a year.

About 60% of Brough Superiors are bought by collectors, but Fred says they are a joy to ride and should be ridden, not just admired.

Warranty and service

They will come with a two-year unlimited-kilometre warranty on parts and labour and two-year roadside assistance program.

There will also be an extended warranty offer.

They may be expensive to buy, but Fred says they are no more expensive to maintain than any other bike.

He will stock service spare parts and order in other parts as needed.

There won’t be a dealer network as such, but a network of preferred dealers to do the handover and servicing. 

Dale has also sourced a selection of finance and insurance options for customers.

Now check out the tech specs.

 

Source: MotorbikeWriter.com