Bengaluru hosts vintage motorcycle show; over 200 rare bikes on display [Photos]

Bengaluru is hosting a two-day vintage motorcycle show with over 200 bikes at UB City. Here you can catch a glimpse of the 1920 BSA Pointing to one of the vehicles used by Hitler's armed forces. The show was inaugurated by Kannada actor Puneet Rajkumar on Saturday and the first day attracted a footfall of over 600 visitors. 

It is being organised by the Federation of Historical Vehicles of India (FHVI) and Fédération Internationale des Véhicules Anciens (FIVA) on the occasion of International Motorcycle Week.

Jointly sponsored by UB City and The Prestige Group, the show has vintage bikes from Royal Enfield, Jawa, Yezdi, Harley Davidson, Indian, Nortons, Triumph, BMW, BSA, Matchless, AJS, and Lambretta. Rare bikes like Velocette, Cossack, Douglas, CZ, JAP, Cezeta, Micoletta, Norman, and NSU were also showcased in large numbers.

This is the first time FIVA, an official partner of UNESCO, is organising the event in India. According to Dr. Ravi Prakash, the president of FHVI, "This event is the first step to preserve royalty and the beauty of vintage motor and its craftsmanship." He added that the motto behind such kind of shows is to provide its viewers the understanding of the complex high-end motors.

The event showcased vintage bikes ranging from 1900s to late 1980s. The biggest attraction in the event was the introduction of a Zundapp, a vintage of 1936 from Germany. It is the only one available in a working condition in the world. It is a bike from the Hitler's army from World War 2. The bike fuses in it a power of 650cc, hand gear, shock driven, boxer twin engine.

The event also showcases the very first cycles named, Bone Shakers and Panny Farthing dating back to 1860 and 1870, respectively. The event allotted special attention to a few companies which were the benchmark to the evolution of motorcycles. The oldest collections of FHVI consisting of a Douglas (1920), an AJS H7 (1927), a BSA (1931) was showcased together with the vintage cycles.

The presence of several high-profile motorcycle manufacturers with their collections, the vintage motorcycle show had plenty going for it. Here is a quick roundup:

Harley Davidson

There were multiple bikes displayed by the brand with one of the oldest being the two cylinder v-twin engine, Knucklehead EL vintage 1937. There were many classic models and also racing models like 1983-XR 1000 in the display.

Royal Enfield

The company took the grandeur of showcasing its very first continental GT models and the Interceptors. The company also displayed some of the newer models like the army brown classic and the bullet.

TVS

Boasting of its renovations on the Apache RR310, the company made it obvious with their display of the vintage and the recent release, the changes and what the company has changed so far.

Jawa

The major attraction by the company was the 660cc continental vintage display. Adding into the flavour was the 350cc twin engine. The relative newer varieties are flooding the market but the vintage relatively gives a greater grandeur.

Ariel

The company boasted mostly of its single sitter, double engine carriers in the show. The British motor company showcased a variety ranging from 350cc to 500cc carriers. The Red Hunter classic and the Ariel Square Four MKII classic were the main attractions because of their elongated looks. The 400cc, Ariel Sloper also attracted a lot of people.

BMW

Though the company did not showcase many vintage carriers, the classic models described the grandeur of the company. BMW R100RS and 900cc classic gave the show a different charm of luxury craftsmanship. The other attraction was the 400cc, BMW R4, stamped in 1934.

Indian

The famous cruiser manufacturing auto company displayed an astonishing range of single sitter classic models. The visitors were awed by seeing the look of the double cylinder carrier.

Triumph

The UK manufacturer displayed its twin cylinder Tiger models and the 500cc classic models. The major attraction was the sand brown, 350cc Triumph 3HW.

BSA

The company played the trump-card role for the show. Its contrast displays ranging from cycle mopeds to classic bikes and bullets were displayed with the other competitors in the auto industry. The company showed by the way of their display, what they rolled, through the years of progress. The major attraction for the viewers was the 1980's bond street carrier. The attractions were the BSA James, 150cc vintage stamped in 1938, the BSA BB 33 stamped in 1933 and the BSA 500cc sidecar, stamped in 1928.

Panther

The company displayed one of the motorbikes from 1947. The carrier is completely rusted but is kept in factory condition to retain its vintage grandeur. The other attraction was the 75cc Panther model from 1955.

Some of the other vintage motors on display are a 350cc AJS from 1925, 500cc Sunbeam from 1949 and 500cc Sunbeam S7 from 1951.