To the locals, the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna is simply the place they call home, but to the rest of the world it’s known as ‘Motor Valley’, the home of Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati, Pagani, De Tomaso, Dallara and of course Ducati. When it comes to objects of automotive beauty, simply nowhere else on earth can compete. The rivalries of old are largely gone as cross-ownership and collaboration have become the modern way of doing business. In recent times, Lamborghini and Ducati have been working together to create some incredible motorcycles, and inspired by these offerings, Bali’s Treasure Garage decided to test themselves with the same task. The result is this incredible 2013 Ducati Monster, that has been expertly transformed into a supercar-like stunner – the likes of which we’ve simply never before seen.
To understand why the two Italian companies work so closely together, it makes sense to know that Lamborghini in fact is the owner of Ducati. The supercar maker is owned by the German car company Audi, which is then owned by the Volkswagen Group. So, we should count ourselves lucky I guess that those companies haven’t tried to build a two-wheeled Kombi, as a retro remake. But what these companies have been doing is taking two already exceptional but expensive Ducati bikes in the Diavel and the Streetfighter, and offering them in a Lambo spec, based on the Siàn FKP 37 and Huracán STO respectively.
Largely what you get however is a limited edition Ducati, with a Lamborghini paint scheme and a price tag that will have your bank manager immediately on the phone asking, “Have you lost your mind?”. But in Indonesia, as we have seen across much of South East Asia in recent years, they not only have the imagination to dream up an actual motorcycle to supercar transformation, but the incredible skill to pull it off. And this is exactly what Imanuel ‘Nuel’ Prakoso the owner of Treasure Garage set as the challenge for his impressive team, and they don’t do it by buying in bits from overseas, they make them all under one roof.
So rather than copy what has already been done before, Nuel turned to his designer @Garinca_Bali and set him the task of coming up with an original concept. Drawing inspiration from the legendary video game Gran Turismo, the concept Lamborghini Vision GT stood out as the perfect muse on which to base one hell of an Italian motorcycle. And in the ten-year-old Ducati 796, the guys had the right foundation. The tubular steel trellis frame would not only ensure everyone knew exactly what this bike’s bones were, but the narrow 803cc engine also offers plenty of room to add bodywork without building something that was garishly wide.
Stripped down to the trellis frame, the stock subframe was ditched and the decision was made to push the visual elements truly into the hypercar space. To achieve this something special would have to be crafted and the entire rear end started its life as a single block of billet alloy. This was one of the most challenging aspects of the build, without the high-end 5-axis machines that the big companies rely on, expert drilling and milling was a slow process. But the result is incredible and sets the standard for the rest of the bodywork to come.
Following the design to a tee, each piece is hand-shaped from sheets of aluminium to bring to life the Lambo lines. Below that new subframe, the hugger features a host of intricate shapes and angles, which are then picked up in the belly pan that helps to encase the L-Twin engine. That air-cooled motor sports two grilles with alloy end capping, one to flow air to the oil cooler and the other to help control the temperature of the leading cylinder. But it is above where the real magic happens, and the detail in the tank cover, wings and ducts alone help to explain why this machine’s build time was a solid nine months.
Words simply can’t do justice to the quality of work achieved with relatively simple tools, but then you see the bike from the front on, and you can’t help but be amazed at the way the Treasure team have breathed an entirely new life into the humble Monster.
The twin light setup, with a distinctive nose separating the LED projector eyes, and a shark-like mouth feature with a lower jaw formed by the front fender is the zenith of zoomorphic styling; especially when combined with the gills that have been added into the side fins. The paintwork is straight from the Italian team’s playbook, with gold and matte black serving as the accents and then a Lamborghini green as the premium primary colour.
Yet another incredible feature of the build is the lighting, with most of these elements made from hand-shaped and cut acrylic that is then backlit with the appropriate LED lighting. The front screen too is made this way and the built not bought philosophy even continues through to the rear brake fluid reservoir which has been beautifully crafted. The engine gets a hop up with open intakes and an exhaust featuring an HP Corse rear muffler, while braking is now all by Brembo.
The real achievement here is that the Treasure Garage team were not only able to draw inspiration from the highest level of OEM production, and then build their own all-Italian hybrid. But that they’ve truly taken the concept to all-new heights and are helping to put Bali on the map as its own Motor Island of incredible creations.
[ Treasure Garage ]