Spirit Motorcycles offers yet another way to spend big money

Spirit Motorcycles has obviously seen the writing on the wall.

In an age where the motorcycle industry is quickly separating into low-spec, high-volume models or high-end, expensive bikes, Spirit Motorcycles has opted for the latter approach.

The upstart manufacturer from the UK has just announced its first models, and lo and behold, they have one characteristic that’s shared by most boutique bikes these days: They’re expensive.

The base model (GP Sport) will have an £44,999 MSRP, and the upscale GP Sport R will sell for £68,999. Adding the Track Pack (upgraded suspension and electronic rider aids, mostly) brings the price up another £10,000. Should the bikes ever come to Canada, you can count on likely getting hosed on the exchange rate, but frankly, we doubt that will ever become a problem for any of our readers. These machines are likely not going to come here.

But say you’re in a position to buy one: waddya get for your hard-earned dosh? You get a three-cylinder sportbike, with a modified Triumph 675 engine, stroked to 750 cc.

That bump in displacement, combined with some tricky tuning, can get the motor to as high as 180 hp — not bad, considering that motor makes about 126 hp in stock form.

The chassis is adjustable (headstock can be shifted with included spacers, to change rake and trail, and the swingarm has an adjustable pivot point and the linkages can also be tweaked to user preference). Wet weight is 140 kg, without gas.

In essence, you’re buying a street-legal Moto2 bike, and it was designed to advance British roadracing, according to Spirit’s bigwigs. It’s an intriguing idea, as for years, the buzz has been about Honda’s “street-legal MotoGP bike,” an experiment that left many disappointed. Despite the high prices in the Spirit Motorcycles lineup, the bikes are still far more affordable than the RC213V-S, and more powerful in standard trim. Kind of makes you think.

GALLERY

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The Spirit GP Sport R looks good on the spec sheet, although the price might hurt.