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Confederates’ New Plan as Curtiss Motorcycle Co.

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Confederate Motorcycles is to become the Curtiss Motorcycle Company. We reported on this story back in August already, so loyal Asphalt & Rubber readers should know that the news comes with the twist that the new company will focus on motorcycles that have electric drivetrains, provided by Zero Motorcycles.

Not much beyond those details was available at the time, and admittedly we don’t have a plethora of new information about this boutique American brand at this point in time as well, but we’ll share with you what we do know.

First of all, Curtiss Motorcycle will ultimately have a bike for a wide range of pocketbooks, not just the uber-rich that were serviced by Confederate. Curtiss’ first bike will be called the Hercules, and it is scheduled to drop on May 5, 2018.

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News

Confederate Motors Changes Names, Goes Electric

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We are in the final days of Confederate Motors, as the Alabama-based company just debuted its last motorcycle: the FA-13 Combat Bomber. Once the uniquely styled cruiser is sold out though, a new company will be formed: Curtiss Motorcycles.

The name Curtiss is a nod to aviator Glenn Curtiss, who before he battled with the Wright Brothers for control of the sky, was an avid motorcycle builder and motorcycle racer.

Like its namesake, Curtiss Motorcycles will be looking to the future, and thus its first model will be an all-electric motorcycle.

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Pierre Terblanche Leaves Confederate for Royal Enfield

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It’s been 18 months since we reported Pierre Terblanche moving from Norton to Confederate Motorcycles, and now the South African is on the move again. Terblanche’s travels take him this time to India, where he has landed a position at Royal Enfield.

The Indian company is in the middle of a growth spurt, having recently acquired 50 acres of land to host their factory expansion. It’s not clear what sort of projects Terblanche will be working on while at Royal Enfield, but we can get an idea from the designer’s latest work, the Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster.

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Bikes

Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster – By Pierre Terblanche

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The Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster is the newest motorcycle from the venerable “Southern” brand, and that’s enough of a pedigree for the machine to grace the pages of Asphalt & Rubber, but this latest incarnation of the Hellcat line also happens to be the first work by a certain Pierre Terblanche, who became Head of Design at Confederate not too long ago.

Based around the same 132 cubic inch (2,163cc) v-twin engine as the previous Hellcat models, the Speedster is good for 121hp and 140 lbs•ft of torque. The styling is true to the Confederate canon, though Terblanche’s touches can certainly be seen in the details of the machine.

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News

Pierre Terblanche Joins Confederate Motorcycles

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When we last caught up with Pierre Terblanche, the he had left a frustrating position with the Piaggio Group, that saw the South-African creating several intriguing concepts for the Moto Guzzi brand that never saw the light of day, and he was thus headed to work for Norton.

With work there being a non-starter, rumors pegged Terblanche coming stateside to work for Confederate Motorcycless, but with those rumors over a year old now, we assumed the thought to collaborate with the Southern marques had passed. However, our inbox today tells us that seems not to be the case, as Confederate Motorcycles has announced that Pierre Terblanche is the company’s new head of product development.

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News

Confederate Motorcycles to Stay in ‘bama

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Talking to the Birmingham News, Confederate Motorcycles spokesman Clay Morrison said that the boutique motorcycle firm will remain in Alabama, opting not to return to its origin of New Orleans. Expecting its best sales year ever, Confederate was reportedly offered $750,000 by the City of New Orleans to return to the bayou, but with most of its staff based out of Birmingham now, not to mention the supplier and vendor relationships the company has created in the Southern state, Confederate has decided to stay-put.

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Bikes

Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat Gets Rendered – Due Date Pushed Back to Q2 2011, Price Increased

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Confederate is readying its next iteration of its Hellcat series, posting these CAD renderings of the Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat on its website. Originally set to debut on Halloween of this year, Confederate has pushed back the launch date to the second quarter of 2011. For a bike that seemingly only exists on a computer screen, Confederate is being rather cheeky with its tech specs, simply stating that the new Hellcat will have 145 lbs•ft of torque, while listing the horsepower as “sufficient”.

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Bikes

Confederate Black Flag – The P120 Fighter is Now Available in Black

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Confederate Motorcycles has taken 13 of its P120 Fighter motorcycles and given them the black-out treatment. Hoping to draw the ire of old ladies around the United States, the P120 Fighter looks even more sinister in black than its bare-metal counterpart. If you want one of these special edition “Black Flag” P120 Fighters you better hurry up though, only nine bikes are left on the reserve. Check the photo goodness after the jump.

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Bikes

Confederate C3 X132 Hellcat – Brought to You by New Orleans and S&S Motors

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After creating the F131 Hellcat, B120 Wraith, and P120 Fighter Combat, Confederate Motor Company announced at the New York International Auto Show its fourth motorcycle: the C3 X132 Hellcat. Built in conjunction with S&S Cycle (better known for its S&S motors), the new Hellcat is being touted as “the lightest, fastest, toughest, smoothest, most exquisite Hellcat, ever”, which isn’t as lofty of a statement as you’d think considering there’s really only two other motorcycled to compare the new Hellcat to: the two older Hellcats.

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Racing

BUB: Confederate P120 Fighter Heads to Bonneville Looking for Another Land Speed Record

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Confederate Motorcycles is back on the Salt Flats of Bonneville, looking to for another land speed record in the A-PF 2000cc push-rod and unfaired class.

In 2008, Confederate broke the previous 141 mph record with their B120 Wraith motorcycle, clocking 166.459 on the dried salt. This year, Confederate hopes to smash their own record with their new P120 Fighter.

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Bikes

Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance: Confederate P120 Fighter Combat Official Launch

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Asphalt & Rubber spent the weekend in Monterey, drinking flutes of champagne with the rich and marginally famous. Despite rubbing elbows with our eledged betters, we did get to see the first ever showing of motorcycles on the greens at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

As such, there were plenty of motorcycles around the course, and Confederate Motors picked the locale for the public unveiling of their new P120 Fighter Combat. Our invitation to the event must have been lost in the mail, but we still managed to get some photos of the new bike in the flesh.

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