Ural Destino custom outfit

With Ural set to celebrate 70 years of production in 2012, Ural Australia thought the occasion deserved something special - and what could be more special than one of their sidecar outfits given the full Destino custom treatment?!

Destino had already proved their mettle in the inaugural JUST BIKES Bobber Build Off, and have gone on to produce a swag of bobbers, choppers and other outstanding custom builds. Jonathan from Ural Australia got in touch with Jimmy B and Nik at Destino and set the wheels in motion for a custom build based around their 'Tourist' model.

The first - and most important - question around the Ural/Destino custom outfit was exactly what style to do it in. Ural gave Destino a fairly open brief, simply to take one of their practical and fun adventure bikes and give it a facelift. The main criteria Ural set Destino was that it be ready for the Sydney Motorcycle Show in November.

With the Ural range established as rugged off-the-beaten-track machines, the Destino team thought of turning the Ural Tourist the other way - to create an 'urban' outfit. Of course, café racer is virtually a synonym for urban, so what could be cooler than a café racer-style Ural Tourist?

Current model Urals have combined the classic sidecar shape and the all metal body and guards with plenty of new technology. While they do have a 'retro' look already, the brakes, electrics, bearings, seals, carburettors, alternators, shocks and more are all brought in to Russia from Japan, Germany, Italy and Austria to assemble what is now a very reliable adventure outfit. However, while it's sturdy and reliable, you couldn't really say it's cool. Enter Destino!

Rather than go the 'wild' route of some of their recent customs, Destino decide to go a little milder for this one, but still with enough custom touches to make it easily distinguishable from a stock Tourist model.

Ural like the fact that a lot of their bike's components are 'on show', so you can watch the open drive shaft revolve and the throttle cables, clutch cable and hi-tension plug leads are out there where you can see them and adjust if necessary. For Ural this accessibility serves a practical purpose as it makes servicing an easy task, but for Destino, this suited the stripped-back café racer look they had in mind for the project.

The first stage in achieving that look was stripping some of the 'chunkier' bits of the Tourist design. This included removing the front mudguard, mirrors, sidecar screen and sidecar indicator lights. Recognising the practicality of the Ural sidecar tub, Destino left it largely untouched, but removed the rear-mounted spare and added some cool louvres to the storage lid. Pop that louvred lid and you've got a storage area illuminated in fairy light LEDs that look cool and are practical, too, making loading gear for that night time 'ton up' run easier!

Because it's an outfit, you can't neglect the passenger, and Destino made sure the passenger travels in supreme comfort thanks the completely handmade passenger seat. With a deeply-padded squab and backrest, in old school-style double tuck 'n' roll-style pleating. The new high-backed Destino custom sidecar seat is a real treat for the passenger. To keep the theme going, the sidecar interior is lined in the same double tuck 'n' roll material. In keeping with the stripped-back theme, the sidecar's weather curtain was left off, but can be easily clipped on if need be.

Moving onto the bike itself, the first thing you notice about the body is that humpback solo seat. A seat like this is really 'Café Racer 101', so it was a mandatory inclusion on this build. Modified to fit the size of the Ural, the shape also blends well with the form of the Ural fuel tank, which was untouched. The same tuck 'n' roll upholstery from the sidecar is carried through to the rider's seat to keep the theme consistent across both 'parts' of the outfit.

The chunky dual-purpose tyres on the factory-spec Ural Tourist didn't suit the Café Racer look, so Destino replaced them with a set of Avon Speedmasters that look better and are more tarmac friendly, too. These slimmer-profile tyres show the attention to detail Destino that put into this build. Combined with that was a Brembo caliper on the ventilated front disc for greater stoping power. An old-style vintage cigar exhaust completes the olds school look.

Lights were next on the agenda. While the headlight was fine, and plenty powerful enough, Destino thought they could do better with the surrounding bezel. You'll notice on the factory Ural Tourist the speedometer sits proud of it. Killing two birds with one stone, Destino painted the shell bezel and bracket in one colour, and modified the bezel so the speedo gauge sat within it. The gauge itself was replaced with a vintage Smiths unit to add a neat retro touch.

The chunky side and tail lights definitely didn't suit the sleek look that Destino had in mind, so they had to go! On the sidecar mudguard, circular LEDs front and back are compact, yet bright, while the custom brake/tail light is a subtle half-moon shape that doesn't detract from the shape of the humpback seat and overall look of the bike, yet still provides strong illumination. Bullet indicators front and rear complete the package.

For the rider, the stock bars have been replaced with a set of custom bars. The wider spread and increased reach & pullback compared to the stock items may seem subtle, but the folks at Ural tell us they make a difference, enhancing what is already a light steering action and accentuating the "rider in control" position. The bars were coated black for no other reason than it looks cool!

With all the mods made and custom pieces in place, it was time to choose the style and colour of paint. This could really make or break the project, so Destino had to consider this one carefully. The temptation may have been to go for the classic 'Manx Norton' silver, but Destino chose something a little different. Applying what they'd already done on their 'LSL Clubman', 'Dark Horse' and other customs, the Ural was treated to a gloss black and maroon two-tone scheme, with white coachlines adding that old school touch. Because it follows the lines of the tank, seat back and sidecar tub, it works well, accentuating those shapes without reverting to the usual scallops, flames, or OTT pinstriping.

Both Destino and Ural Australia were pretty happy with the end result, and it was displayed with pride at last year's Sydney Motorcycle Show.

The Destino Ural Café Racer shows just what can be done with a sidecar outfit like the Ural Tourist. Destino have proven that a custom outfit can be cool and something different for a bit of urban adventuring. For Ural Australia, they see custom projects like this, and other modern takes on the sidecar outfit as a way of opening up sidecar outfits as an option for present and future generations. Most people have a parent, grandparent or uncle who had a sidecar outfit 'back in the day'. With cool customs like the Destino Ural Café Racer, Ural can see the next generation creating their own stories of sidecar adventure.

Ural is the only sidecar bike built as a unit and available here in Australia. The frame geometry is designed for a sidecar outfit, the frame is stronger, sidecar mounts are efficiently located, leading link forks fitted on the front and heavy spokes are already standard because side loads are greater. For more details on Ural's sidecar range, go to www.imz-ural.com.au