Tomahawk bike finally gets green light from Chrysler
UPDATE: Chrysler denies that the Tomahawk's going to be produced. The source blog, however, is sticking to its story.
click on image to enlarge
Who could forget the Tomahawk concept bike that debuted at the 2003 North American International Auto Show? I was present at the show and standing right next to monstrous motorcycle as then DaimlerChrysler COO Wolfgang Bernhard swung his leg over the 8.0-liter V10 engine and turned it on. The aural assault from a completely exposed Viper engine is something you don't easily forget. Word is coming out of Edmunds' Straightline blog now that the Tomahawk, which is essentialy the Viper V10 with four skinny wheels and a handlebar, is going into limited production as a Chrysler model. The 500-horsepower Chrysler Tomahawk will likely cost at least $250,000, though that number's not official and we don't know how many will be built.
Large high resolution gallery and video of the Tomahawk being ridden can be found after the jump.
[Source: Straightline Blog]
click on any image to enlarge
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
Menzi 3:46AM (11/10/2008)
This bike is incredible, this is a true reflection of humankind non-imaginary thinking ability, engineering power and skillfull design. thumbs up to these guys.
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David 12:16PM (9/11/2006)
I'm trying to work out what's cooler; 500 horsepower or the fact that you can park this bike without a kickstand.
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Greg 12:23PM (9/11/2006)
Can I be the first to say that this bike looks stupid?
I mean come on, the photo of the guy riding it looks stupid, the concept is stupid, the appearance looks stupid too!
I like bikes, but this isn't a bike, it's more of a result of some overpaid engineers working for Chrysler, driving up their costs with concept production with absolutely ZERO to gain in the profit arena.
Shareholders of Chrysler/Benz should be furious over this total waste of time and effort.
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epilonious 12:23PM (9/11/2006)
*cough* ahem.
HOW THE HELL DOES THIS BIKE TURN?
In all of the promotional material, the bike is pointed straight forward. The two wheels side-by-side look like they would prevent any sort of leaning seen in normal bikes... and the center of gravity seems to be rather high given to that 8.0 litre V10 so I question it's ability to stay upright...
it seems like this thing should be taking curves (heck, even highway turns) strapped to a trailer than under it's own motivation.
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Kent 12:32PM (9/11/2006)
Greg - You were the first, I'll be the second. You can barely get the power to the ground with all of the rubber underneath the Viper. Why would you ever try it with those skinny tires? Drag-bike maybe. Production? No way.
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Adam Singer 12:34PM (9/11/2006)
First of all you would have be borderline suicidal to drive this thing. Second, look at the size of the contact patches that have to put the power/torque from that 8 liter motor to the pavement...can you say burnout machine?
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Greg 12:36PM (9/11/2006)
Kent, thumbs up to ya!
I was hesitate at first to even post my thoughts, because I don't want to sound like a grumpy old man or anything.
It's good to know that not everyone is drinking the Kool-Aid.
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bartman 2:30PM (9/11/2006)
And people wonder why the "American" automakers are tanking it in... building stupid looking things for small markets that don't result in any sort of market share gain. I wonder when before Daimler let's Chrysler finally die....
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Noah 12:42PM (9/11/2006)
Has anyone seen this turn? Lane changes don't count...
It doesn't even look like it's fun to ride, I'll keep my Buell thanks :P
And for anyone who cares you can already get an 8.2L bike from Boss Hoss. See http://www.bosshoss.com/ for details.
--Noah
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SoloTwo 12:47PM (9/11/2006)
Whens the last time something with 4 wheels was called a bike? Last time I checked thats called a car.
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Shawn 12:56PM (9/11/2006)
The bi-wheels pivots (like // or \) to allow this thing to turn. (I'm not so sure what to call it since it has 4 wheels).
It is just an oddity. Nothing more. It is pretty lame once you get over the initial "What da f&%#!" factor. However, there's plenty of posers with $$$ will to buy it for that alone.
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CW 1:07PM (9/11/2006)
YOW !!!
Can you say "new land-speed record" ?? !!
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gerrynjr 1:11PM (9/11/2006)
Sure... build this POS... but dont built the "non-profitable" jeep gladiator or hurricane.
Seriously, Chrysler has some serious management issues it needs to deal with.
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Cody 1:20PM (9/11/2006)
I can not believe I'm the first person here to say; this looks so damn cool. Holy shit, I want to ride one!
What the hell is wrong with you guys?
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Nick 9:24PM (9/12/2006)
I think it looks cool by itself, but looks dumb in motion with a person uncomfortably sprawled across it. I can't believe they'd make this. I had to check the calendar and see if today was April Fools. The only thing I can think is they must have a pretty confident # of pre-solds at that $250k price to make a business case for this.
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Corey W. 1:22PM (9/11/2006)
Greg,
You're far from alone!!
My first question, WHY NOW?? There was never any plans for this to be production.
Ok, so you got a couple 1000 people screaming build this thing, so you make a limited production and charge $250,000...WTF??? I can get a new Vette, Viper, ChargerSRT8 and a top of the line crotch rocket for that!! Don't get it twisted, it's an interesting design, but's it's not all that!!
This deployment seems like the whole GT500 fiasco, Toyota is stomping Ford and DCX, with just their normal offerings, stop with the halo vehicles crap. You get media points but it's not gonna pull people into your dealerships.
BTW: It looks like the front wheels pivot off the upper and lower control arms, the middle one seem to be the tie rod/turning actuator thingy....I think, just a quick guess, but it still looks like the turning radius would suck.
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GDUB 1:23PM (9/11/2006)
i know americans are getting fatter but is it really nessary to add 4 wheels and a viper motor to get people going these days.
fattastic.
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fygar 1:32PM (9/11/2006)
You guys are a bunch of wimps. Who cares if it's practical or not? The whole reason to make this thing is to push the envelope. And it will become an instant collector's item when it goes to market b/c you know they won't make a lot of them. So, anyone who buys it will have living proof that they have the balls to ride it and Chrysler had the balls to make it.
You want something to grip about? Gripe about the Porsche Cayenne... or the goddam Hummer... those are POS embarrassments to the auto industry and to the owners who actually bought them.
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NissanSucks! 1:33PM (9/11/2006)
Wasn't the Tomahawk sold in limited non-street legal versions last year through some Neimen Marcus partnership for $500k?
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Nick 1:34PM (9/11/2006)
Chrysler really needs to take a better look at some of the things they are green-lighting. Obviously all my opinion, but the new Sebring is HIDEOUS, no words can describe my feelings for the Nitro, and the Compass is a monstrosity for the Jeep brand and should never have seen the light of day as a Jeep vehicle....and now this.
I guess it looks pretty cool, for God's sake...leave something like this to a custom chop shop....this is just silliness. Now you're going to blow even more dollars on full-scale production. Chrysler has some great vehicles, but...wow...just, wow.
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