Quasar (motorcycle)
Encyclopedia
The Quasar was a semi-enclosed feet forward motorcycle, created by Malcolm Newell and Ken Leaman,
who made a number of similar vehicles.
It used an 850 cc engine built by Reliant Motors
and was capable of cruising at 90–100 mph (145–160 km/h) and exceeding 100 mph in favourable conditions.
with a roof which goes over the rider. While normally not a problem, tall riders with larger, more modern helmets could have trouble fitting inside although it was also possible to carry a passenger with an intimate squeeze. In the front of the bike the laminated glass
windscreen had car-style windscreen wipers and a heater. The use of a semi-enclosed 'cockpit' caused blindspot
s where the driver had to move his head around to make sure visibility
was not obscured by the screen supports in corners. There was 60 litres (2.21 cubic feet) of storage space behind the rider and wrap-around panniers were available as a factory option. Ingeniously, they were no wider than the narrow mirrors.
named the "Revolution" failed, forcing him to close his motorcycle shop in Devizes, called Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
, Malcolm Newell met Ken Leaman while on holiday in Scotland, and the two combined forces to design and build the first Quasar prototype. The first production Quasar was sold in December 1976, having been built by Ken and Malcolm at Wilson Brothers of Bristol
, where Ken was employed full time. Wilson kept the rights to the machine, although Ken did all the work on it in his own time.
Though they had launched a publicity campaign to gain interest in the bike, even after they began to receive inquiries Wilson Brothers did not provide enough funds for production to meet demand. Between December 1976 and October 1979, they only produced a total of six vehicles. In 1980, John Malfoy, who had originally designed the Quasar's unique fluorescent rear light, persuaded his employers, Romarsh, of Calne
, to manufacture five Quasars under licence from Wilson Brothers. All five vehicles were sold by December 1981, and a further batch of ten was prepared starting in August.
When Romarsh collapsed, John Malfoy bought the remaining parts and assembled several more machines and Malcolm Newell independently made at least one more from parts. Only 21 Reliant engined Quasars were produced, but Newell went on to build several more in his own workshop at Field Cottage, in Heddington
. These later Quasars were fitted with motorcycle engines and several also had a Bob Tait-designed hub centre steering system, as did some of Malcolm's Phasars. The later machines included several with Suzuki GS
engines, both chain and shaft drive, a Honda VF750 powered machine and one with a Kawasaki Z1300
6-cylinder engine. Malcolm also produced a whole range of Phasar machines powered by engines from the Honda Goldwing
and VT500
, Moto Guzzi
V50 and Convert, Z13, and Yamaha
LC250 and 350. He was working on a leaning trike, with two narrow leaning front wheels when he died in 1994, aged just 54.
Malcolm Newell and three Quasars were featured in a BBC TV
motoring programme Top Gear which was broadcast on April 14, 1988. The same programme also featured the first public outing of Royce Creasey's prototype Voyager, which was a roofless development of the Quasar, and the Oekomobil/Ecomobile fully enclosed motorcycle made in Switzerland by Arnold Wagner's Peraves company. The item was written and presented by bike journalist Paul Blezard who bought a Quasar of his own in 2005 and sold it in 2010 to buy Ian Pegram's Genesis, a kind of modern Quasar with the safety features of BMW's C1 roofed scooter. The original Quasar featured in the Top Gear programme was owned by enthusiast Mark Crowson, who has taken on the job of preserving and improving the Quasar heritage left by Malcolm Newell and the late John Malfoy. Crowson owns several Quasars and Phasars two of which are both lighter, faster and better handling than the originals and has also refurbished many others with help from his brother John Crowson. He and is white Quasar were featured on the cover of the July 2000 issue of Classic Bike magazine, inside which there was an eight page feature on the machines by Paul Blezard and a further couple of pages of reminiscences about Quasars by multiple world champion Phil Read, who picked up his MBE from Buckingham Palace after riding a Quasar there wearing top hat and tails.
www.bikeweb.com
who made a number of similar vehicles.
It used an 850 cc engine built by Reliant Motors
Reliant
Reliant was a British car manufacturer. The company was traditionally based at Tamworth in Staffordshire, England, but in 2001 it moved to nearby Cannock. It ceased manufacturing cars shortly afterwards.-History:...
and was capable of cruising at 90–100 mph (145–160 km/h) and exceeding 100 mph in favourable conditions.
Design
In the Quasar, the rider sits feet forward or feet first, changing the usual position of the rider from on top and straddling the vehicle, to inside and sitting down. Unlike most motorcycles, the Quasar was a cabin motorcycleCabin cycle
A cabin cycle is a form of land vehicle with a hull that wraps around the basic bicycle or motorcycle design. Unlike traditional designs, the chassis can be moulded to reduce drag when travelling at high speeds. Some 3-wheeled variants are commonly known as auto rickshaws or tuk-tuks. In Czech...
with a roof which goes over the rider. While normally not a problem, tall riders with larger, more modern helmets could have trouble fitting inside although it was also possible to carry a passenger with an intimate squeeze. In the front of the bike the laminated glass
Laminated glass
Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that holds together when shattered. In the event of breaking, it is held in place by an interlayer, typically of polyvinyl butyral , between its two or more layers of glass. The interlayer keeps the layers of glass bonded even when broken, and its high...
windscreen had car-style windscreen wipers and a heater. The use of a semi-enclosed 'cockpit' caused blindspot
Blindspot
Blindspot is a fictional mutant character in the Marvel Comics Universe whose first appearance was in Rogue vol. 3 #7. She was created by Tony Bedard and Karl Moline.-Fictional character biography:...
s where the driver had to move his head around to make sure visibility
Driver visibility
In transport, driver visibility is the maximum distance at which the driver of a vehicle can see and identify prominent objects around the vehicle. Visibility is primarily determined by weather conditions and by a vehicle's design. The parts of a vehicle that influence visibility include the...
was not obscured by the screen supports in corners. There was 60 litres (2.21 cubic feet) of storage space behind the rider and wrap-around panniers were available as a factory option. Ingeniously, they were no wider than the narrow mirrors.
History
In 1968, after his previous idea for a trikeTrike
Trike can refer to:* Trichloroethylene* Tricycle* Three wheeled car* Three wheeled motorcycle* Ultralight trike, an ultralight aircraft with a hang glider style flexible wing* Trikke* Triceratops* Trike, an album of Bob Log III...
named the "Revolution" failed, forcing him to close his motorcycle shop in Devizes, called Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang: The Magical Car is a children's book written by Ian Fleming for his son Caspar, with illustrations by John Burningham...
, Malcolm Newell met Ken Leaman while on holiday in Scotland, and the two combined forces to design and build the first Quasar prototype. The first production Quasar was sold in December 1976, having been built by Ken and Malcolm at Wilson Brothers of Bristol
Bristol
Bristol is a city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, with an estimated population of 433,100 for the unitary authority in 2009, and a surrounding Larger Urban Zone with an estimated 1,070,000 residents in 2007...
, where Ken was employed full time. Wilson kept the rights to the machine, although Ken did all the work on it in his own time.
Though they had launched a publicity campaign to gain interest in the bike, even after they began to receive inquiries Wilson Brothers did not provide enough funds for production to meet demand. Between December 1976 and October 1979, they only produced a total of six vehicles. In 1980, John Malfoy, who had originally designed the Quasar's unique fluorescent rear light, persuaded his employers, Romarsh, of Calne
Calne
Calne is a town in Wiltshire, southwestern England. It is situated at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs hill range, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
, to manufacture five Quasars under licence from Wilson Brothers. All five vehicles were sold by December 1981, and a further batch of ten was prepared starting in August.
When Romarsh collapsed, John Malfoy bought the remaining parts and assembled several more machines and Malcolm Newell independently made at least one more from parts. Only 21 Reliant engined Quasars were produced, but Newell went on to build several more in his own workshop at Field Cottage, in Heddington
Heddington
Heddington is a village near to Calne in Wiltshire, forming part of The Oldbury Benefice, which comprises the 5 parishes of Cherhill, Compton Bassett, Heddington, Calstone Wellington and Yatesbury....
. These later Quasars were fitted with motorcycle engines and several also had a Bob Tait-designed hub centre steering system, as did some of Malcolm's Phasars. The later machines included several with Suzuki GS
Suzuki GS series
The Suzuki GS series is a line of motorcycles featuring air-cooled parallel-twin and Inline four engines with two or four valves per cylinder. The GS-range of models are considered to be examples of Universal Japanese motorcycles. The range of motorcycles in the series had engine displacements...
engines, both chain and shaft drive, a Honda VF750 powered machine and one with a Kawasaki Z1300
Kawasaki 1300
The Kawasaki Z1300 was a water-cooled six-cylinder 1300 cc Kawasaki motorcycle that was manufactured between 1979 and 1989.-History:The Kawasaki Z1300 was manufactured in several models referred to as Z1300, KZ1300, ZG1300 and ZN1300...
6-cylinder engine. Malcolm also produced a whole range of Phasar machines powered by engines from the Honda Goldwing
Honda Goldwing
The Honda Gold Wing is a touring motorcycle designed and manufactured by Honda. It was introduced October 1974, and went on to become a popular model in North America, Western Europe and Australia. Over the course of its history, it has had numerous modifications to its design. In 1975 it featured...
and VT500
Honda VT series
The Honda VT series comprises motorbikes with two-cylinder V engines. More sporting V engined bikes are given "VTR" model numbers. Four-cylinder V-engined Hondas are designated VF or VFRs, while Honda motorbikes with inline engines mostly belong to the CB and CBR series.* VT125C* VT250* VT250F*...
, Moto Guzzi
Moto Guzzi
Moto Guzzi is an Italian motorcycle manufacturer. It is one of seven brands owned by Piaggio.Established in 1921 in Mandello del Lario, Italy, the company is noted for its central historic role in Italy's motorcycling manufacture, its prominence worldwide in motorcycle racing, and a series of...
V50 and Convert, Z13, and Yamaha
Yamaha Motor Company
, is a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company. Yamaha Motor is part of Yamaha Corporation and its headquarter is located in Iwata, Shizuoka. Along with expanding Yamaha Corporation into the world's biggest piano maker, then Yamaha CEO Genichi Kawakami took Yamaha into the field of motorized...
LC250 and 350. He was working on a leaning trike, with two narrow leaning front wheels when he died in 1994, aged just 54.
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
motoring programme Top Gear which was broadcast on April 14, 1988. The same programme also featured the first public outing of Royce Creasey's prototype Voyager, which was a roofless development of the Quasar, and the Oekomobil/Ecomobile fully enclosed motorcycle made in Switzerland by Arnold Wagner's Peraves company. The item was written and presented by bike journalist Paul Blezard who bought a Quasar of his own in 2005 and sold it in 2010 to buy Ian Pegram's Genesis, a kind of modern Quasar with the safety features of BMW's C1 roofed scooter. The original Quasar featured in the Top Gear programme was owned by enthusiast Mark Crowson, who has taken on the job of preserving and improving the Quasar heritage left by Malcolm Newell and the late John Malfoy. Crowson owns several Quasars and Phasars two of which are both lighter, faster and better handling than the originals and has also refurbished many others with help from his brother John Crowson. He and is white Quasar were featured on the cover of the July 2000 issue of Classic Bike magazine, inside which there was an eight page feature on the machines by Paul Blezard and a further couple of pages of reminiscences about Quasars by multiple world champion Phil Read, who picked up his MBE from Buckingham Palace after riding a Quasar there wearing top hat and tails.
Legacy
Although the Quasar lacked funding to continue production and only 21 of the original design were ever made, it is still well known in the feet forward motorcycle motorcycle community. Riders of Quasars still gather at bike meetings, with about 10 still on the road.External links
- Quasar World
- Malcolm Newell's FFs - Also includes customized Quasars.
www.bikeweb.com