With new motorcycles getting bigger each year—and, by extension, progressively more expensive—it might just be up to small-capacity bikes to save the industry. But while Western manufacturers like Triumph and Harley-Davidson have only just started dipping their toes into these waters, companies in the East have made small bikes their bread and butter.
TVS Motor Company doesn’t produce a single bike over 312 cc. But they’re India’s third-largest motorcycle manufacturer, sell around three million units annually, and own Norton. They also helped develop the BMW 310 R and 310 GS—and then put that same motor in the TVS Apache RTR 310.
A sibling to the fully-faired RR 310 sportbike, the TVS Apache RTR 310 is a naked roadster with frenetic streetfighter styling. Its 312 cc single-cylinder mill makes 35 hp and 27.8 Nm, and it features a six-speed transmission, a slipper clutch, ABS, multiple rider modes, and a 5” TFT display. Optional extras include everything from fully adjustable suspension and tire pressure monitors to a full array of IMU-controlled electronic rider aids.
Aesthetically, the TVS Apache RTR 310 is pitched squarely at the young street culture crowd. So when Smoked Garage was commissioned to customize an RTR 310, they leaned into that concept, heavily.
Taking inspiration from stunt motorcycles, the Indonesian custom shop redesigned the RTR with an insectoid look that would make KTM’s designers blush, and nicknamed it the ‘Trickster.’
The first step was to strip the donor bike down to its bones—exposing its trellis main frame and sculpted aluminum subframe. Smoked used modeling clay to work out the RTR’s all-new bodywork, before hand-shaping the final parts out of aluminum.
A new six-liter [1.6-gallon] fuel tank forms the centerpiece of the build, with a ‘hollow’ rear section that adds visual and physical lightness. Two sculpted side panels flank the front of the tank, creating just the right amount of forward bulk to juxtapose the scooped knee indents. Up top, the gas cap sits in a recessed section of the tank, with the bike’s TFT display relocated to just in front of it, leaving the cockpit slightly less cluttered.
A series of side panels and radiator shrouds guide the eye downwards, where a custom-made spoiler abbreviates the bottom section of the RTR. Each part complements the next, giving the whole arrangement a Transformer-esque vibe.
The rear half of the bike is so well put together that it feels like an OEM design. A blank-off plate under the tank’s open section wraps neatly around the front edge of the factory subframe, while the back edge of the subframe tucks into the handmade tailpiece. A skinny, three-piece saddle sits up top.
The tail is capped off with a rear crash bar and a pair of foot pegs, for standing wheelies and other shenanigans. A pair of LED tail lights is embedded out back, tucked up against the bike’s custom-made under-seat muffler.
Moving to the front, Smoked fabricated a one-piece fork guard and brace. Higher up, an LED headlight sits behind a mesh-lined nacelle. New risers and bars finish off the cockpit, matched to the RTR’s stock controls.
Keen eyes will also spot an additional brake lever on the left side of the bars. It controls a second rear brake caliper, making it possible to control wheelies when your feet aren’t on the pegs. Smoked also upgraded the front wheel with a second disc brake, using Tokico calipers all around.
The Trickster’s yellow and silver livery takes cues from one of the stock bike’s colorways and extends to parts like the trellis frame and brake calipers. Just like the RTR’s new bodywork, it’s a bold choice—but one that will likely pay off, given the bike’s target audience.
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