Late in 2024 Black Cycles Australia unveiled the V-Racer — a radical Harley-Davidson V-Rod café racer concept brought to life after nearly a decade of inspiration. The bike was revealed at its home base, Donut Garage in Sydney. Check it out… Press: Donut Garage Photos: Pat Stevenson.

The story began at Throttle Roll in September 2023, when founder and director of DGR and Donut Garage, Mark Hawwa,  was overseeing the selection of 50 of Australia’s best custom motorcycles. Among the standout entrants was Black Cycles Australia, led by Brisbane-based builder Noel, who arrived with an extraordinary six hand-crafted machines. One build, however, planted the seed for something bigger — a reimagining of the Harley-Davidson V-Rod, a model traditionally transformed into muscle choppers rather than anything remotely café-inspired.Hawwa, a lifelong café racer enthusiast and founder of The Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride, had long envisioned a V-Rod with true sportbike intent. When the idea of a “V-Rod café racer” was floated, Noel was immediately on board. The project officially began later in 2023 after sourcing a low-kilometre 2006 VRSCD import from Japan, with Hawwa committing fully to the concept.The brief was daring but clear: retain the brute power of the V-Rod while reshaping it into a lean, aggressive café racer — something that looked like a never-released Harley-Davidson prototype. Achieving that meant extensive chassis and geometry changes, including reducing the factory 38-degree rake to a sportier 34 degrees. Rebuilt GSX-R forks from Ride Dynamics, custom CNC-machined triple clamps by MDS Fab, billet clip-ons, Beringer brakes, Motogadget electronics and Renard switches set the tone at the front.Custom 18-inch tubeless spoked wheels from Canyon TT Wheels anchor the build, matched with Metzeler Marathon Ultra tyres in a bold 120/200 combination. At the rear, Popbang Classics re-engineered the drive pulley to mirror the wheel design while resolving long-standing V-Rod swingarm clearance issues. YSS Australia supplied bespoke rear suspension, built precisely to suit both rider and machine.The bodywork is equally impressive. Carbon fibre features throughout, including fairing elements and panels, while the fuel system was completely redesigned, replacing the under-seat tank with a custom unit beneath a reworked tank cover. A raised rear frame, bespoke aluminium tail section, hand-shaped fairings and a meticulously prepared paint finish complete the transformation.A handmade 316 stainless steel exhaust system — comprising more than 45 individual sections — provides the visual and mechanical centrepiece, while countless bespoke aluminium components and Cerakoted finishes elevate the build to true showpiece status.

The V-Racer was unveiled at Donut Garage, Hawwa’s newly launched automotive and motorcycle hub, setting the tone for future “house builds” to come. It’s a statement piece — not just a motorcycle, but a vision realised.BikeReview will be bringing you a full in-depth feature on the V-Racer very soon, diving deeper into the engineering, design and riding philosophy behind this extraordinary Australian custom build. Stay tuned.

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