Schlachtwerk Puts Kawasaki W800 On Extreme Weight Loss Diet, Turns It Into A Sprinter

The Kawasaki W800 has a heritage which goes all the way back to the late ’60s and '70s, something that only a few motorcycles can boast about. However, German custom shop Schlachtwerk thought that the W800 needs to drop its retro design and adopt a minimalist look. Meet ‘Wasabi’, a custom W800 that is ready to burn the dragstrips! 

If we hadn’t told you that it's based on the 2012 W800, it would’ve been a helluva difficult task for you to recognise it in this form as almost every component has been changed. For instance, the double-cradle frame seen on the standard bike has been altered to make it as low and long as possible. Even the rear subframe has been built from scratch to suit its dragster character.

While the rear suspension is a custom unit, the telescopic fork has been borrowed from the W650 albeit with some changes. To make sure that the Wasabi sticks to the tarmac, Schlachtwerk has used Continental tyres with Berlinger 4 pistons at both ends with a 320mm disc at the front.

There are hundreds of videos online where you can see a custom drag-spec bike with a huge powerplant, but the Wasabi is a different species. Because the only thing that the custom house has done is increased the cubic capacity from 773cc to 854cc, tweak the engine a bit and add a titanium exhaust system. Thanks to this, the power output has increased from 45PS to 75PS! This might sound too less, but considering that the company has gone all-out in terms of weight savings, we expect it to be quite fast. Well, not quite as fast as this custom Suzuki Hayabusa, but fast enough to scare the rider.

The best part about the Wasabi is that it’s road-legal! It’s got indicators, a headlight and a tachometer. Agreed, with that committed riding position and that thin seat, it will be back-breaking for someone to take it out for a weekend ride. But if you do, this skeletal Kwacker will surely help you boost your Insta game.

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