Confederate Motorcycles have had an interesting history since first kicking off in ’91. Founded by Matthew Chambers, who was a trial lawyer by trade before starting the exotic American manufacturer. Confederate bounced around, calling some half a dozen locations its factory/HQ, including Louisiana, California, Alabama, once having their facilities destroyed in hurricane Katrina. Despite being founded in 1991, Confederate’s first model wouldn’t roll off the production line until the end of 1994, going on to produce more than 500 Hellcat units until 2001 when the moco would go bankrupt.
Confederate would bounce back in 2003, marking its return with the second-generation Hellcat, of which less than 100 would be produced. After Katrina in ’05, Chambers would move headquarters to Birmingham, Alabama. The following year, the company would begin offering a more accessible third model that boasted a much more reasonable price tag. In 2013, the elite two-wheel manufacturer would move into a larger more state of the art facility, still in Birmingham. Since then Confederate Motorcycles has continued to produce ultra-exclusive exotic American two wheelers, giving birth to scoots that are equal parts art and motorcycle.
In recent years the company’s name has become increasingly toxic. The company is also currently being sold as an OTC (penny) stock, suggesting the moco may be testing the waters to determine if being publicly traded is viable, or it’s simply too small to be traded on major exchanges. Granted my grasp on stock-related stuff is tenuous at best so I could be way off on this. My point being this may be one of a myriad of reasons that lead to Confederate opting to change its name to Curtiss Motorcycles. The new moniker comes from famed aviator and two-wheeler: Glenn Curtiss, who set multiple motorcycle speed-speed records. Whether or not you feel the old name was in poor taste, it’s impossible to deny that it held the company back from all sort of marketing opportunities.
In addition to the moco’s name change, Confederate – or Curtiss rather – will go further in a new direction, with the recent announcement that all future Curtiss machines will be powered by an electric power plant, a trait that comes in stark contrast to the previously muscular looking engines at the heart of the company’s previous offerings. Instead of starting from scratch, Chambers has instead called upon the folks over at Zero Motorcycles who have already developed what is arguably the best electric motorcycle currently on the market. According to an article in the LA Times, Zero and Curtiss are aspiring to release an e-cruiser that will make a supposed 175hp and 290ft-lbs of torque.
Though previous Confederate models have undeniably pushed the envelope when it comes to motorcycle design, beefy internal combustion engines have always been the centerpiece of Confederate’s two-wheeled, six-figure works of art. Replacing the exposed mechanical components with large square batteries that are pretty dull and uninteresting by comparison will require a complete new look and style that will have to abandon the moco’s prior models. 175hp and 290ft-lbs of torque might be enough to sway affluent buyers, despite the aesthetic loss of the V-twin, albeit I seriously doubt most owners of Confederate machines purchased their bikes for the machine’s performance.
Motorcycles are a fantastic example of beauty in form and function and Confederate Motorcycles encapsulate this wonderfully. Though great artistic liberties are taken, everything that can be seen serves a functional purpose, giving the elite cruisers a cohesive character and a uniquely bad-ass look. The sounds this large V-Twins produced furthered that bad-assery, and to me the addition of batteries in lieu of a gas-engine takes away almost everything that makes Confederate bikes what they are. Though the design team at Confederate/Curtiss has blatantly proven themselves to be wildly talented and creative and thus very well may possess the chops to create a fully electric cruiser with an appearance that is as impressive as the performance figures it boasts.
The last Confederate motorcycle was recently unveiled, the limited edition, $155,000, 150hp, FA-13 Combat Bomber (not to be confused with the P51 Combat Fighter). Only 13 units were made, and even with its steep price, because it’s the final motorcycle from the renowned manufacturer in this style, they’ll likely get gobbled up quick. But before Curtiss starts painting its name on (faux) gas-tanks of future models, there is still a chance to nab one of a handful of Confederate motorcycles powered by good old fashioned internal combustion engines.
Though I’m pretty sure Confederate went bankrupt in ’01, this first example – which is the cheapest of the four I’m featuring – is nonetheless a 2002 model, A Confederate America GT, which is powered by a 115hp S&S 113 (1852cc) engine, with only 4,505 miles on the odo. This example also sports Marchesini wheels, an inverted fork , a hydraulic Primo Rivera Brute High performance drive dry clutch and a five-speed transmission with Andrews gears. The next example is a 1996 Confederate bike that also boasts a 113” V-Twin. The tank is 100% carbon fiber, a two-up saddle has been added, and this example has 6,700-miles on it. The seller lists the bike as an “RT” but I’m pretty sure it’s a Hellcat.
The next most expensive example is from 2012 and is a HellCat X132 model with around 300 miles on it. It’s powered by a 132” S&S V-Twin that makes 121hp and 140ft-lbs of torque. It also has aftermarket exhaust, handlebars, and “reservoirs”. This Speedster model was one of only 65 produced. The X132 came stock with 48mm WP fork, Beringer four-piston monoblock brake calipers with dual floating rotors, and BlackStone Tek carbon-fiber wheels. This example – with only 300-miles – is a pretty decent deal, as it’s being sold for roughly half of its original $65,000 price.
The final and most expensive Confederate Motorcycle example is a brand spankin’ new 2017 “Blonde Edition” G2 P51 Combat Fighter with around 500 miles on the odo. The Confederate factory has supposedly already sold out of these machines that are powered by a 2,163cc air-cooled V-Twin that makes 145hp at 5,100rpm and 160ft-lbs of torque at 2,000rpm. Despite the bike weighing 560lbs wet – which is pretty light for a machine with a 2,000cc+ engine – it still boasts a reported top-speed of over 160mph which is beyond decent for this type of machine. Interestingly the Combat fighter is supposedly carved entirely from solid billet blocks of military-grade aluminum which is ridiculously trick, albeit that comes at a hefty price in the six figure range.
You can find the 2002 Confederate America GT for sale here on Craigslist in Colorado Springs, Colorado with a price of just $11,000.
The next example which is a 1996 Confederate HellCat (I think) is for sale here on Craigslist in Orange County, California with a price of $17,000.
You can find the 2012 Confederate X132 Hellcat Speedster for sale here on Craigslist in Santa Monica, California with a price of $33,000. Like the Storz H-D trackers I featured recently, this machine is for sale at the Motoattic.com.
You can find the final 2017 Confederate G2 P51 Blonde Edition Combat Fighter for sale here on Craigslist in Malibu, California with a price of $105,000.