Supermoto Truck

"flatisflat" (flatisflat) 10/05/2020 at 21:27 • Filed to: None

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Supermoto is effectively putting sportbike tires on a dirtbike (a reductionist view, yes).

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If we were to apply this ethos to a truck, what would you choose to start with? How much of a ‘dirtbike’ starter truck would you go with? How extreme on the ‘sportbike tire’ side of street performance would you take it?

The Crazy Kanuck; RIP Oppositelock > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 21:36

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Start with a Ranger(or M azda equivalent ) , cheap & plentiful. RS4's & send it.

sony1492 > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 21:36

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Id start with a 2wd and highest output motor available,  lower it, stickier low profile tires/bigger rims, bigger sway bars, harder bushings

krustywantout > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 21:58

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Wouldn’t that be a Raptor with street tires? It’s hard to imagine other off road vehicles that could potentially be both. Only other candidates would be rallying cars that are basically the super moto in the cager world.

Jim Spanfeller > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 22:06

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So... Like restomod trucks?

If it were me building a sporty truck like you describe, I’d start with a Dodge Rampage and either give it a complete Honda Civic Type R drivetrain or swap in the front and rear subframes of a Miata. 

flatisflat > krustywantout 10/05/2020 at 22:10

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Yeah, a street-bound Raptor (redundant?) would be a good candidate, but far from the only.   As pointed out elsewhere, something like an older Ranger with some good mods could be an interesting (and about a thousand pounds lighter) option.

bob and john > sony1492 10/05/2020 at 22:11

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the thing with super motors is you dont lose the suspension. 

flatisflat > Jim Spanfeller 10/05/2020 at 22:14

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Supermoto’s tend to focus on retaining their dirtbike cred (suspension travel, minimal to no fairings) but with just the added traction of streetbike tires (and often upgraded brakes, swingarm geometry to match). So restomod might not be a good one-to-one correlation. I’d say ‘trophy truck for the street’ is more applicable, but trophy trucks are a bit  extreme.

Jim Spanfeller > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 22:17

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So... Just a regular truck with sport tires? Brodozer on racing slicks :D

sony1492 > bob and john 10/05/2020 at 22:21

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How much do the spring rates change?

flatisflat > Jim Spanfeller 10/05/2020 at 22:26

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Basically!  But which one would you choose?  :) 

flatisflat > sony1492 10/05/2020 at 22:28

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I thumbs up your entire mod list minus the ‘lower it’ option.  That altogether is exactly what I’d figure a supermoto truck formula to look like.

Exage03040 @ opposite-lock.com > krustywantout 10/05/2020 at 22:30

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The Raptor is a bit cumbersome. Supermotos are lighter than many street bikes and usually don’t have a large engine. Basically the requirements will be small/light, off-road bias with a longer travel suspension, and can be beaten up and thrashed pretty good .

Depends on the base but new trucks you’d want something like a ZR2 or maybe a something milder like a Gladiator, Tacoma TRD, Frontier Pro 4X.

Older/Used you want something even smaller like a Ranger or S10/S15 with some off-road pack...

I’d go with a 80's ‘yota pickup SR5 and then throw some sort of summer tire/wheel on it.

sony1492 > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 22:30

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BEHOLD

bob and john > sony1492 10/05/2020 at 22:35

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they dont. super motors are LITERALLY dirt bikes with slicks. 

Jim Spanfeller > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 22:36

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THIS:

I un ironical ly love this truck and want to build one of my own someday. Brodozers aren’t usually my thing, but if it’s a 6os/70s-era truck with the front end of a medium-duty truck, I love it. Specifically, I’d love to do this with either a Blazer or a Suburban :) And it’s already a widebody, so why not lower it and give it race tires as well?

flatisflat > Jim Spanfeller 10/05/2020 at 22:43

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I wouldn’t categorize it as a ‘supermoto truck’ (race tires or not),  but that is quite the beast!

flatisflat > sony1492 10/05/2020 at 22:43

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Yes!  But with more suspension travel.  :) 

Jim Spanfeller > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 22:49

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How about...

Austin A35 Pickup:

But like this:

flatisflat > Jim Spanfeller 10/05/2020 at 22:54

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Oh my, those are adorable.

The more I’m looking into it myself right now, it feels like an older Ranger / F-150 Pre-Runner setup (but with semi-slicks) is rising to the top of my list.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 23:15

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The greatest issue with this is the problem of most truck rear suspensions being leaf springs that are tuned to carry payload which is why using a Raptor as the basis makes to much sense... however, down here in Oz, Ford made one even better from the factory....

I'm aware of a few of these now with later Barra turbo engines...Falcon RTV for the latecomers.

atfsgeoff > flatisflat 10/05/2020 at 23:20

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UNIMOG ON SLICKS

flatisflat > SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media 10/06/2020 at 00:02

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Yeah, stock trucks in general I’d wager don’t immediately lend themselves to this desired end. Shocks / springs can be changed; I’d be more curious about a truck that might come with a watts link from the factory for best axle placement.

Oooooor, Honda Ridgeline Supermoto?

flatisflat > atfsgeoff 10/06/2020 at 00:03

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YES.  Sorta.  :P 

krustywantout > flatisflat 10/06/2020 at 07:27

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It hurts my head thinking about it. Just feels wrong because as it was pointed out, supermoto bikes are light and trucks are the opposite of light. An old stadium truck would work but those are far from street legal.

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > flatisflat 10/06/2020 at 08:23

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You get a star for the Ridgeline idea...

Pickup_man > flatisflat 10/06/2020 at 09:16

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Shortbed d ent- side highboy. In stock form it’s not going to perform well, but the look would be right with some street wheels/ wide low profile tires. If you want to get crazy with it put a pre runner suspension on it to get the handling up to par. 

flatisflat > krustywantout 10/06/2020 at 13:03

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And that’s why I wouldn’t automatically recommend the Raptor.  But something like a regular cab ‘08 Chevy Colorado with some upgraded suspension?  Feels more in line with the idea.