The Vincent concept by Aleck Jones was one of the highlights of the 2014 Coventry University transportation design show. The futuristic sports bike not only presents creative design solutions but also revives a historic British motorcycle brand which ceased to exist in 1955.
Vincent Motorcycles had been known for building fast bikes with innovative components since its inception in 1928. The company built its own suspension and developed highly efficient engines. That innovation was something Jones wanted to depict in his concept.
“This concept shows where the brand would be had it continued trading,” says Jones. “At the time they boasted high performance and engineering content, that’s really what I wanted to show here.”
The Vincent concept is an exercise in minimalism, the extreme ‘naked’ bike where all of the functional elements are on display; a working piece of art where every minute detail has been carefully examined to lend an uncompromising form alluding to the performance capabilities within.
Partly inspired by the Arial Atom and Vyrus 986 M2 race bike, the new Vincent embraces the brand’s history and the elements that defined it, evolving the latter into a package worthy of the 21st century. The design plays on the key aspects of a Vincent: high performance, prestige, craftsmanship and innovation. With this in mind, Jones sought to employ a 200bhp hybrid powertrain to create a high-performance machine, which highlights the alternate thinking expected from the brand.
The concept is as much an engineering project as a design one. Jones spent a great deal of time researching not only what the brand’s values were — so he could build upon them — but also how the concept could be realistically built.
Aesthetically the bike tests typical motorcycle convention, with features such as push-rod
suspension (a practical and visually appealing solution typically found on sports cars), front swinging arms and rear in-wheel braking components. All these elements help generate a design that not only performs exceptionally against current motorcycles but stands out as something special. Titanium, aluminum and carbon fiber components also communicate the company’s historically-backed avant-garde approach.
“I like the look of parts and seeing how things function,” says Jones, who developed the design from 127 parts (and 96 bolts) based on the functional components of the bike. “I wanted to showcase the parts so people could to look at and appreciate them”.
