Hey Flash! This was covered in the last BMW Riders Association (RA) On The Level mag … don’t you remember their comments on the Cologne show coverage done by the MOA people—RA made a big issue out of MOA not covering the Chihuahua!

According the OTL, the Chihuahua is based on an 1800cc version of the new BMW twin and has a Maserati Birdcage type space frame modified to use the drivetrain as an integral frame component. It was estimated that the frame is built up from approximately 8347 soda straw sized titanium tubelets, each being between 1" and 5" long; this results in two major frame components that together weigh in at 2.853 Kg. This bike also had a mono-post trailing arm front suspension with 100% anti-dive/anti-rise geometry built in! It was able to do this without resorting to any suspension movement snubbers or other weight adding components.

The Chihuahua is reported to have a fairing laminated out of radar frequency (10.5 and 24 GHz) absorbant multilayered foam, such that the bike will not reflect any more radar signal than an aluminum framed Trek bicycle, this results in a 80% reduction in the range at which the bike can be clocked by police radar; this is assuming that the rider does not have metal framed eyeglasses.

As an aid in direction finding the Chihuahua will be equipped with dual front disk brakes, pre-drilled at the factory, with a red tinge on the left disk rotor and a green tinge on the right rotor. The rotors will be acceptably large to permit engagement with San Francisco cable car tracks to allow cornering on rails when desired.

Overall, the Chihuahua weighs in at 241.3 lbs, and with the nominal horsepower figure of 162 that was quoted for the 1800cc twin the bike should actually arrive on the showroom floor with acceptable performance capabilities. It is estimated that the Chihuahua will out accelerate a P-51 Mustang from rest to any speed achievable by the Chihuahua; and further, the Cologne show exhibit had an action film showing that the Chihuahua could accelerate downhill quite a bit faster than acceleration achieved by an object in free fall.

The Chihuahua included options of things such as the Venison-Be-Gon™ deer whistle, a holder for the DoD auctioned bra, and a cellular phone based SPAM system to permit real time posts to wreck.motorcycles on the front and rear tire pressures.

OTL went on to say that word on the street says the Chihuahua will show up in dealer showrooms early in spring of 1993.

One of those fine specimens appeared at the Great Pacific Northwest Dryside Gather last August. It must have been a pre-production version. Neat looking little critter. I had a friend take plenty of pictures. Unfortunately, after developing the film, I discovered that in each case a Toyota truck had been parked directly in front of the Spagthorpe. Such is life.

Charlie Smith charlie@elektro.cmhnet.org csmith@dsac.dla.mil whois ces10
MOA# 52888, RA# 15633, DoD# 0709, AMA# 574722, Buckey Beemers 411, BK Ohio V
BMW K1100-LT, R80-GS/PD, R27, Triumph TR6
Soon to include Spagthorpe Chihuahua
Columbus, Ohio