Something New: A Wild Custom WR450F With An Exoskeleton Subframe

Southern France’s Le Motographe have transformed Yamaha’s go-to 450 enduro into a radical, exoskeletoned, street-legal custom that its makers are calling an “extreme scrambler”.

Seldom are motocross bikes the basis of full-on custom jobs, and even when they are, most are comprised of upgraded running gear, aftermarket exhausts, and vibrant graphics packages, rather than fully transformative one-off builds like we see with almost every other genre of two-wheeler. Something about the geometry of the chassis, the narrow shape of the bike, the minimalistic bodywork, and uniquely shaped seat and tank all make customizing MXers an uphill battle. Despite the aforementioned hurdles, Montpellier, France’s Le Motographe opted to tackle Yamaha’s WR450F, giving the proven enduro a bold new appearance without compromising its renowned offroad prowess.

The Project & Basis

This particular 2004 WR was the result of a client in Los Angeles who requested an off-roader that was also fully street-legal. While there are some fine machines from the likes of KTM, Husqvarna, Honda, and Suzuki, the two-man team that constitutes the LM staff went with the Blu Cru’s road-legal, 449cc, four-stroke thumper. The engine was treated to a new custom airbox with K&N filtration and a bespoke full exhaust system culminating in a short one-off can that bares the inscription, “The Sound and the Fury”. Together the two new respiratory components reportedly give the liquid-cooled single another five horsepower, bringing peak output to a claimed 55hp.

Exoskeleton and Features

Next one seriously impressive, exoskeleton-style subframe was fabricated — all in-house of course — and then attached to the Japanese MXer, enshrouding the entire machine in stylish crash protection, very much including the radiator. A headlight bracket that supports a custom LED unit matches the new structural work was also cooked up and tacked into place, and out back a set of small circular LED lights are positioned on either side of the bespoke tail, acting as both the taillight, brake light, and indicators. A one-off fuel-cell was also created, along with a new MX-style saddle upholstered in red leather.

For what should be obvious reasons the Frenchmen decided to leave the metal bare and free of paint. They did however engrave the basic factory instructions onto the top of the custom fuel-cell, which can be seen when the seat is removed. The tail swing-arm, and a few other raw metal components were engraved with the client’s name, the shop’s name and logo, and the Tuning Fork Brand logo. A tiny little beak of a front fender was also created for the build and fixed beneath the headlight.

Odds & Ends At The End

Finally new pegs and levers were sourced, as was new classic set of MX bars. From there the suspension was adjusted for the kind of off-road riding the client plans on doing, as well as for said client’s weight. The custom bike itself now clocks in at 22lbs (10kgs) less than the stock ’04 WR450F, weighing in at just 238lbs (108kgs) with all fluids, fully fuled up, and ready to go.

The Next Exoskeletoned Brappers

The bets part is, the guys from the South France shop are calling this the “Skeleton V1”, as the V2 — a supermoto version of the skeleton design — is already in the works, (supposedly finished already) slated to debut at Show, and there will supposedly be a third flat track version. We can’t wait! 

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