Sol Invictus launches ‘Apollo’
Building on the success of their Mercury 250 and Nemesis 400 models, Sol Invictus Motorcycle Co. have released a new addition to their LAMS-approved family – the Apollo Café Racer.
“Since our inception in 2013, Sol Invictus have been committed to developing and delivering LAMS approved, classically styled motorcycles to the Australian market,” said Sol Invictus Brand Director, John Benton. “The Apollo Cafe Racer represents the next step for us and heralds the next phase of the company.”
That “next phase” includes the use of EFI and selectable ABS on the Apollo, both of which are firsts for bikes in the Sol Invictus range, with the new model also featuring a disc rear brake and electric-only starting.
While elements like the 400cc air-cooled motor and cradle frame from the Nemesis are largely carried over unchanged for the Apollo, the new model adds a bunch of distinctive features, starting with the seat, fuel tank and slick headlight fairing.
Other signature café racer styling features on this model include rearsets, clip-on handlebars, trimmed front and rear mudguards, bar-end mirrors and upswept reverse cone silencers.
With the new EFI system and those silencers, power for the Apollo is listed at 20.2kW at 7500rpm, compared to the 19.5kW on the Nemesis, while maximum torque remains unchanged: 30Nm at 5500rpm.
Less-obvious modifications compared to the Nemesis include a larger (320mm) front brake disc, repositioned headlight and front indicators, deleted fork gaiters, 18-inch wheels at both ends (instead of the 19/18 combo on the Nemesis) with a slightly wider 130/18-section rear tyre, a 10mm higher seat height (now 800mm) and reshaped rear frame section to suit the café racer seat.
The Apollo is also electric-start only, losing the kicker from the carb-fed Nemesis. Dry weight is unchanged at 151kg, but the new tank increases fuel capacity from 13 to 17 litres.
While the Apollo is primarily set up as a solo ride, the café racer seat is still long enough to comfortably take a pillion.
Like the rest of the Sol Invictus range, the Apollo has been created with customisation in mind, so most of the new model’s unique parts are bolt-on bolt-off, with minimal Sol branding to allow owners to personalise the panels with new paint, stickers, graphics, etc.
Available in a choice of metallic silver (pictured) or gun metal grey, the silver Apollo applies an all-over silver finish to both the frame and engine, too, while the gun metal grey Apollo features a black frame and black engine.
The LAMS-approved Sol Invictus Apollo Café Racer is priced from $6,999 (+ ORCs), backed by a 2-year parts & labour warranty.
Go to: solinvictus.com.au for details.
The ‘Meister’ Touch
Last year, Sol Invictus partnered with Jagermeister to produce a set of motorcycles with styling and custom features inspired by the globally-recognised liqueur brand.
Unveiled last April, the first creation in the “Meister Piece” series previewed what was to come with the Apollo, with its café racer tank, seat hump and fairing all being similar to the newly-released production model but finished in Jagermeister’s signature deep green and orange colour scheme.
The reception to that model (look for ‘Jagermeister Sol Invictus’ on youtube) led Sol Invictus to apply the same formula to a Mercury 250.
As part of a special, live bike-building event at Sol Invictus HQ in Camperdown last July, the Mercury was turned into a café racer in one-night, with a headlight fairing, custom leather saddle with rear seat hump, cut-and-reshaped subframe, clip-on handlebars, header wrap, reverse-cone silencers and other custom parts fitted, topped once again with Jagermeister green and orange paint.
More details on the Jager-inspired Mercury build can be found on the blog section of solinvictus.com.au
