One of the greatest attributes of a motorcycle is its ability to do so much with so little. A bike you can buy with money obtained even just flipping burgers has enough power to outrun most cars that you’ll encounter at a red light. But is there such a thing as too much power for a motorcycle? The lucky person who buys this 400 HP supercharged Triumph Speed Triple RR from Thornton Hundred Motorcycles is probably going to find out. It’s road-legal, too, so it could be ridden on a road if you’re brave enough.
The current record holder for the world’s fastest production motorcycle is the Kawasaki Ninja H2R. That machine sports a 998cc supercharged inline-four making 300 HP and has been recorded hitting 250 mph once. Honestly, it was shocking the rider was able to overcome the drag of carrying around presumably titanic brass cojones to reach that speed.
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In theory, the mythical Marine Turbine Technologies Turbine Motorcycle (above) is even faster. The MTT Turbine Motorcycle sports a Rolls-Royce 250-C20B turboshaft engine cranking out 420 HP and has a theoretical top speed of 273 mph. I say theoretical top speed because, despite being in production for over two decades, MTT hasn’t found a rider crazy enough to ride a helicopter turbine to 273 mph.
The Triumph Speed Triple RR as modified by Thornton Hundred Motorcycles is not a production motorcycle, it’s a one-off. Once one crazy rider buys this thing, that’s it – the “production run” of exactly one motorcycle is sold out. But unlike the Ninja H2R, it’s a bike that has lights, turn signals, and a license plate. That’s right, you could ride this thing to work if you somehow manage to restrain the 400 horses in its stable. And with a top speed that’s in excess of the stock bike, you’ll arrive in record time (and with at least one police cruiser in tow, probably).
Not Your Average Bike Shop
This news comes to us from our friends at RideApart, and honestly I’m still giggling about it. This seems like one of those motorcycles that you really don’t want to try being too much of a hooligan on. Purchase of this bike should probably come with a life insurance policy and an automatic entry into the organ donor registry.
This mad machine hails from the United Kingdom from a shop known as Thornton Hundred Motorcycles. The outfit was formed in 2016 by someone named Jody Millhouse. The name of the company is supposed to be a nod to Millhouse’s home town of Thornton as well as a reference to the fabled “ton-up” era when people modified their cafe racers to exceed 100 mph.
The shop’s website says Millhouse started his custom shop at 20 years old in a disused shipping container with a bike to cut up and a maxed-out credit card. Millhouse made a name for himself early on when he rebuilt a wrecked 2017 Ducati 1299 Panigale S into a wicked streetfighter complete with an exhaust that took 70 hours to craft out of titanium. That motorcycle, shown below, had such a shocking transformation that Millhouse managed to catch Ducati’s attention with it.
Since then, Thornton Hundred has been cranking out handfuls of bespoke motorcycles. Each one is basically a one-off, featuring custom-fabricated parts from Millhouse and his team. Thornton is several steps above your common motorcycle chop shop. They aren’t just turning everyday bikes into cafe racers. Instead, Thornton extensively re-engineers these bikes and then adds in extra power. Thornton’s staff includes former MotoGP frame engineers and other crafters.
The result is that you can buy some frankly silly bikes from the firm. For example, Thornton will happily sell one of 25 of its Evo Bobbers. Now, on the surface, this just looks like your everyday Triumph bobber conversion. Then you find out that oh, this thing weighs just 374 pounds all fueled up to ride and has 120 HP on tap.
This bike is more or less the Triumph Bonneville platform re-imagined. I’ll remind you that a Bonneville weighs 520 pounds and has 79 HP, so Thornton has some huge gains here.
Millhouse has also been addicted to the idea of making the world’s fastest bikes. In 2022, his team took a Triumph Bonneville Bobber, gave it a shot of nitrous, and then put a supercharger on it for good measure. The 201 HP rocket hit 170 mph and was capable of doing a quarter mile in 10.49 seconds all while still having a license plate.
Wile E. Coyote’s Daily Driver
In 2023, Millhouse wanted to up the crazy while drawing influence from his family’s history of stunt riding. He started with a Triumph Speed Triple 1200 RR, a bike that makes 177 HP and 92 lb-ft of torque with its three-cylinder engine. Add in the low 438-pound weight and we’re talking about a really fun ride. Well, Millhouse couldn’t just leave it alone.
According to Motorcycle News, Millhouse and the Thornton Hundred team started by tearing the motorcycle’s engine down to its bare components. The engine internals were then upgraded with forged rods and pistons while the reinforced engine was capped off with a Rotrex C30 supercharger.
The motorcycle then got a new billet aluminum swingarm that stretches 180mm longer than the factory version. Millhouse engineered this swingarm to be hollow so that it could hold five liters of methanol. Those juices are ducted right into the supercharger plenum to keep things cool when the engine is pumping out 400 HP. Apparently, Millhouse spent an equivalent of $18,000 on the swingarm alone to ensure it could actually handle the power and the abuse.
Millhouse says that the supercharger and the water/methanol system can add up to 400 HP. However, the bike is currently set to deliver a mere 230 HP. The taps can definitely be cranked back up if you dare.
Making the engine stupid fast wasn’t enough, so Millhouse threw away all of the bodywork and replaced it with super lightweight carbon pieces. The Thornton Hundred team also added active aero in the form of wings connected to accelerometers and a computer. When you brake, the wings turn to act as air brakes. When you jump on the throttle, they feather out to allow for maximum speed. Apparently, the aero system can also detect when you’re turning and deploy some wing action for downforce.
It doesn’t end there, as the bike has custom brakes, carbon wheels, and, just for the right amount of silly, a chatbot. Apparently, you can play games with the chatbot and speakers on the bike will say your name when you turn it on.
Thornton Hundred says this crazy machine took seven months to build and the shop showcased it at the Goodwood Festival of Speed that year. Tuned to 400 HP, the motorcycle got so sideways it could have put a drift car to shame. Millhouse’s description of the motorcycle makes it sound almost uncontrollable. He says it makes so much power that you can basically do a burnout in any gear. A top speed isn’t quoted, but Thornton does say you can even light the rear tire up while you’re cruising in 6th gear at 150 mph.
Some of that is the power, yes. However, other assistance comes from the bike’s light 412-pound weight and the fact that the suspension is set up to put more weight up front.
Millhouse is also quick to note that all of this is still road-legal. It still has lights and a place to put mirrors. He even claims that the motorcycle will pass safety inspections and get a license plate without issue. That’s just bonkers. It’s a motorcycle that can do a burnout at 150 mph and it’s still legal for just about anyone to ride. Millhouse even managed to put 250 miles on the thing.
Expensive, And Probably Worth It
But now, Thornton Hundred Motorcycles says it’s time to say goodbye. The one-off bike is for sale right now for the price of £55,000, or $71,186. For that price, you get the bike and a two-year, unlimited-mile warranty. The shop says it’ll also ship the ride anywhere, but it’s up to you to figure out how to legally import it into your country. I could see a crafty importer figuring out a way to get this bike into America.
Amusingly enough, the price tag of $71,186 doesn’t even make the supercharged Speed Triple RR the most expensive motorcycle I’ve written about. I mean, the MTT Turbine bike costs $270,000, and remember the Curtiss “The One” I wrote about? That thing was $120,000. Dare I say, this is a better spend of your cash!
But should you be daring enough to swing a leg over this, I beg of you to wear something resembling proper gear. You’re basically strapping yourself to an ACME rocket here and unlike Wile E. Coyote, you’re not invincible. If you do buy this thing, I’m going to be seriously jealous. Just let me take it around the block; I promise I won’t hit warp speed.
Normally, crazy expensive motorcycles turn me off. I can’t imagine an instance anytime in the near future where I would see myself dropping this much money on a motorcycle. But this was a case of something so stupid and so awesome that I can’t help but love it. I’m not sure how Millhouse is going to top this, but I can’t wait to find out.
“…despite being in production for over two decades, MTT hasn’t found a rider crazy enough to ride a helicopter turbine to 273 mph…“
If there’s any truth to this post, the truth is, errr, way different:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/threads/the-tesla-strategy.382255/page-4#post-7180763
I drove the medical car for MotoGP when they raced at Indianapolis.
Guys who drive 215 mph right next to concrete walls have an approach to life much different from the rest of us.
Wonder what they could do to a V-Max – 197hp stock, 123 FT of torque.
Only 3 cylinders and 400 horsepower?
Allen Millyard would like a word.
The more experienced (aka older) I get, the less I care about big hp numbers for road going vehicles. Few people will ever go to a track, so it’s mostly wasted.
Even at the track: I’ll take an old SV650 over the latest hardware and have a much more enjoyable day.
Well, is sad that anyone has to die, but since it is a one of one, at least only one person will die when they do ride it like 3/4 of the crotch rocket riders do, unless they hit someone else in the process.
I know who’s crazy enough to ride this thing! England’s own Guy Martin. He’s already been trying to reach 300mph over one mile on a turbocharged Hayabusa.
It’s nicely built, but I’ll never get on board with extended swingarms. They just instantly make any moto look dumb.
???
“…420 HP and has a theoretical top speed of 273 HP.…”
I used to race hare scrambles on a Kawasaki KX500. It would wheelie in every gear. That’s enough power.
There used to be a once-a-month seasonal motorcycle meet that I often attended. It had started as a Norton club meeting that had evolved into folks who had interesting and quirky rides. The type of thing where if a Harley showed up it would be ignored unless it was truly something rare or interesting.
One evening a guy pulled up on his Boss Hoss. I can’t remember which V8 I think it was a 454. The painted lettering on the side was 454/454 because he claimed it had “one horsepower per cubic inch.” I don’t know if it was true, but I do know he was disappointed it didn’t get nearly as much attention as a 1950s 125cc Rumi race bike.
Oh yeah, those Boss Hoss things have crazy power. They’re also frighteningly easy to ride. The last one I rode (years before I started writing) had an automatic transmission, so it felt sort of like a mega chunky scooter.
The Boss Hoss is one of my bucket list bikes.
They are the motorcycle manifestation of the idea that more is always better. I don’t think any of them have standard transmissions. They are 2-speed autos or single-speed with a clutch.
I’ve not seen a Boss Hoss in ages, but my memory of them is that they didn’t stand out for reasons beyond being large. The last one I recall seeing had a car tire on the rear, and its owner had resorted to having both feet dragging taking low-speed turns for confidence.
Yeah, they look like a Harley drawn from memory after seeing one for the first time. As a person who likes motorcycles, the Boss Hoss feels more like a joke bike than anything appealing. Especially because the just sound like somebody cut the muffler off their Trans Am.
Brits in sheds come up with the craziest contraptions. That’s a tradition that goes way back. Turbine engines? Yep. HMS Dreadnought? Well, the Admiralty is kind of a shed. Cracking the Enigma code? Technically a Pole but Bletchley Park had a shed-like look to it. The Merlin engine? Rolls just happened to own that shed. Let’s not forget TVR. British Leyland forgot about the shed part and look where they are now.
Point being, put a Brit into some sort of shed with a good assortment of tools and lots of tea. Something wild will come out the door.
Reminds me of the James May Reassembler series. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09zZYHyeqco
It’s the mechanical equivalent to watching Bob Ross.
So calming.
Cedric Lynch and his axial gap PMDC motor comes to mind, the first prototype made in a shed in Potter’s Bar.
It’s the easiest warranty ever for a bike maker. It will either do basically no miles OR be wrapped around a tree. Either way, zero warranty costs.
Allen Millyard rode his Viper engined bike 10,000 miles the first year. 186mph with a passenger.
True, but a low-stress pushrod V10 seems less high-stress than a forced induction 3-cylinder that weighs only 400 pounds. I am also guessing they will encourage much different riding styles. But as somebody who loved riding old two-strokes, I always felt the nothing, nothing, nothing, FULL POWER curve made life interesting.
“Just let me take it around the block; I promise I won’t hit warp speed.”
Sub-light speed is good enough for you, eh Mercedes?
“Purchase of this bike should probably come with a life insurance policy and an automatic entry into the organ donor registry”
A moot point since this motorcycle is so powerful there won’t be any organs left to donate.
Years ago (early 1990s) there was an illegal motorcycle race behind the msp airport, that went bad and one bike clipped the other at a very high rate of speed and one rider went into a chain link fence. The authorities hosed what was left of him off the fence.
Yeech!
Physics is wonderful.
I cannot get as gory as I want when I teach momentum and impulse.
https://comingupmilhouse.com/
This is such a good deal, IMO. A better buy than a Hellcat.
I wish I could get that power to weight ratio in a sub-2,500 lb car for that price.
The road to hell is paid with overconfidence.