2014 Hesketh 24 Revealed

British manufacturer Hesketh Motorcycles is producing an all-new model honoring the brand’s Formula One roots. The new Hesketh 24 features a massive 1950cc V-Twin engine and will be available in the U.K. in February.

If you aren’t familiar with the Hesketh brand, we don’t blame you. The company was founded in 1980 by Lord Alexander Hesketh, a British politican and baron after his F1 race-winning team folded. Hesketh Motorcycles developed a handful of models in small numbers, most notably the Hesketh V1000. The company has shifted from owner to owner before being acquired by current owner Paul Sleeman in 2010.

Not only is Hesketh 24 the first new model under Sleeman’s ownership, it’s also the first new model from the brand in this century.  Hesketh will only produce 24 units of the model but is developing other new models including a two-seat version.

The Hesketh 24 is powered by a nearly two-liter 56-degree V-Twin engine claiming 118 hp. If the size of the engine isn’t unusual enough, Hesketh says the 6-gallon fuel tank is mounted below the engine.

Other features include Ohlins suspension, Brock’s Performance BST carbon fiber wheels and Beringer brakes.

The paint scheme is inspired by Hesketh’s F1 race car that James Hunt drove to victory in the 1975 Dutch Grand Prix. A circuit map of the Zandvoort track where Hesketh tasted its only victory is drawn on the side, though oddly, Hesketh used the track’s current layout instead of the completely different track layout actually used in the 1975 race.

[Source: Hesketh]

By Dennis Chung