“Some people think you’re
crazy, riding something this
big and powerful. I figure, you
can get killed on a Schwinn.”
Monster
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HOG
STORY by Lance Shearer – PHOTOS BY QUENTIN ROUX
V
anquish motorcycles are all about taking it
to the max. Boasting “total domination,”
the company’s slogan is, “For those who
live for raw power and speed.”
When you’re building a “bike” with a
427-cubic-inch, V-8 engine that puts out
more than 500 horsepower – as powerful
as a Z06 Corvette – you are
clearly building a product that is not
for the faint of heart, or the light of
wallet.
“These bikes are for guys who have
had Harleys, have had custom V-twins,”
says Mike Kelly, Jr., proprietor of Vanquish V-8. “This is for someone who
wants the ultimate. We’ve had three or
four customers fly here in their own jets.
“These bikes will do 200-plus miles per hour. The acceleration is just… I can’t explain it. I can go zero to 120 in
six seconds – 130 miles per hour in an eighth of a mile,”
states Kelly.
By comparison, Kelly says, a Corvette (he drives one)
takes twice as long, a quarter mile, to reach 130 mph.
To own a Vanquish motorcycle, be prepared to lay out
$90,000 and wait at least eight weeks while your machine
is built and customized from the ground up. They are
built right here on Marco Island, in a cavernous shop on
the ground floor of the Progressive Auto
Center, on Bald Eagle Drive. If you that
price exceeds your budget, then shop in
the $40,000 range for a massive V-8 crotch
rocket. The company is also a dealer for
Boss Hoss motorcycles, similar in size, but
not quite as tricked out as the Vanquish
product.
“This started out as a hobby. I’d build a bike, sell it,
build a bike, sell it, so I decided to become a manufacturer,” says Kelly. “We’ve had the manufacturer’s license
Vanquish V-8 motorcycles rule the road
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for a year, and we did two years of R&D before that.”
Currently, the team is working on Vanquish No. 12, the
latest bike built sporting the Vanquish name. Ready to be
fired up for the first time, shop foreman Tony Sanders
makes sure all is ready, checks the gauges and feeds a fiber-optic videoscope on a flexible tube (“The same thing
you’d use for a
colonoscopy,” he
remarks) up inside
the engine.
After a few false
starts and a couple
of adjustments, he
turns the key again
and the engine
coughs to life. A
thundering rumble
fills the shop. It
starts with a low
chugging and gradually builds to a
full-throated roar as Sanders advances the throttle.
This sound, this feeling of ultimate power, is what owning one of these machines is all about, says Kelly. “Look at
how many people buy Harleys because of how they sound.
This makes a Harley-Davidson sound like a scooter.”The
Vanquish surpasses the 110-cubic-inch engine on the biggest Harley.
The best part of Kelly’s job, he says, is doing the test driving. “I make sure each one is perfect before it goes to its
new owner.” He typically puts around 200 miles on each
new bike.
The experience of riding one of his motorcycles around
Southwest Florida, he says, is just amazing. “This has gotta be how a movie star feels. I’ll go to Tommy Bahama’s,
park it out front, and half the restaurant wants to come
out and talk.
“Some people think you’re crazy, riding something this
big and powerful. I figure, you can get killed on a Schwinn.
This is a machine – it only does what you tell it to.”
There are other V-8 bikes out there, Kelly acknowledged,
but says Vanquish is raising the bar for quality of construction and the caliber of parts. “We pay $25,000 for the motor
alone, and $2,000 just for the belt,” referring to the threeinch wide carbon-fiber/Kevlar belt that transmits power
from the engine to the wheel. “We’re the only custom manufacturer that offers a one-year unlimited warranty. This is
the best combination of muscle car and motorcycle.”
Has the down economy hurt sales? Yes and no, says Kelly.
“The high end sells. Fifty thousand and below is tough.
People have trouble getting financed, but our best customers don’t worry.”
In addition to building the Vanquish motorcycles and
selling and customizing Boss Hoss bikes, the company also
sells other exotic and pre-owned cycles. “My
dad and I opened Progressive Auto Center in
’93, and built the big building in ’99.”
The facilities, equipment and expert staff
who work building motorcycles give Progressive capabilities other shops in the area can’t
match, explains Kelly. “We have fabrication
equipment, lathes; we do all types of welding.
We’ve gotten into situations where we need a
special tool for a job, and we’ll make the tool.”
These capabilities, plus a thorough knowledge of aftermarket parts suppliers for hard-tofind items, have led to Progressive doing a lot
of custom work on exotic, classic and antique
vehicles. Shop foreman Sanders and mechanic
Steve Hagman worked on a flame-emblazoned 1934 Ford
three-window coupe while waiting for the Vanquish cycle to
cool off after its initial running.
While he has a variety of bikes available to take for a spin,
the man who builds these ultimate motorcycles does not
own one himself. “I’ve tried to build one a couple of times
for me, but they get 90 percent done and they get sold,” says
Kelly. “It’s not a problem – I’m doing what I dig.” M
tion
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“This is uscle car and motorcycle.”
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— Mike Kelly
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