India’s FTR 1200 is one of the few motorcycles brought by the factory flat road street style. However, despite being a fun load to ride, it is not widely loved. The biggest criticism against it has to do with aesthetics; it’s made of plastic, and that makes it look puffy.
That is exactly what the dream team at Arctos Collection set out for this project. Based in Emmental, Switzerland, Arctos is an ongoing collaboration between Ulfert Janssen’s industrial design studio, Gannet Design, and Stefan Fuhrer’s custom bike workshop, Fuhrer Moto.
Ulfert brings many years of vehicle design experience, including 10 years at Renault. Stefan is a former MotoGP racing mechanic and currently leads a team of capable mechanics and craftsmen. It’s those extra skills that make them a formidable team.
Starting with an Indian FTR 1200 S as a sponsor, Arctos set out to enhance the bike’s flat-track style, while also trimming its bodywork. In stock form, parts of the FTR’s trellis frame are hidden by its fake fuel tank — and the boys want to change that.
“We immediately realized why the Indian designers decided to partially cover the frame,” says Ulfert. But we decided to take the challenge and expose the whole beautiful rig. It gave us a lot of headaches, but it was totally worth it.”
Ulfert wrote a new design for the FTR, then gave it to Stefan’s team to turn it into metal. They start by molding a new tank shell out of clay, then use it as a guide to close the final part. Part of the summary was to also thin the area around the handlebars, so the Indian OEM dashboard has been moved to a box inside the lid.
There are more tricks up the rear, where Arctos has swapped out the FTR’s plastic rear for something slimmer. The aluminum you see under the saddle is the fuel tank and Roland Sands Design all-in-one subframe. It’s a bolt unit that uses a reserve fuel pump (with some modifications) and a reserve fuel filler location, with a two-gallon capacity.
Sitting on top of it are Saddlemen tail parts and seat cushions, also from RSD. The whole arrangement not only looks great, but it also gives the FTR a more purposeful and efficient vibe.
“Our goal is to integrate all the technical and regulatory requirements without compromising the concept,” says Stefan. “It was a real challenge, because of the extremely tight space for all the components. We had to move parts and reroute cables and electronics.”
“It was important for us that we had to address and tune the individual components in such a way as to have a consistent overall picture, to get a very beautiful and technically perfect racer. “
Arctos also adds racing-style headlights with a pair of Highsider lights, custom fork guards, side skirts and a bunch of carbon fiber pieces. Upstairs are new lift bars holding ProTaper bars, equipped with new grips, machined levers from Synto Evo and Motogadget end turn signal. The switches are exceptionally smooth; the race-style lights are painted black from Jetprime.
At the rear you’ll find Highsider taillights and ABM Fahrzeugtechnik side plate mounts. A Gilles Tooling foot controller does lower duty.
Arctos threw a few more high-end parts into the FTR to take the score home. It is now fitted with a set of Kineo knitted wheels, wrapped in Michelin Anakee Wild tyres. The front fork and brake are still original (they work fine when they come out of the factory), but the rear shock has been swapped out for a Hyperpro kit.
Those coveted titanium exhausts are from Zard. They flow into the OEM catalytic converter, exiting through the SC-Project muffler.
The new FTR paint color is a mix of midnight blue and a ‘sanded’ metal finish offset by gold stripes. The elegant use of gold throughout the design is inspired — like the way the fork and rear complement each other, the delicate gold spokes on the front wheel, and the tiny gold-painted dots on the Indian logo.
Arctos wanted the trellis to be the hero here, so it and the swingarm were finished in a pearl white color. The Zwahlen NIZ tops things off with some clever upholstery (and yes, there’s a bit of gold in the stitching).
We’re fans of the FTR 1200, so if someone is going on a visual and physical diet, we’re not complaining. Who else thinks Arctos should build a limited number of these?
Arctos . Collection | Gannet Design | Fuhrer Moto | Pictures of Ulfert Janssen
