1971 Munch Mammoth 1200 TTS will be featured in one of the top lots at Bonhams’ upcoming auction, “The Spring Stafford Sale: The International Classic MotorCycle Show” that will be held on April 28, 2019, in Stafford, UK. The pre-auction estimate of this unique motorcycle is £ 90,000 -120,000 and it will be presented in lot 543 at the auction. “In 1965 Freidl Munch, formerly with the Horex racing department, was approached by wealthy French ex-sidecar racer Jean Murit with a simple brief: build a no-expense-spared ‘superbike,’ though the latter term had yet to be coined. Munch found his ideal engine in the form of the air-cooled overhead-camshaft four powering the recently introduced NSU Prinz car. For Murit’s machine, he used the 1,000cc TT sports version of this engine, which tuned for 60bhp, proved capable of propelling the bulky Mammoth to a top speed of 120mph. Nothing too remarkable there you might think, but while several contemporary production motorcycles could achieve a similar maximum, it was the Mammoth’s ability to accelerate powerfully from 20mph in top gear and cruise all day at 110mph that set it apart from the herd,” states the auction house commenting on the origin and journey of this bike. Other major details include that it is an ultra-rare limited-edition superbike and it is hand built to individual customer orders. It was registered in Germany. Commenting further on the history of this bike, Bonhams says, “The engine was housed in a cradle frame inspired by the Manx Norton, and to keep the weight down Munch made extensive use of Elektron magnesium alloy, which was used for the gearbox shell, rear chain case, fork sliders, and brakes. The result was a commendably low dry weight for the prototype of 433lbs, though production versions would weigh considerably more. Elephant Rally founder and Das Motorrad journalist Ernst Leverkus rode the bike in 1966, and the resulting worldwide publicity provoked a rush of orders. The production Mammoth (the name would later be dropped for copyright reasons) first appeared at the Cologne Show in September 1966, by which time the capacity had risen to 1,085cc, the power to 70bhp, and the top speed closed on 140mph. Hand built to individual customer order, the Mammoth eventually used the 1,177cc version of the NSU four with power outputs of up to 104bhp.” https://www.blouinartinfo.com/              Founder: Louise Blouin Read more