The Slugger is Swedish bike-builder Stellan Egeland’s follow-up to the radical, hub-steered, BMW-powered Harrier he debuted in 2007. Starting this time with a big-buck BMW HP2 Sport, Egeland has discarded virtually everything from the stock motorcycle except the twin-cylinder, 1200cc Boxer engine. The foundation is a custom tubular space frame equipped with Egeland’s second-generation front suspension design, engineered to isolate suspension and steering forces. Unlike the Harrier, which maintained the original BMW single-sided swingarm, the Slugger introduces a custom tubular swingarm with sophisticated parallelogram linkage that Egeland engineered specifically to counteract excessive wheel-hop under aggressive downshifting.
Egeland also added a turbocharger and intercooler to the DOHC Oilhead engine. The turbo is mounted ahead of the engine, with the intercooler unit located under the faux fuel tank—gas is now carried under the seat. The ovalized spine running down the centerline is actually a pressure pipe connecting the turbo and intercooler. Measured horsepower at the wheel is 202 bhp—approximately a 70 percent increase over stock. Despite radical looks and outrageous power, Egeland still rides the Slugger almost daily, and he’s even had it out on the racetrack. Looks like a home run to us.
