Combat Motors Announces 2022 Lineup to US

It’s been a while since we heard from Birmingham, Alabama-based Combat Motors, but this week the firm broke cover with its 2022 lineup announcement. The brand is now offering four completely bespoke models, including the new Combat Bomber and Wraith bikes, and the returning F-117 Fighter and P-51 Fighter.

In case you forgot, the small, boutique company is the new face of what was once Confederate Motorcycle Co. To recap: After acquiring the intellectual property rights to the Confederate brand and its designs back in 2018, venture capitalist Ernest Lee revived the company to continue manufacturing and selling its high-end, high-powered V-twin rigs. Then Lee, perhaps seeing the writing on the wall, abruptly changed the name to Combat Motors LLC in 2020, but insisted that the brand is “continuing the tradition established in 1991 (when the original Confederate Motorcycle company was founded), and…builds strikingly innovative and powerful functioning works of art.” Fair enough. Now, back to the bikes.

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The four 2022 models do have some similarities, with all using the CX4 6061 aluminum frame, an S&S X-Wedge 117ci or 132ci engine, BST wheels, RaceTech suspension, Beringer brakes, Motogadget electronics, and a Bandit Machine Works dry clutch.

But the only one with two sets of foot controls? That would be Combat’s new, next-generation Wraith, a bike that (sort of) retains the silhouette from its Confederate days, down to the signature girder front suspension—though even that’s been redesigned for the new version. In fact, the Wraith underwent enough changes that the company dubbed it its “all-new flagship model” when it debuted last year.

For 2022, the next-gen Wraith still rides on an aluminum monocoque carved from solid military-grade billet blocks of the stuff, with a curved backbone holding the fuel. Changes seen on the newer model (which first entered production in 2021) are a redesigned airbox, larger fuel tank, and a visible twin-plate throttle body. But you still have the CX4 architecture—a lighter evolution of Confederate’s drag racing-derived powertrain mounting system—which connects to the beastly S&S X-Wedge engine that displaces 2,163cc and puts out a claimed 140 bhp and 160 pound-feet of torque. As we mentioned, the Combat Wraith also has interlinked forward and rearset foot controls, which the company says gives pilots the choice of a feet-forward cruising stance or a sportier, legs-back tuck.

The Wraith starts at $155,000 for the raw version, with the black anodized Knight Wraith going for $10,000 more. No more than 21 Wraiths will be built in either raw aluminum or as a Knight Wraith, according to the company.

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Combat says its Bomber is the newest rig in the line, but it’s more an evolution of the original FA-13 Bomber. The bike sports a new laid-back seat angle to go with the forward controls, but otherwise it still rocks a monocoque structure machined from aluminum and powered by a 2,163cc air-cooled S&S V-twin motor putting out a claimed 120 bhp, with top speed said to be over 160 mph. The Bomber also features a fully adjustable double-wishbone monoshock front suspension holding a 19-inch carbon front wheel, with a cantilever monoshock rear unit attaching to a 17-inch hoop.

The hand-assembled and personally delivered Combat Bomber starts at $125,000 for the raw aluminum version.

The original P-51 Fighter carries over this year, getting only minor updates in the details for 2022. The carbon fiber bellypans have been revised and graphic elements on the structural fuel tank refreshed, and a digital speedometer has been built into the handlebar mount. For 2022, there’s an option for a 117ci motor as well.

The raw aluminum version starts at $100,000, with the darker Black Flag version adding $5,000 to the build.

The least expensive bike in the lineup is the stripped-down—at least compared to its stablemates—F-117 Fighter, which as the company puts it, looks to “balance raw beauty and aggression.” In this case that means a 117ci S&S V-twin powerplant, which along with fewer options, reduces costs on this model. But the F-117 still rides with an aluminum monocoque structure, fully adjustable suspension, and carbon wheels, along with a still-premium price tag. You’ll pay $85,000 for the raw version.

A caveat: Combat has said the S&S X-Wedge motor is being discontinued (whether that’s an S&S decision or a Combat one is not clear), and since all its bikes are based around that powerplant and hand built to order, bike availability will depend on supply.

As for future models, Combat has also mentioned the fact that there’s a new Hellcat model under development. Owner Ernest Lee said, “We are building the last…motorcycles with the S&S X-Wedge powerplant while working hard to design the new Hellcat which will be available to a wider audience.”