Dirt Monster

Dirt Monster: A desi, off-roading version of the Piaggio MP3

Dirt Monster

You may call the Dirt Monster a desi version of the Piaggio MP3. It goes one up on the Italian machine actually, for it off roads as well. The vehicle was built by a team of students from Tilak Maharashtra Vidyapeeth, Pune. Amit Bhagat, a team member of Project Dirt Monster tells us more about this unique machine

Rider : Snehal Chavan

Dirt Monster development team : Amit Bhagat, Mayuresh Naik, Avinash Desai, Ameya Kulkarni, Mr. Shrikant Chavan


The purpose of this project was to create a faster, safer & more stable motorcycle. We wanted to design and build a motorcycle that would outperform both cars and motorcycles. The drawback of motorcycles is that if front tire loses traction the bike will go down, while cars are not as involving as bikes. We wanted to create a fusion of the two, something which was good at hardcore off-roading too.

With two wheels up front your machine’s cornering capabilities go up by quite some margin. More traction up front, more braking power and lower center of gravity, allows for more confident corner carving.

The Dirt Monster can be best described as something between a motorcycle and ATV-quad. It leans into corners like a motorcycle but, at the same time, has a lot of the stability of a sport quad. Front wheels lean at an angle of 45 degrees. The two wheels up front also provide better braking. We are using tires from Baja cars for front and rear tire is from Yamaha YZ 250 (dirt bike). We can also add slicks for on road use and leaning angle can be changed according to our requirements. The great thing about this machine is that it can be used for small farming purposes as well, owing to its adequate power and great off-roading capability.


The team has used Hyosung (Kinetic) GF125 chassis, while the engine is procured from Honda the Honda CRF125 producing 15 bhp at 8000 rpm.

It’s a dream project for the team, as all the members were thinking about it ever since they were in the second year of engineering. We are really overwhelmed to see our project working on the streets performing at par with our expectations. It can ridden by girls and handicapped people, as well as by the people who love adventure and performance. The handling of this machine is really awesome once one gets used to it.


We have spent three months and ninety thousand rupees on this project. Almost everything is made in house with help of our honorable guide Mr. Shrikant Ashok Chavan who is a genius in such projects and worked very hard with us on this machine. The concept was ready in our mind 5 months ago, but it wouldn’t have become a reality without Mr. Shrikant’s help.

When we started working on this vehicle we were so excited, myself (Amit) and Avi worked for 12hrs and more sometimes. After working for whole day we used to plan our next day’s work and get online help.

There were many hurdles and sometimes it felt like it will not work, still we kept on working hard and the result is for everyone to see. We never required any big funds or precision machinery, for us, our addiction to our passion was good enough to guide us through.

It takes time to get used to this vehicle because there is nothing like this on road. But once you get used to its handling and maneuverability you start ruling off the road. We are looking for fuel cell power plant or an electric battery and lighter carbon fiber body in couple of months.

Avi and Mayuresh are from the Mechanical department and me (Amit) and Ameya are from automobile engineering department. I am going to join a French University for further studies in transportation design. Avi is thinking about motocross racing B.tech while Mayuresh has his own automobile parts manufacturing factory.

We are all from middle class families and fund raising was a headache for us. We had to beg for money from our parents, but ultimately we succeeded, as our collective motto for the project was “The more you sleep, the more tired you are.”

Technical Facts

Engine :

  • Type : Honda CRF, single cylinder ,4 stroke
  • Volume : 125.7 cc
  • Power : 16  bhp
  • Torque : 35 Nm
  • Transmission : 5 speed, constant mesh
  • Chassis : Delta box frame mated with CRC steel Square pipe

Suspension:

  • Front suspension : Spring, hydraulically damped, pre-load adjustment
  • Rear suspension : pre load adjustment, spring Hydraulically damped
  • Front /Rear brake : specially designed caliper, 240 mm disc /150mm drum

Tires:

  • Front/rear : 22 X 6 -10/4X10 -18
  • Front tires are from Baja cars and rear is from YZ 250,
  • Leaning angle 45 degrees angle adjustable
  • Width : 12,45 mm
  • Length/Wheel : 2,160/1,510

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