If it wasn’t for the massive logos that run the length of this creation, we wouldn’t have picked it for an Auto Fabrica build at first glance. But the closer you look, the more you see the English workshop’s DNA everywhere. It’s also the first time they’ve customized a bonafide enduro bike?so this project was never going to be mild.
Designated the ‘Type 17,’ the build was commissioned by a client who told the Auto Fabrica brothers, Bujar and Gaz Muharremi, to ?go nuts.? Sifting through archived designs with their client, Bujar and Gaz were delighted when he chose one of their more extreme concepts. It had originally been penned for a KTM enduro, but the client wanted something more unconventional?so they settled on a 2009-model BMW G450X.
As far as enduro machines go, the G450X is fascinating. Built during a time when BMW owned Husqvarna, its short-lived production only ran from 2008 to 2011. Brimming with unconventional design, some aspects struck a chord?and certain components are now common among European off-road bikes.
The G450X’s 449 cc single-cylinder engine is angled forwards by 30 degrees, and the crankshaft rotates backwards, thanks to a drive-basket clutch setup. The airbox takes up the space where a conventional fuel tank would be, so the fuel cell is nestled between the subframe rails under the seat. We told you it was weird.

Rather than throw these quirky parts away, Bujar and Gaz decided to incorporate the...