Quasar
Motorcycle History
The Quasar was a semi-enclosed feet forward
motorcycle, created by Malcolm Newell and Ken
Leaman,[1] who made a number of similar vehicles.[2]
It used an 850 cc engine built by Reliant Motors
and was capable of cruising at 90-100 mph (145-160
km/h) and exceeding 100 mph in favourable conditions.
Design
In the Quasar, the rider sat feet forward or
feet first, changing the usual position of the
rider from on top and straddling the vehicle,
to inside and sitting down. Unlike most motorcycles,
the Quasar was a cabin motorcyle with a roof
which goes over the rider. While normally not
a problem, tall riders with larger, more modern
helmets could have trouble fitting inside although
it was also possible to carry a passenger. In
the front of the bike the laminated glass windscreen
had car-style windscreen wipers and a heater.
The use of an enclosed passenger space caused
blindspots where the driver had to move his
head around to make sure visibility was not
obscured by the screen supports in corners.
Integral with the rear bodywork was a 60 litre
(2.21 cubic feet) storage space and wrap-around
panniers were a factory option.
In 1968, after his previous idea for a trike
named the "Revolution" failed, forcing
him to close his motorcycle store, Malcolm Newell
met Ken Leaman while on holiday in Scotland,
and the two combined forces to design and build
the first Quasar prototype. The first production
Quasar was sold in December 1976, having been
built by Ken and Malcolm at Wilson Brothers
of Bristol, where Ken was employed full time,
and who owned the rights to the machine.
Though they had launched a publicity campaign
to gain interest in the bike, even after they
began to receive inquiries Wilson Brothers did
not provide enough funds for production to meet
demand. Between December 1976 and October 1979,
they only produced a total of six vehicles.
In 1980, John Malfoy, who had originally designed
the Quasar's unique fluorescent rear light persuaded
his employers, Romarsh, of Calne, to manufacture
five Quasars under licence from Wilson Brothers.
While all five vehicles sold by December, 1981,
another batch of ten was prepared starting in
August.
When Romarsh collapsed, John Malfoy bought
the remaining parts and assembled several more
machines and Malcolm Newell independently made
at least one more from parts. While only 21
Reliant engined Quasars were produced, Newell
went on to build several more with motorcycle
engines and Tait hub centre steering in his
own workshop at Field Cottage, in Heddington.
These included several with Suzuki GS engines,
both chain and shaft drive, a Honda VF750 powered
machine and one with a Kawasaki Z1300 6-cylinder
engine. Malcolm also produced a whole range
of Phasar machines powered by engines from the
Honda Goldwing and VT500, Moto Guzzi V50 and
Convert, Z13, and Yamaha LC250 and 350. He was
working on a leaning trike, with two narrow
leaning front wheels when he died in 1994, aged
just 54.
Malcolm Newell and three Quasars were featured
in a BBC TV motoring programme Top Gear which
was broadcast on April 14, 1988. The same programme
also featured the first public outing of Royce
Creasey's Voyager, which was a development of
the Quasar, and the Ecomobile made in Switzerland
by Arnold Wagner's Peraves company. The item
was written and presented by bike journalist
Paul Blezard who bought a Quasar of his own
in 2005. The original Quasar featured in the
programme was owned by enthusiast Mark Crowson
who has taken on the job of preserving and improving
the Quasar heritage left by Malcolm Newell and
the late John Malfoy. Mark owns three Quasars
and two Phasars and is also the creator of the
Quasar website, [www.quasarworld.com Quasar
World]. Blezard also wrote an eight page feature
on the Quasar for the British magazine Classic
Bike for its July 2000 issue, which had Crowson's
Quasar on the cover and told the whole history
of the machine and what it was like to ride
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