A Motorcycle With A Difference,

unlike many motorcycles that are designed to be light and nimble, 

photographs Harzer Bike Shmiede, this one is heavy and cumbersome, it is known as “Katharina die Große” (Catherine the Great) a reference to the Russian origin of most of its components, or the Panzerbike, built by brothers Tilo and Wilfried Niebel of the Harzer Bike motorcycle shop in Zilly, Germany,

the 38,000 cc T-55 engine comes from a Soviet tank, the giant sidecar was cut out of the transport case of a Russian medium-range missile, and the headlight comes from a Soviet border security point operated by the German Democratic Republic (GDR) during the Cold War,

it took a total of 5,000 hours to build, during which its creators used about 120 kg of welding wire. It was all worth it, though, as in 2007 they set a new Guinness Record for the ‘world’s heaviest rideable motorcycle’, (5.5 tons) a title that remains uncontested to this day, the bike needs 2 people to drive it, the front wheel is not up to the task of steering so a passenger in the sidecar has to decide where to go, photos and videos of the Panzerbike in action regularly go viral on social media, but if you want to see it in person, your best bet is the Harzer Bike Schmiede yearly motorcycle show in Germany, where it always makes an appearance, well it certainly has a road presence!