At the IMZ plant in the 1960s came a special model designed (under the control of Special Design Institute at Surpukhov), produced and released in small series of special 1040cc, model M-100 in solo and sidecar versions for servicemen in police uniforms and epaulettes. IMZ factory data sheet states the M-100 was produced in small series from 1963 until 1969.
The Ministry of Public Order Protection intended to provide traffic inspectors with complete superiority over all traffic on the roads of the Soviet Union. The tactical and technical requirements of a special-purpose motorcycle were laid: a powerful speed of 150 km/h for a solo and 120 km/h for a sidecar.
Additional conditions required: enhanced rider comfort and weather shields. It was necessary to install special equipment: a radio transceiver station ” Mars”, a speech amplifier, a high-volume siren, special flashing headlights with red filters and other police attributes. The “prescription” required direction indicators, brake lights, 12-volt electrical equipment, hydraulic brakes of the 4.00×17 wheels, parking brake on sidecar models – all this was not yet used in the serial production of the domestic motorcycle industry. And last but not least, a secondary requirement: the motorcycle must have the appearance of a powerful, high-speed vehicle and stand out against the background of other transport.
The rider’s seat was made special – leather, like a “Harley”. The analogue was a specially purchased “fresh” police version of the “American” of 1962 release. This Harley-Davidson sits today in the Irbit Motorcycle Museum.
Deadlines were pressed, and the head of the sector V. Konovalov took the easiest path of least resistance. As a basis they took the chassis from the M-63 that had just appeared in the series. Unlike older models, it had a rear swingarm with hydraulic shock absorbers, and fulfilled its assigned task. The first two samples (with and without a sidecar) were readied by the autumn of 1963, and by January 1964 they were tested in a run length of 10,000 km.
On the M-100, the 1040cc engine with a bore & stroke of 92x78mm, deserved special attention. At 4500 rpm and a compression ratio of 6.5 on gasoline with an octane number of 72, the engine produced 40 hp. At the summer tests of the TsKEB of the motorcycle in Serpukhov, the first samples did not reach the expected speed: 132 km/h solo and 108 km/h with a sidecar.
A number of significant shortcomings were revealed. The most obvious was excessive wear of the rear tire (tyre, sic). Increasing the compression ratio to 8 led to the need to use gasoline with an octane number not lower than 85.
The development of the vehicle’s siren was another challenge. The initial siren version simply ran by contacting on the rear tire and did not work at a standstill. Besides, this unit often failed, because of dirt and mud, from which there is no escape. The solution of the mechanical siren is worth mentioning, as it first appeared on the M-100. V. Konovalov and the engineer of the sports department V. Sokolov received an author’s certificate. In the new version, the siren was placed over the right engine cylinder – the drive was excited directly by a shaft from the flywheel of the engine. At first, the drive was activated by a hand lever located on the left side of the handlebar, below the clutch release lever, using a cable. Later, a pedal located at the driver’s right footrest, adjacent to the rear brake pedal. And it was a screamer! Ear-piercing, even at idle, at 4000rpm more like a small air-raid siren. I have heard it, so I know!
In the summer of 1965, three corrected samples were submitted to Serpukhov for new tests. This time, the speed limits set by the policemen were obeyed by the M-100. Although some shortcomings remained. The motorcycle though, mainly met the tactical and technical requirements.
There was still the problem of tires. On a solo, the rubber withstood about 4000 km, and with a sidecar, only from 800 to 1800 km. And then the customer (finally!) realized: you cannot do with a universal tire. It is necessary to apply various variants of rubber, select them depending on the type of motorcycle (solo or sidecar), the condition of the road surface, and the time of year.
But improvements to the design’s hardware continued. Three samples of the M-100 again passed interdepartmental tests in Serpukhov. And only after them they dared to make the first batch of 12 motorcycles with a sidecar. They were issued in December of 1967 and sent to Moscow for the Traffic Police.
Extra equipment included optional electro-siren, loudspeaker, fire extinguisher, medical first-aid kit, tablet with night lighting, and portable lamp, side stands for solos.
The estimated volume of orders for the M-100 exceeded 1500 units per year. The plant, already loaded with serial production, and not having special workshops for small series production, was not ready to manufacture so many new machines. In addition, the problem of tires remained unresolved.
Therefore, the Ministry of Public Order Protection was offered an existing model with near real capabilities of IMZ: a patrol motorcycle based on the M-63, the M-63П (M-63P Eng.), produced from 1969 to 1970.
These vehicles, equipped with additional police equipment, turned out to be much cheaper than the M-100. Maybe the price was the last straw that influenced the decision in favor of the M-63P. And in 1969 (having received, however, further numbers of M-100), law enforcement agencies switched to patrol “sixty-threes”. Moscow employees who worked on 1040cc motorcycles, despite their “childhood diseases”, preferred them, rather than serial motorcycles M-63П.
But alas, the wonderful motorcycles M-100 did not appear at the right time. What a pity… It was an outstanding motorcycle.
The existing fleet of M-100 motorcycles drove until completely worn out, thick reports fell on the shelves of the archives, and the M-100 was forgotten.
sources: Alexander Bulanov, Steve Wiggins, Moto, Oppozit
You can find data sheets for the M-100 and M-63П here:
