Dnepr (motorcycle)
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Dnepr, or Dnipro, is a model of heavy motorcycles produced in Kiev, Ukraine, since 1952.
Motorcycles have been produced in Kiev since 1946 at the Kiev Motorcycle Plant (Kievskiy Mototsikletniy Zavod, KMZ). Initial production was of a 98cc 2-stroke model that was confiscated from the German firm Wanderer as reparations. The basic design for all Dnepr motorcycles, and their civilian cousin the Ural, is taken from the pre-WWII German BMW motorcycle R71, which the Soviet Union licensed in 1940. The plant and equipment need to make the M-72 (the Soviet derivative of the BMW R71) was transferred from GMZ ("Gorkiy Mototsikletniy Zavod") located in the city of Gorkiy (nowadays Nizhniy Novogorod) in 1949. The Dnepr is famous for its off-road capability. Armed services models equipped with sidecars had two wheel drive and as much as six inches of ground clearance. The engine is a boxer twin of 650cc, similar to its German grandfather. Modern models are sold with engines ranging from the factory standard 650 to 750 and 800cc. Some models have been spotted sporting 1000 Hatz diesel engines.
This motorcycle was prominently used in the movie "Garden State" with Zach Braff.