Hello and welcome to Route 66 Modern Classics  

My name is Glenn Alan Bartels, President and owner of Route 66 MC.  I'm actually a Harley guy by birth, my family has been in the Harley-Davidson industry for over 30 years. 

Bartels' Harley-Davidson (www.bartelsharley.com) is a family owned and operated business located in West Los Angeles (Marina Del Rey, near LAX International Airport).  The Bartels' family is known for great service, loyalty, and a passion for racing.  I enjoy all types of racing, and although I didn't seem to genetically inherit the same racing DNA code from our Dad that keeps many of my five brothers on the race track every weekend, I'm still a bit of a "Gear Head," and a servant in the motorcycle industry.

I've been a Harley enthusiast for as long as I can remember.  I enjoy the euphonious sound of an internal combustion V-Twin engine with push rod actuated valves & flywheels on a common crank pin, but anything that exudes raw sexiness and horsepower is cool in my book.

In 1994 at age 27, I took my five personal custom Harleys, left the  security of my famlies business, and started my own international, tourist based, Harley-Davidson Rental company called Route 66 Riders (www.route66riders.com).

Today we carry over 150 late model Harley's for rent to the public, as well as movie production studios.  Our clientele is predominantly European tourists here to become cowboys in the wild, wild west.  I enjoy being surrounded by the numerous people from international cultures who walk through our doors and flavor our lives...  Brits, French, Swiss, Italian, German, Scandinavian, Brazilian, Australian and Japanese to name just a few.  We employ a multi-lingual staff to better communicate with our guests from abroad.

Bartels' also has a rather large celebrity clientèle, the likes of our California Governator Arnold Schwartzenegger,  NBC Tonight Show Host Jay Leno, Rockers; Bruce Springsteen, Steven Tyler, Bob Dylan. Actors; George Clooney, Mel Gibson, John Travolta, Bruce Willis... and the list goes on.  If you want to see movie stars this is the place to be!

My mid-life need for something different than a HOG has found my passions stirred in the world of vintage 1950's & 60's Vespas.  The aeronautical design of one of Italy's finest is wrapped around a 150cc Vespa 2-stroke engine. Vespa being Italian for Wasp, zings along as you ride... Vespapapapapapapapapapapa... They're not fast by Harley Big Twin standards, but I'm enjoying the slower pace of putting around our Mediterranean beach cities here in SoCal...  Now how can I make 6 more horsepower!!!

Scooters weren't even on my radar scope until I started traveling to Europe a few years ago. After riding in Rome on a friends '59 Vespa Grand Sport (The Vespa "Hot Rod" of it's time), I got bit by the scooter bug and fell in love with these little, Italian rolling sculptures... they have a classic, timeless shape, they make cool sounds and vibrations, they get 90 miles per gallon, and girls love 'em~ What else can I say!

In Europe scooters are the primary source of transportation year round, rain or shine.  I've ridden in Rome, Paris, London and Amsterdam.  These are great metropolitan citys with a vibrant flair and scooters are everywhere.  Here in sunny SoCal (Southern California) our fantastic mediterranean climate is perfect for riding year round and yet scooters are just beginning to take off as a viable means of transportation and recreation.  Traffic and high fuel prices are driving scooter sales to an all time high, you can finally have your slice of mediterranean pie.

At Route 66 Modern Classics we build Harley powered Hot Rods, Custom Motorcycles and Scooters.   We offer European craftsmanship and refinement of service in a laid back atmosphere.  We are also performance aficionados who like to squeeze the last ounce of horsepower out of every cubic centimeter.   We enjoy creating stylish machines of elegant simplicity and performance for the discriminating enthusiast.
 
Classic, timeless, style... Like a fine pair of Italian shoes, a vintage Rolex watch, or your favorite pair of faded blue jeans.  Something cool enough for James Dean to ride, stylish and elegant enough for your inner Audrey Hepburn, fast enough to make Steve McQueen smile... They exude cool, style, elegance and speed... you should too!

If you're a SoCal resident, then you're going to start seeing more scooters in the near future.  Not just vintage scoots, but new, modern, automatics as well.  Push a button, twist the throttle and away you go... Southlanders are tired of the traffic congestion and high fuel prices, which will soon be over $4.00 per gallon.  Many of us won't give up our SUV's, but did you know that simply by switching just 10% of your annual commuting to a scooter, you can help to save 15 million gallons of fuel per day and reduce carbon dioxide emissions by as much as 325 million tons!

Route 66 Modern Classics is proud to offer the Genuine Scooter line. (www.genuinescooters.com/buddy.html ) 
The Buddy 125cc is a clean, powerful 4-stroke engine with the classic Italian style.  We offer a full service Sales, Parts, Accessories and Maintenance shop for the models we build and the brands we carry.  We are not just offering products for sale, we are offering our service to you, and you are now reading this so you must be interested in something we offer.

Regardless of your needs, whether you're looking for an economical new scoot to cut traffic on or a vintage classic, we'd like to help you make an informed decision and choose the right machine for you.  Please stop by and check us out.                                           

Ciao & Cheers,
Glenn Alan Bartels
President
Route 66 Modern Classics