ape hangers noun high handlebars on a customised motorcyle US,1965 a term based on the visual aspect, with the handlebars forcing an ape-link pose.
Tagged for particular critical attention were high handlebars or “ape hangers;” the removal of the front wheel brake and the ornamental “sissy bar,” a tubular metal backrest rising from the rear of the passenger’s section of the seat. — SanFranciscoExaminer, p. 9, 20 February 1970