Cycle News - Archive Issues - 1990's

Morbidelli's V-Eight Roadster Except - excep t that styling. Distinctive, clean, and pl easing from almost any angle but the front, Pininfarina's design unquestionably misses the boat when it comes to tho se frog-eye headlamps and the eyebrow handlebar muff perched above them. Beauty obviously lies in the eyes of th e beholder , as the cliche has it, b u t thi s weird-Harold styling da res to be different for the sake of being so, withou t even incorpo rating an y obvious ad vantages like an electrically adjustable screen to sui t differentstature riders. "We don't exp ect to sell th e bike looking exactly like this," says Edi Rossi diplomaticall y. "This was Pini farina's opening shot, which will su rely be mod ified for final production. " Play it again, Pinin....and while you' re about it, please drop those handlebars a littl e, to make at least a semi-sporting rid ing s tance. Just pushing the prototype around the Morbidelli factory yard for the photos and hopping aboard for a sit while Naka changed film showed that it's an incredibly upright rid ing position at present wh ich, with 148 mph German autobahn cruising potential, is going to give new meaning to the term "In the Wind. G iancarlo Mo rbide lli ' s holida y dream bike project has been made in to meta l - the V-eight megab ik e he designed on the ba ck of an envel ope while sitting bored on an African beach - hence the le a p ing lion on the tank bad ge, as an in-joke-cum-re mind er of how and w hen it all s ta rte d - is now reality, a potent rejoind er to the people who doubted he'd see it through to completion. Thirty five years after Moto Guzzi went GP racing w ith th e firs t and onl y - V-eight GP racer to be made in Ital y, another great name in the GP racing history books has made a V-eight two-wheeler for the stree t. Maybe it's just as well for the Swiss banking industry he' s only going to make one a month! a U (Above) Morbldelll owns one of the finest collections of motorcycles In Europe, Including all of his twostroke World Championship winners. (Left) The man behind the Morbideiil Glancarlo Morbidelll. Type Configw.:ation meeting all current noise regulations, including Switzerland, says Edi Rossi. This hyper-unconventional motorcycle engine is housed in a chassis tha t, by contrast, is ultra-conventional, with the engine sus pen ded from a duplex spaceframe made from chrome-moly s teel tubing, a nd act ing as a se mi -s tressed chass is member. Th e fork is a 43mm GCB up side down unit, set at a conservati ve head angle of 27 d egrees, which a g ain em p hasizes the bike' s touring aim s in conjunction with the high-set handlebars. Trail is 98mm, and front wheel travel is 5.2 inches, while at the rear there's 4.4 inches of travel for the BMW-typ e rear end, with the cast alloy monoarm housing the drive-shaft pivoting in the rear of the gearbox casting and controlled by a sing le GCB shock without benefit of a n y linkage. Specially made Marv ic wheels are fitted - the rear single-sided design hopefully stronger and more crack-resistant than Marv ic's si m ila r Honda RC45 aftermarket wheels hav e unfortunately pr oven to be - shod w ith Pirell i Dragon GT tires - the front a 120/70ZR on a 3.50- inch rim and the rear a 160/60 18-incher on a surprisingly narrow 4.50-inch wheel. Br embo brakes are fitted - twin 320mrn floating d iscs up front gripped b y la tes t-spec four-piston calipers, and a 285mm fixed rear d isc with a two-piston cali pe r. Wheelbase is a rangy 59.8 inches, and dry weight is 440 pounds. Top speed is an estimated 150 mph, says Giancarlo Morbidelli. "But w e have only so fa r run th e engine on a dyno, not in the bike," he add s. " Pini nfa ri na were very late in delivering the bike in time for the press lau nch, so we ha ven't had a cha nce to tes t it yet on th e roads. But this begins shortly, and I plan to start satisfying the ma n y fi r m o rd e rs w e have already rece ived, ea rly in 1995. We will onl y make the bike in very small quan tities, about one per month, all naturally "fatto mano" - made b y hand." How about after-sales service, given the tiny produ ction quantities involved? "Each bike will be d eliver ed eithe r with or inside a specially- made alum inium container, w hich the cus tomer can use to airfreigh t it to us wh en it need s to be se r viced or, eventually, repaired, " says Morbidelli. "For the normal servicing sched ule, we wi ll also pa y the transportation costs - it will all be included in the purchase price." Sounds like you get quite a good deal for your hundred million lire... +cycle 90-degree, V-eight, single-plane chinkshaft with five maIn bearings and four crankthrows set at 180 degrees. Orientation .longitudinal Bore x Stroke 55 x 44.6mm Displacement ,, 847.26cc (51.7 cu. in.) Compression ratio ....... . ... .. . .. . .......... ..... •. .... . .. . . . . . ... . ... .11:1 Distribution gear-toothed, belt-driven DOHC, four-valves-per-cylinder; . valve included angle 28 degrees (inlet 13 degrees off center, exhaust 15 degrees off center); valve size: inlet 21 mrn, exhaust 17 mm; timing: in. 32-67 degrees, ex. 55-15 degrees Fuel System electronic fuel injection Ignition system ... ..... ............. •.. . .. . . .static, digital type with four coils, firing sequence 1-8-3-6-4-5-2-7 Lubrication system gear-type pump, oil in sump, operating pressure 4 bar. Cooling system liquid coolant circulated by centrifugal pump Starting system electric Power 100 horsepower at 11,000 rpm Torque 75 kgm at 7,500 rpm Clutch twin-disc type with hydraulic actuation system Transmission 5 speed, front cogs, three shafts type, longitudinally oriented shaft type, with single V-joint and integrated torsional damper in singl e-sided swingarm, bevel gear final reduction unit in rear wheel hub Frame TIG welded, 32mm/2mm chrome-moly steel tubing Rake 27 degrees Trail 98mm Front suspension 43mm up-side down fork Rear suspension single shock Front brake 32Omm twin discs Rear brake 285mm single d isc Wheels , Pininfarina design; light alloy Front 350/17 Rear 4.50/18 Wheelbase 56.8 inches Seat height 34.2 inches Weight 440 pounds (dry) Top speed 148.8 mph

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