VOL. 51 ISSUE 31 AUGUST 5, 2014 P79
Massimo's favorite high-speed
corner, which I once followed
him through in fourth gear a doz-
en times back and forth on MV
Agusta Tamburinis (what else?)
while he constantly fiddled with
suspension settings to dial in just
the right mixture.
Today, just as back then, you
can see what's coming towards
you around the same turn, so it
was safe to put the now Pirelli-
shod Bimota through the same
exam it had failed at Nuvolari.
And this it passed with flying
colors.
To begin with, there was no
chatter at all – I mean, zero, on
the same motorcycle. And the un-
dersteer I'd experienced on the
racetrack had also disappeared
as well with the Bimota hugging a
tight line round the fast turn.
Plus there was noticeably
more feel and rider feedback
from the front Pirelli than on the
stiffer, more remote-seeming
Conti. According to Bimota, the
only change to the bike between
my two rides had been swapping
the tires and altering suspension
settings to suit the Pirellis - so I
guess it should have lived up to
expectations all along, after all.
I'd already noticed at Nuvolari
that the new Bimota accelerates
extremely well, with the great
TC package on the BMW ECU
removing any grip concerns. It
does like to powerwheelie, al-
beit in a controlled way in the
sense that the wheel just hovers
over the tarmac as you wind it
hard open, and click through the
gears.
It was also a good decision by
Bimota to fit the excellent IRC
quickshifter, which was crisper
than the already not-deficient
BMW one I'd been riding days
earlier. Bimota technician Da-
vide Comandini also deserves a
pat on the back for his patience
in getting it set up so well. The
BMW dash's gear-selected read-
out is also easy to see.
Whether the smart accelera-
tion from the Bimota is because
of its light weight or those seven
extra ponies the BB3 makes over
the BMW, I don't know, but what
really was impressive was how
forgiving the Bimota is to ride
at slow speeds. Its light-action
clutch also making it not too gru-
eling to ride in town or traffic, and
the balanced feel to the bike likely
to make it feel accessible to less
experienced customers whose
dream just came true of owning
a Bimota. Andrea Acquaviva's
intentions to make it a true moto
totale (equally at home on road or
track) have been achieved. This
is a forgiving bike, as well as a
fast one.
And fast it is - very, very fast,
complete with lights, horn and
license plate. One hundred
mph comes up in top gear with
just 7000 rpm showing, making
this a true 200 mph streetbike
with the RBW rev-limiter set at
14,000 rpm. And it does all this
to the background of a glorious
if slightly muted howl from the Ar-
row exhaust that certainly stirs
the senses.
But the best thing about the
Bimota BB3 is arguably not
how well it goes – but how well
it stops. The Brembo Monobloc
brakes deliver absolutely balls-
out braking, as is their custom
– but the way the Bimota stops
with absolute stability, not lifting
the back wheel no matter how
hard you squeeze, is really, really
impressive. And also a great vote
of confidence for the BMW ABS
That day came on a street ride
in the hills where everything was
better. Much better.
