Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/707505
FEATURE TAMBURINI T12 MASSIMO P82 Having done so, who better to recount how and why the T12 project came about than Andrea himself, the man responsible for seeing his father's last project through to fulfillment? So, here's what he had to say. FROM FATHER TO SON "After Papa passed away, we completed assembly of the bikes here at Tamburini Corse, and on March 1, 2016 our family formed Massimo Tamburini srl to take care of the commercialization of the T12 Massimo. There are seven shareholders in all. "We revealed the project online on March 6, and the response has been literally incredible. I personally had high expectations, because I knew how respected my father was in the world of motorcycling, but the global reaction to the bike's debut online ⎯ not even in the metal ⎯ was way over and be- yond that. After the website had been online for just 20 minutes the site manager called me to say that there had been a highly anomalous amount of traffic on it, which already amounted to 20,000 hits! "We'd opened a Facebook page the day before, and by the end of the first week, that had 850,000 friends. We honestly CARBON DREAM "T he bodywork is entirely made in carbon fiber, and that includes the 5.6 gallon gas tank, which it's important to underline is a load-bearing struc- tural component of the chassis. As is normal these days, the front section comprises the airbox, which is larger than the standard BMW one, with all the throttle bodies and trumpets housed within it. The fuel tank proper com- mences at the filler cap, then reaches back beneath the seat as part of the chassis, with the seat mounted directly on it – there's no rear subframe. This design employs many structural techniques from Formula 1, where the fuel tanks are also full load-bearing components, similarly made from carbon fiber. "My father took pains to ensure the mechani- cal components of the bike were completely accessible—within two minutes the bike can be stripped to its bare essentials. The dash- board and all electron- ics come from MoTeC, and the wiring harness employs aerospace technology. My father intended that this should be strictly a racing motorcycle, so we have no headlamps or street equipment considered. (Above) Black is all you'll see a Tamburini T12 Massimo in. (Above right) That back-end is so sharp you could almost cut yourself on it. (Right) That front scoop ensures massive amounts of air reach the BMW throttle bodies. "HE LOOKED THROUGH THEM ALL, THEN POINTED AT THE REAR THREE- QUARTER SHOT AND SAID, "THIS IS A BEAUTIFUL BIKE – IT EVEN LOOKS GOOD FROM THE REAR!"