BIMOTA - From passion to haute couture
bimota is an Italian brand founded in 1966 by Valerio Bianchi, Giuseppe Morri and Massimo Tamburini. Tamburini left a lasting mark on the motorcycle world, designing the Ducati 916 and MV-Agusta F4 750 S, among others. Each of the three protagonists gave the first two letters of their name to generate the BI-MO-TA denomination.
bimota sourced its engines from numerous manufacturers. Almost all its creations are named by the union of the engine manufacturer (first letter), the brand (B) and the creation number with the engine manufacturer. Bimota's first model is the HB1, for Honda Bimota 1ère association. The SB6, the brand's best-seller, is the 6th alliance between a Suzuki engine and a Bimota creation. A dozen brands have seen their engines, of different displacements and designs, take their place in Bimotas. Ducati, Yamaha and Suzuki are among them. Twenty engines came from Ducati, eleven from Yamaha and eight from Suzuki. Then came BMW, Gas Gas, Gilera, Honda, Kawasaki, Paton, Morbidelli, MV-Agusta and even Harley-Davidson.
known for its stunning, top-of-the-range motorcycles, the company started out in a completely different business sector: air conditioning and heating systems. But fate led Tamburini, who was passionate about motorcycles and technology, to develop a chassis for his Honda. At the time, Japanese parts were far from rigorous. In the 70s, specialists like Martin made a name for themselves by designing and marketing far more efficient frames.
the debut of the HB1 coincided with Bianchi's departure and the company's transformation. Gone were the days of heating; welcome to the motorcycle industry. The first motorcycles are sold in kit form, right up to the KB2, built in the Rimini factory. Bimota opened the way for its models, but the company's core business was racing. Results came fairly quickly, with a YB1 winning a speed Grand Prix in 1974.
In 1980, South African driver Jon Ekerold won the world title in the 350 class.
in 1984, Tamburini left the company he had founded to join Cagiva. His replacement, Federico Martini, enabled two students to complete a project that led to the creation of the first Tesi 1D.
in the 90s, Bimota decided to create its own engine, initially intended for GP racing, and the motorcycle that went with it, the V-Due. This 500 cm3, two-stroke, twin-cylinder engine caused a number of problems in its development. Although the brand's models had already acquired a strong reputation and were selling better and better every year until the SB6, the V-Due project would drive Bimota into bankruptcy. The factory was forced to buy back all the V-Due models sold. This financial blow led to Bimota's closure in 2001.
in 2005, Italian pharmaceutical giant Roberto Comini (president of Farmavenda) bought Bimota. Business resumes with the SB8K. An agreement is soon reached with Vyrus to sell the 984 C3 2V under the Tesi 2D name. Then came the more conventional DB5 sports car. Its roadster version, the DB6 Delirio, came out the following year.
2013 saw the arrival of new bosses. Comini sells Bimota to Swiss entrepreneurs Marco Chiancianesi and Daniele Longoni. The company multiplies projects and concepts, enters Superbike with BB3s with the Alstare team and survives for a few years. After 2016, Bimota sails as a ghost ship.
at the end of 2019, Bimota is reborn once again thanks to Kawasaki. The large Japanese company acquires 49.9 of the Italian craftsman. Control of the company will remain in the hands of Chiancianesi and Longoni. But Kawasaki's strong presence will provide the Italian brand with more stable, long-term investment and development security. This alliance was presented at EICMA 2019, along with the alliance's new motorcycle: the Tesi H2.
list of models created by Bimota
- Morbidelli-Bimota
- 600 MV-Agusta-Bimota (MV-Agusta) - 1971
- 750 HB1 (Honda) - 1973
- 250 YB1 (Yamaha) - 1974
- 500 Paton-Bimota (Paton) - 1975
- 500 SB1 (Suzuki) - 1976
- 500 HDB1 (Aermacchi Harley-Davidson) - 1976
- 250 / 350 HDB2 (Aermacchi Harley-Davidson) - 1976
- 350 HDB3 (Aermacchi Harley-Davidson) - 1976
- 900 KB1 (Kawasaki) - 1977
- 750 SB2 (Suzuki) - 1977
- 250 YB2 (Yamaha) - 1977
- 350 YB3 (Yamaha) - 1978
- 1000 SB3 (Suzuki) - 1980
- 500 KB2 (Kawasaki) - 1981
- 900 HB2 (Honda) - 1982
- 1000 KB3 (Kawasaki) - 1983
- 1100 HB3 (Honda) - 1983
- 1100 SB4 (Suzuki) - 1983
- 750 DB1 (Ducati) - 1985
- 1100 SB5 (Suzuki) - 1985
- 750 YB4 (Yamaha) - 1988
- 1200 YB5 (Yamaha) - 1988
- 1000 YB6 (Yamaha) - 1988
- 400 YB7 (Yamaha) - 1988
- 850 / 900 Tesi 1D (Ducati) - 1990
- 1000 YB8 (Yamaha) - 1990
- 600 YB9 (Yamaha) - 1990
- 1000 YB10 (Yamaha) - 1991
- 900 DB2 (Ducati) - 1993
- 750 GB1 (Gilera) - 1993
- 1100 SB6 (Suzuki) - 1994
- 750 SB7 (Suzuki) - 1994
- 900 DB3 (Ducati) - 1995
- 650 BB1 (BMW) - 1995
- 1000 YB11 (Yamaha) - 1996
- 500 V-Due (Bimota) - 1997
- 1000 SB8R (Suzuki) - 1998
- 900 DB4 (Ducati) - 1999
- 1000 666 L.E. (Ducati) - 2003
- 900 Drako (Ducati) - 2003
- 1000 DB5 (Ducati) - 2005
- 1000 DB6 Delirio (Ducati) - 2005
- 1000 SB8K Gobert / Santa Monica (Suzuki) - 2006
- 1000 Tesi 2D (Ducati) - 2006
- 1100 Tesi 3D (Ducati) - 2007
- 1100 DB7 (Ducati) - 2008
- 1200 DB8 (Ducati) - 2010
- 600 HB4 (Honda) - 2010
- 300 / 500 BBX (Gas Gas) - 2011
- 1200 DB9 Brivido (Ducati) - 2011
- 1100 DB10 B.Motard (Ducati) - 2011
- 1200 DB11 (Ducati) - 2012
- 1200 DB12 B.Tourist - 2012
- 1100 DBX (Ducati) - 2012
- 1000 BB2 (BMW) - 2012
- 1000 BB3 (BMW) - 2013
- 1200 Impeto (Ducati) - 2015
- 800 Tesi 3D RaceCafe (Ducati) - 2015
- 1000 Tesi H2 (Kawasaki) - 2020