Although displacement was technically a bit more than a liter, the first generation Suzuki GSX-R1100 really established the modern literbike formula: take a big inline four engine, and squeeze it into a 600 or 750 sized package. The philosophy that created the iconic Gixxer was initially tried out with Suzuki’s GSXR400, and the result was…
The SB6R could have been Bimota’s biggest seller of all time. Certainly the earlier SB6 sold in quantities that nearly qualify as mass production, with nearly 1,200 built. Unfortunately, the utter failure of the overreaching two-stroke V-Due low-sided the company into a crash barrier and the GSX-R1100-powered SB6R was not part of the brand’s renewal, killing…
Aside from the disastrous VDue, Bimota’s stock-in-trade was wrapping lightweight frames and fantastically exotic bodywork around reliable powertrains from established manufacturers. The magical formula that led to bikes like the Bimota SB6 seems so simple, it’s a wonder it took so long for other manufacturers to catch on: wrap too much engine in too little…
Although it’s nearly twenty years old now, it’s likely very few people would realize that this Bimota SB6R is anything other than a modern motorcycle: while many 90s designs have quickly become very awkward or dated at the very least, it’s clear Bimota knew what they were doing when they styled this thing. With Italian…
The Bimota SB6 was one of the Rimini-based company’s best sellers, with 1,700 built, including 600 of the more exclusive SB6R models like this one. Powered by Suzuki’s GSX-R1100 engine and five-speed transmission, it was a whopping 90lbs lighter than the donor bike and, with top-of-the-line Paioli forks up front and a shiny Öhlins shock…
The idea behind the SB6 is classic Bimota: take a dead-reliable, honking big Japanese engine and wrap it in a sexy, lightweight frame, drape with carbon bodywork, and fit top-shelf suspension at both ends. Unfortunately, by the mid-1990’s, Japan had well caught up to the Europeans in terms of handling and, although their bikes sometimes…
Update 11.21.2014: The seller has updated us that this SB6 has sold in just 24 hours. Congratulations to buyer and seller! -dc The fine folks from Rimini certainly have a different way of looking at the world. Ignoring all but performance and visual artistry, Bimota consistently delivers on both ends of the performance-art spectrum (DB3…
When a Japanese-engined Italian exotic shows up at an El Paso Harley Davidson dealership, you begin to wonder if perhaps Bimotas are not that rare after all. The truth is that you would be both right AND wrong. These are hand crafted motorcycles from a very low-volume manufacturer, but they made a few more of…