Could the next Bimota be a Ninja 1000 powered retro KB4
Pictures have surfaced on a Japanese website providing a glimpse at what the next model from the new partnership could look like
ONE of the biggest stories of the EICMA show last week came in the form of Bimota’s stonking looking Tesi H2. As first bikes go, it’s a showstopper alright. But is it likely to be the first model the two companies produce together? Possibly, but we think a machine like this lovely looking KB4 concept would be close behind!
The rendering comes from the Japanese website Young Machine, although other sources across the globe are all saying the same thing. Young Machine are fairly well known for having access to information from sources close to many of the Japanese manufacturers. If this isn’t exactly what the bike will look like, it’s a safe bet that if they do build it, it’ll be something like this.
The machine is thought to be based around the newly announced Ninja 1000 four-cylinder engine. If that’s the case, it’ll be producing around 140hp (in standard trim) and a healthy 111Nm of torque. While that doesn’t make it one of the 200hp hyperbikes, it should make it more than capable of keeping up with the fully faired masses. There’s plenty of room for some tuning too and riding a Bimota is more about the handling and the overall riding experience than just outright power.
From there the KB4 is likely to be a festival of motorcycle pornography, with premium billet CNC machine elements throughout the frame and chassis, top-spec suspension and of course the obligatory Brembo braking set up – who else?!
Will the Bimota KB4 ever make it to production?
I’m going to stick my neck on the line here and say yes. I think in the next few months we’ll see something more concrete on this new model. And why can I be so sure? Kawasaki has just invested a shitload of cash into Bimota, and the small factory from Rimini has confirmed they want to build 200 bikes in the next 12 months.
Firstly, cranking a factory from the mothballed state it is currently in, to producing 200 bikes in a year is a big enough ask in itself – building 200 Tesi H2s would be like trying to make a snowman in an oven.
The KB4 gives Bim’ a chance to do what they do best; take an already capable engine, match it to a sleek, well-proportioned frame and match it to some of the best quality components the industry has to offer. They already have the halo product with the Tesi H2, now they need a bike they can turn around quickly and that people – not millionaires – will want to buy. That’s the KB4 in a nutshell.
Pictures from Young Machine.
Simon (AKA Toad) has been working within the motorcycle industry for more than twelve years, and a member of the motorcyclist family since birth. Growing up around British-built single and twins, it was inevitable that a life on two wheels was on the cards, from a very early age!
