Difference between revisions of "Bimota HB2"
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{{cquote|Bimota's exotic HB2. with its rounded half-fairing, one-piece tank-seat unit, aluminium frame sections and rising-rate rear suspension unit, seemed like a motorcycle from a different planet when it was launched in 1982. The sleek Italian superbike's Japanese rivals were mostly naked fours with steel frames and twin shocks. Even Honda's mighty [[Honda CB1100R|CB1100R]] was almost old-fashioned by comparison. | {{cquote|Bimota's exotic HB2. with its rounded half-fairing, one-piece tank-seat unit, aluminium frame sections and rising-rate rear suspension unit, seemed like a motorcycle from a different planet when it was launched in 1982. The sleek Italian superbike's Japanese rivals were mostly naked fours with steel frames and twin shocks. Even Honda's mighty [[Honda CB1100R|CB1100R]] was almost old-fashioned by comparison. | ||
[[Image:Bimota hb2 900 82 1.jpg|400px|thumb| | [[Image:Bimota hb2 900 82 1.jpg|400px|thumb|right|Bimota HB2]] | ||
The HB2's initials stood for Honda Bimota, and its engine was the air-cooled, 90Ice twin-cam engine from the Japanese giant's CB900F. In Bimota style the 16-valve motor was left standard, complete with its bank of [[Keihin]] carbs and airbox, although some owners fitted larger flat-slide [[Mikunis]]. Bimota's twin-silencer exhaust system saved some weight but barely increased the standard 900F's output of 94bhp. The big motor was partially covered by the Bimota's half-fairing, which blended with the one- piece tank-seat unit. (This could be removed after undoing just four bolts plus an electrical connector.) The screen was usefully tall and protective; the view from the rider's thinly padded single seat was of a top triple clamp machined from a solid chunk of lightweight alloy. Stiff and lightweight frame When the tank-seal unit was removed, the quality of the HB2 became clear. The frame's visible steel tubes, which ran down to join the alloy plates at the swingarm pivot, were backed up by numerous smaller tubes around the steering head. The aluminium plates at the swingarm pivot provided strength and light weight in that crucial area. A De Carbon rear shock, vertically mounted and operated via a rising-rate linkage, replaced the 9()0F's twin shocks. Front suspension was exotic, too: a pair of Ceriani telescopic forks with gold-finished sliders and. at the top of the legs, adjusters that could be turned by hand. | The HB2's initials stood for Honda Bimota, and its engine was the air-cooled, 90Ice twin-cam engine from the Japanese giant's CB900F. In Bimota style the 16-valve motor was left standard, complete with its bank of [[Keihin]] carbs and airbox, although some owners fitted larger flat-slide [[Mikunis]]. Bimota's twin-silencer exhaust system saved some weight but barely increased the standard 900F's output of 94bhp. The big motor was partially covered by the Bimota's half-fairing, which blended with the one- piece tank-seat unit. (This could be removed after undoing just four bolts plus an electrical connector.) The screen was usefully tall and protective; the view from the rider's thinly padded single seat was of a top triple clamp machined from a solid chunk of lightweight alloy. Stiff and lightweight frame When the tank-seal unit was removed, the quality of the HB2 became clear. The frame's visible steel tubes, which ran down to join the alloy plates at the swingarm pivot, were backed up by numerous smaller tubes around the steering head. The aluminium plates at the swingarm pivot provided strength and light weight in that crucial area. A De Carbon rear shock, vertically mounted and operated via a rising-rate linkage, replaced the 9()0F's twin shocks. Front suspension was exotic, too: a pair of Ceriani telescopic forks with gold-finished sliders and. at the top of the legs, adjusters that could be turned by hand. | ||
Revision as of 00:57, 10 August 2010
| “ | Insert the text of the quote here, without quotation marks. | ” |
--Bike magazine from November 1982