Motorcycle Sport & Leisure

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1. Vee Two Super Squalo visits Isle of Man TT for final real world testing, now in production as world’s most powerful and fastest-accelerating catalogued streetbike, with 203.9 bhp from Ducati 999S motor via Sprintex supercharger
2. Triumph’s new Street Triple 675 first of several new models from British manufacturer, including Rocket III Tourer, 1500cc parallel-twin cruiser, Tiger Cub 675 dual-purpose trailbike, and 1100cc three-cylinder Daytona Superbike.
3. Bimota continues path down comeback trail with new hub-centre Tesi 3D, has begun work on tricked-out DB7 Superbike with Ducati 1098 testatretta motor

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Vee Two Super Squalo visits Isle of Man

Among the more than 30,000 bikes estimated to have flocked to the Isle of Man for the Centenary TT just ended, in which John McGuinness was the first to lap the TT Course at more than 130 mph on his factory Honda, was another record-breaking motorcycle from even further away than Japan. It’s the most powerful and fastest-accelerating catalogued streetbike currently on sale anywhere in the world - one that makes Suzuki’s Hayabusa look positively wimpish, as a look at the attached dyno chart will confirm. The claimed 203.9 bhp and 126 ft/lb of torque produced by this radical-looking V-twin projectile, with a diagonal power curve and horizontal torque delivery, definitely establishes it as the new benchmark in two-wheeled street performance.

So, what is it? It’s the first of the 99 customer versions of the supercharged Vee Two Super Squalo which are being manufactured in Perth, Western Australia for worldwide sale (log on to www.supersqualo.com) at a price of A$75,000 (about GBP 30,000/Euro 45,000/US$ 60,000). Using the engine and chassis of a Ducati 999S, complete with Brembo radial brakes and Ohlins suspension, the Super Squalo has been styled by British designer John Keogh to resemble one of the fearsome Blue sharks which roam the West Australian coastline (squalo means ‘shark’ in Italian), and it’s just as predatory a form of two-wheeled life as its marine namesake – as its world debut on public roads at the Isle of Man TT amply proved.

“We wanted to demonstrate to our satisfaction that the Super Squalo really is as practical yet performing in real world riding conditions, as it’s proved to be in our extensive development testing back home,” says Tony Hamilton, CEO of Australian Automotive Components/AAC based in Malaga, W.A., a suburb of Perth. AAC is the largest manufacturer of superchargers in the Southern Hemisphere under the Sprintex name, for both automotive and industrial use, and purchased world-renowned bike performance specialists Vee Two three years ago from its since retired founder, Brook Henry. “There is nowhere else in the world without speed limits - except the German autobahns, which are much wider multi-lane freeways - where you can unleash the true potential of a bike like this. So we decided to send the bike to the Island for some rigorous real-world testing, which I’m glad to say it passed with flying colours.”

Sprintex was founded in Britain back in the 1980s by Glasgow-based Fleming Thermodynamics, which patented and produced the first Sprintex twin-screw superchargers. These acquired a loyal following in European automotive performance circles, and even ended up being factory fitted to TVR cars. Brought south to England by top drag racer Dennis Priddle, Sprintex was exported Down Under a decade ago to Perth-based AEC/Advanced Engine Components, a local engineering group. As well as various powerboat applications, AEC developed the Mazda MX5-based Bullet supercar powered by a Sprintex-supercharged Lexus V8 that was an iconic hotrod for Aussie petrolheads. Alternative supercharging applications for the Australian mining industry were also developed, while Sprintex chief engineer Jay Upton has used its products for the past two decades on a succession of drag bikes with which he’s burnt up strips around the globe, including the nitro-powered four-cylinder Sprintex Triumph. This is widely considered the most competitive single-gear dragbike in the world today, and delivers 1,500 bhp from 1,400cc, running 45 psi (around 3.0 bar) on its Sprintex compressor, and consuming two litres of nitromethane every second. “Petrol is for washing parts, alcohol is for drinking, and nitro is for going racing!” says Upton, who currently holds the Australian quarter mile and terminal speed drag records (6.1 sec./228 mph), and is drag racing’s reigning three-time Australian Top Bike Champion.

Sprintex was sold in July 2003 to AAC, a private company headed by partners Steve Apedaile and Tony Hamilton, who together with Upton have since worked with automotive manufacturers and importers in developing dedicated supercharger kits for the Ford Falcon, MG ZT/ZS, Rover 75, both petrol and diesel Toyota Landcruisers, Mitsubishi Magna VRX AWD - and on two wheels the Harley-Davidson V-Rod, via a best-selling kit sold in the USA by Vance & Hines. But the Super Squalo is the first complete supercharged motorcycle produced by AAC’s Vee Two motorcycle division, which was launched in prototype form at the Misano round of the World Superbike Championship a year ago, then ridden by Hamilton at the 2006 Goodwood Festival of Speed, where it managed to outdrag Troy Bayliss’s factory Ducati 999 F06 Superbike using the same essential chassis and engine - but minus the compressor. Since then, Vee Two/AAC has redesigned the supercharger drive mechanism for reduced power losses and greater durability, and is currently building the first ten customer examples of the Super Squalo, identical to the debut bike numbered SS-1 which was sent to the Isle of Man for final testing.

The Sprintex supercharger is a positive displacement twin-screw compressor with a patented twin-helical rotor profile, which delivers lower discharge temperatures and higher volumetric efficiency. Such superchargers have long been the choice of engine builders in extreme motor sports such as drag racing and powerboating, but as most car manufacturers move towards smaller engine capacities to meet demanding emissions and economy standards, it’s now recognized that supercharging provides one of the most effective solutions for increased performance from smaller capacity engines, without the penalty of higher emissions. AAC/Sprintex executives are banking on a similar trend manifesting itself on two wheels.
“Essentially, we hope that our supercharging a high technology multi-valved V-twin in the form of the Ducati 999S, will really open the motorcycle industry’s mind to the potential of supercharging for ultimate performance, while complying with increasingly rigorous environmental restrictions,” says Tony Hamilton. “This is green power! Also, we’ve proved that our compressor system aligned to a two-stroke motor fitted with fuel injection, does allow such an engine to comply with Euro 3 emissions, while still delivering more than acceptable performance.
This allows any two-stroke manufacturer out there which doesn’t yet have a four-stroke option, or which wants to continue benefiting from the reduced production costs delivered by a two-stroke design, to comply with emissions requirements for the foreseeable future - and we’re eager to work with such companies in developing that. Supercharging is a great way of delivering the thrill and excitement of raw performance, as the Super Squalo amply proves - but it has significant environmental benefits, too, and these are only now being identified, with Sprintex leading the way.”

In addition to manufacturing the Super Squalo, AAC/Vee Two is currently also developing a bolt-on supercharger kit for the Ducati Monster S2R 1000, which will increase power to around 120 bhp from the dual-spark 992cc air-cooled desmodue two-valve engine as well as delivering substantial increased torque, and has a similar kit under development for the Honda VTX1800 cruiser, which will be launched within the next three months. Several other models from other manufacturers are in line for a Down Under blow job in the future – reportedly including the Triumph Bonneville.

Related webslinks:
www.supersqualo.com

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Triumph’s new Street Triple 675

Triumph’s acclaimed Daytona 675 sportbike continues to win comparison tests worldwide against its four Japanese four-cylinder rivals, most recently triumphing (ouch!) for the second year in succession in the multi-nation Master Bike shootout’s Supersport category, as well as currently dominating the French Supersport series, after winning every round held so far in the hands of the youthful Kenny Foray. Triumph’s annual balance sheet for the 2006 model year shows that overall sales increased by 18.3% year on year, up to 37,400 machines from 31,600 in 2005, with a comparable increase planned for 2007, up to 45,000 units – while the British manufacturer which still remains wholly owned by John Bloor and his family saw its turnover rise 13.5% to GBP 200 million – up from GBP 177 million the previous year. Now the imminent arrival of the British manufacturer’s new middleweight Street Triple naked contender – essentially a stripoff of the 675 Daytona – represents the first of several new models which the company will be launching in the next couple of years, as a means of driving volume, and profitability, onwards and upwards.

First up later this year will be the range-topping Touring version of the 2.3 litre Rocket III triple, coming with the most expensive price tag yet for any Triumph model since John Bloor revived the company back in 1990, plus hard luggage and full protective equipment as standard, all to position it as a competitor to the BMW K1200LT, Honda 1800 Gold Wing, Harley’s Electra Glide range and the new Victory Vision. But for 2008 Triumph is expected to launch the 1500cc parallel-twin cruiser range it’s been developing for the past four years, whose existence was first revealed in these columns three years ago. Likely to be fitted with shaft final drive, like the Rocket III, this dohc eight-valve mega-Bonneville will share only the same broad engine concept with its junior relation, with its eight-valve dohc engine set across the frame, just like the Bonnie, rather than with lengthways cylinders, as on the Rocket III. The new 1500cc twin-cylinder cruiser family of models will surely entail various spinoff variants being launched over time, though all are expected to have the same 270-degree crank throws as the current Speedmaster, in order to make hardcore American Way V-twin addicts feel at home on a bike that’s certain to be targeted at Harley’s Fat Boy and Softail models. Styling, too, is likely to follow the lines of the revised 2008-model Speedmaster cruiser, with chunkier looks including a fatter teardrop-style fuel tank.

Also believed to be under development, most likely for a 2009 model year launch, is the Tiger Cub 675 – another revival of one of the many iconic model names in the Triumph history books, representing a middleweight version of the larger Tiger 1050 that debuted at the end of last year. This had more tarmac-focused running gear and street-friendly performance than the previous Tiger, but the Cub may well have avowedly more dual-purpose capabilities than its bigger brother, reflecting the lighter build and more compact dimensions of the smaller engine. For, as with the new Street Triple, this will use a retuned version of the 675 Daytona’s three-cylinder engine to complete the range of midsize triples.

By slotting in between the forthcoming refreshened 865cc Speedmaster and the 2300cc Rocket II, the arrival next year of the new 1500cc twin-cylinder cruiser (whose likely name isn’t yet known) will plug one of the two most obvious gaps in Triumph’s distinctive, freshly-engineered lineup, in which no model outside the Bonneville family is more than three years old. The other still remains to be filled, though – the hole in the range left by the now deleted large-capacity Daytona 955i superbike, production of which ended one year ago. But persistent rumours insist that Triumph is indeed developing such a bike, using a tuned and heavily re-engineered version of the 1050 triple motor currently powering the Sprint ST/Speed Triple/Tiger family of models. With Superstock class regulations already returned to the capacity differentials jettisoned five years ago for production-based racing, with 1200cc twins competing against 1000cc fours, and World Superbike poised to follow a similar route, now would be a good time for Triumph to revive the big Daytona, with SBK supreme Paolo Flammini admitting as such in an interview. “We have been contacted by manufacturers who have said that they are considering entering SBK in the future adopting a three-cylinder engine (so, Benelli – and Triumph?? – AC),” he said, “so they want to know what the (capacity) ruling is. According to what has been done in Supersport, where from February this year we permit 675cc triples against 600 fours and 750 twins, it would be natural to think of a capacity level halfway between the four-cylinder and twin-cylinder Superbike limits.” So 1100cc triples it is, then: will Triumph be there on the grid? Watch this space!

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Bimota continues path down comeback trail

 

Brough Superior’s modern day Italian counterparts Bimota continue their way along the comeback trail, after resurfacing from bankruptcy in 2004 courtesy of pharmaceutical magnate Roberto Comini, after a four-year break in the Rimini-based company’s existence. Comini has successfully repositioned the company as a small boutique manufacturer of chic products powered by Ducati’s air/oil-cooled desmodue engines, whose looks and handling count for more than their straight-line performance. Starting with the DB5 debuting in 2005, Bimota has gradually clawed back customers, a process accelerated by the arrival of the acclaimed DB6 Delirio naked bike in 2006 - two models that are in every way the modern equivalents of the bike which saved Bimota from the brink of bankruptcy on its first of many visits to the last chance saloon back in 1983, the similarly-engined DB1.

375 bikes were built and sold by Bimota in 2006, with 450 projected for 2007, including the first 29 examples of the Ducati-engined Tesi 3D, an entirely new clean-sheet version of the company’s idiosyncratic hub-centre concept selling for Euro 29,000 (hence the quantity), which has now been revived in desmodue guise, with styling by ex-Laverda designer Enrico Borghesan. The born-again Tesi has been engineered by a ten-person R&D team led by the company’s new chief engineer Andrea Acquaviva, a former Bimota employee who, during an eight-year stay first time around as an apostle of Tesi creator Pierluigi Marconi (now heading up the Chinese-owned Benelli marque in nearby Pesaro), shared the master’s faith in alternative chassis design. 15 years on, and now aged 39, Acquaviva is now Bimota’s technical chief, having rejoined the company in 2005 from Benelli, where he worked under Marconi heading up R&D for the Tornado triple and its TnT streetrod spinoff. After bringing the DB5 and DB6 duo to market as Bimota’s chief development engineer, Acquaviva was then entrusted by Roberto Comini with the task of designing the third member of the Rimini firm’s desmodue-engined family now powered by the torquier and more powerful 1100cc version of the Ducati motor – a Tesi 3D version representing a step forward from the Vyrus-built variant Bimota had briefly badge-engineered as the Tesi 2D, redesigned for greater practicality and improved handling. With the first 29 limited-edition examples of this new model already built and sold to distributors around the world, a less expensive volume production variant costing around Euro 4,000 less will follow later this year, with 50 examples targeted to be built by year’s end.

With the appearance of the new-generation Tesi, Bimota’s past has caught up with its present – and now the next step will be to restore the small company to the Superbike scene with the eight-valve Ducati Testastretta-engined DB7 due to be unveiled at the Milan Show in November. While maintaining a more traditional front end design with Ohlins forks, this new V-twin Superbike now taking shape in the company’s factory features an unusual and completely innovative frame concept very much in keeping with Bimota’s traditions at the leading edge of chassis design. These originally came thanks to its co-founder Massimo Tamburini – the design guru later responsible for the Ducati 916 and today’s MV Agusta F4 - then later via his successor Federico Martini’s Yamaha-engined Bimota YB4, the first four-cylinder sportbike to be equipped with a GP-style aluminium twin-spar frame, of the type now commonplace in all manufacturers’ catalogues. This was another of the several significant GP-inspired design features Bimota was the first to bring to the street, which include upside-down forks, floating brake discs, four-piston brake calipers, composite wheels, digital instruments, full-enclosure bodywork designed for aerodynamic efficiency, and hub-centre steering in the modern era. That impressive list underlines Bimota’s contribution to the evolution of modern bike design – a tradition which the new DB7 will surely uphold.

The YB4

With styling once again by Enrico Borghesan, the new model will be available in two forms – a Strada version using the engine package from the current 1098 Ducati, and a race-focused Corsa variant available with a kit to bring capacity up to the full 1200cc which World Superbike regulations will shortly be amended to allow V-twins like the DB7 to measure – just as Ducati has a 1200R version of the current 1098 under development for such an eventuality. Comini is committed to bringing Bimota back to the racetrack on the 20th anniversary of the small Italian company so narrowly failing to clinch the first-ever World Superbike Championship with the YB4 in the hands of Davide Tardozzi, today team manager of the works Ducati SBK team. Tardozzi won the first-ever World Superbike race at Donington Park in April 1988 on his factory Bimota, then at the other end of the season went into the final race of the 1988 SBK series in New Zealand leading the points table, only to crash on the warmup lap and non-start, handing Honda the first-ever World Superbike crown.

Bimota’s Superbike victories 20 years ago underlined the success of the specialist Italian manufacturer’s constant efforts to push back the frontiers of motorcycle technology, then deliver the results to their customers for the street, in the form of a racer-with-lights. Comini & Co. will be hoping that the DB7’s innovative design will achieve the same objectives, while pushing the company’s annual production on to 900 bikes for the 2009 model year. And, yes – there’s a good chance that, alongside the forthcoming new Bimota Superbike, there’ll be another born-again Tesi model in the company’s lineup, according to chief engineer Acquaviva. “For sure there’ll be another eight-valve version of the Tesi sometime in the future,” he confirms. “But whether it’ll be with a ‘D’ in the name, I can’t say….!” Well, if not fitted with a Ducati motor, there’s a host of alternative candidates – from KTM to Aprilia, Harley to Suzuki, Voxan to – well, to Bimota’s very own engine, the one they’ve dreamed of building for the past quarter-century, and ended up settling instead for the supposedly les costly two-stroke Vdue 500, which sent them instead for yet another drink in the last chance saloon. Place your bets now.….

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