GIRO DAY

GIRO
DAY
Fancy a bike to do the
Moto Giro? We spent
a day trying these ’50s
Italian 175s for size
WORDS: GEZ KANE. PHOTOGRAPHY: JASON CRITCHELL
W
ith fabulous looks and engineering that’s way ahead
of its time, Italian 175s of the 1950s have got the lot.
And their popularity and desirability has burgeoned
since the recent resurrection of the Moto Giro
d’Italia. The Giro is now established as one of the
great classic events of the year – a six-day, 900-mile rally through
gorgeous (and often mountainous) Italian countryside, with the
stars of the show undoubtedly the up-to-175cc ‘Motorcycles in
Sport’ machines manufactured up to 1957-58.
In the Italy of the ’50s, lightweight bikes were cool. They were
also the best sellers for most manufacturers, buoyed by the success
of Italian-built racers in 125cc-class domestic and international
racing and the rise in popularity of Italian Formula racing, with its
175cc capacity limit. The huge popularity of road races like the
original Moto Giro and Milano-Taranto further boosted sales
and, as achievable objects of two-wheeled lust, sporting 175s were
the top of the heap in their home country. With specifications that
would make the manufacturers of Brit lightweight blush – ohc
engines, beautiful full-width brakes and drop-dead gorgeous alloy
castings – the Italian factories cashed in on the home market.
We gathered together five such motorcycles – sadly not in the
Tuscan hills but in spring-has-just-about-sprung Blighty – to see
how they shape up. With countless successful rides in the revived
Giro and Milano-Taranto events between them, it should be fun...
39

GIRO DAY
Q Narrow, nimble Mondial
begs you to thrash it everywhere
1957 MONDIAL 175 TV
RACE-BRED, REVVY AND BEAUTIFUL TO BEHOLD
Engine Air-cooled, 173cc, sohc single Chassis Steel single downtube cradle-type frame The numbers 10bhp, 70mph, 120kg (264lb), £5000-£6000
Mondial punched well above its weight on the world stage, with
the Bologna-based concern’s works racers racking up five world
titles between 1949-57, plus victories in the Milano-Taranto and
Moto Giro d’Italia. And their racing experience heavily influenced
their road bikes. All of which is the attraction of the marque to
Italian enthusiast Giuseppe Garozzo. Now a resident of Sidcup –
where he ran a successful motorcycle dealership for many years –
Giuseppe remains as enthusiastic about Italian metal as he was
when he was a 10-year-old in his native Sicily.
“Growing up in Catania, I was fascinated by bikes,” he says.
“The range of lightweight machines being produced then really
made a mark on me. They were beautiful. And, because I was so
into the racing, the Mondial’s racing heritage really attracted me. I
remember rushing home from work to listen to the day’s results
from the Giro back in the ’50s, so when the event was revived in
2001 I had to compete. I rode every event from 2002-2013 – and
I’ve finished fourth overall twice on this bike.”
Giuseppe has owned the TV for about five years. “Tom [Bolger,
another of our test bike owners] called me and asked if I’d go to
Italy to look at a bike to buy,” he recalls. “I already owned an
earlier model of TV and quite liked it – but I was less happy about
the staid styling so I said to Tom that I’d go with him on the
condition that, if he didn’t buy the bike, I would. In the event, Tom
bid the owner 4500 euros, but didn’t want to pay any more. The
owner was firm at 5000 euros, so I bought it at the asking price.”
The bike looked good. “It was much as it is now cosmetically,”
says Giuseppe. “But although the seller said he had restored it, I
wanted to be certain everything was right, so I stripped it. He’d
done a pretty good job, but one of the valves was on the way out
and the bore was a bit worn, so I wanted to sort those out properly.”
That’s when Giuseppe realised the full extent of the problems
facing would-be Mondial restorers. “Parts are so difficult to
source,” he says. “I couldn’t find an oversize piston and rings
anywhere. In the end, I had to have a new, undersized liner made,
turn down the diameter of the existing piston a fraction and take
some metal off the original rings to get the right gap. I found a
Yamaha valve that was similar to the Mondial part and machined
that down to fit. You have to be resourceful to run a Mondial.”
“But the bike is so beautiful, it’s worth taking a bit more trouble
over. I’ve tried to keep it as original as possible. I still run it on
points ignition and it’s done 15,000 miles since I’ve owned it. With
Mondial’s racing heritage, how could I resist?”
Left-side kickstarts are the order of the day on Italian
lightweights of this era and the Mondial needs only a gentle swing
to burst into surprisingly noisy life. It sounds like the race-bred
thoroughbred it is. A fair few revs are vital to make a brisk
getaway, but once on the move, keeping the free-revving engine on
the boil using the sweet down-for-up gearbox is a delight.
The bike is so narrow, light and nimble, I feel I could almost
ride it flat out everywhere – and the full-width brakes are pretty
effective at scrubbing off a bit of speed should the occasion
demand. After 200 miles of a Giro stage, maybe that seat wouldn’t
feel quite as great as it looks, but on the sort of roads we’re riding
today – a mixture of minor B-roads and unclassified lanes – I
really feel the Mondial is all I need.
OWNING ONE: Go for completeness, counsels Giuseppe.
“Because Mondial were a fairly small-scale producer, parts are
scarce. But because of that, models like this are appreciating in
value and it makes sense to spend a bit to keep them in good
condition. You’ll either need a contact in Italy to source whatever
is remaining, or get parts re-manufactured.
40

‘I’VE FINISHED
FOURTH OVERALL
IN THE GIRO TWICE
ON THIS BIKE’
Giuseppe Garozzo
41

???????????????
‘I GOT STUCK IN AND
THE RESTORATION
TOOK JUST FOUR
MONTHS’
Chris Bushell
42

Q Pure Ducati: Desmo
valve gear, taut handling
1957 DUCATI 175T
FUN AND RELIABLE IF SHIMMED UP CORRECTLY – AND YOU CAN GET PARTS!
Engine: Air-cooled, 174cc, sohc single Chassis: Steel, tubular open-cradle type The numbers: 11bhp, 68mph, 104kg (230lb), £5000
Chris Bushell has built his Ducati 175T to be ridden – and that’s
exactly what he’s done since he restored it over the winter of
2001-02. Chris was converted to Italian bikes in 1980 when he
bought a Morini 3½. “That was the thin end of the wedge,” he
smiles as he prepares to hand over his 175T to me. “I bought my
first Ducati in 1992 and since then I’ve only owned Ducatis.”
Chris has ridden nine Moto Giros on this bike, so I reckon it
will be well up to our ‘Mini Giro di Kent’ today. With the beveldrive
ohc engine blatting away healthily beneath me, first
impressions are good. The Ducati feels bigger than it is thanks to
the braced scrambles-type ’bars Chris has fitted to give a more
comfortable riding position for long days in the saddle.
Acceleration is lively enough to keep out of the way of modern
traffic on the backroads and the handling is taut and predictable.
After a winter layoff, the brakes could probably stand a little
fettling, but with a mere 104kg to haul up I’m sure they’ll be fine
after a little bedding in. Keeping the revs above 6000rpm liberates
the best of the power and, though I have to drop to third for a
couple of hills, it’s great fun keeping the motor spinning in its
sweet spot. By the time we’ve covered a few miles, I’m really
getting into it – sticking close to the bike in front, slipstreaming
and keeping the throttle pinned through bends, it’s hard to believe
just how much fun you can have at modest speeds.
So how did Chris turn a £490 autojumble buy into a Moto Giro
veteran? “It certainly sounds like a bargain now,” he admits.
“I had bought a 125 Sport and rode that in the first of the revived
Moto Giros in 2001. I was the only English rider there. I had a
great time, but the 125 really struggled on some of the hills and
I started to look for a 175. I spotted this one at Netley Marsh in
2001. It looked terrible, but amazingly it ran. I stripped it right
down and got the frame and all the tinware blasted and painted.
It wasn’t as bad as it looked and everything was repairable.”
Chris was pretty lucky with the engine, too, conceding: “It was
reasonable. I had to source new primary drive gears and I replaced
every bearing, seal and gasket. I also renewed the valve guides and
seats and rebored the barrel to suit an NOS piston and rings but,
like any Ducati, I spent most time shimming up the rebuilt engine.”
Shimming up Ducati engines is a mix of art and science,
according to Chris. “You get a feel for it after you’ve done it a few
times. You need the right tools – micrometer, vernier calipers,
vernier depth gauge – and a genuine manual. I buy any Ducati
manuals I see and, fortunately, I had an English language copy for
the 175T. It takes time and patience to set up the end float
accurately, but once you’ve got it right, the engine is super reliable.
The engine of this bike has only been apart once since 2001 – and
that was just to clean out the integral sump.”
Like many Giro riders, Chris has opted to stick with coil
ignition, valuing the ease of roadside repairs over an electronic
replacement. “I fit a new condensor before each Giro and carry
spares,” he says. “I got stuck in and the restoration took just four
months. The bike was ready for the 2001 Moto Giro and it made
the event so much easier and more enjoyable. Since then, it’s never
let me down and it’ll cruise all day at 55-60mph.If you steer clear
of dual carriageways and motorways, it’s a very usable bike.”
OWNING ONE: Good parts availability is one good reason to
go for a Ducati, says Chris. “There are a lot of common parts on
models built from 1957-68. I get most engine parts from Jonathan
White in the USA (provajon@gmail.com) or Road and Race in
Australia (roadandrace.com.au). Paul Klatkiewicz of Ducati
Technical Services (01924 860210) or Nigel Lacey (laceyducati.co.
uk) are very helpful. A project will cost at least £1500-1800.
43

GIRO DAY
Q Racing crouch is
advisory at 8000rpm-plus
1956 PARILLA LUSSO VELOCE
VISUALLY STUNNING RACER FOR THE ROAD, WITH AN ENGINE THAT’S A WORK OF ART
Engine: Air-cooled, 174cc ohv single Chassis: Steel, tubular open-cradle type The numbers: 14bhp (est), 70mph, 100kg (220lb), £6500
It looks as Italian as pasta, yet the marque’s founder was Spanishborn.
At first glance you’d swear it has an ohc engine, but a closer
look reveals it’s a high-cam ohv unit. The Parilla story may be full
of quirks and contradictions, but there’s no denying that Tom
Bolger’s 175cc Lusso Veloce is a stunning motorcycle.
Tom says: “I’m a relatively recent convert to Italian bikes.
I bought an MV Agusta 750 Oro (the first, limited production
version of the F4) in 1999. I entered the 2005 Moto Giro on it, but
it was a disaster. All these little bikes kept flying past me on the
outside on the tight hairpins of the mountain descents. I thought:
‘I’ll have to get one of those,’ and started looking when I got home.”
Tom knew Mike McGarry – who runs a Parilla website – and
contacted him. “I knew about Parilla’s racing history,” says Tom.
“And I really liked the look of them. Mike knew a guy in North
Wales who was selling one, so I bought it. It was a non-runner and
leaked oil like a sieve, but it was complete and quite tidy. I stripped
the engine completely and got to work as soon as I got it home.”
The Parilla engine is a work of art. “For the mid-’50s this is an
amazing little machine,” says Tom. “They were racers on the road.
The high-cam design, with its unusual single-lobe camshaft,
means the engine revs to 8000rpm-plus, and the gearbox is a
cassette-type that you can remove with the engine in the frame.
I’ve fitted a hotter X1 cam and a big-valve MSDS racing head I
found in the States. I’m running a 22mm carburettor (standard is
20mm), but some owners go up to a 25mm. Power is definitely up
compared to a standard motor, but I don’t know by how much.”
Tom has incorporated other subtle yet practical modifications.
“The ignition is a Power Dynamo electronic set-up and the stock
two-plate clutch is a known weakness. Gary Emmerson
(motoparilla.co.uk) makes a kit to allow you to fit a seven-plate
Ducati clutch, but you do need to use the later, wider clutch cover.”
With the cosmetics of the bike already in good order, Tom was
ready for a more enjoyable Giro in 2006, riding the Lusso Veloce
in the prestigious historic class. And he’s stuck with Parilla power
since then. “I parked up next to another Parilla at the end of a
hard day’s stage at last year’s event and the owner couldn’t believe
I’d just finished the stage,” Tom says. “He thought I’d cleaned my
bike before parking it up. His bike was covered in oil, but mine
doesn’t leak a drop. It’s all about careful preparation.”
Barrelling along a Kentish lane on Tom’s bike, I soon realise he’s
right about the bike feeling just like a racer on the road – the little
bike feels taut and responsive as I snick through the gears and
swing through bends, trying my best to avoid scrubbing off an
ounce of speed by touching the excellent full-width brakes.
The ’bars are narrow and low, positively encouraging a racing
crouch to maximise the effect of the tiny frontal area of the
Parilla. And that clutch conversion is worth every penny –
whatever it cost. With Tom exhorting me to use a few more revs,
I really appreciate its silky-smooth action and the ease with which
I can juggle revs and ratios to maximise velocity.
My ride on Tom’s Parilla has really opened my eyes to the
potential of this little bike. I can easily see why Tom loves nothing
better than hammering it round the Moto Giro for six days at a
time. Smooth, sophisticated and oh-so stylish, this isn’t just a great
lightweight machine, it’s a great bike – full stop.
OWNING ONE: Though Parillas are rare (and consequently not
cheap), there are still bargains to be found in the USA and Italy,
according to Tom. “You shouldn’t need many spares anyway,” he
claims. “You can find just about everything if you look hard
enough and some parts are being re-manufactured.” A good
ready-to-ride Lusso Veloce will cost around £5000-£6000.
44

‘FOR A BIKE MADE
IN THE MID-’50S, IT’S
AN AMAZING LITTLE
MACHINE’
Tom Bolger
45

???????????????
‘I BOUGHT THIS
BIKE TO GET INTO THE
GIRO, BUT I SOON
GREW TO LOVE IT’
Chris Halfknight
46

Q Comfy position and torquey
engine make 200-mile days a doddle
1958 MV AGUSTA 175 AB
A CLASS ACT AND A GREAT ALL-ROUNDER FOR THE GIRO (APART FROM THE SEAT)
Engine: Air-cooled, 172cc, ohv single Chassis: Steel, tubular open-cradle type The numbers: 7.5bhp, 60mph, 123kg (271lb), £6000
If a bike can hold the key to redemption, Chris Halfknight’s MV
Agusta is one machine that does. An increasingly hectic period
spent thrashing big-bore sports bikes at licence-threatening speeds
has given way to a passion for Italian lightweights – and the roadbased
events in Italy that are tailor-made for them. “I’ve packed
up the sports bike,” smiles Chris. “I don’t even ride much in the
UK any more. Events like the Giro and the Milano-Taranto have
spoiled me. I can’t get enough of them. I’m even learning Italian.”
That’s serious. Just what changed the mindset of the former
rocker? “Blame Tom Bolger,” Chris laughs. “He knew I’d been
blasting around on sports bikes, but he suggested I give the Giro a
go. I’d never even heard of it, but I agreed to give it a go when Tom
told me he knew of an MV for sale in Essex. We went over to have
a look and that was the start of it. The owner said the crank had
run a bearing, but that he’d had another crank modified to take a
Kawasaki roller-bearing big-end that he’d include with the deal.
I took a chance, brought the bike home and stripped the engine.”
A pushrod single held no terrors for former Jaguar mechanic
Chris. “It’s really the simplest engine to work on,” he confirms. “If
you can manage a Honda CG125, you can manage one of these.”
Once he was inside the engine, Chris realised things weren’t as bad
as the previous owner had believed. “The original crank, with its
white-metalled big end, wasn’t in bad condition at all,” he says.
“The main problem was a bent exhaust valve. There was even a
nearly-new piston and rings. I replaced the bent valve, fitted the
roller-bearing crank as a precaution and re-assembled the engine.”
Tom had told Chris about the benefits of the Power Dynamo
electronic ignition systems and he was keen to fit one to the MV.
“The problem was that Power Dynamo don’t produce a kit to suit
the Model AB,” he says. “But a chance conversation with a guy at
the Bristol classic show led to him offering to make me a one-off
adaptor to enable me to use a kit intended for an earlier CSTL
model. The self-generating Power Dynamo system is brilliant.”
Owning an MV would be enough for many people, but for
Chris, the real draw is the events he gets to ride on his immaculate
red and white AB. “I’m really competitive,” he admits. “The Giro
is a real riding experience. The time schedules are so tight, you
have to ride flat-out all day. I love it. A pre-’59 175 is what you
need to get in, so I’ve got one. But I soon grew to love the bike.
“It’s the best bike I’ve ever owned,” announces Chris with all
the zeal of a true convert. “I’ve finished six Giros and a Milano-
Taranto on it. I won my class in the 2012 Milano-Taranto and
finished fifth overall, as well as winning a couple of the daily time
trials. That’s not bad going from a little ohv model.”
As I head off up the road, I appreciate its qualities almost at
once. The handlebars are flat and comfortable, the Air Hawk air
cushion seat cover transforms the narrow stock seat (“a hard seat
will kill you on the Giro,” says Chris) and the pleasantly torquey
engine makes 50-55mph cruising easy – and enjoyable.
There’s a feeling of quality about the MV, too. There’s a
reassuringly solid feel to the ride, the handling is more than a
match for the modestly-tuned engine and the brakes offer dramafree
stopping. This is a bike I could happily tackle the Giro on.
OWNING ONE: The owners’ club should be your first stop for
parts. New Old Stock spares are getting rarer, but the club
(mvownersclub.co.uk) hold stocks and re-manufacture some hardto-find
parts. “Italy is definitely the place to go for bargains,
though,” counsels Chris. “Italians just don’t seem to buy this sort
of bike, so you can still find good buys. I’ve found that the
websitemoto.it/moto-epoca is a good place to find bikes. A budget
of around £5000-£6000 should find you a good one.”
47

GIRO DAY
Q Not the fastest or most
elegant, but a fine Giro steed
Q Bike is a veteran of
CB-sponsored Mini Giro GB
1954 MOTO MORINI TOURISMO
A DEFINITE CONTENDER FOR ‘IDEAL FIRST MOTO GIRO BIKE’
Engine: air-cooled, 172cc, ohv single Chassis: Steel, tubular open-cradle type The numbers: 5.8bhp, 58mph, 101kg (223lb), £3500
The Moto Morini Tourismo clattering busily away beneath me
may not be the most exotic – or, indeed expensive – of our mini
test fleet today, but it certainly scores highly on rider friendliness.
A home-made small-end bush that’s on the way out after five years
of hard use explains the rattly top end, but its excellent ergonomics
and torquey power delivery make me feel instantly at home on it.
Proudly wearing peeling numberplates from the Classic Bikesponsored
Mini Giro Great Britain in 2009, Pete di Pasquale’s
black and red Tourismo amply proves the point that you don’t
need the fastest, most collectable or most valuable machine to
thoroughly enjoy the world of Italian lightweights. The gearlever
has a fairly long throw, but with fourth gear in the up-for-up
gearbox engaged, there’s little need to change down, save for the
biggest hills. That softly-tuned little ohv engine just keeps
chugging away. And, though the brakes are ‘only’ half-width hubs,
they’re quietly effective – as I discover when I roll over a brow to
be confronted with a steep drop and right-angle bend. If I was
heading off to Italy to tackle my first Giro this year, I’d be very
pleased to have a bike like Pete’s Morini to share it with.
As you might guess from his name, Peter di Pasquale has more
than a drop of Italian blood in him. In fact, his Christian name is
Piero and he was born in Terni – the home town of the club that
revived the Moto Giro d’Italia back in 2000. There’s no way Pete
– a Kent resident for more than 30 years now – wasn’t going to
take in a Giro or two. And in 2000, he got the call from Giuseppe
– another of today’s band of brothers. “The trouble was,” Pete
recalls, “I didn’t have a bike to do it on. So I started looking and
spotted this Morini for sale in the VMCC magazine.”
Pete offered the owner a swap for a Benelli 254 and a deal was
done. “I don’t know if I got the best of it, though,” he continues.
“The Benelli was on the button, but the Morini was in a bit of a
state. Still, I had a Giro-eligible bike and two months to sort it out.
The dynamo was faulty and I couldn’t find a replacement in time,
so I took a spare battery and charger and charged the battery
every night. I made it through three days like that. The following
year the electrics burnt out completely and the engine seized, so I
vowed to sort the bike out properly before the next event.”
Pete bought a replacement dynamo and a spare engine. “I
thought I’d sort the spare engine and fit that,” he says. “Then I
could go through the original engine and make a proper job of it.
The ‘new’ engine needed a piston and I couldn’t find one
anywhere, so I bought a pair of NOS BSA A7 pistons – the A7 has
the same bore and stroke – and used one. The BSA gudgeon pin is
a larger diameter than the Morini one, so I had to machine some
brass bushes to suit. I should have used bronze, but I couldn’t find
any at the time. The brass bushes have lasted five years, but they’re
about shot now. That’s why the top end is rattling so badly.”
But now the original engine is ready to go back in. “I’ve fitted a
new conrod with the flywheels bored to accept the A7 gudgeon
pin,” he says. “It also needed a new gearbox selector shaft and I’ve
made up new bushes for the rockers. The lubrication to the rocker
shafts is a bit marginal, so they wear. I’ve also got Power Dynamo
ignition for it, so it’ll be good to get it back in the bike now.
“It might not be the fastest bike in its class, but it comfortable
and reasonably torquey – two important attributes for a bike
you’re spending six long days on. The tank is usefully large and
fuel consumption is great. I can get 70mpg from mine.”
OWNING ONE: Spares are getting rare, although North
Leicester Motorcycles (northleicestermotorcycles.com) can help
with some parts. The simple, under-stressed engine is easy to work
on but you do need to check the oil feed to the rockers.
48

‘IT’S COMFORTABLE
AND FAIRLY TORQUEY
– BOTH IMPORTANT
FOR THE GIRO’
Piero (Peter) di Pasquale
49

HOLY CHRIST, I
thought I was
going to die!”
When the man
uttering the
sentiment is one
Michael Rutter
Esq., whose CV of
road racing achievements is
longer than most people’s life
story, you take notice. It must
take something pretty hairy to
widen the eyes of a 13-times
NW200, eight-times Macau and
four-times TT winner.
On this occasion, though,
we’ve merely ridden five miles
across town to fill up at a garage.
Michael smiles. “There are
usually fewer cars around when
I’m on a bike,” he explains.
Rutter, myself and Johnny
Mac brim the three red machines
before heading off for a day
tearing Lincolnshire a new one.
As I pay for the fuel I look out
over rows of chewing gum, and
across at the forecourt where the
Yamaha R1, Ducati 1299 S and
BMW S1000RR are gathered
round the pump, huddling in a
conspiracy of outrageous
performance.
I run through numbers in my
noggin: the Yam is 190bhp, the
BMW 196bhp, so too the Ducati.
With a good launch they’ll hit
180mph from a standstill in just
over half a mile. In top gear, they
take less than 10 seconds to roll
on from 40mph to 120mph. That
is just nuts.
But all three are festooned
with cutting-edge, race-derived
electronic technology that
makes such extreme
performance a) possible and b)
not just survivable, but an
absolute hoot to use. Getting
away with it has never been so
hilariously, outrageously easy.
Eighteen years ago the scene
would have included the original
R1, perhaps Aprilia’s RSV Mille,
or a Ducati 916; maybe a ZX-9R.
Great bikes, thrillingly explosive
in their day. But the new breed of
electronically-enhanced litre
sportsbikes quicken the pulse
like never before, no matter how
old and doddery we’re getting.
You’re never too washed-up for a
race rep, and they still reduce us
to giggling kids. Although
watching Johnny and Rutter
clowning about with paper
towels as they wait at the pumps,
it’s not as if they need help...
We fire up in a supersonic
thunder of mixed firing
intervals, massive 90° V-twin
detonations mingling with the
V4-esque warble of Yamaha’s
crossplane motor and the
straight mechanical bark of
BMW’s 180° inline four. Out of
the garage, we fight through
queues of crawling traffic to get
to the interesting roads. But it
gives us the chance to get an idea
of the new R1 away from its
natural, open road habitat.
“The Yam is a small bike with
a big riding position,” says
Johnny before we ride
off. “It reminds me of
the Aprilia RSV4. Nice
big seat, bars are
reasonable; I could go a long way
on it. It looks like it’s going to be
torture, but it’s not.”
He’s right. The Yamaha is
small, but not ridiculously,
250 tiny. It’s R6-sized, which
means it looks like it won’t fit
when you eye it up warily from a
distance, but as soon as you’re
onboard it feels just about big
enough. Compact, ready for
action, but not daft.
And the front-end biased
riding position of the
previous R1, which seemed to
plant the headstock directly
below the rider’s groin and
loaded wrists with lead, is gone.
Instead the R1 now feels
balanced at standstill, body
weight spread evenly, and even
more balanced on the move. The
first impression is of
featherweight and agile steering.
I remember rolling out of the
pitlane at Eastern Creek in
On the road, Yamaha’s new R1, BMW’s revised S1000RR
and Ducati’s souped-up 1299 S are so off the scale it’s
hard to say anything sensible about them. But fun trying...
S1000RR v R1 v 1299 S
ON THE
w i t h M i c h a e l
50
PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK | JUNE 2015

THE RUTTER TEST / S1000RR v R1 v 1299 S
Words Simon Hargreaves / Photography Chippy Wood
ROAD
R u t t e r
JUNE 2015 | PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK 51

Australia on the 2009 crossplane
R1 and being immediately
surprised at how much force it
needed merely to roll the thing
from side to side (a feeling that
never entirely went away).
The new R1 is completely
different. It flicks left to right
and back like a Peter Powell
stunt kite in a gale, warming my
early morning brain as much as
putting heat into the tyres. The
chassis has an instant rightness
that makes me smile, and give
the other two on the BMW and
Ducati a thumbs up.
The oncoming traffic clears
for a moment, so I let a few of the
R1’s demons slip loose. The
motor spools up like a turbine for
a micro-second, then eviscerates
the nose-to-tail line of cars and
lorries, turning them inside out
and leaving them spinning,
gutted, in the wake of the
Yamaha’s howling, shattering
pace. I mean, really: holy fuck,
what an engine. What. An.
Engine. For all the guff Yamaha
made about the mechanicals
inside the previous R1 being
derived from Valentino Rossi’s
M1, and how the crossplane
crank produced ‘pure’ torque
that felt intimately connected
the throttle, that engine feels
like a truck motor compared to
this thing.
No word of a lie, as I ride along
casually deploying its weaponsgrade
acceleration, the machine
the Yam reminds me of most is
Honda’s RC211V, the 990cc
MotoGP tool I was lucky enough
to ride back in 2005. That bike
had been dialled back by HRC
technicians from full race spec to
a softer, journo-friendly 200-odd
bhp. It has taken 10 years to get
the same feeling of
incomprehensible, but
invincible, performance on the
road. But here we are, and the
Yamaha R1 definitely has it. It
feels like the power curve is a
near-vertical ramp, especially
between 7000 and 9000rpm.
The new R1 motor is
substantially narrower than the
old bike’s, with a lighter
crossplane crank, revised, lighter
counterbalance shaft, titanium
rods, wider bores and shorter
stroke, finger rocker valve gear
and redesigned head. This
should amount to more revs,
more power, sharper engine
response and lighter steering.
And it does. The Yamaha
romps through the early
morning river of commuting tin
boxes like a bionic eel weaving
effortlessly upstream, driving
relentlessly forward in a flood of
quickshifting shortshifts.
Awesome though its engine is,
the R1 is not flawless. The
quickshifter is fine on upshifts,
but coming the other way down
the box is a bit hit and miss,
That burger van’s
just around the
next corner
The R1’s engine
is a phenomenal
exercise in
rocketship
power delivery
The R1 feels
quicker for the
least input
Power: nothing without control
‘Where the Tommy Hillfinger?’
52
PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK | JUNE 2015

THE RUTTER TEST / S1000RR v R1 v 1299 S
‘The motor spools up like a turbine
then turns the line of cars inside out,
leaving them spinning in its wake’
especially with an insanely tall
first gear – I often find myself
trying to shift down into a gear
below. Rutter has the same issue:
“It’ll do over 100mph in first,” he
points out. “This isn’t going to be
much fun in hairpins. There’s a
lot of engine braking, too, and
it’s easy to lock the rear.”
Throttle response needs fine
judgement to avoid jerkiness. I’m
not sure if it’s a fuelling thing; I
reckon the actual grip is
physically stiff to turn, as if the
rubber is fouling the bar end (it
isn’t) or a cable is trapped (it isn’t
either). The S1000RR’s fly-bywire
grip turns like a lightlysprung
volume dial in
comparison. Either way, I find
myself using a combination of
clutch and rear brake to smooth
things out. We stop for a coffee
and I mention the problem.
“What mode are you in?” asks
Johnny Mac. Er, it says Mode 1
on the big colour screen. We
used to call them clocks, but
that’s no longer sufficient. Is it
officially now a dash? A swarm
of acronyms and pictograms is
very cool but will anyone be
admiring the brake pressure
monitor when their eyeballs are
glued to the visor?
“Try it in Mode 3,” suggests
McAvoy. “It’s the same power
and delivery, just with softer
throttle response.” Rutter nods.
With no manual, we stab at
buttons – a rocker switch system
on the left bar, a scroll wheel on
the right. Once you work it out,
it’s fairly simple to master.
We hammer off again into the
Lincolnshire Wolds. The throttle
still feels stiff. But the roads are
dry, the tarmac is warming up,
and the R1 starts to deliver on its
promise of A-road supremacy.
It’s truly, madly, deeply sublime,
pulling wheelies off crests with
electronically-controlled
accuracy, back end sucking into
the tarmac and releasing grip in
tiny, metered stages of slippage
– and all the while with the
droning, baleful moan of a
bewitching powerplant. It’s
sportsbike heaven. In fact R1 is
so calm and collected at speed, it
doesn’t feel significantly faster
than the other two. But it gets
where it’s going so much sooner
than either of them that it must
be. No wonder Rossi cuddles his
M1 all the time. Surprised he
doesn’t nip off with it for a
quickie. It flatters your riding,
inspires new confidence to go at
it harder – not faster, as such,
just smoother and better.
We swap bikes and I take the
BMW S1000RR. Michael Rutter
is raving about it: “It’s fucking
beautiful. You feel like you could
ride a million miles on it and
then go racing with it without
even thinking about it. Thank
God for the heated grips early on
though – without them I’d have
said ‘Fuck it,’ and turned round
and gone home.”
I covered 10,000 miles on the
original S1000RR in 2010 and
around 4000 on the tweaked
2012 model. I’ve also ridden this
bike before, at the launch. So I
know it’s going to feel amazing.
It’s basically taken the cool bits
of the old HP4 – semi-active
suspension, enhanced
electronics and braking, engine
tweaks – and added them to the
S1000RR package. Until the R1
was announced, it sounded
unbeatable.
But after riding the Yamaha,
the S1000RR – yes, I know this
sounds crackers – feels large,
doesn’t turn as sweetly; it’s more
practical and road-oriented than
the R1, a feeling backed up by
heated grips, cruise control and
the best quickshifter and
autoblipper of the three. Rutter’s
impressed: “You’d never think
you’d need them on the road, but
they’re just fantastic. Now I’ve
tried it, I wouldn’t buy a bike
without one.” Purists may mock,
but this stuff is genuinely useful.
The BM also has a roomier
riding position than the R1, with
a longer reach to the bars. “The
S1000RR is the most
JUNE 2015 | PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK 53

‘The burbling from the collector box
as unburned fuel ignites on the
overrun is pure Group B rally car’
The new R1,
pictured here in
its natural habitat,
under a TT winner
‘Are you that John McGuinness?’ Yep, they’ll outrun a Piaggio MP3
conventional, and feels like an
evolution of previous inline four
litre sportsbikes,” says McAvoy.
“The R1 and the Ducati are
doing something different
mechanically, and have a more
contemporary riding sports
riding position.”
The BMW is noisy, too, with a
lot of chain whine and howling
inline four exhaust note. It
sounds harsh against the musical
purr of the Yamaha and the
basso profondo of the Ducati –
but the burbling from the
collector box as unburned fuel
ignites on the overrun is pure
Group B rally car.
As the big hand moves past
midday, I realise that although
the S1000RR doesn’t ignite quite
the same intensity of seething
passion as the Yam (and we’re
talking fractions of a degree of
trouser arousal), it’s a much
better road bike. The engine is
more tractable, with a bigger
shunt off the bottom end and up
to 7000rpm, the riding position
is roomier, the fairing and screen
are taller and keep more wind
off, the handling is steadier and
the motor is less inclined to land
you laughing maniacally in front
of a magistrate.
It’s also a lot less thirsty; both
the R1 and the Ducati are
perfectly capable of sucking
petrol away at 25mpg on the
road while the BM does nearer
40mpg for the same pace. It
means the Beemer gets close to
150 miles on a tank while the
other two are under 100. That’s
a big difference – sod the money,
it’s an extra pit stop even on a
short run.
Ducati time. The 1299
Panigale S is basically a
big-bored 1199 Panigale, with
enhanced electronics and, on the
S model, semi-active suspension.
Technically, to wrest this
much power from a 90° V-twin
without having to throw
crankcases, gearboxes and
internals at it with WSB
regularity, is astonishing. Even
more astonishing is how much
difference there is between this
54
PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK | JUNE 2015

THE RUTTER TEST / S1000RR v R1 v 1299 S
bike and its predecessor.
The 1199 was a bastard of a
handful at speed, especially
away from a racetrack where
bumps, cat’s eyes, potholes and
white lines would blur the rider’s
vision like sitting on a
supercharged Kango hammer. It
had plenty of performance, but
the trick was getting to use it.
Even quality ex-international
racers struggled on track to
match the lap times other bikes
could comfortably set.
On the road, you couldn’t take
the bike anywhere near full
potential because it’d leap about
like a beached mackerel trying
to climb back into the sea.
The 1299 takes that zone
of extreme behaviour
and pushes it 30mph
further away, then
smoothes out the rest
of the ride as if Claudio
Domenicali himself is ironing
out the wrinkles in the road
before you get to them.
The engine feels more
managed than the 1199; softer
edges to the combustion blows,
less driveline chatter, greater rev
range flexibility and more
forgiving suspension. Where the
old bike would charge headlong,
bars flapping and suspension
bucking, the 1299 dips its tail
and gets on with going fast. All
three bikes are physical at speed.
The R1 spends so much time
with its front wheel hovering
serenely a few inches off the
ground you sometimes forget
and only realise when you go to
steer it and you can’t.
The BMW, physically larger
than the R1, takes more muscle
to thread it down a country road.
And the Ducati has the most
chassis movement, moving
about beneath as if to remind
you how fast you’re travelling.
Neither is better nor worse; just
different flavours of fantastical.
Even the 1299’s riding
position feels different from the
1199 (although it’s apparently
almost identical; the fairing nose
is wider, screen taller and seat is
comfier). It all adds up to a
serious degree of usability; the
1299 Panigale S is a Ducati with
manners even a committed
four-cylinder fan can appreciate.
This morning I was convinced I
need an R1 in my life, by midday
the BMW was the only bike for
me... but now, as the shadows
lengthen, it’s the Panigale I can
see in my garage.
As the day draws to a close, we
cruise back to the PB office. At a
leisurely pace, the BMW shines
with its competence and
user-friendliness – until I jump
back on the Ducati and it
becomes my favourite again,
with its lumping great character.
Then I finish on the R1 and
decide no, that’s the engine I’ll
be dreaming about tonight.
Hop on then, I’ll go easy ‘So I grabbed it by the hips and...’ Fast crest = S1000RR launchpad
Öhlins EC
suspension is a
real leap forward
JUNE 2015 | PERFORMANCEBIKES.CO.UK 55

ON THE ROAD
WE’LL TAKE THE RED ONE
Each of these bikes lights our fires in different ways...
THE SUN IS setting, so
we park up to pick a
winner. It’s impossible
of course. Unlike lap
times, dynos and top
speeds, on the road with bikes
like the R1, S1000RR and
Panigale there are no empirical
absolutes. It’s all about opinions
and preferences.
Obviously all three operate at
a stratospheric level of
performance, with handling and
electronics to match. if you’ve
got the money all three of these
bikes unlock an amazing world.
But within that there are
differences and the bikes have
slightly different strengths and
weaknesses. It’s all about what
you want from a bike. So...
IF YOU WANT TO
FEEL LIKE A RACER
The R1 is the race bike of the
bunch; the lightest-feeling
and the most aggressive. You’d
choose it if you wanted to live
on a track and replicate the
feats of Rossi and Lorenzo.
But the engine is perfectly
atuned to road riding, too, and
the handling is brilliant. It’s as
good as Japan gets in 2015.
IF YOU WANT TO
FEEL AMAZED
And amazing, the Ducati is
the best-looking, surprisingly
civilised but still boomingly
domineering. It’s a highly
visible, swaggering statement of
speed – but now packaged with
more finesse, and genuinely fun
instead of terrifying. But it is a
huge amount of money – even
the base model is £17k and this
S model is almost £21k.
IF YOU WANT THE
MOST COMPLETE BIKE
The S1000RR is the most
refined and civilised, with the
most concessions to the niceties
of life. It has huge power, great
handling and an easy-to-expolit
manner than makes you get the
most of of it soonest.
But it’s also the least
engaging, emotionally – the one
motorcycle here that stirs the
soul slightly less.
But, ultimately, Michael
Rutter, John McAvoy and I all
agree. We’d have the red one...
SECOND OPINIONS WHAT WOULD BE YOUR CHOICE AS A ROAD BIKE?
“THE DUCATI IS
your Ferrari on two
wheels; a show
machine. I love the
noise and the looks, but it hasn’t
quite got the performance edge
over the Yamaha.
The BMW is a go-anywhere,
do anything bike, and I’d buy one
if I was planning on doing many
miles. And you could do a lot on
it and not have a problem or
complaint.
“But the R1 is a race bike. It’s
so exciting to ride; it makes your
heart beat faster and you push it
that little bit harder as a result.
You get a real rush from caning
it. You just want to ride it again
and again and the engine is
really, really special. It feels like
it’s worth £15,000 just for that.
“If I had to chose right now
which one to have, it’d definitely
be the R1. It’s a bit of fun, the
engine is incredible. The R1 isn’t
a bike you’d ever get bored of.”
Michael Rutter
“FOR ME, THE
Yamaha is trying a
little bit too hard. It’s
basically Yamaha
catching up with what Ducati and
BMW (and Aprilia) are already
doing. It hasn’t got anything they
haven’t, apart from the
crossplane engine.
“The look and the finish is a bit
rushed, too. It doesn’t look like a
£15,000 motorbike. The Ducati
definitely lets you know where
the money went. It’s pure theatre
– all about the show. Plenty of
go, too, of course, and it’s much
easier to use than the 1199
Panigale. A much nicer bike on
the road.
“I’d have the Ducati as a road
bike. It’s just... silly. Theatre,
noise, riding position. I’d have the
base model, though, without the
fancy suspension; I don’t see the
point for the money. You can do
a huge amount of trackday with
the money you’d save...”
John McAvoy

Kawasaki
ZZ-R1100D
Go far and fast with Kawasaki’s 175mph ZZ-R1100
WE WANT IT
WORDS CHRIS NEWBIGGING PHOTOGRAPHY JASON CRITCHELL
Chris tests the ZZ-R’s
aerodynamic efficiency
70

Desire
Big the ZZ-R might
be but it’s also clever
FOR SALE
£3150
Paddock Hill
Motorcycles (07790
853250 or 01905
776876)
AWASAKI make bikes in all
K
shapes and sizes, but really
they’re at their best with big-bore
sportsbikes. From the very first
Z1, Kawasaki have always been on a quest
for straightline speed on two wheels.
It was entirely logical for them to be the
manufacturer to produce the first ‘hyperbike’.
A conventional big-bore sportsbike is usually
a rounded package, built to go around
corners as well as achieve rocket speed.
Hyperbikes were a different prospect.
The first ZZ-R (1990) was purposely
tailored for high speed – the highest, in fact.
Kawasaki Heavy Industries had won and lost
the title for world’s fastest production bike on
a few occasions, so to make sure they held
the title for a longer stretch, they went all out.
Aerodynamic efficiency was a key part of
the build. Sharp, aggressive race bike fairings
were side-stepped for a smooth, bulbous
design that would gently part the air at the
front and allow the 1052cc machine to slip
through the gap with minimal resistance.
The engine was mostly older proven
technology – the architecture is a derivative
of the GPZ900/1000/ZX-10 lineage. Bigger
cylinders, a downdraught head and carbs and
other improvements helped increase power,
but the big news was Ram-Air.
Ram-Air scoops have an
insatiable appetite
71

Not the quickest around bends
but mad fast between them
Understated and classy
by 1990s’ standards
Plenty of space to settle in
and get comfortable
A snout in the nose fed air into a sealed
airbox, which was designed to increase
power at speed by creating a small amount of
pressure. Peak power was a claimed 145bhp.
Early C-models were voluntarily restricted
to 125bhp from the factory, as manufacturers
worked in anticipation of compulsory power
limits threatened by MEPs. Derestriction was
simple – just modify or fit ZXR750 carb tops
to allow the slides to lift fully – and the
ZZ-R’s immense speed and power made it
king of the road.
And so it would remain until Honda copied
and updated the idea with the Blackbird in
1997. The C1 was initially launched and
aligned with flagship sportsbikes like the
CBR1000F and GSX-R1100, but as
sportsbikes became lighter and more radical,
the ZZ-R found a better fit as a rapid
sports-tourer, a position cemented with the
revised (and unrestricted) D-model in 1993.
Like this stunningly well-kept D7 from
Paddock Hill Bikes. For all the engineering
brilliance, Kawasaki skimped on the finish a
little, so to find one this clean and original
with just 15,000 miles is a treat.
Even if the cosmetics weren’t as good as
they are, you could guess the mileage by the
way it runs. From the first few seconds of
Kawasaki’s excessively high-rpm on-thechoke
running, this one runs with a crisp feel
that isn’t present on ZZ-Rs with worn carbs.
In general, smooth is the theme of the
ZZ-R. If you’re used to hard-edged
Kawasakis with snarling motors and
granite-like damping properties, the
72

Desire
SPECIFICATION
1999 Kawasaki ZZ-R1100D7
ENGINE
Type
liquid-cooled, dohc, 16v
inline-four
Capacity
1052cc
Bore x stroke 76x 58mm
Compression ratio 11:1
Ignition
digital
Carburation 4 x Keihin CVKD40
TRANSMISSION
Primary/final drive chain/chain
Clutch
wet, multiplate
Gearbox
6-speed
CHASSIS
Frame
twin-spar aluminium beam
Front suspension 43mm telescopic, preload and
rebound damping adjustment
Rear suspension Uni-Trak monoshock
Front brake 2 x 320mm discs,
four-piston Tokico calipers
Rear brake 1 x 220mm disc,
opposed-piston caliper
Wheels
3-spoke cast aluminium
Front tyre 120/70-ZR17
Rear tyre
180/55-ZR17
DIMENSIONS
Dry weight 233kg (513lbs)
Wheelbase 1500mm (58.5in)
Seat height 780mm (30.42in)
Fuel capacity 24 litres (5.28 gal)
PERFORMANCE
Top speed 175mph
Power (claimed) 147bhp@10,000rpm
Torque (claimed) 81lb.ft@8500rpm
Fuel consumption 38mpg
Zed-Zed-Arr will surprise you. It’s refined in
every way – comfortable, good ride quality
with easy handling for something that looks
a bit of a whale.
It still has teeth though. Wind the throttle
open from anything above 4000rpm (there’s
a bit of a flatspot just below to pass noise
regs) and the 1052cc motor dishes up more
and more torque. There’s no step in the
power – it just keeps the needles whipping
around the dials relentlessly as the Ram Air
system resonates from the hundreds of litres
of air being pushed through.
Fortunately the days of Z1s bending under
the strain of their own motive power had
long since passed by the time of the ZZ-R.
The twin-spar aluminium frame keeps
everything nicely in check, and although age
has thinned the damping oil, the suspension
doesn’t tie it in a knot either.
It’s all surprisingly manageable – the tank/
seat/peg arrangement gives my six-foot figure
plenty of room to get comfortable without
stretching me out to the point of reduced
feel. It’s still a weighty, soft bike with a long
Fold-out hooks
ready for bungees
Eccentric chain adjuster
for tension and ride height
wheelbase so it’s no scratcher, but with the
new tyres about to be fitted, this ZZ-R will
still be capable of getting through bends as
quickly as it can sprint between them.
The Tokico four-piston brakes are sensitive
to condition, and thankfully this pair are in
good shape, so keeping a lid on speed is no
issue. There’s room for improvement with
new hoses and fluid to replace the originals’
now well-past use-by date.
I could really live with the ZZ-R. The
colour helps – not the most exciting shade,
but it has a classier feel than some of the
more questionable 1990s colour combos
Kawasaki played with. There’s not much you
couldn’t reasonably expect of it, and in years
to come I’m sure that ZZ-Rs will find their
place as classics too, so it’s a thoroughly
useable bike that won’t kick you in the teeth
with depreciation either. This one’s a corker
at a fair price – it won’t be long before it finds
a new owner.
Thanks to Paddock Hill Motorcycles
(07790 853250 or 01905 776876)
The alternatives
1995 Triumph Daytona 1200
Triumph claimed the same power as
the ZZ-R, though in reality it was a
more exaggerated number. Even so,
Hinckley’s 1200-four packs a lot of go,
and this 9000-mile bike looks cheap at
£2550 on eBay.
1996 Honda CBR1100XX
Super Blackbird
The one to usurp the ZZ-R, it’s the
same idea but more so. They’ll handle
miles readily – over a million happily
– but you’ll pay more in like-for-like
condition. This one has done 41,000
miles and is up for £2195 on eBay.
73