Transmoto Issue 58 ISSUU

BIKE
2017 BETA RR
Beta’s enduro models may only get a handful of upgrades for
2017. But, as Transmoto’s European Correspondent discovered
at the bikes’ international launch in Italy, small but judicious
changes can translate into big performance gains.
FUTURE7MEDIA
MARCO CAMPELLI, CRISTIANO MORELLO, ANDREA BELLUSCHI
Perhaps we’ve been a tad spoilt by
Beta in recent years. Since 2010,
when they first introduced their
RR range with the four-stroke engines
built in-house, the dynamic Italian
manufacturer has been unleashing long
lists of annual upgrades and introducing
significantly new models on a two-year
cycle. In 2011, Beta was the first to put a
350cc four-stroke into production. Two
years later, they joined the flourishing
two-stroke market with two immediately
competitive, large-displacement smokers.
And in 2015, they started using fuel
injection for their RR350. So it’s not for
no reason that we were expecting some
pretty big things from Beta in 2017.
On paper, however, the upgrades to the
2017 bikes appear limited. Aside from a
few revisions to the four-strokes’ engines,
the new models’ fork legs are 5mm longer,
the new triple clamps are more rigid, the
Excel rims move from black to silver,
there’s a new digital display, and the fuel
cap has been redesigned. But that’s more
or less it.
With this limited number of notable
tweaks, it’s fair to say the 2017 RRs are
the least-changed models since the
Italian brand’s new era bikes arrived
in 2010. There are no jaw-dropping
surprises or shiny new models; at least,
not yet. Instead, the new bikes feature
a handful of well-considered changes,
designed to make Beta’s highly respected
RR line-up even better.
So, let’s ride the new bikes and
put these upgrades to the test...
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