
Over the ensuing years Bimota garnered a reputation for pushing the boundaries of style and performance, building innovative motorcycles around other manufacturer’s engines. The handcrafted machines that emerged from the Bimota factory in storybook Rimini, Italy—the Adriatic Seaside hometown of Frederico Fellini—exuded an exclusivity born from the passion of their artisans. In fact, passion seemed to be the company’s business plan, which, although admirable, left precious little room for fiscal concerns and market strategy. Unfortunately, Bimota’s beautiful leaps of faith, when pitted against prodigious competition, landed the company in bankruptcy and halted production.

The DB5 Mille uses a unique perimetrical trellis frame married to machined aircraft alloy lateral plates that cradle an air-cooled, Ducati Desmodromic 992cc L-twin engine. The twin-spark, two-valve Ducati powerplant keeps the DNA of the DB5 purely Italian and maintains an alliance that began in 1984.
There is an inherent simplicity in the air-cooled platform that results in an uncluttered, compact motorcycle. Devoid of water hoses, radiators, fans and pumps, the DB5 is stripped down to the basic elements, rendering a sublimely narrow profile that is beautifully enhanced by the cut and shape of the minimalist bodywork. The fairing’s aerodynamics, while maintaining the continuity of the machine’s slender contours, keep the pilot surprisingly well protected at speed.
The two-valve Ducati powerplant, a proven workhorse imbued with a torquey disposition, delivers 95 hp at 8000 rpm to push the DB5’s feathery 364 pounds. Certainly, in the current climate of liter sportbikes, with manufacturers producing ever more awe-inspiring, frighteningly potent horsepower figures, the DB5’s comparably humble numbers may fail to impress the spec sheet chasers. Based on those particular numbers, they will dismiss the Bimota from their armchair arguments of why this bike will beat that bike; which one has more horsepower, and which one is fastest. Well, remember, a cannonball will beat them all—it just doesn’t have any class.The DB5 is suspended with 43mm öhlins forks and a single öhlins rear shock in a steep cantilever position. The swingarm is an industry first, combining a trellis design with lateral machined aircraft alloy plates designed to flex vertically, while retaining rigidity against lateral forces. As can be expected, Brembo brake units are employed with the radially-mounted front four-piston calipers. The massive twin 298mm discs easily pull the lithe DB5 down from speed with a controlled, progressive feel.

A Bimota aficionado, whom we’ll forgive his blatantly sexist, politically incorrect summation by virtue of his Italian upbringing, said of the DB5, “The bike is like an Italian woman—she cooks, she cleans, she makes love.” After several false dawns in the re-emergence of one of Italy’s most charismatic motorcycles, Bimota has once again, at long last, arrived on our shores, ready to seduce.

Specs
ENGINE
992cc, air-cooled, 2-valves per cylinder, L-twin, Desmodromic by Ducati; EFI with 45mm throttle body
WEIGHT (DRY)
364 lbs.
MAX HP
95 @ 8,000 rpm
DRIVE SYSTEM
6-speed transmission, with hydraulic dry clutch
CHASSIS
20/25mm tubular chromoly trellis with aircraft alloy lateral plates
FRONT SUSPENSION
43mm Öhlins inverted forks; fully adjustable
REAR SUSPENSION
Öhlins with cantilever linkage; fully adjustable