For more than fifty years the bimota name has been synonymous with craftsmanship and racing performance. Yet, despite a racing heritage as long as bimota’s, one area left unconquered was that of enduro racing. Now that changes with the public introduction of BX450
Having already produced a handful of machines for use in Italian domestic series such as Motorally and Raid TT – garnering numerous wins and a Championship title – the BX450 will be available later this Spring.
Based on the KX450X, featuring a 449 cm3 liquid-cooled 4-stroke engine, lightweight aluminium frame, and race-ready suspension, this limited-edition model came to life thanks to the experience of Kawasaki’s pinnacle off-road KX models and assembled by bimota into an Italian-crafted enduro racing machine. Combining the championship-winning design of Kawasaki’s flagship KX models with bimota craftsmanship results in true bimota style with stunning aesthetics and functionality.
Aggressive lines plus exclusive colour and graphics add panache while the lightweight aluminium frame contributes to excellent handling; all highlighted by the new off-road bimota Experience logo accentuating bimota’s attention to detail and devotion to producing high quality racing thoroughbreds.
Like any bimota, the stunning looks are just the exotic surface, below that lays a meticulous engineering approach to the BX450’s core enduro role with characteristic stand out features – most notably in terms of the facility for “fine tuning”.
Chief among these is the adoption of an Athena GET ECU with BX450 specific FI settings allowing the rider to switch between two racing maps, select from 10 levels of traction control, or activate launch control mode via the SX1 controller mounted on the handlebar, optimising settings for each kind of terrain plus also offering custom engine mapping as well as deeper tuning and a diagnostic facility via an optional controller.
Other competition oriented components confirming the status of the BX450 as a serious enduro racer, are the fitment Metzeler MCE 6 Days Extreme Supersoft tyres, a lightweight Akrapovic titanium silencer and the convenience of a second, smaller, fuel tank as part of the machine package (10.7l std and 6.2l small), meaning that the BX450’s overall “fully fuelled” race weight and its race range can be easily adjusted.
Pierluigi Marconi, COO of bimota, commented: “For us, racing isn’t a category but it’s our essence. When we look at our enduro bike we don’t see something completely new, we see a new challenge. Entering the world of enduro wasn’t a strategy for us it was simply following our DNA.
This isn’t a toy, it’s a real racing bike. To underpin that statement, in 2024, we were the overall winners in the Italian RaidTT classification. The development of the BX450 followed a proven logic where design and testing intersect many times before reaching production. Yes enduro is a new field for bimota but competition isn’t. We’re ready for the next step. Now it’s time to go racing.”
The bimota BX450 will be priced at £10,599 and will be available in early May.
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