V8 is back… for £70,500

REMEMBER the 850cc Morbidelli V8? Only four were ever sold when they went into production in 1997.

But now the firm has announced the model’s comeback… if UK dealer George Beale can drum up enough interest.

Beale, who is famed for making replicas of exotic classic racers, has just secured the exclusive UK rights to sell the bike and plans to offer the only one he has at the moment for a staggering £70,500.

He promises that price will tumble if orders for more flood in. So that’s not very likely then.

The bikes Beale is offering for sale are identical to earlier models. They make 100bhp and weigh 200kg (440lb). That’s a similar power-to-weight ratio to a Suzuki Bandit 1200.

It was created to show the engineering skills of Giancarlo Morbidelli, who owns a famed Italian woodwork machinery factory.

Morbidelli wanted each of his agents to have a V8 in the showroom to attract customers but before the batch could be finished, his firm was taken over by another group and the bike plan was cancelled.

The first prototype from the Pininfarina studio was rejected as too ugly. The later reworking by Bimota didn’t win many more fans.

Morbidelli always insisted the engine should be visible under the bodywork and this hampered the overall shape and lines.