Bimota KB4 breaks cover dressed in full cafe racer grandeur

The Bimota KB4 has been revealed in what appears to be production-ready form showcasing the full retro grandeur of the premium cafe racer.

The second model to be revealed by the latest incarnation of the historic Italian brand, the KB4 follows on from the more extreme Bimota Tesi H2 hyper-sportsbike, which is now starting to reach customers after it was revealed in 2019 at EICMA.

Compared with the 228hp Tesi H2, the KB4 is a more affordable and modest offering from the Italian marque, which has been revitalised by significant investment from Kawasaki, which bought a 49% share of the company in 2019.

As such, the KB4 - as demonstrated by the ‘K’ in the name - is based on the Kawasaki Z1000 running gear, underpinned with an inline four-cylinder engine generating around 140bhp.

However, the KB4 takes the platform into an entirely new direction with a cafe racer form that harks back to Bimotas of yore, where the porthole circular headlight and bulbous front-end in particular stand out more than most other models adopting such a form.

Revealed on the Bimota Classic Facebook page - though seemingly since removed - but picked up by Asphalt & Rubber, the final version doesn’t differ immensely from a prototype seen doing the rounds last year. However, there are tweaks to the  front-on nose that drops away, while it appears to have sprouted some wings influenced by the Tesi H2.

This is also the first time the KB4 has been seen in final retro red and white livery as previewed in sketches from 2019, while the image shows a more angular side fairing that also harks back to the 1970s and 1980s.

No date has been set for the Bimota KB4 to be revealed or go on sale but in or around EICMA 2021 would appear the logical time for it.