$50,000 Italian Exotic

$50,000 Italian Exotic

ROUNDUP

IT COULD ONLY HAPPEN IN ITALY, A country so in love with engineering excellence that even the most far-fetched two-wheeled dreams can become reality, especially when a boatload of money is bandied about.

For proof, look no farther than a bike called the Hayashi 750 by Gallina, an all-new motorcycle marque by Roberto Gallina commissioned by Japanese mega-millionaire Yoshiyuki Hayashi. Gallina, who currently fields a 250cc GP team for Aprilia, met Hayashi. an enthusiast of Italian bikes, most especially the works racers of the 1950s and 1960s. at a 1988 race meeting in Japan. Hayashi wanted a new motorcycle. It would have to be something special, with the styling and technical themes of yesteryear embodied in a package with the performance of a bike of today. Gallina obliged him, and has sent the first Hayashi 750 by Gallina to Japan for appraisal by its patron.

But not before I rode it.

The engine for this special motorcycle uses an air-cooled cylinder block under an oil-cooled head which contains four valves per cylinder. The prototype wears a bank of Mikuni fiat-slide carbs. but this is only until a Weber/Marelli fuelinjection system is completed. In fuel-injected form, the engine should develop about l 30 horsepower. claims Gallina.

The chassis uses a chrome-moly. tubular-steel spaceframe, but with a combined swingarm pivot/rear engine mount milled out of solid billets of aircraft-quality alloy, to which the steel spaceframe is attached by bolts. Front suspension is by a Marzocchi M 1 R fork, with a GCB-Ceriani upside-down fork as an option, while the rear shock, which lies under the engine and works in compression via a risingrate linkage from the underside of the swingarm, is a Marzocchi unit. Wheels are 17-inch Marvics. Brakes are the latest Brembos.

Though the bike is incredibly precise and nimble, the suspensionworking through a 25.5-degree head angle and 3.85 inches of trail on a wheelbase of 55.5 inches—is adequate rather than exceptional, the front wheel skipping over bumps rather than riding them smoothly. The back end is better, but it also jumps around over bumps.

The engine is really delightful, pulling cleanly from idle if you get the clutch action right. The rattle from the dry clutch mingles w ith the mechanical music from the engine as you do so. the whirs and burbles of the engine rising to a muted crescendo that could only come from an Italian bike. Performance is impressive, the midrange roll-on especially responsive.

Gallina’s initial agreement with Hayashi calls for 10 complete bikes and two spare engines to be delivered to Japan. Since each bike will be handbuilt. it's anticipated that no two will be alike, except in one respect. Each is expected to cost more than $50,000. —Alan Cathcart.