MotoBi Imperiale
A family affair
Having a company – an Italian company at that – controlled by six brothers would ensure certain differences of opinion from time to time. That company was Benelli, formed in 1911 at Pesaro on the Adriatic Coast, initially for the repair and general servicing of cars, motorcycles, light engines and even firearms. The idea actually came from Teresa Benelli, by then widowed, as a means of ensuring employment for her offspring; Giuseppe (the eldest), Giovanni, Francesco, Filippo, Domenico and Antonio. Both the eldest sons had studied engineering in Switzerland. By 1914, the attention of the brothers had turned to military work, producing components for land vehicles and aircraft. With the war over, the future path was clear. Italy and much of Europe was crying out for affordable transport, and fratelli Benelli jumped straight in with a 98cc two-stroke engine that was designed to be mounted on conventional bicycles, driving the front wheel via a chain. The marriage of components worked well – too well in fact – because the engine churned out more power than the flimsy chassis could handle. The solution was obvious, and very soon Benelli had its own rolling chassis to form the first complete motorcycle bearing the Benelli name, which appeared in 1921. This year also marked the point where the original five brothers were joined by the youngest sibling, Antonio, who had ambitions to be a top road racer, and soon proved his worth on a specially constructed 147cc model at the 1923 Italian Grand Prix. Within four years he had reached the top flight of the intensely competitive racing scene, proving not only his talents in the saddle, but the quality and speed of the company’s products.
Time to split
Benelli was going great guns, but then along came WW2, and like the majority of the Italian manufacturing industry, the Benelli factory was in ruins. At least several of the precious and exotic racing bikes had been secreted away from the plundering Germans (including the watercooled four cylinder racer which was hidden in a dried-up well). But starting up production again was a nightmare and not surprisingly, there were various schools of thought within the family on how this should be accomplished. Giovanni and Giuseppe Benelli had always been the technical boffins, while the others concentrated on the administration side; a traditional form versus function rivalry that often ended in tears. After the latest disagreement Giovanni decided to pack his drawing board and make out on his own, taking his two sons Marco and Luigi with him.
The result was the formation of Moto B Pesaro in 1949, which initially appeared with just Moto B on the fuel tank but soon became MotoBi, operating in direct competition with neighbours Benelli. In short order, single cylinder two-stokes of 98cc, 114cc and 123cc appeared. The seminal 98B Balestrino featured the egg-shaped crankcases (somewhat reminiscent of the German Imme design) that were to become a signature of the company’s products, and which came to be referred to as Ova Potenza (Power Eggs). In 1952, the B 200, a two-stroke twin – essentially a pair of 98s joined – was introduced with the rather fanciful name of Spring Lasting, making its debut at that year’s Milan Show. The two-strokes were joined in 1956 by a range of ‚
four-stroke singles, initially in 125 and 175cc form, which were designed by Piero Prampolini, a freelance engineer. They looked very similar to the two-strokes, apart from a finned alloy cover over the valve gear. The short-stroke 175cc version known as the Catria (after the mountain and ski resort in the Apennines near Pesaro), was very well received and sold well. It was offered in various models including a Clubman racer which was highly successful in local events. With 8.5hp on tap, the 175 offered a worthwhile power increase over the smaller model. In later years the 125’s performance was enhanced by the addition of a 6-speed gearbox.
The horizontal design has been unfairly referred to as the “poor man’s Aermacchi” but in fact predated the first of these, the 175cc Aermacchi Chimera. The MotoBi 175 had a bore and stroke of 62mm x 57mm and was later bored to 66.5mm to produce a 200cc version which was marketed as the Sprite. By 1966, a full 250cc version with a 74mm bore came on stream.
But Giuseppe’s health was flagging, and he passed away in 1957 at the age of 78, leaving Luigi and Marco to run the business. As well as concentrating on production, the youngsters also went about patching up the split in the family, to the point that Benelli and MotoBi merged in late 1961. Both brands continued in production separately until, with the economy in bad shape and European motorcycle manufacturers reeling from the sales of small cars, the inevitable combining of resources and assimilation of the two brands into one took place. A new range of 48cc MotoBi mopeds followed which achieved only moderate sales success. The final true MotoBi was the 250cc Sport Special of 1969. When Benelli was acquired by de Tomaso in 1971, both the Benelli and MotoBi names were used on various models. A casualty of the takeover was the closure of the MotoBi Competition Department (Race Shop) which had produced a string of national championships in various categories.
In 1995, the rights to the MotoBi name were obtained by Andrea Merloni, who announced plans for a range of scooters. Little happened until the Austrian company Michael Leeb Trading secured the name and began production of 50cc and 125cc motorcycles. For 2020, production was announced of an entirely new range consisting of the DL125 and DL300 models, both naked bikes, to be joined later by fully faired models conforming to Euro 5 regulations.