Bimota YB6 Tuatara

They chose as a suitable powertrain for the world's fastest motorcycle Yamaha's original FZR1000 - the 989cc unit that preceded the increased bore FZR1000 Exup version of 1003cc. Remarkably, Bimota did little to liberate a big increase in horsepower from the stock engine. They merely fuel-injected it, and fitted their own less restrictive and lightweight stainless steel exhaust. By concentrating solely on efficient induction and exhaust scavenging, Bimota's engine tuners were rewarded with a peak of 152hp at 9500rpm.

The motor's top end grunt was simply enormous.  Meanwhile the chassis engineers worked wonders in wedging a large engine into a frame and running gear no larger than that used on a 600cc bike. Indeed, the l000 cc Tuatara weighs only 3kg more than Bimota's 600cc Bellaria. The weight saving exercise begins with a twin-spar aluminium frame, and continues with lightened inverted Marzocchi forks hand-laid carbon-fibre and fibreglass bodywork right through to the magnesium alloy wheels. To save weight around the steering head they replaced the traditional instrument cluster with a slim, electronic digital panel. The wheelbase is a tight 56in. The power-to-weight ratio is as keen as anything on two wheels, racers included. 

Beautifully finished and styled and well up to Bimota's usual high standards of quality, the story goes that the factory test rider, Giancarlo Falappa, took the bike speed testing along a deserted Bologna-Ancona motorway at 5am one bright morning. On perfect gearing and after some fine-tuning of the fuel injection system, the factory bike was timed at 300kph or 187mph - which makes it the fastest production road bike in the world - bar none. Attempts to duplicate that speed on the few models made available for testing have proved impossible. Although all 60 Tuataras made were hand-assembled, the factory bike does seem to have been a bit special. A top speed  of 175mph appears nearer the mark for the 60 that were released.

At 175 or 187mph there's no denying the Tuatara is indecently quick. It gets its name from an exotic greenish-grey lizard found only on small islands around New Zealand. They have been around for 225 million years, when the pace of life was definitely a little slower.