Motorcycles: Lady in Black
December 1, 2007
The MV Agusta F4CC "Lady in Black" carries the "CC" initials of Claudio Castiglioni, the company director who first envisioned the bike as his personal machine—and the repository of every motorcycling fantasy he had ever indulged. "The idea didn’t come to me in one moment," Castiglioni admits. "It took me more than a year to decide whether to do the bike and then how to do it."
The company, he says, was so taken with the finished design that it decided to stop not with one copy, but 100. That limited run will be hand-built in Italy, each priced at $120,000.
Designed by Massimo Tamburini, the renowned creator of the Ducati 916, the F4CC certainly ranks among the fastest and most technically advanced motorcycles ever made. With its 4 cylinders bored to 1078 cc, up from the 998 cc of typical F4 models, the 200-hp engine spurs the MV Agusta to an electronically limited top speed of 195.6 mph, the safe limit for its tires.
The F4CC came together in a back corner of the MV Agusta racing department. It began with the chrome molybdenum tube frame from standard F4s. But compared with series production models, more than 90 percent of the components are hand-tailored and unique, including the Sachs steering damper, carbon-fiber fairing and racing monoshock. There’s an enormous 50 mm Marzocchi front fork, with Brembo racing monoblock brakes (derived from Moto GP units) and Super Light forged aluminum wheels shod with Pirelli Dragon Supercorsa Pro tires.
The larger-yet-lighter engine, magnesium swing arm and extensive titanium pieces—including the lower radiator and four racing exhaust outlets—trim about 15 pounds from an F4-1000R model, leaving this Lady at a svelte 412 pounds.
Lavish technology aside, Castiglioni says the bike is also intended to be a work of motorcycle art. And its monochrome elegance is meant to evoke—in an image only an Italian can get away with—a beautiful woman in the proverbial little black dress.
"Such a dress needs to be very particular because there are many ladies in black dresses attending the gala evening," he says. "She must have something different, something special, which allows her to be called the Lady in Black."
MV Agusta expects some owners to put the bike on a literal pedestal, preferring to show off its skillful lines rather than their riding skills. Each copy will feature a platinum plate atop the steering column inscribed with its series production number, from one to 100.
And if the $120,000 price still seems steep—an F4 R starts around $22,000—it does include an MV Agusta F4CC watch by Girard-Perregaux, valued at $20,000, along with a hand-stitched Trussardi motorcycle jacket. After all, an owner will want more than an old hoodie to properly escort this haute couture machine.
MV Agusta Motorcycles, www.mvagustausa.com
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