No one likes to eat humble pie, but the staff of Cycle World is now gulping down several large slices of the stuff. In the Roundup section of our May issue, we ran an article titled “MV Agusta F4 1000 R” that actually was an edited version of an older story on a 2007 MV. Our European Editor, Bruno dePrato, intended to send us a story on the new 2010 F4 (see below) but accidently e-mailed the one on the older bike instead. In our rush to get the late-arriving article to press, our staff never picked up on several clues that should have tipped us off. Our sincere apologies to you readers and to anyone else who may have been misled or confused by our mistake.
Yeah, we now remember that Massimo Tamburini did not pen the new bike (it was designed by the CRC design studio), and we also know that the bike is now simply called F4. —Blake Conner
The new F4 is living, screaming proof that MV Agusta’s manufacturing consistency and quality standards now finally match the mythic status created by its 1970s’ racing successes. This latest F4 is superbly conceived and executed down to the last detail. The mission of the project was a radical evolution, both technical and functional, under an immediately recognizable “skin.” Paolo Bianchi’s men at CRC spared no creative effort to meet this objective, while designers were working to evolve the F4 into a sleeker and more penetrating profile.
Their efforts have brought us a new F4 that is 1.6 inches narrower than the previous edition, and that, combined with a number of engine refinements, has resulted in a 22-pound weight reduction (claimed 423 pounds dry). Front-end geometry has been altered, with the rake angle steepened from 24 degrees to 23.5, but retaining the 30mm of fork offset results in 3.95 in. of trail.
Improving the weight-distribution bias seems to have been a primary target for the men of CRC. The reduced rake has pulled the front wheel about half an inch closer to the center of gravity, and the single-sided swingarm is longer to retain the same 56.3 in. wheelbase. To keep these values constant while the F4 is being ridden, the fuel tank has been shortened about an inch and tapered at the rear end, while the clip-ons have been moved .4 in. forward and an equal distance higher. This comfortably seats the rider an inch forward of the previous position.
In addition, the frame has been streamlined and uses the 999cc engine as an ultra-stiff crossmember. The inline-Four is built with the same 76mm by 55mm bore-and-stroke dimensions as before but has been pumped up to a claimed 183 hp at 12,900 rpm and 84 ft.-lb. of torque at 9500. Compression was raised to 13.1:1, with cylinders filled by an odd mix of Marelli electronics and Mikuni 49mm variable-geometry throttle bodies with twin injectors per cylinder.
Testing the F4 on a chilly day at the Almeria racetrack in southern Spain, I wondered what further improvement, given the terrific performance of this bike, might anyone this side of Ben Spies want? The riding posture offers superior ergonomics compared to the previous model. The front end is firm, precise and responsive, but above all, it inspires total confidence. Good weight distribution, combined with tight front-end geometry, grants a nice compromise between stability and agility, helped in large part by the massive 50mm Marzocchi inverted fork.
I rode with the steering damper adjusted to its lightest setting and was impressed with the F4′s stability. The front end never felt light, let alone vague, yet it proved quick and very responsive when it came to negotiating one of Almeria’s nasty little chicanes. This superb chassis (not forgetting the Brembo twin 320mm rotors and radial-mount Monobloc calipers) proved to be the appropriate harness for an engine that never quits. Smooth and ultra-torquey, it pulls very strongly from as low as 3500 rpm and takes your breath away as it passes 13,000 rpm.
The quality of the dynamic response from the excellent chassis draws a direct and intensely emotional line to the MV Agusta myth of the glory days and the three- and four-cylinder GP racers of Giacomo Agostini and Phil Read. We look forward to getting an F4 in our hands again shortly for a much more detailed evaluation.
