In the late 90s, Cannondale (the well-known bicycle manufacturer) tried to move into motorsports, with an off-road bike, a supermoto, and an ATV. Long story short, it was a disaster. $80 million later, the company declared bankruptcy, having left behind an interesting story of what happens when you can’t live up to the hype. Most people know about the dirt bikes that Cannondale built: the X400 and X440. But they also made 21 examples of the supermoto S440 before going out of business.
The X440 and S440 were spec’d with premium components, like Ohlins forks and rear shock, Magura controls, and fuel injection (incredibly ahead of its time). The company said all the right things when developing the bike – Dirt Rider magazine even named it the bike of the year two years before it was released! Unfortunately, things did not work out as one might hoped. Want to learn more about why this bike flopped? PulpMX has an interesting read on the X400 as part of a “Worst Bikes Ever” article. Find it here. At least the off-roader got some press – there’s barely anything to find about the supermoto nowadays.
This example (VIN: 5B6AC91C23B000001) is the first of the S440s. The seller acquired it this summer and learned about the engine updates that are highly recommended for the 440, so he sent it to Cannondale experts Black Widow for some work – they let the seller know that they had performed the updates in 2012. Seeing as he had already sent the motor out, he had them completely rebuilt it and Black Widow claims the motor produces roughly 50 hp to the rear wheel. The bike has a wiring harness from the E440 (enduro model) so that it can support lights, and there’s a Trail Tech Striker and fan to act as a dash. Since the engine rebuild, the seller has burned through two tanks of fuel and changed the fluids/filters, so this is ready to enjoy.
Find this S440 for sale in Boca Raton, Florida with an unmet opening bid of $6,500 here on eBay.