Post Listing Update: This Benelli did not get any interest at the asking price of $20,000 on eBay.
Alejandro De Tomaso is an Argentinian racer and businessman who may be best known for creating his own automobile brand, De Tomaso in 1959. When Ford tried (and failed) to buy Ferrari, De Tomaso (the Man) proposed a win-win opportunity to Ford, offering them an Italian supercar to compete with Ferrari while De Tomaso could use the 351 Cleveland V8 to power its new project, the Pantera. This Argentinian businessman and motorsports enthusiast decided in 1971 to buy the Italian motorcycle maker, Benelli, before also acquiring Moto Guzzi in 1972. De Tomaso added new momentum to Benelli by asking for the production of a high performing sport bike, that would be an equivalent to the Pantera. His engineers worked fast, and developed a 4-cylinder 500cc bike as well as the first production 6-cylinder bike, the 750 Sei.
De Tomaso did not want the development process to take too much time so the choice was made to find inspiration in existing machines. The Sei is based on a 4-cylinder Honda, obviously with two more cylinders. Three 24mm Dell’Orto carburetors mounted on Y manifolds made the big six breathe. The frame geometry was pretty standard, but the bodywork was designed by Carrozzeria Ghia, famous for its automobile designs. Equipped with six chromed exhaust pipes, the Sei knew how to catch attention.
Despite relatively low sales, notably due to high cost, Benelli decided to continue in the 6-cylinder path and evolved their 750cc to 906cc in 1978. The 900 Sei was born with bore and stroke jumping to 60mm by 53.4mm, some 29mm carbs installed instead of the previous 24mm, and two three-in-one pipes replacing the 6 pipes. The bike produced 80hp for about 485lbs, and period tests showed it could reach 120mph. Lines became smoother and rounder than the 750, and a small top-fork fairing (borrowed from the Moto Guzzi Le Mans) was also installed to improve aerodynamics. The Sei was equipped with Brembo brakes, two discs for the front, one for the rear, and a linked system, applying one front disc when the rear brake is applied. Due to its high price, only about 2,000 examples of the 900 Sei were produced and less than 100 made it to the US. To find more information about the six-cylinder from Benelli, you can check out Motorcycle Classics.
The 900 Sei featured in this article (VIN: ZBNNBOAB04DP01122) is in superb condition, showing only 11k miles. The seller claims that it is almost perfect, and that it runs perfectly. He also indicates that it has been serviced. The pictures show that the bike is equipped with 6 pipes instead of the two 3-in-ones.
Find this 900 Sei in Miami, Florida with a BIN of $20,000 or best offer