A history of 85 years meant little for Bologna based Moto Morini . Despite a rich history of racing that included names such as Giacomo Agostini , the company fell out of favour with motorcyclists in the 1980s when a failed attempt at resurrection by Cagiva ’ s Castiglioni brothers came to nothing .
The beginning of the 21st Century saw another comeback this time with a 1200cc , 140 horsepower twin cylinder which too brought little success , it seemed the Italian make was destined to go the way of so many more . Then stepped in the Chinese .
Zhongneng Vehicle Group took charge of Moto Morini in 2018 , effectively saving the marque from the scrapheap . The factory moved from Bologna to Pavia and for the low price of 10 million Euros , Moto Morini was back .
A number of models were presented in the first year of new ownership , all sadly with a touch of Chinese manufacturing about them yet in 2019 came the X-Cape .
Initially presented at the EICMA , Milan motorcycle show , the X-Cape entered the mid-sized adventure market . The Chinese ownership entrusted the Italian designers to produce something entirely new for the brand , to move away from the traditional , to target new markets .
Angel Lussiana penned a creative design that took the best of what was already known and applied a level of Italian flair . The result was a bike that had appeal , a look that was original and aggressive . A design that aroused the enthusiasm of fans of two-wheeled machines .
Within the first few months of release , the X-Cape placed high in the sales figures for Italy ’ s best-selling bikes , quickly moving into the top five , a fact attributed
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