FB Mondial Piega 452 Test: Introduction, positioning and rivals
FB Mondial is a legendary brand. Its first 125cc world championship was won in 1949 by Italian Nelo Pagani. It was not the brand’s only world championship, but after founder Giuseppe Boselli retired in 1965 for health reasons, the brand languished even in its activity.
After its return to the market in 2015 with the successful FB Mondial HPS, the Italian brand, owned by Pelpi International, has sold over 100,000 units and is expanding its range towards medium-displacement bikes with the aim of maintaining constant innovation in its products. There was already an FB Mondial Piega 125, along with the variety of ⅛-litre models (HPS, Flat Track, Spartan, Imola, the latter also in 50 cc).
Now the FB Mondial Piega 452 (46.5 hp, €5,999) is bursting onto the market, which together with the FB Mondial Flex 300 (which we will test soon), begin to form the range of bikes with more than 125 cc intended for drivers with an A2 licence.
At FB Mondial they are aware that the Piega 452 is a transitional bike, that there was a bike before and there will be another one after, probably also Hypernaked. Who knows if models with higher displacements will arrive.
With the Piega 452, I assure you that if FB Mondial were to release a 700 or 800 cc Piega, the user of the Piega 452, now with his large motorcycle license after 2 years, would be guaranteed the permanence of the customer with the brand.
Meanwhile, the Piega 452 flaunts its design, aesthetics and sporty practicality to compete in the medium-displacement naked sports segment, inhabited by such illustrious models as the Honda CB500 Hornet (47 hp, €6,850), KTM Duke 390 (43 hp, €6,399), BMW G 310 R (34 hp, €6,075), CF Moto 300 NK (27.87 hp, €3,299), Voge 525R (47.6 hp, €5,287) and Zontes R350 (39.44 hp, €4,387).
As you can see, there are single-cylinder and twin-cylinder models, but the performance/price ratio favours the Piega 452. With a 5-year warranty (and one year of free insurance for those over 25), you enter the card game with very good cards.
FB Mondial Piega 452 Test: Technical characteristics of the FB Mondial Piega 452
The design of the Piega 452 is really aggressive. It is true that it has reminiscences of an Italian motorcycle in the rear wheel (MV Agusta) and exhausts (Ducati), but also of a Japanese motorcycle in the front optics (Suzuki) or the very high tail (Kawasaki). The curious thing is that its physiognomy has personality and character of its own.
It is a bike with a short wheelbase (1,355 mm), a circumstance that accentuates its aggressive stance. The seat height is 820 mm, but it seems less as the bike is very narrow at leg level. The weight is 177 kg in running order and the tank is only 10 litres, which will be decisive in ensuring that its range does not go beyond 200 kilometres. Except for torque and power, the figures it exhibits are not very high.
The truth is that it is a bike that fits very well to small sizes. With my 178 cm, the bike fits me just right, or as they say now, slim fit. I feel the grips very close to me and to see the instrumentation, I have to look down. Yes, it is a short bike, which will be decisive in the fun factor.
To reach the limits of the power permitted for the A2 licence, the FB Mondial uses a new water-cooled DOHC 8-valve twin-cylinder engine built by CF Moto, which performs very well. It produces 46.5 hp at 10,000 rpm, while maximum torque is 39 Nm at 6,500 rpm.
The two exhaust pipes that run under (and to the sides of) the rear seat are quite loud, to the point of being annoying to some, after many kilometres at the wheel. For others, it’s like a well-tuned orchestra; or better yet, a rock band.
The chassis, hidden under the covers and bodywork, is tubular steel, with well-sized brakes and suspensions. The front end has an inverted fork with a diameter of 41 mm and 120 mm of travel, without adjustment.
The 320 mm diameter front disc is gripped by a Brembo 4-piston radial caliper, which would probably benefit from softer brake pads than the factory ones. The front wheel measures 120/70-17″.
The rear end features a single-sided swingarm with a 120 mm travel monoshock with adjustable preload. The rear brake is 240 mm and is gripped by a two-piston floating caliper. The rear wheel, spectacular with the lenticular cover, measures 160/60-17″. Both wheels are fitted with very high-performance Pirelli Rosso Diablo.
The electronics are present in both driving modes, normal and racing, between which I did not notice much difference. Just in case, always in Racing mode. It also has traction control, which together with ABS, can be disconnected. The backlit pine cones are well designed.
Through them you can manage the menus on the color TFT screen and different display modes, which inform you of everything: speed, rpm, gear engaged, odometer, trips, consumption, autonomy, clock, coolant temperature and tire pressure.
The FB Mondial Piega 452 is spectacular on paper and in person. If you keep reading, you’ll find out if it’s also spectacular on the road.
FB Mondial Piega 452 Test: How does the FB Mondial Piega 452 go?
I attended the presentation of the FB Mondial Piega in Portugal free of prejudices. It was the first time I was going to have contact with the new 450 cc twin-cylinder engine that CF Moto has just launched on the market and which equips the Piega 452.
At the technical presentation, we were warned about how fun the bike is, but you don’t realize this until you enter a section of curves. The bike improves a lot in person compared to the photos, but even more so when you’ve gotten off it.
As soon as you get on the Piega 452 you realise that it is a compact bike. When you start it up, the first surprise is that it makes a lot of noise! The second surprise is revealed as soon as you start off: despite the sporty appearance and the sound of the exhausts, the bike’s start is smooth and progressive.
You quickly realise that there is life throughout the rev range. Far from being a peaky engine, it has plenty of torque throughout the rev range, especially in the mid-range. Stretching through the gears, the thrust begins to decrease as we reach the cut-off (11,500 rpm).
It is clear that it could continue pushing beyond the cut-off, but the law requires it. Ultimately, this is good news, because more HP could certainly be extracted from the twin-cylinder, but then it would lose the elasticity that allows it to have thrust (and what thrust) throughout the rpm range.
The posture is hunched. The back is upright, but the hands are close and the footpegs are high; there is no weight on the wrists and the footpegs do not rub. A real blessing for smaller sizes, who will find a tailor-made bike in La Piega.
My height of 178 cm is close to the limit for comfortable riding. In the video accompanying this test, you can see that the marker is barely visible. This is also the case from the helmet (the camera is on the chin of the helmet), having to look down to check the TFT screen.
The noise from the exhaust increases if we push the engine. It certainly has personality, in the form of temperament. If you like bikes with character, this one has it. But don’t get me wrong, I’m referring to the sound, not the dynamic ride, which has a strong character, but precisely so.
It is true that the bike is short between axles; the agility is unusual, but it also enjoys stability in wide radius curves. The front end handles very well, in fact I would rate it as magnificent. It is there that the ease of handling of the Piega 452 resides. It provides information about what is happening under the front wheel, so that it allows you to vary the trajectory in a curve at will, just as it forgives errors.
The gearbox works very well, but the clutch lever’s effective travel is very short, a matter of getting used to it, because it is soft and works well. Braking is powerful, but the front brake feels hard. In my opinion, it is a matter of brake pads that are poorly broken in or too hard, which penalise the feel. When braking, it brakes; but you have to squeeze the lever hard, losing sensation and progressiveness along the way. Softer pads would be a great fit.
The suspensions work very well in terms of comfort and efficiency. Speaking of comfort, the seat is very good, as well as the general shape of the bike, which allows you to move without difficulty. It is a bike that makes everything easy for you, by providing information about what is happening under the front end. This allows you to have confidence and lean a little more than you usually do, a decisive entry into curves – even in blind curves – with the conviction that you know what is going to happen, how the bike is going to work. That is, in short, what makes it a fun bike, very fun. A good bike.
