The great Spanish names of Ossa, Bultaco, and Montesa have gone, but Derbi remains—albeit as a subsidiary of Italian giant Piaggio. Most Derbi motorcycles are sub-125 cc city bikes, but the Mulhacén 659 is an interesting crack at the burgeoning scrambler market. It’s powered by a Yamaha-designed big single, reportedly the largest engine ever fitted to a Spanish motorcycle. At the 2006 EICMA show, Derbi revealed this ‘Hot Bob’ concept: unsurprisingly, nothing came of it, but the Mulhacén is gradually making a name for itself as a respectable scrambler with a strong dash of style. The latest variant from Derbi is the “Mulhacén Café 659 Angel Nieto Limited Edition”, a tribute to a 1970s Spanish roadracing hero. It has a slightly better paintjob than Hot Bob.
Canon EOS-1Ds Mark II | 1/200s | f/13.0 | ISO 200 | Focal length 115mm
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3 Comments
Hot Bob may be the ugly duckling in that lineup, but his siblings are all awesome.
Watercooled thumper with modern frame and suspension, and stoppers? Perfect! Sign me up!
Wouldn’t it be awesome if the local Aprilia dealer could get these?
Not sure if this qualifies, but some factory guys built a prototype 1000cc 2-stroke motor back in the 70s: http://hem.passagen.se/ossa/ossa4.htm
That would make the Mulhacén the second biggest motorcycle from Spain, but the 1st produced with the bigger engine.
If these Derbi 659s were available in the states, I’d sell my Monster 800 in a heartbeat!!! The Angel Nieto is SICK!!!