Susan Carpenter reviews Moto Guzzi V7 Classic
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With the classic bike scene raging, it’s surprising motorcycle manufacturers haven’t introduced more retro models to take advantage of the trend, especially now – when that trend has been underscored by a doom-and-gloom economy that has Americans looking to the past for comfort instead of forward to an uncertain future. With its V7 Classic, Moto Guzzi is, for once, ahead of the curve. Inspired, perhaps, by Italy’s own economic death spiral, which was in force long before the rest of the world’s kicked in, the new V7 is retro done right. A modern take on a classic, it hasn’t been so modernized that it feels ... Japanese. It still has character – character that’s distinctly Italian, and Guzzi.
The 744 cc V7 Classic is not a purist’s update of the original V7, which debuted in 1967 with the jutting, 90-degree V-twin transverse cylinder heads that have since become Moto Guzzi’s most distinguishing feature. The new V7 is an amalgamation of models from the brand’s ‘60s and ‘70s heyday. Its flying saucer tank flew in from the ’71 sport version of the original, and its stitched and strapped saddle was couched from the T3.
Unlike brand mate Aprilia, which is also owned by Piaggio Group, G-force performance is not the V7’s strong suit. But power isn’t the reason a person buys a Guzzi anyway. Part of the brand’s appeal is that it isn’t a Ducati or Aprilia. It’s different. What Moto Guzzi does have is heritage, and in that sense, the V7 Classic rides exactly as you’d expect -- like an 88-year-old. With a mere 40 pound feet of torque and 48 horsepower, it feels a little geriatric by modern standards. While it’s a shaft drive and a V-twin, each cylinder contains only two valves, so the power is adequate rather than exhilarating. Takeoff’s decent but it isn’t likely to win any green-light skirmishes with an MV. The mounting of the twin, with its longitudinal crankshaft, also creates a bit of a shimmy, which, on a sport bike would be unacceptable, but is charming for this Classic.
I like to feel alive when I’m riding, not like I’m being anesthetized, and that’s exactly how I felt riding the V7 – especially over bumps. The suspension on this bike feels more vintage than retro. But it’s entirely appropriate for the V7, which will appeal to riders who like the aesthetics of old machines, only with toned-down quirks and modern conveniences, such as fuel injection and an electric start.
Riding this bike was fun for a lot of reasons – one of them being the guessing game it inspired among its many admirers.
‘Is that a ... 197___?’ some would ask me at stoplights, hoping I’d fill in the year.
‘How ‘60s,’ a go-go dancer acquaintance enthused.
Looking more closely at the eye-catching cylinder heads of this air-cooled twin would have presented the truth. They’re topped with a distinctly modern hard plastic, but it’s hard to really spend too much time dwelling on any one part of this bike because the eye candy is pretty endless.
The Moto Guzzi V7 Classic is for riders who like whistles and ‘wows!’, and who doesn’t? It’s a crowd-pleaser. It’s the sort of bike that appeals to a broad swath of humanity, from pickup truck drivers who’d just stare and nod to at least one Ducati rider, who flipped a U and chased me down to ask, ‘OK. Where’d you get it?’
Nowhere he could buy it, I’m afraid. But even if I could have directed him to a dealer, chances are they’d be sold out. The V7 Classic has been an unexpected stateside hit for Moto Guzzi, which sells only a small fraction of machines in the U.S. compared with Italian power houses Aprilia and Ducati. For now. In a year or so, Piaggio will exploit Americans’ love of Italian exotics and begin to really push Moto Guzzi in the U.S. I’m hoping Guzzi’s simultaneously backward- and forward-looking V7 Classic is an indication of what we’ll be seeing for the 2011 model year because with its new V7, Moto Guzzi shows that retro isn’t only about inspiring a nostalgia trip with the benefit of a respected old model name. It isn’t solely about appearance. It’s about digging in to a brand’s heart and soul to reveal its true essence. Moto Guzzi: buon lavoro.
2009 Moto Guzzi V7 Classic
Base price: $8,490
Powertrain: air-cooled, fuel-injected, 4-stroke, transverse V-twin, 2 valves per cylinder, 5 speed, shaft drive
Displacement: 744 cc
Dry weight: 401 pounds
Seat height: 31.7 inches
Road test MPG: 43 (based on 252 miles traveled)
-- Susan Carpenter
Video: Don Kelsen and Susan Carpenter / Los Angeles Times