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opinions on moto guzzi v7?


socaln8tv

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i like the classic upright styling and the retro look. any one with experience maintaining this bike? reliability? ease of access to parts? cost of maintaining? insurance? i think its an attractive bike but i havent seen alot of info on it. that being said im hoping it looks even better in person. i'm 5'2" so ideally, id like something where my feet are planted reasonably. if i sell my yamaha and xr100, its a realistic option.

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Pushrod twin with exposed cylinder heads= very easy to work on. Should go like clockwork forever with the right maintenance. Parts would be my only concern with that bike. But there is a strong community too.:)

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Have you found one yet? They aren't light, as the motor itself is heavy. The weight is very low though, and well balanced. It accelerates odd, with a heavy flywheel to sort of tug to the right. I liked it though.

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Have you found one yet? They aren't light, as the motor itself is heavy. The weight is very low though, and well balanced. It accelerates odd, with a heavy flywheel to sort of tug to the right. I liked it though.

no have not found one yet. im researching for next season. for the people that appreciate moto guzzi, what about them is dif than say some of the other makers? i wish i could understand the odd acceleration concept. now i have to ride one. argh.

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no have not found one yet. im researching for next season. for the people that appreciate moto guzzi, what about them is dif than say some of the other makers? i wish i could understand the odd acceleration concept. now i have to ride one. argh.

Ahem ^^^

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There's a dealership in Detroit I know of. TTM Ducati at TTMducati.com

Here's supposedly a list of Ohio dealers.

http://locations.vespausa.com/MotoGuzziCode/locations/locations.cfm?state=OH

thank you!! :o still not a hundred percent. was layed up last couple of days and today was shoveled novacain till i almost wriggled out of the dentist chair... forgive!!

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Very similar to BMW R bikes. The Mt. Vernon dealership no longer had the sign last I went through there. It will attract looks wherever you go, more than the UJM. A guy under my old office had one. Build quality was very good.

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  • 1 year later...

This has the lightened fly wheel, so the longitudinal crankshaft effect of accelerating the engine and having it want to lean over from the torque created by the shaft spinning up is small. It is 48 HP but a very flat torque curve starting low meaning when fast pacing through the twisties you can do almost all of your braking and accelerating with just the throttle. A fun, comfortable ride on a machine that when it comes to maintenace is "forgetaboutit". It will run forever. You might want to get the spicey red frame one which is more faithful to the original V7.

Like I said, Air cooled (water and oil don't mix), dry clutch (clean oil), shaft drive (clean bike), 50+ MPG and run forever, what's not to like?

76749635.jpg

Edited by beezer
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I've had a few Guzzis and currently am in the process of putting one back on the road. The new V7 is a small block and weighs about 400 lbs. Like beezer said - it has a very flat torque curve so you can keep a very enjoyable pace through the twisties with just the throttle.

Only downside is that dealers are few and far between. If you're the type who takes your bike to the dealer for every little thing then you may be disappointed. I've heard there is a good dealer in Stubenville - Speaker's Cycles. The dealer in Mt. Vernon dropped Guzzi. I test rode a V11 there a few years ago and the salesman told me that they were dropping the brand.

Good luck!

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I like the looks of Guzzis, and would want the Griso 1200 8V for me. But a V7 is a close 2nd choice with a bit less power. Yes, all a little heavy, but not considering the size of the engine. Most Guzzis would make a nice cruiser/tourer. More of a standard rider position with a drive shaft. Yeah, just like BMW. Lack of a local dealer is sort of a problem, but I do most of my own mechanical work and mail order parts anyway. I would certainly look at some BMWs, if considering a Guzzi.

new V7 cafe/classic claims 407 lbs dry / 439 lbs wet & 47.6hp

old V7 classic/sport claims 539 lbs & 50 to 70hp

Griso 1100 claims 509 lbs dry & 72hp

Griso 1200 8V claims 489 lbs dry & 110hp

weight(dry) to power ratio with 160 pounds rider:

new V7 cafe/classic = 11.91 lbs per horsepower

old V7 classic/sport = 9.99 lbs per horsepower

Griso 1100 = 9.29 lbs per horsepower

Griso 1200 8V = 5.9 lbs per horsepower

(Honda 919 = 5.32 lbs per horsepower)

Obviously the Griso 1200 8V is a beast and about twice as quick as the others. But Guzzis are all about torque anyway, and not horsepower. I think a V7 cafe classic with the engine tricked up a bit would be interesting.

I remember back when California highway patrol had Guzzis, they quickly learned not to shift up or down when going fast through a corner. The centrifugal action of the engine and drive train can try to stand the bike up or knock it down. A bike with a crankshaft that is side to side doesn't have that. Easy enough to get used to.

Edited by ReconRat
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lists of motorcycle seat heights,

http://www.vtwinmama.com/motorcycle_seat_heights.htm

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/school-SectionTwoB.htm

edit: quick calculation, at 5'2", if you want to flat foot a bike. I'd start looking around at a 28" seat height and higher.

Guzzi V7 is 31.7

Guzzi Griso is 31.5

Virago is 28.3

Edited by ReconRat
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The other dealers are up North. All Seasons in Wooster is a great dealer. Speakers are wonderful folks too, but have had a little falling out with Guzzi. Other than warranty work, he is a great choice. Lexington and Louisville have dealers too. Full Throttle Yamaha is the dealer in Cleveland. My first experience with them was good, although when all you have is oil changes, plugs and valve adjustments to worry about, I do my own.

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Just to clarify: The modern V7 is based on the small block and is the lighter of the two here. The original V7 is from the early 70s and is the heavier large block.

Now I know. What models/years are the new lighter V7 block used on?

nm... old heavy engine was back in the 70s.

Edited by ReconRat
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Now I know. What models/years are the new lighter V7 block used on?

nm... old heavy engine was back in the 70s.

This is just from memory, so the years may be off a little, but the small block was developed in the late 70s and first appeared in the US as a 500cc machine in 79 or 80. It was updated to a 650 a few years later as the V65SP.

A modern version with FI was released around 2004 as the 750 Breva (standard) and 750 Nevada (cruiser). The modern V7 Classic or Cafe is basically a 750 Breva with different bodywork.

All the small blocks share many driveline components with the major differences being displacement or cosmetics (tank, seat, pegs, etc.)

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Not a bad looking bike, but 48 hp...? Pass. :(

A well ridden low bhp bike can still smoke 100+ bhp bikes on anything but a long, straight road. Plus, she's probably not really looking for big power anyway.

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Not much more than a good running GS500. My buddy bought a V7 at the beginning of last year...in Sept he traded it in on a Breva 1100.

true enough...

I love the look of the V7, but I think you could probably build something just as good, and probably a bit faster for about half the money...

Take an old CB750 and start hacking away. Won't cost you $8k, it'll be ONE of a kind with much more plentiful parts. almost 20 more hp, and with all the weight you're likely to cut off, I bet it gets up and goes better than the V7...

The only thing I like better about the V7 is the torquey twin.

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