This is a photo of the Moto Guzzi Strada concept bike displayed to the press in Europe a little more than two years ago. It was one of three concepts displayed. According to a report on the web site VisorDown, parent company Piaggio is trademarking the name “Moto Guzzi Strada” and the head of Moto Guzzi has indicated new models are around the corner.
Moto Guzzi has already shown a protype 1400cc, water-cooled twin in a California cruiser model displayed to dealers last year. We are surprised we have not seen a production model featuring this modern, large displacement twin so we can’t argue with Visor Down’s conclusion that a new Strada might have this engine.
Please don’t.
mgs-01 please
Got to agree. The mgs-01 was the last Guzzi that I would seriously consider buying as it was just done right. Too bad it was never really offered. The bike pictured above has all kinds of aesthetic issues, yet people are gushing about how wonderful it is! I can’t look at the front end of this bike without wondering what Guzzi was thinking about when they released this bike on the show circuit….is this the best they can do? I like Guzzis but this thing should be put down like bad dog and dumped out in the alley behind the factory so the scrap guys can crush it!
That front end is for show purposes and does little more than look further toward the future. I doubt seriously that many of the tacked-on aesthetics seen here would show anytime soon, especially on a Guzzi. It’s the overall package in its form and function that interests here, not the farkles you see on a show bike.
I will forever be disappointed by Guzzi’s inability to put the stunning MGS-01 into production. There were a few “closed-course” models built, but sadly no street models.
+1 this was a beautiful sport bike. It would have gotten bigger/heavier with road bits (lights, mufflers, fenders, etc.) but it could’ve been great still. I suppose the market is not yet ready to buy a sport bike that is not “competitive” with other’s in it’s displacement class on the dyno. There are plenty of nice, used Ducati 900ss and Honda Superhawks out there to answer that market I guess.
I have seen and know of 1 MGS-01 that is legally ridden on the roads of California.
Years ago I had a Honda CX500. At the time I knew of Moto Guzzi but didn’t really consider them as my style of bike. They shared a basic engine architecture but somewhere in the back of my mind Guzzi was a sort of big brother to the CX. Must have stuck with me as when looking for my next bike I kind of latched back onto them, went and took a long test ride and the hook was set. It’s been a real joy. I bought a Norge and it’s very comfortable, has loads of soul, sounds sweet and puts a smile on my face.
My first bike MANY years ago was a Honda SL 100. A friend and I were spinning donuts in a vacant lot and somebody called the cops on us. A motorcycle cop on a Guzzi rode out into the field and told us with a sheepish look on his face that we had to ride somewhere else. It was obvious he thought it was a ridiculous complaint but he had to chase us off none the less. I thought he was pretty cool for taking it easy on us. I also thought his Guzzi was about the coolest bike I had ever seen. Loved ’em ever since. This one (except for the “waffles” looks pretty darn cool too.
As a former Guzzi owner I would be very interested in a “Strada” type bike but only if Guzzi writes off whatever international styling loser Pierre Terblanche contributed. Find somebody with styling and design talent and start from scratch. These three bikes are as ugly and poorly thought out as his work at Ducati.
The lined article says Pierre Terblanche created “loved and not-so-loved Ducatis”. Other then the bikes he designed while working under styling god Massimo Tamburini what Ducati has Terblanche designed that was loved? I owned a Multistrada, a great bike that failed because it was ugly and very poorly thought out. Lets not forget this guy killed the Ducati Super Sport and made a pass at killing the Ducati Super Bike with the 999. Neither bike sold after he got his hands on them.
I recently had a conversation with a guy who bought a ‘Strada like mine. He said the seat was horrible (a near universal opinion) so he picked up an aftermarket seat. His face looked like mine must have looked when he described reading the first instruction “remove center front fairing panel. Of course, every bike requires you remove the entire fairing so you can remove the gas tank to change the seat, right? Everybody plans on 5 to 6 hours of hard work to change a seat, right? How about a gas gauge that shows the tanks is empty (and shuts down the related functions in the instruments) when the tank only a little over half way to empty. Of course, it didn’t matter on a bumpy road because the instruments were moving around so much on the terribly designed mount that you couldn’t read them anyway.
Your opinions may differ, that is fine. Just make sure you’ve done you research on bikes designed by this moron before buy anything he was involved with.
Goose
It took me 10 years, 65,000 miles, and six bikes to finally “get” guzzis. I just bought a 2007 Griso. Guzzis are the only motorcycles that get me excited now. Older, newer. Don’t care. I’m hooked on them. Getting access to them is tough with a smaller dealer network. But I’d suggest seeking them out. They are not just old Italian police motorcycles anymore…
Crap, I just purchased s Ducati Streetfighter S – but this what I really want – a modern, sporty, 2up capable, naked. ofcourse I want my version with 400lbs, ohlins suspension, brembo monblocks, marchesini wheels etc etc – this is is easli one of the best looking naked bikes of all times
Agree with Boxer fanatic … would love to see them bring back the Lemans.
“I especially like the giant waffle elegantly placed between the frame and forks. Those Italians and their flare for styling. ”
The “Waffle” is not primarily a styling exercise, it’s supposed to be a solid-state radiator to cool the engine without using circulating liquid. In other words, an insanely high-tech way for the lump to continue as an “air-cooled” twin, technically at least.
This technology exists, but it’s an open question whether vanes of any practical size could provide enough cooling to be useful in this application, and in any case, it’s such a radical concept that it’s never gonna happen in real life.
Ooh, I like it, basically just an engine with a seat and handlebars.
But will it be lighter and have more ground clearance than my Griso?
Why in the world wont Guzzi just build the damn MGS 01 Corsa for street use……? I believe they would sell every copy they produced.
This bike is okay. Leave off the the goofy panel around the steering and it would improve it dramatically. Otherwise, nice!
This^^^^^….and when my riding days are done I would park it in the living room and just stare at it
This bike is way over done. What’s with all the foo-foo stuff on the front end? I’m not really a fan of the mud flaps they’ve been putting on bikes these days. Don’t mud flaps belong on 18 wheelers?
This is not Guzzi anymore, this is Monster. It looks there is no more space for Guzzi V-twin concept to grow into. Although, why not to break out the shell and consider shaft-drive vertical single? Something like 500-650cc; that would be ripper.
Always loved Guzzis, hate how the “in the knows” always have to let everyone know they know how to pronounce it. These bikes always seemed awfully expensive but everyone seems to have caught up. I’m working on the budget for a Griso SE. This one isn’t gonna hit a market, nice to know they’re trying though. I don’t know what’s gonna become of this marque when oldtimers quit. These engines have a soulful quality that can’t be dynod, and the newbies don’t seem to have much soul. When they have to liquid cool it, it’s gonna be sooo ugly I won’t even think of it, change the configuration much and it won’t be a Guzzi.
In 7 years on a Breva 750 all over the UK and parts of France I have never found my bike to be short of soul. The small bocks have plenty of it, but its a different feel to the big blocks for sure.
The styling and likely pricing of this is not to my taste, whereas the new 750s are. But each to thier own.
I consider Breva 750 to be almost an ideal motorcycle: it is not pretentious in style (like its retro siblings) yet it has enough flair, simplicity and power to satisfy most mature riders. We have it at dealers even here in Canada, but I do not see them on the road.
I consider Breva 750 to be almost an ideal motorcycle:
With this caveat… for a solo rider, (or for 2 skinny riders that don’t really go anywhere).
Riding double up, on over night/longer trips, bikes like the Breva 750 and other small block Guzzi iterations, Triumph Bonneville/Thruxton/Scrambler, Kawasaki W650/800, Versys, and Ninja 650,Suzuki SV/Wee Stroms, BMW F650/800, Ducati 696/796 Monster, HD Sportsters and other bikes of this ilk, just are not big enough for a rider and a passenger with any kind of comfort, don’t have enough carrying capacity for gear, generally don’t hold enough gas for any kind of decent range and frankly just don’t have enough power, suspension or brakes.
I agree with you that riding solo day trips anything 400cc up to 800cc will get the job done. Riding double up on a weeks vacation the ideal motorcycle is going to be 1000cc or larger.
I really like the retro styled 750 and the Brevas. I like spoke wheels and revvy motors. These big Guzzis probably aren’t that revvy, but compared to the old ones they are. The 750 is probably the perfect starting point for a allrounder. I always wondered what some simple mods would do to the little guys (head port, lighten flywheel/clutch,FCR carb), of course exhaust (sorry I love their sound).
On Wildguzzi all the answers can be supplied Stinky. The 750s will never be power monsters but thats not the point – between 30mph and 80mph they are superbly usable bikes. Mine has a centrestand and hard luggage (H&B) and is a fine solo touring bike.
You can still get Breva 750s in Canada? Lucky fellows! I plan to (finances allowing) replace the B750 at the 10 year mark with another Guzzi 750 – probably the new “black” one.
I believe the “in the know” people want to spread the word about Moto Guzzi because they are passionate about the brand and because they’d like more riders to know and understand them. I can’t tell you how many times I stop for gas and hear, “Moto what?”, “Who makes that?” and even, “I didn’t know they were still made!”.
It does not come from snobbery.
I would be quite happy to see that in my garage. Happier to be out riding it though. Ever since my days with a Honda CX650E I’ve always wanted a Guzzi.
Yes, Goot-Zee has a owner base that’s typically over 50 years of age. But that’s similar to some other brands. As the longtime older riders gradually take that last ride into the sunset these companies are faced with the problem on how to sell to the younger riders without alienating the established bunch. One thing’s for sure, there’s no mistaking the engine. Designs like this may allow the younger set to feast their eyes on the newest tech while appreciating the allure and beauty of an engine out in the open to gaze upon. I wouldn’t mind this in my stable, not at all.
Maama Mia! The Poseur crowd won’t understand but everyone else will love it! Male sliders, radially mounted brakes, head casting hidden, lump hanging off the frame, minimalist styling, what’s not to love? Oh wait, this is America, we just don’t get it.
No it’s not the Guzzi V-Rod. It has less power than the V-Rod, but will weigh much less and will go around corners at a speed the V-Rod can only dream about.
True. I was thinking more of styling, as in how many die-hard Goose fans appreciate the new look.
Thats Ok Paso – this die hard fan doesn’t like the look that much! Its a company thats blundered its way along since 1921 in many ways, but in the recent years there have been some good sucesses.
Oh yeah, I want one!
Not bad… but I would rather see a V11 LeMans style bullet fairing, and a sleeker monoposto seat added to the V12 Griso 8V’s repertoire.
For the love of God, please – not with this headlight! I’m still having nightmares after seeing Husqvarna Moab concept…
I dig the Moab, and I hope Husky builds it.
I like it. Then again I am a GOOT-ZEE fan.
Is this Guzzi’s version of the V-Rod? Ugh. I guess I’m getting old, but don’t people who like Guzzis appreciate classic styling? I especially like the giant waffle elegantly placed between the frame and forks. Those Italians and their flare for styling.