Moto Guzzi or No To Guzzi

Blog Date - 20 September 2011

I made a funny...well done me.

I've been looking at a Moto Guzzi Breva  for sale at Shorrocks Motorcycles in Preston.  In some ways it seems like an excellent deal, in others there's a lot of unknown quantities.   The bike is an '03 registered 750 Breva  with a mere 4250 miles on the clock and is in perfect condition.  All this could be mine for the asking price of  £2,995, it sure seems like of lot of very low mileage clean bike for not a lot of money.

It's a good looking bike.  Let's face it, it's Italian so it's bound to be pretty but being Italian will it be temperamental like a true Italian?  I've had a look around the tinterweb to learn as much as I can about Moto Guzzi and the Breva and as I answer each question it just raises more questions.  Guzzi ownership seems to be very polarised with 2 very distinct camps.  One camp informs us that Guzzis of any model are unreliable, leaky, slow and owners then rattle off a long list of issues and problems with their machine.  The other camp swears that they are full of character, completely reliable, absolutely bulletproof, a delight to own and work on and they'd never own another marque.  Who do you believe?

Guzzis of old had the same sort of problems that any old bikes had.  In 2000 Aprilia bought Moto Guzzi and spent a fortune updating the Mandello factory and the Breva was the first of the new machines to be produced under Aprilia's umbrella.  Since then it seems the various reviews remain polarised.  I suspect it's down to "Monday Morning, Friday Evening" syndrome.  Bikes made at either end of the week, like cars, may be made with less care and attention due to the weekend.  Those made during the midweek are supposed to be better as the attitude of the workers is better.  This is one of those theories that will remain a theory, but basically you either get a real good one or a pup, a real dog.  

There's no way of telling which one the bike for sale would be.  If only there were, if I could be sure it was a good one that would help me make a decision.  The next question is what they're like to ride.  With a 750cc V-Twin engine it seems the paltry 48bhp listed as the power output seems very low.  That said it produces oodles of torque and it should be a good town bike with enough poke for motorway cruising.  All the reviews seem to put the handling and performance as "adequate".  I do like the idea of a steady machine more suited to a comfortable pace, absolute power is not a priority to me.  

Another bonus is that the Breva can be fitted with a factory touring kit.  This means I can get a full luggage set to fit onto the bike, not my usual bodge it and see if it works affairs.  Most reviews and websites list the fuel consumption as 55mpg which is acceptable, with my gentle riding style I reckon I could stretch that a bit more.  The bike itself is very small too, apparently it's known to some as a Girls bike.  I like that too, it means moving the thing around on tight roads, tight car parks and my tight back yard should be easy.  Shaft drive means no chain to keep on top of, which is good...but if anything goes wrong with the shaft as it did on my NTV then it can get very complex and/or costly.  

There's a lot to be said about the Guzzi in it's favour.  It's fear of the unknown that stops me right now.  You kinda know where you are and where you stand with a Jap bike.  They're all pretty much the same in terms of build quality, reliability and running costs these days.  You just buy it and treat it the same as the last Jap bike.  I'm both scared and excited by the Guzzi.  

One day I'll learn to make a decision. 

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