Nihontochicken

Here is a pic of my 2004 Naked that is bone stock, save the more user friendly battery terminal adapters I added, showing 4 and 4 leads off the terminals, FWIW. Don't ask me what they all are!

Oooooh, red valve covers ...

I may as well throw in, here's our pure bred mutt rescue dog, Lacy. Total cream puff with people, but it turned out she's a hunter. When I took her early on to the free range dog park, a rabbit came tearing across the field, and before I knew what was up, Lacy took out after it. It took her maybe a hundred yards, but she finally caught, shook and killed the poor rabbit. So after years of having dog unfriendly canines, I thought finally we'd have a nice off leash pet. Not to be (she unfortunately also now has a horse ranch chicken kill to her credit as well). But she's terribly sweet with people and no risk with young children. Dunno her breeding, maybe Lab and something with deep chest and narrow waist (Greyhound?) and curly tail (Akita?).

Oooooh, red valve covers, mmmmm!

No.

Reminds me of my GSXR750, last year edition of the old oil burners. Just after I picked it up new from the dealer, I took it on a freeway on ramp, turning about 4000 rpm from tootling the downtown streets. I whacked the throttle full open ... and damn near got my ass run over. The bike didn't cough, didn't stumble, just didn't make any appreciable horsepower. I survived that event and quickly learned to bang two down shifts and spin it to 10,000 rpm and beyond to make decent beans (it red lined at 13,500, reminded me of a Cox Thimbledrome model airplane engine). I traded that bike in on my last dirt bike, a first year edition Yamaha WR250F, a five valver with compression impossible to kick over without benefit of the compression relief. Unfortunately, this new model trail bike had the motocross tuned engine. Not much HP below five figures. It was okay for laid back trail riding, get it up to 8-9K and shift, no prob. But if you wanted to go fast, you didn't shift, just cracked the throttle wide open. The real horsepower was between nine and fourteen thousand rpm. But it wasn't very controllable. It was like the old Amal GP carb, as soon as you let the throttle off full open, it fell on its face. WFO or nothing. This is why I appreciate the V11 with a nice, wide, usable power band that you don't have to wrap to the moon to get moving. Maybe I'm just old and lazy now, whatever. No more five digit power bands for me.

This is the Moto Guzzi V11 forum, right? That thing is about as far from a V11 as one can get, even outside what a transverse, air cooled, 90 degree twin should be subjected to, meaning Piaggio will likely sign up the creator for their MG design team. Then again, after their MGX-21 Flying Fartstress, there's no where to go but up.

Went to the advertised garage sale this morning. The above poster was huge and already sold. But the seller, a known motorcycle publications author by the name of Todd Rafferty, confirmed that the pictured scooter is indeed Italian, namely a '50s era Gilera. Goes to show that small motorcycles can be really exciting to ride (if you know how to handle them).

This framed work of art goes up for grabs in a garage sale two weekends from now. Not sure about the model of the scooter, but it's got to be Italian, and the pilot sure knows how to maximize his fun! Would anyone here like to cop out to a similar riding style? Inquiring minds!

Sorry, it showed when I first posted this, dunno what happened. Try again:

Self-explanatory: Hat tip Badzero on FAL Files.

Depending on the explanation ofor the new bodywork, it could be Ben Dover.

Hahahaha! Ain't that the truth! Of course, Guzzi has a grand tradition of tank fires. For the few here who might be unaware, the first MG LeMans editions had a metal tank with a spring loaded cap locked with a spring detente. They lacked the rocker cover add-on spark plug protectors that later models have. So when an unfortunate rider dropped his running LeMans, the impact would pop open the gas cap at the same time the asphalt broke free the spark plug wire. Fuel, check. Ignition source, check. Oxygen, check. Voila, the patented Moto Guzzi LeMans tank fire, grab the marshmallows! An unfortunate end to a number of noble steeds.

I've always been leery of electrics inside the gas tank. The "air" space above the liquid is generally near 100% gas fumes, but there is a chance that some real air (oxygen) can get in and make the mixture explosive, particularly in a nearly empty tank. The most infamous fuel tank explosion occurred in TWA Flight 800 over NY City in 1976. Note that jet fuel (kerosene) is not as inherently explosive as is gasoline. Here's a link to the Wiki coverage: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TWA_Flight_800

And why can't current production MGs look this good???

Can't answer the question, but I have a similar concern. When I take my Suzuki DR650 around town (air cooled single, essentially one-half of a V11, Japanese style), on return checking the oil cooler shows that it's barely warm. The same trip on my V11 and the oil cooler is damned hot, maybe not to boiling water, but too hot to touch beyond a fraction of a second. A major diff between the two scooters. Is one too hot, or one too cold, or are they both just right for their particular engineering aims?

What these guys said. Pushrods are all that's needed for a 500cc+ piston that will never see five digit RPM. Then again, a bevel drive shaft overhead cam system like the '70s Ducatis would be super spiff, especially with a "gear gazer" window at the top bevel, not to mention the ability to adjust the valves on the bench. Big manufacturing bucks, though.

Does it leak oil and refuse to run at times?

Looks familiar! Here's the link to my leak thread. https://www.v11lemans.com/forums/index.php?/topic/21629-my-first-oil-leak/ Snippet: "Also, I noticed all the hold down bolts were the same size except the top rear bolt, which is markedly shorter. Is this correct, or a Bubba mistake? Also one and only one steel washer dropped free from one of the bolt seats. Should all, some or none of these Allen head hold down bolts use washers?" Looks like Bubba really gets around!

It appears that Guzzi under the auspices of Piaggio has very limited R&D funding and a loss of sense of direction post V11 and MGS-01. Some of the ensuing small block bikes have a small bit of the old LeMans flair, but certainly not the performance. The large block entries have been a styling disaster as well as technically disappointing at times. It may be that the air cooled big cylinder has become an anachronism in the modern emissions world. If water cooling is now technically mandatory for good performance, then the reason for the traditional MG layout goes away (two jugs sticking out in the breeze at a 90 degree included angle that provides good primary balance). And seeing the problems that have occurred in both the MG and airhead BMW drive lines, I'm not convinced of the supposed maintenance ease of a shaft versus chain final drive (a chain and sprockets of decent metallurgy and fully enclosed by an easily removable thin metal or plastic envelope would likely last nearly as long as a shaft drive and certainly be cheaper to manufacture and easier to service). Of course, a big twin with a chain final drive is the domain of Ducati, on which MG is unlikely to trespass. I'd like to believe that MG will still come out with a new, large capacity sport bike in the spirit of the LeMans, V11 and MGS-01, but I sense that they don't have it in them any more, alas.

Yep, yep, yep ...

Nope, nope, nope ...

Oooooohhh, bright red valve covers. Must resist, must resist ...

I'll take the OEM fairing: 100.00 + shipping PM to follow.

Getting into the swing of social distancing now. Here I am today about to go to the grocery store: