V11 LE MANS REGISTRY

[Bob Hartman]

I looked and looked and waited for a V11 Le Mans registry...

 

Would love to know how many were made, who has them, and where they are!

 

2002 Red/Grey Le Mans in Southern Connecticut

 

 

VIN: ZGUKRAKR52M114715

 

 

Bob Hartmann

[stefano]

hi bob i also have a grey & red '02 Le Mans. it's not my most comfortable M/C, but it's my favorite. if i'm just going out for a gallop it's the one i'll ride. and overall it's pretty reliable, even for a couple days camping.

i've also wondered how many V11 bikes were produced.

i had a '74 Norton 850commando mk 1A that i loved (even though it wasn't reliable)for many years, and i remember that about 50,000 commandos were produced, between about '68 to '75. seems like a lot.

until i read that ducati produces 40,000 units per year. now THAT seems like a lot.

so....if anybody knows about how many of our V11 were produced, i'd also be interested to know.

thanks, s

[Bob Hartman]

hi bob i also have a grey & red '02 Le Mans. it's not my most comfortable M/C, but it's my favorite. if i'm just going out for a gallop it's the one i'll ride. and overall it's pretty reliable, even for a couple days camping.

i've also wondered how many V11 bikes were produced.

i had a '74 Norton 850commando mk 1A that i loved (even though it wasn't reliable)for many years, and i remember that about 50,000 commandos were produced, between about '68 to '75. seems like a lot.

until i read that ducati produces 40,000 units per year. now THAT seems like a lot.

so....if anybody knows about how many of our V11 were produced, i'd also be interested to know.

thanks, s

 

 

And Honda produces 18 million bikes a year, which seems like rather a real lot!

 

I thought I was the V11 Le Mans Connecticut Owners Group until one popped up for sale recently on Craigslist. I hope it doesn't leave the State.

 

Are there production numbers in any of Falloon's books? Anyone else out there?

 

Bob

[Bob Hartman]

Do we know how we can get this category 'pinned' like the other Registries so more happen across it?

[Admin Jaap]

Pinned

[Skeeve]

so....if anybody knows about how many of our V11 were produced, i'd also be interested to know.

thanks, s

 

 

And Honda produces 18 million bikes a year, which seems like rather a real lot!

 

I thought I was the V11 Le Mans Connecticut Owners Group until one popped up for sale recently on Craigslist. I hope it doesn't leave the State.

 

Are there production numbers in any of Falloon's books? Anyone else out there?

 

Bob

 

Uh, hate to call your off the cuff statistic into question, but when Harley-Davidson was making 200,000+ bikes a year at their peak a few years ago and Honda was in 2nd place, that's about 2 orders of magnitude off from your #. And lest we forget, probably 1/2 of that # for Honda is the umpty-umpth generation of the lowly Cub ["You meet the nicest people on a Honda..." c.1959], which only surpassed the 50 million produced mark a few years ago [making it the most produced vehicle EVER by almost a factor of 2 (~27 million VW Beetles {the original, not the Golf in swoopy bodywork they're making now} in 2nd position)

 

I seem to recall Falloon quoting that at their peak post-Aprilia, Guzzi was making ~5000 bikes a year [& more than 1/2 of that # were the cruiser models of all types, including small blocks = probably closer to 3/4] so as has been stated before, even the standard V11 models @

 

I seem to recall that just before the worldwide economic collapse in '08 that Piaggio was setting a target of 10k Guzzis for the year. Problem w/ producing so many bikes is finding buyers for them in a crowded market when the Euro is strong against other currencies. Seems that may have been a major factor in their decision to shutter the factory for a year & remodel...

[Bob Hartman]

Sorry, there were two things wrong with my earlier number for Honda production: It was old by a few years and it was production, not sales. The real number for 2012 can be found in their annual report. It's a lousy 12,559,000.

 

Lovely as they are, H-D is still a bit less global and diversified than Sochiro's little enterprise. It's probably been some time since Honda produced fewer units than Milwaukee. Don't you hate Wikipedia sometimes?

 

I guess the real questions in this regard about Moto Guzzi is whether they 1) have records of how many of each models of bikes were produced each year and 2) do they make them available? Does anyone have an 'in' at the museum in Mandello? We know from Ducati lore that the factory was hopeless at keeping records until relatively recently. Were they not alone?

[Bob Hartman]

Sorry, there were two things wrong with my earlier number for Honda production: It was old by a few years and it was production, not sales. The real number for 2012 can be found in their annual report. It's a lousy 12,559,000.

 

 

 

Darn it. Should've read "it was capacity, not sales". Schoolboy error - I get a word in my head...

[dino1369]

Hey, I have a V11 LeMans too so add one to the count! I haven't seen many with the red rims like mine. I love it.

[vuzzi]

+1

[Rox Lemans]

New to the forum. Here is my 02 I recently purchased. Many upgrades to come soon. Love this thing.

[Bob Hartman]

Welcome!  Still waiting for more V11 Le Mans owners to step forward and make sense of the name of this website!!

[68C]

I don't fully understand how to register and what details you require. I must confess to being a bit nervous about publishing too many details of my bikes on an open forum - hate to come home one day and find I suddenly have plenty of space in my garage.

[Bob Hartman]

Very happy you're here; glad to see you have an '04 LM Rosso with MyEcu.  I don't think giving your details as "68C in Southampton" will necessarily result in a successful google search for your address.  Wait, you're not in Hillside Avenue or Wilton Road, are you?

Just giving the year, colour and anything else you'd like to describe about your Le Mans is plenty for this purpose.  How long you've had it, how you use it, what you've changed, what you love about it (or not).  Photos of any distinguishing aspect can only aid in identifying the bike as 1) yours, 2) unique and 3) known to those who would help if you had a spot of bother.

I have bikes listed in an online Ducati database by frame and engine number.  This acts as a deterrent to theft and would aid recovery should they go missing.  

 

Welcome aboard!

[Testa Rossa Guzzi]

Sign me up!! I purchased a 2003 V11 Le Mans from a gent in MA. Mine is Bright Red and Black, and one of the previous owners had the valve covers and "pork chops" painted red. Hence my screen name, Testa Rossa Guzzi.

 

I bought this bike after trying to get my hands on a Tenni Edition, but it was not meant to be (it was sold before I could send the deposit!). This is not only my first Moto Guzzi, but my first motorcycle in almost 19 years! Kinda like diving into the deep end of the pool without checking the temp of the water first. I LOVE my Moto Guzzi!!

 

Brian G.

STL, MO in the USA