V85 motor secrets unveiled

[po18guy]

Many of the made-over Adv bikes are poseurs. The bad boy on a Harley craze is wearing thin and something a little more socially acceptable, a little more promotable up the corporate ladder is needed. Thus: Adventure! Not real adventure, mind you, as that is for military veterans, emergency workers and drug dealers. A Paris-Dakar or perhaps 'Lawrence of Arabia with a more reliable bike' type of adventure. Thus, they are strongly symbolic but do not deliver all that much of what they symbolize. 

To my eye, the small blocks have a squatty look at the rear - Harley Sporster-like. Kind of "anti-sport bike" Oh, you can dress them up all right, but they don't dance all that well. 

[docc]

I remember reading some journalist's opinion about the early V11 Sport, "Will require some owner involvement."

That was not wrong . . .

[ScuRoo]

 

[ScuRoo]

(Insights on V65 TT Dakar history from the man himself...)

Claudio Torri, the man with the eagle in his soul: "The V85 TT? Bella, it was time!"
The coloring of the Moto Guzzi V85 TT is a tribute to the V65 brought to the Dakar in 1985 by an architect from Bergamo protagonist of an all-Italian adventure

https://www.inmoto.it/news/news/2020/03/31-2884303/claudio_torri_l_uomo_con_l_aquila_nell_anima_la_v85_tt_bella_era_ora_/2/

Can you tell us what pushed you to race the 1985 Paris-Dakar with the V65 TT?

"After participating in two Atlas Rally in Morocco, two Pharaohs Rally in Egypt and a Paris-Dakar always riding a KTM, and being left alone (my friend" Ciro "De Petri had switched to Honda), I decided to change, trying to customize a bike myself. Based on the experience I had accumulated, I wanted to race with an Italian bike and this could only be a Moto Guzzi. For my way of driving, I understood that the best choice was to switch to a twin cylinder: with a single cylinder I was forced to always keep the gas open so as not to lose speed, while with the twin cylinder, thanks above all to better torque, I could slow down and then resume speed more easily. The choice of the model was required : I took what the market offered, also considering the very short time available to prepare it and introduce myself at the start. Ah, I would like to highlight the fact that in my experiences I had inc terrible identi, while, when I was riding the Guzzi, only normal falls ".

What were the strengths of this bike?

"The lightness. It was the least heavy of the twin cylinders. And, to save even more weight, we mounted the NATO gearbox that allowed us to start the pedal, avoiding the starter. The V65 always started at the first pedaling and it was a lust for someone like me, which came from the experience of the Mono Rotax 560. Furthermore, the Guzzi consumed little and this allowed us to take on less petrol and travel lighter or not have to stop to refuel during the special tests. V arrangement of the engine allowed for good cooling and a fairly low center of gravity. On a mechanical level, it had good accessibility and easy maintenance. "

A bike that has felt "his" from the first meters ...

"I got on the bike for the first time on the occasion of the prologue of Cergy-Pontoise, near Paris, because before I hadn't had time to try it and I was surprised by its behavior, despite being almost standard. On hard-bottomed tracks it was also fast if he had any cycling limit, while the limited horses made themselves felt on the sandy ones. Until the day of rest in Agadez we encountered only minor setbacks, no engine or gearbox problems. Without the inconvenience to the battery, I think the bike would have arrived safely in Dakar. "

And what were the defects?

"There were only two major limitations: the chassis that should have been of the off-road type due to the great stresses to which it was subjected and the rear cardan transmission that limited the rear suspension travel. Then we all know that the drivers are never satisfied, especially in a tough race like the Dakar: I would also have liked more power, more torque and a gearbox with a different spacing with the first, second and third gear long and the fourth and fifth closer together ... ".

What is the most curious thing that happened to you when you competed in the Dakar with this bike?

"Without a doubt the interest that the motorcycle aroused during the technical checks in Paris: after the official means, my Guzzi certainly did not go unnoticed and was the most photographed one. I confess that I also pulled it a bit, because they came to see it and the Japanese also study it ... ".

And what is the most beautiful memory?

"The most beautiful memory was the privilege I had to run these races with the Moto Guzzi and with the Mandello del Lario eagle on the helmet. And then an anecdote, which gave me the opportunity to publicly put a Italian sports director of a Japanese company. During the race, this person often said that I was Italy's shame and that the eagle had become a chicken. When I heard it, I replied: 'Eagles can fly as low as the chickens but the chickens will never fly high like eagles, deserving the compliments and pats on the shoulders of the people present ".

Why did you choose yellow and what effect did the colors of your bike have on the new V85 TT?

"The bike had been painted in the colors of the Acerbis Plastics to thank Franco Acerbis. Thanks to our friendship, he made for me the only 50-liter tank in sheet metal ever produced in his life. Moreover, we did not have the time to make a model and mold and then transform it into plastic. With my partner and colleague, architect Giacomo Ghilardini, we had tried to personalize the bike to the best that we had available.
I was pleased with Moto Guzzi, but I think it must go to memory of Giacomo, who recently passed away. He later contributed to the creation of the Guzzi "Tropicana" for the 1988 edition of the African race ".

What do you think of this new model produced by Guzzi?

"I reply using the many comments that I heard on my short trip to Italy: 'It was time!'. I am happy that Moto Guzzi has created, without distorting its history, a model in step with the times. To be beautiful is beautiful but I have not yet had the pleasure of trying it, I have read only the technical data sheet and some very positive reviews. I therefore hope that the Piaggio Group will continue in this perspective and bring the Moto Guzzi up high, where eagles dare ".

[footgoose]

I wonder why Guzzi can't just bite the bullet like BMW did and lose the shaft for belt on a bike like this? At least to see how it worked at PD.

[gstallons]

MMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM .

[po18guy]

On 7/3/2018 at 4:56 PM, Chuck said:

You could have a fine LeMans with 80 horsepower.. Just keep the weight down.

Exact;y! And this "could" be the bike, but we know how well Piaggio Group listens to consumers...

Posted this elsewhere and just could not resist re-posting it here.

[biesel]

I was curious  ... so I took the chance to make a test ride at my dealer yesterday.
Man this is a great bike, I did not expect this.
The engine has enough power for such kind of bike.
The engine and the gear box work super smoothly and even if it is simple the chassis is extremely efficient.

My dealer (https://www.clauscarstens-racing.de) told me that he was also very skeptical about it at the beginning.
He feared that it was a similar lame duck as e.g. the V9 Bobber.
But even if the motor looks similar it is a completely different engine.

Unfortunately my dealer gave up his Guzzi dealership after decades because of the poor Guzzi portfolio.
He is also the biggest Ducati dealer here in northern Germany and this was not an easy step for him
because he is also is a fan of the Guzzi brand like it was in the past.
The current California models and the small Guzzis models simply do not sell up here.
But after testing the V85TT he decided to sell those...and it works.
He already sold 11 this year which is a lot for a Guzzi model.
They are selling like hot cakes and do not even reach the showroom.
While I was riding the red one another one arrived - already sold.

[ScuRoo]

Fancy a little scalding tea & hotcakes?

https://riders.drivemag.com/news/best-selling-adventure-bikes-here-are-the-most-successful-models-in-2019-germany-and-italy

[ScuRoo]

This effort in asphalt&rubber is more appealing than the red throwback above...

If the factory could ‘add lightness’ of say 20-30kg to the coming Stradale version they’d have another winner on their hands...

 

[docc]

An MGS-3/4!

Whew, 20-30 kg would be hard to come by, yes? Start with very expensive magnesium wheels?

[pete roper]

Jesus wept. Not here as well. F*ck this shit. It's bollocks. And thinking it would be anything other than a wheezy, hopeless decedent of a Breva750 if it ever made it off the screen of the fantasist who dreamt it up is a joke.

Loosing 30Kg would just make it a slightly lighter antediluvian sack of shit. The V85, somewhat miraculously, makes about 60 RWHP. Dressing that up in designer clothes just makes it the two wheeled equivalent of Donatella Versace and that is not where I want Guzzi to aim for as a *Future*. Sadly, I think I'm out voted seeing as how well the V85 is selling..........

[ScuRoo]

Yep.

Maybe the naked munter tickles your fancy Pete. 😁

[LowRyter]

None of these bikes deliver the performance that styling promotes.    Maybe if it was 1200/1400 based engine?

[docc]

Just for broad comparison, what horsepower did the vaunted, roadgoing V7 Sport of the 70s put down at the rear wheel?