Modern Vespa

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This may be of interest to those of you who understand that Piaggio controls seven brands... the health of each is critical to Vespa's future. Some of you may also have an interest in Moto Guzzi.

Yesterday at GMG (Worldwide Guzzi Days), Guzzi introduced a powerful new 8-valve (8V) engine in the Griso... an engine that breaks new ground and remains respectful of the company heritage. There has been tremendous concern that a General Motors type arrangment can work with seven Italian 2-wheeled brands... but Moto Guzzi has renewed their range in the past few years, and now this engine suggests they can really compete with powerful bikes.

Today, Moto Guzzi UK has added the bike, The Griso 8V to their website.

"His power was increased both by the fact itself... and by public opinion"
from The Betrothed, the most widely read novel in Italian, by Alessandro Manzoni, referring to Griso, 'The Gray One', the character after whom the motorcycle is named.


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Time to retire the air-cooled engines. PiaggioCo has an engine built in-house that is a water-cooled, fuel-injected, 90-deg twin - in 750cc @ 95-HP and 1200cc @ 130-HP versions (the new Aprilias will use these engines). Advice from a guy who owned a Breva 750 - time to dump these old engines and build new bikes with the PiaggioCo 750/1200 engines. Also, take that 850-automatic engine (Aprilia 850 Mana & Gilera GP800) and build a replacement for the aging Nevada - use the styling of the Bellagio but in a smaller package. A small automatic-transmission mini-cruiser with a low seat height would sell like hotcakes in the USA to women who want to get off the back of their husband's Harley and also to inner-city commuters.

If Piaggio were to 'dump' any engine into a Moto Guzzi, there's a chance they'd seriously disturb what they've got. It's got to be a very thoughtful, considerate process.

Imagine Piaggio adding a third wheel to a Vespa. Ain't gonna happen. It's not that progress isn't good... it's just that Vespa and Moto Guzzi are brands that revolve heavily around a certain heritage. It would be most foolish to throw the baby out with the bathwater... especially when the Piaggio and Aprilia brands can absorb more change more quickly.

What Piaggio won't do, a crazy German will.

The Vespas already have fuel-injected water-cooled engines It's design that evokes heritage. It's about time we dragged Guzzi into the 21st century kicking and screaming. Heritage or not, they simply aren't selling enough they way they are. Now the Bellagio with the PiaggioCo 1200cc @ 130-HP engine would be one sweet ride.

Modern four-valve, liquid-cooled engine, with electronic fuel injection:

Which should tell you something... what's being protected with the Vespa isn't the engine, it's the scale and look of the bike... the engine is hidden.

Why then do you think there isn't a Vespa MP3... just listen to the Vespa-philes here deride anything that isn't hard metal and just oh-so-precious looking.

On the Moto Guzzi, since 1967 the air-cooled engine has been a prominent visual component of the bikes' design. Piaggio must reinforce the value of the brand before they start deconstructing it.

Agreed... progress must happen. But Guzzi sold twice as many bikes last year... as just three years ago.

The Griso 8V is a tremendously positive sign.

Guzzi is selling more bikes because they moved away from the "cruiser" aspect of the bikes and moved closer to the Standard / Sport-Standard bikes. They just didn't have the ability to compete as a cruiser style bike. The California was an ugly ugly bike. The Griso is a very nice looking bike.

Guzzi competes better with BMW than they do with HD. I think the styling has just moved them into better sales. It's about time they moved the engine to that category too.

Guzzi continues to market the California because there are lots of people who adore the bike.

Guzzi is selling more bikes because Piaggio, using a lot of the grunt work Aprilia had done on its watch (including modernizing Guzzi's Mandello del Lario factory), has completely revitalized the entire lineup.

New Moto Guzzi's since 2003:

Nevada Classic
Breva 750
Breva 850
Breva 1100
Breva 1200 S (aka 1200 Sport)
Norge 850
Norge 1200
Bellagio
Griso
Griso 8V
MGS-01 Corsa

It can be argued that these bikes are highly based on what's gone before them... but that's what 'branding' is about, in part.

Either way, Moto Guzzi is starting win positive press again, win awards, and win even races again.

And it certainly doesn't hurt that Moto Guzzi is thinking correctly when they do things like retrace the 1928 raid to Capo Nord when they reintroduce a bike with the name Norge -- as difficult as it may be to garner attention in today's world, short of having Ewan McGregor ride your bike long or short way round, the Raid to Capo Nord was a brilliant idea.

Ewan is a big Guzzi fan, btw.

Don't get me wrong: i like Guzzi's current direction. I love the Griso.

But now that you mention it: what's the difference between the new 8V Griso and the MGS-01's 8V engine?