Menus

• Moto Guzzi Daytona RS / Sport 1100 i

Driving report, Moto Guzzi 1100i Sport, Moto Guzzi Daytona 1000

Moto Guzzi Daytona RS / Sport 1100 i

They look damn alike, and they both work on the same case: It’s about sports.

It happened quietly. Almost overnight. One fine morning she was gone. Disappeared. Just because. As if swallowed by the ground. For months. And now – suddenly, unexpectedly, hardly anyone dared to hope – Italy announces its return: The Daytona RS is among us. Slightly changed in shape, technically mature, strengthened to a remarkable 102 hp.

Buy complete article

Driving report
Moto Guzzi Daytona RS / Sport 1100 i

Moto Guzzi needs fresh cells in the form of new customers.

That’s why this year, for the company’s 75th anniversary, there are dust-free models that are supposed to catch up with the competition in terms of quality. The motto “screw yourself up mobile” no longer applies today.

The start was a success: reminiscent of the launch of the first series Daytona in Vallelunga in 1992, when the test machines easily freed themselves from their mufflers and a transmission simply quit its service, the presentation in Mugello was a complete success. The hand-carved prototypes lasted the day on the racetrack without any problems. Daytona or sport. So actually the beginning of a new era?

Not quite, thank God, because a lot of the basics remained the same: this thumping, this tremor, this sound, for example. Sound, yes – not sound, sound is somehow hip, but what makes its way to the ears has culture. They are sensual, the Italian two-cylinder, as sensual as ever. As sensual as technology can be. And how well Guzzi did in ridding the Sport of its round slide carburetors, its breathlessness at low revs often choked the engine so much that it made him forget to ignite it.

With the blessing of the injection, this bad habit has passed. The extremely stiff throttle is also a thing of the past, and today it can be opened with a turn, quite casually. It used to be a follow up.

So you can concentrate fully on the essentials, on the perceptible moment of inertia of the rotating parts, for example: Due to the longitudinally installed crankshaft and the enormous centrifugal masses, the machine has what is known as a tilting moment. In German this means: when you accelerate, the car feels as if it is about to tip over at any moment. Experienced Guzzi fans find this great, others frightening.

From around 3000 revolutions a certain harmony is established. The two cylinders, until then trying to pretend to be autonomous, come together in a miraculous way. The big block runs smoothly, the vibrations subside, the seriousness, i.e. the intensive examination of almost five hundred pounds of motorcycle, begins.

This never works – this thought pops through your head when you take the first tight corner. So wide – the box, so high – the center of gravity, so outstanding – the cylinders. Better off the gas. Jerk. That was it, the first mistake. And the gimbal reactions are already there. And the tipping point and everything. And the heart slips into the knee protector. Note: never drive around the corner without a train. Brake earlier, accelerate earlier. If need be, shift gear earlier – thanks to the improved drive unit, no more helpless poking around.

Such a Guzzi has nothing to give away. You have to work the machine. I have to know when to run easily and when to drive with commitment. Physical effort? Yes. Hanging off? What. Doesn’t go so well either. At least microtypes need every centimeter to stay in contact with handlebar stubs and footrests when tilted. Because it is long, the Guzzi. Long, wide and generally pretty big.

Sooner or later, when the shoot has been found and the residual humor has dispelled the doubts about the sports suitability of the fat V2, the pleasure of laying and turning the masses sets in: How dignified, how earthy, how true it feels when the 1100s through Curving, far from any nervousness, free from hyperactive overreactions, pushes a feeling – as if you could touch it.

Certainly not least thanks to the formidable spring elements: 100 percent white power. Upside down at the front, wonderfully dry at the back. The components in the Sport 1100 i work extremely well. The Daytona is different: although it comes with an almost identical chassis, its hindquarters act totally abnormally – and always different: because on one presentation RS the shock absorber is almost on block, on the other it hardly responds. The technicians on site did not find a particularly plausible explanation. Perhaps a later test can reveal the mystery.

However, the tires are also responsible for the impurities in the Daytona’s corridor: Soled with Michelin Hi-Sport, the 1000 series has far less accuracy and stability on the asphalt than the Sport, whose tires bear the Pirelli MTR 03/04 Dragon logo.

At least the 1000 will be superior to the 1100 in terms of engine, thinks the inclined four-valve community. And thinks: wrong. At least partially. Of course, the further developed engine (forged pistons, Carrillo connecting rods, modified camshafts, higher compression and so on) has more to offer than the two-valve engine. But that one pushes better from below. In addition, it conjures up its kilowatts more loosely, if only because there is no hole in its speed range. The Daytona, on the other hand, falls into a fairly deep depression at around 4500 rpm.

Apart from that, things seem to be going uphill at Guzzi.

Related articles

• Driving report Moto Guzzi Griso 8V

  Bilski Driving Report Moto Guzzi Griso 8V With Two Game Four Traditionally, Moto Guzzi relies on two cylinders. Classically air-cooled, lengthways, in …

• Driving report Moto Guzzi V11 Sport

  Driving report Moto Guzzi V11 Sport 11 after 7 Finally there and finally classic again: the V11. With it a new era should begin at Guzzi …

• Driving report Moto Guzzi California Special and Quota 1100 ES

  Driving report Moto Guzzi California Special and Quota 1100 ES Magical power Forza in movimento – there is power in movement: The Moto Guzzi eagle should…

• Moto Guzzi Sport 1100 i

  Moto Guzzi Sport 1100 i It depends … what you make of it. For 75 years now, M oto Guzzi has been able to rely on fans who love the brand …

• Cult bike Moto Guzzi 1100 Sport

  Archive Cult bike Moto Guzzi 1100 Sport Liberation Actually it should have been called Le Mans, but also welcomed under a less spectacular name …

• Moto Guzzi MGX-21 in the driving report

  www.zamponi.net 13 pictures Moto Guzzi 1/13 Moto Guzzi MGX-21. Moto Guzzi 2/13 Moto Guzzi MGX-21. Moto Guzzi 3/13 Batman would drive excavators … Moto Guzzi …

• Driving report Moto Guzzi V7 Classic

  Moto Guzzi 3 pictures Moto Guzzi 1/3 Moto Guzzi 2/3 Moto Guzzi 3/3 Driving report Moto Guzzi V7 Classic The glorious seven She was the most famous Guzzi …

• Vanguard Moto Guzzi V8 in the driving report

  Vanguard 13 pictures Vanguard 1/13 picture gallery: Vanguard Moto Guzzi V8. Vanguard 2/13 driving? Quite feasible on the Vanguard V8, but a rather …

• Driving report Moto Guzzi Breva V 1100

  fact Driving report Moto Guzzi Breva V 1100 Una Storia Italiana The story of the long-announced Moto Guzzi Breva V 1100 is a typically Italian one: of…

• Driving report Moto Guzzi MGS-01 Corsa

  Gori driving report Moto Guzzi MGS / 01 Corsa Adler learns to fly In autumn she was one of the stars of Intermot. The MGS / 01 study not only provided …