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Cult bike Moto Guzzi V7 Sport

Expensive dream, successful athlete

Their heyday lasted only one season. Nevertheless, the expensive Moto Guzzi V7 Sport became a legend shortly after its launch in 1971.

Moto Guzzi V7 Sport

There are several reasons for their cult status. For one thing, it was impressive M.oto Guzzi V7 Sport with its sleek look and its advertised top speed of 206 km / h. On the other hand, it made itself rare from the start, which significantly increased the “must have” factor in the early 70s. And finally – another reason for the myth – hardly anyone would have thought Moto Guzzi such a successful athlete at the time.

Cult bike Moto Guzzi V7 Sport

Expensive dream, successful athlete

Moto Guzzi V7 Sport series athlete from 1971

The manufacturer from Lake Como had turned its back on racing in 1957 and then built perfectly good motorcycles. Even the company’s first two-cylinder engine, the V7 from 1965, was sluggish, as the engineers had developed it explicitly for the military and police so as not to lose the lucrative supply contract with the Italian state. In addition, Guzzi scraped along the economic abyss and came under state administration in 1969. Above all, the new directors had to save – and yet they embarked on a sporting adventure, the Moto Guzzi V7 Sport.

This was due to the revitalized motorcycle market and the appearance of the first maxi motorcycles. In this segment, Guzzi should renovate, a two-cylinder engine with potential was ready. In order to make a name for itself again in terms of sport, the manufacturer hit the slopes in Monza in October 1969 with a Moto Guzzi V7 Special that had been rolled up and set a whopping 15 world records. On the same day, head of technology Lino Tonti received the blessing for the construction of the serial sports car Moto Guzzi V7 Sport, which was finally presented in autumn 1971 at the Milan trade fair.

Low center of gravity, powerful engine

Despite the similar name, the Moto Guzzi V7 Sport had little in common with the V7, apart from the structure of the V2 engine. Tonti developed a completely new motorcycle with a sporty frame, a low center of gravity and a more powerful engine.

MOTORRAD tester Ernst "Klacks" Leverkus, who drove it at the end of 1971, was enthusiastic about the "beautiful machine", the stable chassis, the surprising maneuverability, the "really great driving experience" thanks to the rich torque and of course the top speed, because he managed 199.6 km / h on the autobahn – an incredible speed for a two-cylinder. Success in endurance races did the rest, the Moto Guzzi V7 Sport promised to be the hottest iron of the 1972 season – although it was outrageously expensive: it cost 8,360 marks, while a BMW R 75/5 was already available for 5,900 marks. Nevertheless, the interest was enormous, but production in Mandello got off to a slow start – mainly because the state administration was limited to three years and sales were already being negotiated with the Argentine Alejandro de Tomaso.

The 1972 season was thus partially lost, and at the end of the year Kawasaki presented the Z1, which overtook the Moto Guzzi V7 Sport in terms of performance. Still, it could have been a best seller, but when de Tomaso finally bought Guzzi in 1973, there were violent labor disputes. So a total of only 3691 copies of the V7 Sport were built. Their production was stopped at the end of 1973 – and again, unfortunately, all of the company’s sporting activities.

Technical specifications

jkuenstle.de

Engine block of the cult bike Moto Guzzi V7 Sport.

Data:
Two-cylinder 90-degree V-engine, 748 cm³, valve control via bumpers and rocker arms, 62 HP at 7250 / min *, 66.2 Nm at 6250 / min *, compression 9.8: 1, five-speed gearbox, foot shift lever either left or right right, electric starter, cardan, double loop frame made of steel (red in the first 150 copies, then black), drum brakes, tires front 3.25-18, rear 3.50-18, tank capacity 20 liters, empty weight 206 kg, top speed according to the manufacturer 206 km / h.

literature:
Motociclismo "Lepoca della V7 Sport", 48 pages plus poster. Only available in Italian at www.edisport.it/compraonline/en/15-moto-guzzi, price 10 euros. Franz Josef Schermer "Moto Guzzi V2 – Repair Instructions", Bucheli-Verlag, 232 pages, 29.90 euros. Ian Falloon “Moto Guzzi: The History of All Sports and Le Mans Models”, Heel-Verlag, 153 pages, 14.95 euros.

spare parts:
motoguzzi.fassoli.com, gawa-guzzi.de,
stucchiluigi.it, stein-dinse.biz

scene:
There is a lively forum at www.motoguzzi-v7club.it, unfortunately only in Italian. The www.guzziclubroma.it maintains an international historical register for motorcycles.

Market situation:
Well-preserved V7 Sport models are usually not available for less than 10,000 euros. A look at the Italian internet can be worthwhile.

* MOTORCYCLE measurement from 1971

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