Moto Guzzi Malaysia has acquired Unit 0001/1000 of the limited edition V7 III Anniversario.
Production of the model is limited to only 1000 units worldwide.
The bike is priced at RM 80,900 (incl. of 6% GST, but not on-the-road).
Moto Guzzi Malaysia has acquired Unit 0001 of the V7 III Anniversario. It’s of great significance as production of the model is limited to only 1000 units worldwide.
The V7 III Anniversario commemorates the 50th year of the legendary Moto Guzzi V7, and is distinguished from the unlimited run V7 III by numerous exclusive details such as the gold-coloured Moto Guzzi eagle emblem on the chrome fuel tank, brand new genuine leather seat, and billet aluminium locking fuel tank cap.
The mudguards are polished aluminium, the passenger grab bar is chrome plated steel, while the wheels get exclusive polished channels and grey hubs.
Perhaps most importantly, the handlebar riser is laser inscribed with the production number XXXX/1000.
While based on the V7 III Special, the Anniversario’s engine has been tuned for a 10% power gain. The steel frame with dismountable double cradle maintains the same 46/54% front/rear weight distribution, however the front portion has been revamped and reinforced with a new steering geometry for better handling, cornering and stability.
These features produce makes the Moto Guzzi V7 III Annivesario a handcrafted work of art worthwhile for collectors.
“I am proud that we managed to acquire the 0001 unit of the III Anniversario and this would also be a pride for Moto Guzzi enthusiasts in Malaysia,” said Rewi Bugo, Chairman of Didi Resources Sdn. Bhd. Didi Resources is the official importer and distributor of Moto Guzzi motorcycles in Malaysia.
Rewi Bugo, Chairman of Didi Resources Sdn. Bhd.
The Moto Guzzi V7 III Anniversario is available for viewing at The Gasket Alley, Petaling Jaya, and priced at RM 80,900 (inclusive of 6% GST but not on-the-road).
Moto Guzzi Malaysia invited Guzzi owners to a year-end gathering.
It serves as a platform to touch base with both existing and new owners.
Moto Guzzi Malaysia’s Aftersales Department were present to assist on technical matters.
Moto Guzzi Malaysia is paving the path to engage not only potential or new customers, but existing owners as well.
Since finding a new home at The Gasket Alley (click here for our coverage on the launch), they have organized many events and rides that reflect upon the Guzzi lifestyle, for example, a Sunday ride to Bentong a couple of months back (click here for the report), and now a special gathering as 2018 beckons.
Called the “Moto Guzzi Gentlemen’s Year-End Gathering,” the event brought together Guzzi owners past and present to make new friends and build camaraderie.
We were able to witness a myriad of Moto Guzzis, including the V7 II, V7 50 Anniversario, Norge GT, and an ultra-rare 90th anniversary California.
The owners were then invited to share their experience of owning a Guzzi on video. Although it wasn’t us who interviewed them, we were within an earshot when they described their experience and they were at the least satisfied and loved their bikes.
With the interview session done, Mr. Amarjit Singh, the Head of Aftersales met with the owners personally to discuss on what Moto Guzzi Malaysia could improve on, besides assuring that Moto Guzzi Malaysia is serious in providing the best possible aftersales service and parts availability.
The event adjourned after dinner, and with the owners exchanging contacts with each other. Looks like there’ll be plenty of Moto Guzzi rides soon!
The new Moto Guzzi V9 Roamer and V7 III Stone complements the Guzzi family.
Moto Guzzi calls the V9 Roamer a custom bike, but its design harks back to the beautiful 70’s bikes.
The V7 III Stone forms the basis for further customisation.
Moto Guzzi is a legendary Italian brand since 1912, but a few hiccups along the way gave the impression of the brand being “on/off.” However, Moto Guzzi is seeing a resurgence lately as the new official distributor, The Gasket Alley, has stepped up their marketing and aftersales efforts.
However, having ridden just one Moto Guzzi for mere hours in the past, I wasn’t sure of what to expect from these two bikes: The V9 Roamer and V7 III Stone.
When Sep and I went to pick them up, both had that modern-classic look, but it was the V9 Roamer which appealed to me with lots of chrome offset by anodized black parts and yellow paintwork. It looked like a 70’s kind of standard motorcycle. That’s just the looks, because the 853cc, 2-valve, 90-degree V-Twin engine is all new.
On the other hand, Sep preferred the V7 III Stone as it looked more “masculine” with its boxier fuel tank with flared sides over the cylinders, no chrome and flat yellow tank. In a way, the V7 III Stone has that unfinished look, no doubt being the model for further customization (there are hundreds of items in MG “Spark” catalog). The “III” designation means this is the third generation V7, inspired the by the 1971 V7 Sport. The V7 has been revamped in many ways including a 10% engine power bump.
Both bikes now feature MGTC (Moto Guzzi Traction Control) and ABS.
Pushing both bikes around The Gasket Alley’s parking lot revealed that they were light. It’s even more so when we climbed on board. Their seats were low and both of us could place both feet on the ground with ease.
The V9’s handlebar was mounted on a riser and swept back to meet the rider. The V7’s was flatter for a slightly more café racer feel.
As I reached out to thumb the starter button on the V9, I noticed that the switchgear had a new design, outlined by brushed aluminium bezels, similar to the Calfornia. The V7 made do with the conventional switchgear.
Both bikes starter quickly when the starter button was pushed, to a 90-degree V-Twin growl and the bike kicking to the right simultaneously. Such is the character of transverse-mounted twins (both cylinders projecting out the sides, instead of sitting fore and aft inside the frame), since the crankshaft is longitudinal along the axis of the frame. Conversely, V-Twin that’s mounted longitudinally (Harley, Ducati, et al) has the crankshaft across the frame, thus the frame damps out the crankshaft’s secondary vibrations.
As with Moto Guzzi’s engine configuration, the transmission mates directly to the back of the crankcase (like a BMW Boxer-Twin), although the Guzzi’s single dry clutch is behind the transmission instead of sitting in the middle between the two parts. Power transfer to the rear wheel is best served by a shaft final drive for transverse Twins.
This arrangement makes for a lower centre of gravity as the heavy parts are lower near the ground, as opposed to engine configurations where the transmission is “stacked” above the alternator (although it is more compact).
Anyhow, right away, the V9 Roamer exhibited a relatively maneuverable despite having a 19-inch tyre up front and 16-inch at the rear. Similarly, squeezing through traffic was easy as the bike’s pretty slim. My only gripe about riding it in traffic was the overly soft exhaust volume in order to comply with the Euro 4 emission standard. I don’t have to tell you that some car drivers in Kuala Lumpur are complacent behind their steering wheels, so a loud exhaust is the way to grab their attention unless you honk all the way.
The suspension of both bikes were supple in their initial strokes but took big hits over the shraper bumps and deep potholes. Still, they were remarkably better than their predecessors.
Out on the highway, the V9 Roamer went with the flow due to its taller gearing – it’s not that the engine lacks punch – the transmission was already in overdrive in fifth gear, while sixth was an even taller overdrive. This is definitely a bike for relaxed cruising.
The V7 however, felt more engaging due to its shorter gearing, meaning it kept pushing all the time. In Sep’s words, “The V7 feels more hooligan.” He’s right, because the Stone is just one of the variations in the V7 III family, which includes the V7 III Racer.
Italian bikes are famous for their handling, but I wish I could say so for these two. But it wasn’t because of the bikes, it was due to the standard Pirelli Sport Demon tyres. I’ve experienced the very same trait on another test bike. These tyres are great in running straight but their sidewalls flex like rubber stress balls when pushed in corners, causing the bikes to wobble. It also caused the V9 Roamer’s 19-inch front to steer slower into corners. My concern is that customers who are uninitiated to the Sport Demon will blame the bike.
Anyway, the V7 III Stone wasn’t a slouch when we blasted down the highway. With a sportier riding position, the rider has more confidence to take it to higher speeds. The V9 Roamer, on the other hand likes to be ridden smoothly and in a benign manner. That said, remember the crankshaft’s torque kicking the bike to one side? It all disappeared as soon as we got rolling and the engine became really, really smooth.
We took a different route to Kuala Kubu Bahru for the photoshoot and while it had many beautiful corners, certain sections were bumpy as hell, but these bumps were handled better as long as they weren’t sharp, whereas I would have a chiropractor on standby on the older bike.
We also noticed that there wasn’t any “shaft jacking” despite the lack of an extra arm, like Moto Guzzi’s CARC setup. The term shaft jacking pertains to the bike lifting upwards due to the shaft’s torque as power is applied to the rear wheel.
As our four days with both bikes coming to an end, we liked both the V9 Roamer and V7 III Stone for what they are. They’re just different from other bikes in the market, hence to compare with other makes may not be fair. Both bikes’ appeal rest in the ease of riding them, with a certain kind of soul that could only come from the transversely mounted V-Twin. Besides that, there aren’t many Guzzis around so you’ll earn plenty of inquisitive stares when you ride one.
So which one did we pick as our favourite? Let’s call it a split decision. Keshy and Sep chose the V7 III Stone for its no-frills approach, while Chaze and I chose the V9 Roamer for its looks and soft character.
Moto Guzzi organized the Moto Guzzi Sunday Ride this past weekend.
First Moto Guzzi ride formally organized by Moto Guzzi Malaysia.
The ride headed to Gohtong Jaya and Bentong.
What’s the best way to build camaraderie and a family of bikers? Go on a ride, of course.
Moto Guzzi Malaysia organized their first official ride since relocating to their new home at Gasket Alley, Seksyen 13, Petaling Jaya.
Modestly called, “Moto Guzzi Sunday Ride,” the outing was planned to gather the number of Moto Guzzi owners in Malaysia for a relaxing ride to Genting Permai and onwards to Lemang To’ki 2 (the main Lemang To’ki outlet is closed) in Bentong, Pahang.
Guzzi and other motorcycles owners started gathering at 8.30am. Another great aspect of motorcycle rides is that one will get to see a pleasant mix of different bikes, and we weren’t disappointed this weekend.
There was a California, a number of V7 Racers including one which was customized into a scrambler, a V7 Anniversario 50, V9 Bobber, and a Norge tourer. There was a myriad of bikes of different makes too.
We pushed off after a safety briefing by the ride marshal and Juan Chow, riding at steady pace behind the marshal all the way to the BHP petrol station just after the Gombak toll plaza. We noticed the traffic was exceptionally heavy for a Sunday.
Everyone took a quick breather from the scorching sun while the marshals did a quick headcount.
From there it was a short ride up to the Nanyang Kopitiam Restaurant at Genting Permai. Apart from the Starbucks adjacent to it, Nanyang has now become was already packed with groups of bikers. We caught sight of celebrities Afdlin Shauki and Johan seated not far from us.
After a quick brunch, he descended back down to Karak Highway and headed to Bentong.
If traffic was heavy along the highway, it was worse when we reached the town. By now the convoy had gotten strung out as we had to navigate around other vehicles.
A traffic jam is the worst place to be for any biker, because that’s when car drivers start misbehaving out of frustration. A car cut right across this writer’s front wheel, and a 4×4 darted out of the intersection to Fraser’s Hill. Another car swung into our path, as if refusing to let us pass.
We finally reached Lemang To’ki after battling the traffic, only to realize that the marshal had mistakenly led us to the closed outlet.
We doubled back toward Bentong town but the guy in front of our group of eight bikes had lost touch with the marshal. Seeing a shaded and safe area, we pulled in and stopped. A rider in the group got in touch on the phone with someone and told us that there had been an accident.
The Yamaha T-Max ridden by a Moto Guzzi staff was T-boned by a mini SUV which charged out of an intersection the town, and both victims on the bike were taken to the Bentong Hospital. As my pillion was the other pillion’s housemate and BFF, we decided to just swing over to the hospital nearby.
The rider suffered a broken left foot. His pillion fared worse as her left knee was torn open. We feared the worst, but she suffered no broken bone after being X-rayed, thankfully.
Both are now recovering at home.
In closing, I would like to comment that it had been a relaxing ride, and it would’ve been perfect if not for impatient drivers. It was nice to see the participants getting along well, as they joked and laughed about the ride when we stopped at Gohtong Jaya. Also, a word of advice: Please be extra vigilant should you ride to Bentong on weekends and public.
