New Guzzi V85 looks good.

moto-guzzi-v90-ttr-concept-oberdan-bezzi.jpg


From here.
https://www.asphaltandrubber.com/bikes/moto-guzzi-v90-ttr-concept-oberdan-bezzi/
 
Well that is 18 years of BMW ownership done. Back on a Guzzi. I picked up my V85TT today. Have to say it is a great ride. I had 21 years of Guzzi's before moving to BMW, but the hankering for another Guzzi was always in the background.
 
Well that is 18 years of BMW ownership done. Back on a Guzzi. I picked up my V85TT today. Have to say it is a great ride. I had 21 years of Guzzi's before moving to BMW, but the hankering for another Guzzi was always in the background.

https://youtu.be/QJoSS3dzluQ

:rob


Got a test ride booked at On Yer Bike next Saturday... ;)
 
It does look nice.

Considering I’m about to start building an air cooled adv bike, I do wonder why I don’t just buy one of these instead!


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
 
Had mine for 15mts now, it's a cracking all round bike. There have been a couple of occasions when I'd have liked a little more power, but generally the 80 horses suit the bike well. Unlike big block Guzzi's you do sometimes need to keep the revs above 3500, it will bog down fairly easily at low rpm. I've had it fully loaded with camping gear (I don't travel light) and it's coped admirably, overtakes have taken a little more thought, but that's part of the fun. Had a new clutch in mine very early on and am currently waiting for an oil temp sensor to be fitted under warranty, otherwise it's been spot on. It's got ABS and a basic traction control system, but that's about it. It's not perfect, it's quirky in many ways, it's a Moto Guzzi and boy do I like it.
 
Had mine for 15mts now, it's a cracking all round bike. There have been a couple of occasions when I'd have liked a little more power, but generally the 80 horses suit the bike well. Unlike big block Guzzi's you do sometimes need to keep the revs above 3500, it will bog down fairly easily at low rpm. I've had it fully loaded with camping gear (I don't travel light) and it's coped admirably, overtakes have taken a little more thought, but that's part of the fun. Had a new clutch in mine very early on and am currently waiting for an oil temp sensor to be fitted under warranty, otherwise it's been spot on. It's got ABS and a basic traction control system, but that's about it. It's not perfect, it's quirky in many ways, it's a Moto Guzzi and boy do I like it.

Great to here.
Its going reasonably well.
Long may it continue...
 
overtakes have taken a little more thought, but that's part of the fun It's not perfect, it's quirky in many ways, it's a Moto Guzzi and boy do I like it.

Old Guzzi's were a bit like that too, T3's an overtake was planned, "bridge to engine room, full ahead" and the big lump would slowly wind itself up, the veglia speedo needle would flap around even more, and you would reach overtaking speed. :D
 
A very pleasant after dispite the weather. :tears
Let me set the scene if I may...

Ash has various disabilities that makes, owning & riding a motorcycle rather a challenging one.
And every bike I have, has to work with my problems.

My present steed is a 2017 F700GS low chassis.
That has -
Ride by wire throttle.
Rox Antivibration Risers.
Grip puppies.
50mm low pegs + Fastway Evolution III footpegs
Givi vario screen, with adapted mounts to lift it.
Wunderlich screen extension.
Clicktronic electronic gear change.
Atlas cruise control.
Airhawk seat cushion.
Specially made main stand ( as low chassis doesn't have one, only side stand )
Plus all the normal farkles... :green gri

The only bike I've ridden straight out of the box since my RTA in 2005 was the new 750GS.
( That I could of lived with )
But the Chinese engine & some horror stories put me off one.


That was until yesterday afternoon.
Now I make no secret of my love for Guzzi's, but I certainly haven't ' Rose tinted spectacles ' where Guzzi's are concerned & have ridden, built enough to know them.


But I was honestly blown away by the V85TT Travel edition. ( in the main )

Now it wasn't perfect. ;)
But I would score it a solid 9+ out of 10. :bow

It was super smooth compared with any Guzzi I've ridden.
I have a Strada 1000 & Breva 1100V & I've ridden most of um...

Plenty of power from it's 854cc / 80 bhp motor
And it cruised at motorway speeds and above easily :green gri

Cruise control was great.
Brakes were more than upto the job.
Screen was good, no buffeting but more noise than mine.

Riding position was near perfect for me, handlebars & footpegs :)
Seat was nice & I never had my Airhawk on it..

It handled lovely especially giving the appalling weather found mesen in :(
Easily flickabke & changes direction nicely.
And I wasn't sparing the ponies when I could. :D

LCD dash was good in that I could see the speed clearly, but the rev counter part is difficult to see ( maybe not helped by the torrential rain ).
Didn't really try the settings ( again not helped by the weather ).
Didn't touch the mode switch, but I don't on mine if I'm honest..

Gearbox was smooth, percise & well geared.

I had it on all road types M40, A43, A41, A34 various B roads & town centres
And all surface types including flooded roads :(.


MPG figures wouldn't of been fair as if I had one I wouldn't of travelled at such paces.
But to try it out properly I exceeded my normal speeds.. ( being honest ) :green gri

Not so good points -
slightly too tall even on low settings, sortable given time.
Standard panniers sit to high for my busted body, but I wouldn't have the OEM ones.
Front forks too soft for me, again sortable.
Indicators cancel to quickly.
And not that bright according to my mate behind.

Needs a low front mudguard, again sortable.
And a rear hugger, but don't they all..?

Odd gear indicator -
When in first at standstill it shows a diagonal line across rather than 1st untill you pull away :nenau
Didn't find the heated grip switch or spotlight switch ( maybe just me ) :confused:

Found some false neutrals at standstill eventhough screen said in neutral.
( typical Guzzi ) :D
OEM handgaurds are too close to the clutch lever & too small..

But I'm nit picking but being honest..

My mate was following me on his F800GT .
( he has a test ride booked for next week on a low seat model)

We pulled onto the M40 North bound from A34 & gunned it :green gri
And the V85TT was well ahead, which suprised both of us.
( communicating via SENA SRL's ) ;)

I rode his bike 20 miles of the 40 odd miles upto Westcott for the first time yesterday, just so I could compare it against my 700GS 75 bhp, his 800GT 89 bhp & the V85TT's 80 bhp.

Would I have one, you bet your behind I would. :okay
Sometime in the future, health & wealth permiting.
I think as time goes by many more parts / options will become available, which longterm would assist my personal needs.

My 700GS is a terrific bike & I've got it as near perfect as I can for me, but it's rather soulless / bland & lacks character ( parallel twin) unlike the V85TT's V Twin.
The Guzzi looks great, even the Red & I dislike Red but luv Yellow :)

The pictures show the weather I encountered, which wasn't idea.
But I did get about 30 minutes of dry roads A34, A41, A43 & M40..

:thumb
 

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My aptly named ' wet room ' last night :blast

:D
 

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Morning Ash, glad you enjoyed your ride. Here's my interpretation of some of your points and how I've made them work for me.

TALL, yes it's a fairly tall bike especially when you've only got 29" inside leg. As for getting on. If no one's looking I mount like a girl by standing on the foot peg, makes it a whole lot easier.

PANNIERS... I have the MG alloy panniers. I think they sit slightly lower than those on the travel, certainly don't look as bulky.

FRONT SUSPENSION...Fully adjustable for rebound and damping.

INDICATORS... Mine doesn't have self cancelling, but they do cancel after about 40 seconds.

FRONT MUDGUARD... Definitely needs a front mudguard... Aprillia Capanord with fender extender...fits straight on...order it now, they take a while to come.

REAR HUGGER....Not to much of a problem as the rear suspension isn't exposed to a constant hammering in wet weather. I adapted one of those rear slash guards from a Honda NC700, looks OK and works well.

GEAR INDICATOR ... Initially I thought 'that's bloody useless', but I've got used to it's peculiarity and find it OK now.

HANDGUARDS... Again mine are from a Caponord, much, much better. They will fit straight on, but need to be distorted slightly. I made a small extender bracket that makes them fit perfectly.

INDICATORS... not noticed and haven't had any comments.

FALSE NEUTRALS...Never experienced any.

I've had an embarrassing number of bikes over the last 50yrs, but I must say the V85 is one of, if not my most favourite bike. It's just such a hoot to ride, and if you embrace it's limitations, will just about do anything. Now I'm not one for saying this bikes a keeper, but I think I'll have a V85 till the day I hang my boots up.
I currently also have a 2017 BMW R1200R. It is without doubt a very very capable bike, and if tested and scored alongside a V85 any tester would rate the R as a much better bike than the V85. If I could only have one bike, it would without question or doubt be the V85.
As you alluded to, and it's the same for me with the 1200R, great bike, no real soul.

Enjoying the Breva updates.
 
A very pleasant after dispite the weather. :tears
Let me set the scene if I may...



But I was honestly blown away by the V85TT Travel edition. ( in the main )

Plenty of power from it's 854cc / 80 bhp motor
And it cruised at motorway speeds and above easily :green gri

Cruise control was great.
Brakes were more than upto the job.
Screen was good, no buffeting but more noise than mine.

Riding position was near perfect for me, handlebars & footpegs :)
Seat was nice & I never had my Airhawk on it..

It handled lovely especially giving the appalling weather found mesen in :(
Easily flickabke & changes direction nicely.
And I wasn't sparing the ponies when I could. :D

LCD dash was good in that I could see the speed clearly, but the rev counter part is difficult to see ( maybe not helped by the torrential rain ).
Didn't really try the settings ( again not helped by the weather ).
Didn't touch the mode switch, but I don't on mine if I'm honest..

Gearbox was smooth, percise & well geared.

I had it on all road types M40, A43, A41, A34 various B roads & town centres
And all surface types including flooded roads :(.


MPG figures wouldn't of been fair as if I had one I wouldn't of travelled at such paces.
But to try it out properly I exceeded my normal speeds.. ( being honest ) :green gri

Not so good points -
slightly too tall even on low settings, sortable given time.
Standard panniers sit to high for my busted body, but I wouldn't have the OEM ones.
Front forks too soft for me, again sortable.
Indicators cancel to quickly.
And not that bright according to my mate behind.

Needs a low front mudguard, again sortable.
And a rear hugger, but don't they all..?

Odd gear indicator -
When in first at standstill it shows a diagonal line across rather than 1st untill you pull away :nenau
Didn't find the heated grip switch or spotlight switch ( maybe just me ) :confused:

Found some false neutrals at standstill eventhough screen said in neutral.
( typical Guzzi ) :D
OEM handgaurds are too close to the clutch lever & too small..

But I'm nit picking but being honest..

My mate was following me on his F800GT .
( he has a test ride booked for next week on a low seat model)

We pulled onto the M40 North bound from A34 & gunned it :green gri
And the V85TT was well ahead, which suprised both of us.
( communicating via SENA SRL's ) ;)

I rode his bike 20 miles of the 40 odd miles upto Westcott for the first time yesterday, just so I could compare it against my 700GS 75 bhp, his 800GT 89 bhp & the V85TT's 80 bhp.

Would I have one, you bet your behind I would. :okay
Sometime in the future, health & wealth permiting.
I think as time goes by many more parts / options will become available, which longterm would assist my personal needs.

My 700GS is a terrific bike & I've got it as near perfect as I can for me, but it's rather soulless / bland & lacks character ( parallel twin) unlike the V85TT's V Twin.
The Guzzi looks great, even the Red & I dislike Red but luv Yellow :)

The pictures show the weather I encountered, which wasn't idea.
But I did get about 30 minutes of dry roads A34, A41, A43 & M40..

:thumb

A few things to follow up. I have a Red and White V85. Love it.

The travel edition you rode has a high screen, the stock screen is much lower. I am 6’2” and find the lower screen very noisy. I suspect a high screen would be worse.

Heated grips may be part of the Travel package but otherwise are an expensive option at £200+. The little white button to the right of the left hand switch cluster controls them. Spotlight switch is part of the main headlight switch on the RH cluster (off = eagle only, on/middle = dim eagle and dip, forward position adds the fog lights). High/low beam on left hand cluster awkwardly placed to caught by your index finger all the time.

I “upgraded” to the high comfort seat. Ummm, it’s ok. There is also a low seat option. Tbh you don’t hear much grumbling about the seats on the V85 FB pages and other forums.

I like the dash, brightness is configurable in the settings as is its sensitivity to switching to night mode.

Mode button switches between the various computer readouts on the dash. To switch riding modes (Street/rain/off road) double start the start button once the engine is running. The modes only alter the sensitivity of the ABS afaik.

The travel edition has the plastic Urban panniers. You can get Aluminium panniers and top box at about £600 the pair +£300 ish for the top box. These look better imho and from the pics would seem to fit lower.

Gear position indicator is a computer based calculated gear, ie if you are doing Xmph and Y rpm then your gear must be N. No sensor so a few euros cheaper and more reliable but means when the clutch is pulled in any calculation becomes nonsense so nothing is displayed.

Standard shock and forks are adjustable for preload and rebound damping. I have upgraded to a +30mm Wilbers at the rear for extra ride height and ground clearance as I found it touched down much too easily especially with the wife on the back. Her heels were the first to touch which she really didn’t like. I think the compression damping on the standard rear was too soft as touch down mostly happened when there was a dip in the road surface. Whatever, I also need to do something with the front end now.

I am hoping the pyramid plastics bring out its mudguard for the front as it should be more elegant than the Capo option. Not aware of a hugger for the rear yet.

I have also recently added a Mistral de-cat Y pipe, Carbon can and V boost. It now sounds as good as it looks and goes just that little bit better too.

It definitely a special bike is a V85TT. Moto Guzzi have a winner here.
 
I really do wish you people would stop disussing the merits and funness of this machine and thus bringing it back to the top of the Guzzie info list. Just gets me a wondering "What next?" and "What if?"

Darn, now I've gone and dragged it to the top of the listings :rolleyes:

SteveT

:cool:
 
I really do wish you people would stop disussing the merits and funness of this machine and thus bringing it back to the top of the Guzzie info list. Just gets me a wondering "What next?" and "What if?"

Darn, now I've gone and dragged it to the top of the listings :rolleyes:

SteveT

:cool:

I did offer you a ride on it. In fact we are hoping to up into Scotland some time between now and Octoberish, so....... Or if you are down or passing its always there. It sounds great with the new exhaust on too - lots of popping and cracking on overrun but not too loud on acceleration.
 
I did offer you a ride on it. In fact we are hoping to up into Scotland some time between now and Octoberish, so....... Or if you are down or passing its always there. It sounds great with the new exhaust on too - lots of popping and cracking on overrun but not too loud on acceleration.
STOP IT please :augie

I declined the opportunity to take a burl on it in Sept last year specifically because I suspected that I'd enjoy the experience . . . . and I still suspect that to be the case!

Be great to see you both if you do make it over the wall as planned - space here if you fancy!
We are thinking of visiting Wales in September, so will be passing you at least twice, so you never know, I may well be kncocking on your door for a cuppa :thumb2

SteveT

:cool:
 
I popped into Teasdales today to have a look at the V85 and there were two bikes outside , both the 2020 sandy colour which I don't really like but one had the Aprillia Caponord Rally front mudguard fitted and looked so much more complete .
I am going to book a test ride in the next month or so but if I buy new it will likely be in either the white/red paint scheme , the plain red or platinum grey
 
I have done it ! Took one for a test ride and loved it. Full of character, reminded me of my earlier BMW’s only it handles great. Tilts to right when revved on tickover and bars shake. Once going it’s great. No ball of fire but has got as much as you need for road riding so you have fun without getting points or losing your licence. Apart from a muddy track it won’t be going off road....but how many GS’s do

Just been away on it for weekend to Scottish border and loved all the twisties and even stirring it the bike averaged 65mpg

It’s old school but with a modern twist and puts a big smile on my face

And other than in the showrooms I haven’t seen another one in my 4 weeks of owning it and 1400 miles

It’s got SOUL And I love it
 

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I miss my 1200 Sport and I so want one of these but I know that I’d also miss my V4 which goes like a missile , also sounds awesome and the DCT just adds another dimension . I just can’t justify two Adventure bikes in the garage so for now I’ll have to dream. Enjoy :thumb
 


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