Yesterday at Cleveland Moto we had the pleasure of unboxing, prepping and taking the V9 Bobber and Roamer out for a initial shakedown ride.
Lets start with the Video...It's 5 minutes long and it's in HD, so, you may want to be sure you're on Wifi to try to watch it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBTlSslJ_dUHere are my initial reports:
Wow, the fit and finish on these bikes is fantastic, the paint is excellent, especially the Gold metallic on the Roamer.
The front tire on the Bobber is a 130, which is the same size that came on the BACK of Honda CB750's...it looks plenty beefy.
The clock / aka speedo / aka data center : Holy crap, initially I was really bummed that it didn't have a tach...but I'm beginning to see what they did here...
Here is a list of the information provided in this one instrument:
-Speed (duh) in Mph and Kph on a white faced gage with black numbers, the MPh is not hard to read.
-Gear Indicator N-1-2-3-4-5-6 are presented in the LCD window as you go along. There is also a green neutral light.
-Time
-Temperature
-Odometer and 2 trip meters
-Trip Timer
-Fuel Reserve light (switches tripmeter to temporarily start at 0)
-Ice warning
-Service reminder
-Oil Pressure warning
-Oil Temperature warning
-Average Speed
-Average Mileage
-Current fuel consumption
-Security Code (5 digit code you can enter yourself)
-MGCT traction control 1 (normal) and traction control 2 (Slippery) and OFF (Hooligan)
-A high and a low shift light.
There is a USB port under the seat that is switched and has a 1 amp max.
Yes, there is no tach...they've gone with shift lights instead, here's how it works:
You can set your own shift lights, one is called Gear Shift L and the Other is Gear Shift H - from the factory the bike comes with the Low shift light set at 4500 rpm for break in. When you accelerate beyond 4500 rpm the words GEAR SHIFT appears on the display and the General Alarm indicator light will flash. The factory setting for the High shift light is at 8000 rpm if you exceed that the word GEAR SHIFT will be seen on the dash and the General Alarm indicator light will remain constant. If you exceed the HIGH shift warning you will eventually run into the rev limiter.
Shift lights instead of a tach ---- i'm totally ok with it. I've not once in my life looked down at a tachometer to decide when to shift. After riding the bike around for a while I can tell you that I don't miss the tach. The abundance of information they've provided you with seems nearly impossible from 1 device on the handlebars.
The differences between the bikes:
The front end - yep the bobber has a 130/90-16 and the roamer has 100/90-19 front tire.
Both of them run a 150/80-16 in back. Pirelli Sport Demons on the Roamer and Continental Conti Milestones on the Bobber.
The Roamer has a traditional standard handlebar like you've seen on every other V7 Stone, Classic or Special.
The Bobber uses the perches / risers from the Griso-California and a very wide, pull-back "sons of anarchy" style straight bar.
As much as I really didn't think I would like the Bobber handlebars, they did feel very natural once headed down the road. Despite these wide feeling handlebars, the Bobber is actually 1" narrower than the Roamer.
I didn't feel any handling differences between the bikes, the Bobber felt more planted, but seriously that could all be down to the "attack" riding position of those handlebars and knowing that cement roller was out front. Both of them launched equally well and felt completely intuitive.
Seating, the seats on both are beautiful, not leather or vinyl, but a grippy upholstery that is even embroidered with the company name on the back. The roamer has the obligatory white piping and looks a bit taller, but I'm not certain. The Bobber seat definitely looks like a custom home-built cafe seat.
Both claim an under 31" saddle height. Both are either filled with gel or a very high density foam. People always complain about seats anyway, I'm sure this won't be an exception.
Gas tanks : Yep, they're the same, 4 gallons with 1 gallon of that being reserve. It seems impossible, but on my test ride yesterday I averaged 60 mpg according to the onboard meter, and I was definitely having some fun. I should remind folks that I know of a lot of scooters that don't get 60 mpg. Recommended fuel octane is 95 RON / 85 MON so, that equals 89 RM/2 at my gas station.
The Service Schedule - This bike has a VERY long service interval, your first service is at 900 miles followed by one at 6200 miles, then every 6200 after that.
Transmission oil is only to be changed at the first service and at 37,300 miles.
Final drive oil is only every 18,600 miles
My wrap up:
"I would have bought a V7, but I wanted more power, but a Griso was too much" Ok, if you're playing "Goldilocks and the 3 bears" and haven't bought a Guzzi yet, this is it.
I'm 6'1 and 200 lbs. This bike feels like it was cut for me. My 34" inseam knees don't hit the intakes, but that nice angle on the gas tank gives me something to clench when transitioning.
I can't wait until this bike is broken in and I'm going to do everything in my power to get our demo bike there as soon as possible. Right now, it's a hoot and I think the 850 motor is an excellent bridge between the 750 and the 1200. Way more friendly than the Griso / 1200 sport etc. I've heard it called the Spaghetti Sportster and that might not be a bad thing.
I'm going to ride it around a bit more and report back.
Phil Waters
www.clevelandmoto.c omhttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YBTlSslJ_dU
